Skalní hrad Sloup / Sloup Rock Castle (Sloup v Cechách - North Bohemia)
N 50° 44.151 E 014° 34.862
33U E 470434 N 5620534
The ruins of medieval Sloup Rock Castle (Skalní hrad Sloup), located on the top of sandstone massive, is the main touristic destination in the small North Bohemian town Sloup v Cechách...
Waymark Code: WM8AR9
Location: Liberecký kraj, Czechia
Date Posted: 03/02/2010
Views: 176
The Sloup Rock Castle (Skalní hrad Sloup) was built probably at the end of the 13th century by House of Ronovci on a lonely inaccessible sandstone rock massive. The castle, around 1420 seat of robber knight Mikeš Pancír of Smolno, was almost impregnable because on one side it was protected by a row of ponds along the rock massive. However, the castle was conquered in the 1445 and left desolate and finally was burned down in 1639 by the Swedish army.
From the medieval structures remain only those parts carved into the rock. In 1670-1785 the dilapidated castle became a place for hermits, who adjusted it to their needs. Emperor Joseph II abolished the hermitage in end of 18th century and the Kinský noble family reconstructed the castle into a romantic summer residence.
In Sloup castle today you can find in rock carved chambers (corridors, a chapel - see photo, a dungeon in the shape of a jar, an armory), terraced galleries and a sculpture of a hermit...