Starý zámek in Chudenice

Starý zámek (the Old Castle) is the oldest family seat of the Czernin (Černín) noble family, standing in the small town of Chudenice on the edge of the Šumava region, in the Klatovy district of western Bohemia. What began as a Gothic stronghold was reshaped over the centuries into a Renaissance and later Baroque residence, and today the building houses a museum devoted to the Czernin family and to the scholar Josef Dobrovský.

Who owned the castle?

The Czernin family held Chudenice without interruption from 1291 to 1945, an unusually long, continuous ownership by a single family for a Czech estate. The earliest written record of a fortified stronghold on this site, the predecessor of the present castle, dates only to 1564, when the property was divided between the brothers Humprecht and Jan Czernin. Humprecht inherited the stronghold in Chudenice and, toward the end of the 16th century, had it rebuilt into a more comfortable Renaissance residence.

How did the castle's role change over time?

After 1678 the estate passed to the Jindřichův Hradec branch of the Czernin family, and Starý zámek ceased to be the main residence of the local line. The Chudenice Czernins moved their summer seat first to the château at Chocomyšl, and later to nearby Lázeň. A further major rebuilding was ordered in 1776 by Count Prokop Vojtěch Czernin, carried out to designs by the architect C. Balling; this gave the castle much of the form it has today, while still keeping the irregular window arrangement and floor plan reminiscent of a medieval fortress.

What can visitors see inside today?

The castle now houses a permanent exhibition on the history of the Czernin family, spread across more than a dozen rooms furnished with original pieces belonging to the Chudenice branch of the family. A separate part of the display is dedicated to Josef Dobrovský, the noted Czech linguist and Slavist connected with Chudenice, including early printed editions of his work. The ground floor covers the history of the town itself and other notable figures tied to it.

How does Starý zámek differ from the New Castle and the Lázeň château?

Chudenice and its surroundings hold three separate Czernin-family residences. Starý zámek, described above, is the oldest. The town also has a younger, Classicist building known as the New Castle (Nový zámek). The third, a small Empire-style spa château called Lázeňský zámek (Lázeň), was built at the end of the 18th century on the initiative of Jan Rudolf Czernin next to a healing spring on the slope of Žďár hill; guests there once included the historian František Palacký and the writer František Ladislav Čelakovský.

Where is Chudenice located?

Chudenice is a small town in the Klatovy district of the Plzeň Region, on the edge of the Šumava area in western Bohemia. The castle stands in the town centre and is its most recognisable landmark.

Frequently asked questions

Who built Starý zámek in Chudenice? It grew out of a Gothic stronghold belonging to the Czernin family, first recorded in 1564, which Humprecht Czernin had rebuilt into a Renaissance residence toward the end of the 16th century.

How long did the Czernin family hold Chudenice? Continuously from 1291 to 1945, one of the longest documented unbroken ownerships of an estate by a single family in Czech history.

What can you visit in the castle today? A permanent exhibition on the Czernin family history across more than a dozen period-furnished rooms, plus a display on the scholar Josef Dobrovský and the history of Chudenice.

How does Starý zámek differ from the Lázeň château? Starý zámek is the older, Gothic-Renaissance-Baroque family seat in the town centre, while Lázeňský zámek (Lázeň) is a smaller, Empire-style spa residence built at the end of the 18th century outside the centre, next to a healing spring.

Where exactly is the castle located? In the centre of Chudenice, a small town in the Klatovy district of the Plzeň Region, on the edge of Šumava in western Bohemia.