Hradec nad Moravicí Chateau

The chateau in Hradec nad Moravicí has been a meeting place for many world figures. Beethoven and Liszt gave concerts here, the local hunting grounds were admired by Chancellor Metternich and Russian Tsar Alexander I himself.

The chateau has a rich history, written by the royal Přemyslid families. It guarded the old provincial border between Moravia and Silesia. It acquired its present appearance during the reign of the last noblemen, the Prussian Lichnovsky family of Voštice. The complex consists of two parts, the White Chateau and the Red Chateau.

The Lichnovskis were lovers of art and patrons of the most famous musicians of their time. Karel Lichnovský was a pupil of the genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and the genius’s harpsichord imported from Vienna is on display in the chateau.

The story of Ludwig van Beethoven is most closely linked to Hradec nad Moravicí. Visitors to the chateau can still see the chamber in which Beethoven stayed. He composed his Appassionata at the chateau. It is said that when he was about to play it for the French officers, he quarrelled with Prince Karl Lichnovsky and fled the chateau to nearby Opava.

When the pianist Ferenc Liszt gave a concert at the chateau, Felix Lichnovsky bought a mahogany piano for him for 600 thalers. Liszt was a great success and his concerts were sold out. The Lichnovsky family founded the chateau park.

The breeding of merino sheep, for which the Russian Tsar Alexander I came to the chateau and which even gave rise to flocks of sheep in Australia, is also famous.

In the vicinity of the chateau, you can visit the Stations of the Cross on Kalvárie Hill or the admirable Weisshuhn Canal in Žimrovice, built at the end of the 19th century. Don’t skip the wonderful guided tours of the canal, during which you will learn what vajzunky or Pifka were, who was the Wallachian Edison, and taste what the men in the paper mills ate and drank. Lovers of aristocratic mansions will be delighted by the nearby Raduň Chateau.