Černín Palace

Czernin Palace stands on Hradčany Square in Prague 1, right next to Prague Castle, and ranks among the largest Baroque palaces in the city. Since 1934 it has served as the seat of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Who commissioned the palace, and why?

The building was commissioned by Count Humprecht Jan Czernin, an imperial diplomat who served as ambassador in Venice. He wanted a residence so imposing it would outshine even the nearby Wallenstein Palace. His model was Palazzo Chigi-Odescalchi in Rome, and he initially hoped to hire its architect, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, in person. When that proved impossible, he turned instead to Francesco Caratti, an Italian architect from the Como region who was then working in Prague.

When was it built, and by whom?

Construction began in 1669. The shell of the building was raised by Prague master builders Jan de Capauli and Abraham Leitner, following Caratti's design, and was structurally complete by 1673. Interior decoration and finishing touches, however, dragged on for decades and were only concluded under the founder's grandson.

What makes the architecture distinctive?

The main façade stretches roughly 140 metres, one of the longest of any Baroque building in Prague. It is divided rhythmically by a colonnade of thirty colossal Corinthian half-columns resting on tall plinths cut with sharp diamond-point rustication. The same bold rustication covers the lower storey, contrasting with the plainer window bays above - a hierarchy of surfaces typical of the grand Roman Baroque manner that Caratti brought north with him.

What happened to the palace in the 20th century?

After Czechoslovak independence, the state took over the building, and in 1923 the government earmarked it for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A year later, architect Pavel Janák won the competition to adapt it, and reconstruction works carried out between 1929 and 1934, following Caratti's original plans, gave the palace its current representative form. It has housed the ministry without interruption ever since, from 1934 to today.

The palace's darkest chapter came on 10 March 1948, when Jan Masaryk, the foreign minister and son of Czechoslovakia's first president, was found dead in the courtyard below his official apartment, having fallen from a bathroom window. The death came only weeks after the Communist takeover of the government. It was officially ruled a suicide, but the circumstances have never been fully resolved, and Czech police have reopened the investigation more than once over suspicions of murder.

Can visitors go inside today?

Because the palace is a working government ministry, it is not open to casual walk-in visitors. Access to the State Rooms is limited to occasional open days, and the ministry also offers a virtual tour of the interiors online. The exterior, however, is easy to admire from Hradčany Square, a short walk from Prague Castle and the Loreta monastery, and it remains a fixture of any walk through the Hradčany district.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is Czernin Palace located? On Hradčany Square in Prague's Hradčany district (Prague 1), directly next to Prague Castle and close to the Loreta monastery.

Who designed the palace? Italian architect Francesco Caratti, working in a style modeled on Bernini's Palazzo Chigi-Odescalchi in Rome.

Is the palace open to the public? Not on a regular basis - it houses the active Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The State Rooms can occasionally be visited on open days, and a virtual tour is available online.

What historical event is the palace best known for? The unexplained death of Foreign Minister Jan Masaryk in March 1948, found dead beneath the window of his official residence inside the palace.