Žihobce Castle

Žihobce Castle is an early Baroque manor house standing in the village of Žihobce in the Klatovy District of the Plzeň Region, a few kilometres from the nearby village of Rozsedly that belongs to the same municipality. Today the building houses an elementary school and a museum dedicated to the Lamberg family, while the grounds are protected both as a cultural monument and as the habitat of a rare bat species.

How did the castle's history begin?

On the site of today's castle once stood a medieval fortified manor, first recorded in written sources in the 14th century as the seat of a local knightly family. The building did not survive in its original form: during the Hussite Wars, after 1420, it was burned down by the forces of Jan Žižka in retaliation for the anti-Hussite stance of the local lord. After being rebuilt, the seat was captured and demolished once again by royal troops under the rule of George of Poděbrady.

Who rebuilt the seat into the castle seen today?

The Kocs of Dobrš family raised a new, Renaissance-style fortified residence on the same spot. In 1617, the owner Lidmila Kocová sold the estate to Jaroslav Pinta Bukovanský of Bukovany, who lost the property only six years later for taking part in the Bohemian Estates Uprising, after which the estate passed to Emperor Ferdinand II. The turning point came in 1688, when the estate's owner at the time, Ferdinand Isellin of Lanau, converted the fortified seat into a Baroque castle: a rectangular, single-storey building with a raised ground floor and slightly projecting risalits on its sides, a form the building has kept to this day.

What role did the Lamberg family play?

In 1710, the Žihobce estate was bought by Cardinal Jan Filip, Count of Lamberg, who incorporated it into the family's extensive entailed estate. The Lambergs remained owners of the castle until 1945, and it was they who laid out the castle park surrounding the building. After the Second World War the property was nationalised and the building was managed by the local agricultural cooperative. Only after 1989, through restitution, did the castle return to private ownership.

What can visitors see inside the castle today?

Since 2012, the western wing of the building has housed a museum dedicated to the history of the Lamberg family and the surrounding region, known as the Lamberg Trail. Visitors can see reconstructed 19th-century living quarters, including a gilded eight-armed wooden chandelier and a piano made by a noted period craftsman. The exhibition also includes a Biedermeier flower table. A separate part of the display is devoted to nature: the castle attic is home to a colony of the lesser horseshoe bat, a species rare in Europe, which is why the site has been protected since 2013 as an area of Community importance. The castle itself has been protected as a cultural monument since 1964. The rest of the building has long served as the seat of the local elementary school.

What else is worth seeing nearby?

Standing right next to the castle is the Church of the Transfiguration, which can be viewed through grilles fitted into its entrance. The park surrounding the castle is currently undergoing revitalisation, with new walking paths being laid out.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is Žihobce Castle located? The castle stands in the centre of the village of Žihobce, in the Klatovy District of the Plzeň Region, in the same municipality as the nearby village of Rozsedly.

Can the castle be visited? Yes, its western wing houses the Lamberg Trail museum, open since 2012, which presents the history of the Lamberg family alongside restored period interiors.

Who owned the castle last before nationalisation? Until 1945 the estate belonged to the Lamberg family, who had held it since 1710.

Why is the castle grounds protected as a nature site? The castle attic shelters a colony of the lesser horseshoe bat, a rare European bat species, which is why the site has also been under nature protection since 2013 as an area of Community importance.