Prague 4 - Kunratice Founded 1411 Royal Castle
Nový Hrádek Castle near Kunratice is the ruin of a royal castle built by King Wenceslas IV between 1411-1412 at the end of an elongated promontory surrounded by Kunratice Brook. This castle became the favorite residence of its builder, and it was here that Wenceslas IV died under dramatic circumstances on August 10, 1419.
Explore the interactive 3D model of Nový Hrádek Castle near Kunratice in the 3DČesko app and discover every detail of this fascinating monument. The model captures the probable appearance of the castle during its heyday, shortly after construction was completed.
This presentation is only available in the mobile app.
King Wenceslas IV purchased the Kunratice estate on May 15, 1407. Construction of the new castle on a greenfield site began in 1411. The construction director was Hertvin, a burgher from New Town, who supervised the scribe Blažej. The actual work was carried out by Master Kříž, whose work is also documented in the construction of the New Town Hall.
On June 20, 1411, the mason brothers Řehoř and Mařík Odrole committed to excavating a moat 15 cubits deep and 30 cubits wide in front of the New Castle. The castle's defensive capability was to be enhanced by a pond in the valley, whose construction was undertaken by Jakub Lamač on March 8, 1412. Construction proceeded very quickly - King Wenceslas IV was already residing at the New Castle in 1412, which assumes that the castle and especially its palace must have been completed and operational.
The New Castle became a favorite place for stays and meetings of its builder. Wenceslas died here under dramatic circumstances on August 10, 1419. During the turbulent events of 1420, the New Castle twice hosted Emperor Sigismund and the Queen Dowager. The castle represented a strong stronghold of the royalist party in the Prague area.
Taking advantage of the favorable situation created by the defeat of Sigismund's troops in the Battle of Vyšehrad on November 1, 1420, the citizens of Prague decided to destroy the castle. On December 31, a large Prague army arrived before the castle, where they established the famous siege camp that remains uniquely preserved in the terrain to this day.
The besiegers' artillery soon managed to destroy the defensive parapets, so that by January 25, the castle garrison under the lord of Fulštejn surrendered. Following a property incident the next day, the Praguers stormed the castle, plundered it, and burned it on January 28. The castle remained in ruins and was never rebuilt.
The castle received attention only in the 18th century. The then-owner of the estate, Jan Arnošt of Golč, had a round chapel of St. John of Nepomuk built in 1736. A gamekeeper's lodge with a garden was established near it. However, the Baroque chapel did not last long - it was abolished in 1787.
A more serious danger to the castle was posed by intensive slate mining for whetstones, which began at the southern foot of the castle hill and gradually penetrated into the courtyard. Around 1850, Edvard Herold drew the ruins - the drawing is dominated by a high, at least two-story rectangular building with three rectangular windows on the floors, probably the palace still standing at considerable height.
True disaster came to the ruins with the onset of Romanticism. The picturesque ruin in close proximity to Prague attracted increasing numbers of visitors. When it proved impossible to prevent the influx of visitors, the Kunratice estate administration decided in 1881 on a radical solution and had all the higher walls demolished to deprive the site of its attractiveness.
At the end of the first third of the 20th century, the desolate castle site was purchased by the City of Prague, and at the initiative of the Monument Board of the Capital City of Prague, with grants from the Ministry of Education and National Enlightenment, extensive archaeological research began here on May 7, 1928, under the professional direction of Dr. L. Jansová from the State Archaeological Institute.
The research took place in 1928-1929 and was one of the first modern excavations of Czech medieval archaeology. During the research, a substantial part of the northern side of the castle site was excavated, primarily the second gate, the palace, and the structure at the front of the castle before it. The excavated masonry was partially secured by builder Libánský.
In connection with growing interest in Hussite issues in the early 1950s, the uniquely preserved siege camp underwent exploratory archaeological research in 1953. From the early 1970s, comprehensive surface surveys were conducted at the castle, and ceramic finds were evaluated, which are of key importance for understanding the material culture of central Bohemia in the early 15th century.
The New Castle was founded at the end of an elongated promontory surrounded by Kunratice Brook. Like other royal castles, it had no outer bailey. The castle layout had a two-part structure of roughly oval shape.
The castle core of semi-elliptical floor plan had an entrance gate on the east and was enclosed on all sides by a high curtain wall about 2 m thick. Behind the curtain wall probably stood a large round tower. On the best-protected southwestern side, a residential building - the palace - adjoined the enclosing wall, whose outer wall was supported by three high buttress pillars.
The castle's defensive capability was ensured by a deep moat (15 cubits = about 9 meters deep and 30 cubits = about 18 meters wide) and a pond in the valley. The rapid construction with precise contracts and penalties for non-compliance demonstrates good organization of construction work.
The 3D model of Nový Hrádek Castle near Kunratice in the 3DČesko app captures the probable appearance of this royal castle during its heyday, shortly after completion in 1412. The model was created using advanced photogrammetry and allows visitors to virtually walk through the places where King Wenceslas IV resided.
Nový Hrádek Castle near Kunratice is located in Kunratice Forest in the territory of Prague 4, in the Kunratice district. The ruins are freely accessible and represent a popular destination for walks by residents of southwestern Prague. Since 1965, it has been protected as a cultural monument.
Nový Hrádek Castle near Kunratice is the most famous and attention-attracting castle in the territory of today's Prague outside the walls of the historic core. The site belongs to our historically best-documented castles - numerous mentions document its origin, construction, short life, and violent destruction.
The castle is an important witness to the dramatic events of the early 15th century - Wenceslas IV died here, key political events of the Hussite era took place here. The preserved siege camp is a unique testimony to Hussite military strategy and tactics.
