Rabštejn castle

Less perceptible ruins of the highest located medieval castle in Moravia from nineties of the 13th century and an administration centre of Rabštejn (later of Janovice) domain, the north-western part of the Rýmařov region, these ruins prop on three rocky knots on the top of the hill, which is covered with mixed forest and there is a nice view on surrounding valleys and the plains in the Northern Moravia. The founder of the castle was probably a big colonist Hrabiš from Švábenice. The castle got into the hands of Jindřich from Lipá shortly after its foundation or to his allies, who fought against the king Jan Lucemburský. The castle was conquered by the Olomouc bishop Konrád in 1317 and he gave it to the king. Proček from Vildberk held the castle in pledge in 1405 that used the wars between Moravian margraves at the turn of the 14th and 15th century to richen himself. Rabštejn was conquered together with the Rýmařov town castle by the municipal units and Proček was captured. Zikmund Lucemburský pledged the castle and the domain to catholic allies during Hussite wars, but they were probably maintaining armed truce with the Hussite Sovinec. During the reign of Jiří from Poděbrady his loyal friends Calixtines Tunklové from Brníčko took on the administration of the castle and after the occupation of Moravia by the Hungarian king Mathias Corvin he led together with the Sovinec people a small war against his troops and traitors from the side of Moravian nobility. He did not stop with his resistance even after the death of rightful Czech king. Part of the domain was devastated during the crusade of Hungary on Nisko and Rabštejn was for a short period of time occupied. After the foundation of the Janovice fortress, new administrative centre of the domain, and later after the foundation of the castle, Rabštejn started to waste away and it was the thirty years war, which led to its reconstruction and enlargement to recoverable areas after its conquest by Swedish army. The situation repeated after their departure in 1650, but the walls were repaired for the last time when the land was endangered by Turkish army, but after their defeat by Vienna, firmness lost its meaning and the castle gradually got desolated into today's appearance. Rabštejn cliffs serve lately as a training terrain for beginner rock climbers. Except for Rabštejn, it is possible to find the ruins of the Strálek caste approximately 2 km away from Rýmařov and ruins of Pustý zámek about the Rešovské waterfalls.

Strálek castle

The remnants of the castle was strategically situated above the road from Rýmařov to Uničov, it can be found about 3 km southwest of Rýmařov. Its name was recorded for the first time in 1282 on the copy of the seal of its probable founder Beneš from Štítina – „de Strálek“. Around the year 1323, the title „from Strálek“ was also used by his descendants Zbyněk and Dobeš. At that time the importance of the castle started to decline gradually.

Later the castle was bought by lords from Valečov but they sold it immediately around 1352 to the Czech king Charles IV and in the 1st half of the 14th century in turned into an uninhabited ruin. An easy track marked with red signs goes to the castle ruins oriented to the south from Rýmařov along which you will get to the crossroad „Pod Strálkem“ and here you take the red signed turning od 300 m towards the castle ruins.

Sovinec castle

Extraordinary beautiful castle was founded on the rocky cliff in the years 1329-1332 by the Nobles from Huzová, bishop men and from these dates also sovereign Nobles of Sovinec. They were fighting on both sides during Hussite wars, but the owners of the castle, Hussite marshal stayed devoted to the Calix side. They are a permanent threat to the powerful catholic Olomouc and we could find them in many important battles. It seems that Prokop Holý (Prokop the Bold) was negotiating on Sovinec in 1428 with the pretender of the Czech throne, Polish prince Zikmund Korybutovič. The Nobles of Sovinec maintained loyalty to Jiří from Poděbrady and his successor Vladislav Jagellonský and their rival and usurper Mathias Corvin devastated the domain in August 1474. The last heirs died out in 1543. Kryštof from Boskovice took the domain and he enlarged the castle into a comfortable renaissance residence. His successor Vavřinec Eder from Štiavnice continued in his work, but he modernized also the fortification. Jan Kobylka from Kobylí, the seal protector of Mathias Habsburg, participant in the Czech order's uprising and the last Czech owner sold the domain in 1623 to the order of German Knights, which strengthened the endangered stability by modern bastions and underhung fortress called Lichtenštejnska. Despite these changes the castle was in 1626 conquered by Danes and in 1643 the castle could not resist for a long time to Swedish siege and the garrison gave up. After years of dilapidation the castle was in 19th century significantly renovated by the knights into a clerical seminar and later into a renowned forestry school. The Knight order was destroyed in 1938 by Nazis and a lot of friars had to go to the concentration camps. The Sovinec castle was destroyed by a fire in May 1945 under even now unclear circumstances. This fire was made by leaving Wehrmacht units or rather by Soviet army. More important renovation was started in nineties. It would take a long time before the castle would get back its original face. Gates of this magic dominant of forested valley are open to the visitors from April to September every year.

Janovice castle

Former late gothic fortress was built in 1520-30 by pledger Petr from Žerotín. Well-educated nobleman Ferdinand Hoffman from Grünbüchl both the royal domain in 1583 into hereditary tenancy, he was the president of the court chamber, courtier, close friend of Rudolf II. and a cousin of the last Rožmberks Vilém and Petr Vok. The construction works started in 1586 and the fortress changed into a pleasant renaissance castle. When Ferdinand left Prague imperial court because of his Lutheran belief, Janovice became his asylum. Excellent financier and mining expert built smelting works on his domain according to his local model and he was the impulse, which caused modernization of the whole iron works in our lands. Chapel in the form of roundel was added to the castle in 1656-8 and shortly before the death of Wolfgang Bedřich in 1663 was the castle reconstructed into early baroque style by the constructor Alessandro Canneval. After the Dietrichstein period went the domain by marriage to widow Marie Arnoštka from Gallas into the tenancy of Jilemnice Earls of Hrrach and the castle was the secondary residence of the Czech family. Ferdinand Bonaventura executed in 1763-5 significant reconstruction of the castle with the help of an important constructor Gottfried Weisser in the late baroque style. He did the southern wing and a part of the eastern wing in the shape of opened letter L. Enormously spacious, perfect and valuable building was constructed. The castle clock started to strike in 1764 and the brewery extension was finished in 1766. Today's look of the castle was finished in 1827-50. The inside modifications were done in the 19th and 20th century and the last outside modifications come from 1901. The castle became a permanent residence of the Janovice family of Harrach during the ownership of Karel Alfréd in the second half of the 19th century. The family line died out in 1937 by the death of an expert in agriculture and philanthropist František Arnošt. His daughter Anna Marie was the last owner, the wife of Hungarian diplomat František Zikmun Rosta – Forgache from Barkocz. The hardest moment began after 1945. The property confiscated by Nazis, who were pursuing the family, part of the inventories was exported to Hungary, some parts of it were placed at the Liběchov castle and majority of it was destroyed or stolen. A certain improvement was achieved by the arrival of the Archive of the Olomouc region in 1949 and other funds were added later. The archive was placed on deposit in 2002 in Opava and Olomouc. The castle is empty with signs of insensitive treatment, but dry and not in unchangeable condition. Even though the costs are going to be large, its revitalization is not a problem.

Hradek in Rýmařov

The wooden administration centre of Přemyslovci, which was fortified by rampart and a massive trench was founded on the loess hillock near the right bank of the Podolský brook in the precolonisation settlement period (1st half of the 13th century). A smallish town Rýmařov was founded under the protection of the fortress in 1269-78 in the German colonization times after the war extinction of older settlement. Rýmařov was formed by the marketplace and one circular street. They rebuilt the settlement in the same period into a partially stone town castle. Its important development was caused by a significant enlargement of the palace and other internal building during the first half of the 14th century. It has become the most important strategic place in the defence of the town after building of the town walls. By the end of 13th century was on the castle in the south of the palace gained gold from surrounding mines by a very modern smelting on special slats The peak of the hillock Hrádek was in the second half of the 14th century significantly raised by the mound and because of the pressure of events there was again built a wooden fortress on the same place, which was fenced by a polish fence and a palisade. From 1398 the Moravian margraves pledged the Rabštejn domain to its creditors starting from the period of civil wars. The first pledger Proček from Vildberk misused the situation, which caused the intervention of the provincial troops after the peace was made. Hrádek was together with Rabštejn and the whole Rýmařov conquered and burnt down in August 1405. It was never renovated again. After the fall of the castle settled in its former area firstly the market and later the producer of a really original renaissance ceramics. A systematic research was conducted here in 1969-88 and it is therefore nowadays protected archaeological locality. Its area is used by the Town Museum as a part of the geological exposition of the Jeseníky minerals and there is the replica of the castle palace bases with warming furnace from the end of the 13th century, which could be found above former bases.

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