Kašperk Castle

Kašperk Castle (Czech: hrad Kašperk, German: Karlsberg) is a medieval castle placed in southwestern Bohemia (modern Czech Republic, former Kingdom of Bohemia). It is said to be the most highly located royal castle in Bohemia. Its elevation is 886 metres (2,907 ft) above sea level). The castle is in property of the Town of Kašperské Hory since 1616.

Kašperk Castle was founded in 1356 by Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia Charles IV to protect Bohemia's borders. Historians and scholars believe the castle was built, primarily, for three reasons. The first was about security. Bohemia needed to bolster their border defense against Bavaria. Secondly, the castle's location was chosen so as to allow for absolute control over the gold-rich region near Kašperské Hory/Bergreichenstein. The third reason for building Kašperk Castle was because Kašperk lay in the path of the "Golden Route," a trade route that connected Bohemia and Bavaria to the affluent areas of western Europe.

A royal castle in name and status, the Kašperk Castle, however, had no royal occupant. The castle was given over to the king's pledge holders. Along with the castle, the occupant of the Kašperk castle also received from the king the authority over administrative and judicial matters in the region of Prácheň, which encompassed a significant part of southwestern Bohemia.

The Kašperk Castle's first pledge holders were the second archbishop of Prague and the first Czech cardinal, Jan Očko of Vlašim. From 1411 to 1454 Kašperk Castle was in the hands of the house of Zmrzlík of Svojšín and Orlík. The father and son of this house, both named Peter, oversaw a relatively peaceful time in the castle's history. Peter, the father, was a royal moneyer. He and his son were followers of Utraquism, which was also endorsed by the Hussite. It was this allegiance of the Peters that the Hussites never attacked the castle. The younger Peter, on the other hand, made numerous raids on the neighboring catholic Bavaria.

During the mid-15th century ownership of the Kašperk Castle passed to the hands of the powerful Šternberkové/Sternberg family of Šternberk/Sternberg. The family held immense sway over the region. This powerful and lucrative position in the region made Zdeněk of Šternberk ambitious, and in 1465 he led an armed revolt against King George of Poděbrady.

Text adapted from “Kašperk Castle” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Kašperk Castle ranks #2,650 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #72 of the 200 mapped in Czech Republic. Founded 1356, it is older than 57% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 582 atlas entries founded in the 14th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 2,649 times in the last 60 days, more than 72% of the atlas. Wikidata records about 45,000 visitors in 2022. 4 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Plzeň, 65 km away. It is one of the 156 landmarks on the atlas's regional map of Bohemia. See how Czech Republic compares in the castle statistics.

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