Kumburk Castle, Syřenov, Czech Republic

At the beginning of the 14th century, the noble family of Vartemberk ordered the building of a castle on the hill near Nová Paka. It was originally called Goldenberk or Kolmburk, today`s Kumburk.

Because of massive renovation work, we do not know much about the original look of the castle. At the northeastern side, there are remnants of probably a walled fortification that may have been developed along the whole core structure. The fortification to protect against cannon attack is one of the best examples of the efforts made in the mid 15th century to protect places in an active way. From 1621 Kumburk was in the possession of Albrecht of Valdštejn. After his death, the castle changed hands several times and then, after 1658, Kumburk was nearly destroyed. In spite of that, nowadays it belongs among our most interesting castles.

The shortest way is from the railway station in Syřenov, along the yellow trail (3km). Other alternatives are Nová Paka and Stará Paka (4km) or the popular red tourist trail from Ploužnice (7km).

References:

cesky-raj.info

User Reviews

Michael Smith (Spike) (3 years ago)
Best 360 degree view in the area. No admission fee. Perfect:).

Josee Booij (5 years ago)
Nice spot! We really enjoyed the 360 view. 20min walk from the parking. But stunning views.

Katharina Scharf (5 years ago)
Beautiful area for little hiking tours. The view is nice and the forest around is cooling in summer.

Peter Rayden (5 years ago)
Beautiful ruins with some great views! Walk up and over the dam and then round to the castle to get the best lower views. Take some food to have a picnic at one of the beautiful spots on top.

janina .cz (8 years ago)
Nice views from nice old castle ruins. You can also go inside the only one room left. The top is under reconstruction, and you can buy some tourist stuff there too.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright discopalace

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Sigmaringen Castle

Sigmaringen Castle was first mentioned in the year 1077 in the chronicles of Petershausen monastery. The oldest parts of the castle are concealed beneath the alterations made during the 17th and the 19th centuries. The secret of the earliest settlement built on this defendable rock will never be fully revealed: large-scale excavation work would be necessary, which the extensive land development renders impossible. Judging from the many Roman remains unearthed in the area around Sigmaringen, the 12th century keep known as the 'Roman Tower' could be traced back to a Roman predecessor.

The castle remains that have been preserved (gate, great hall and keep) date back to the Staufer period around 1200. The castle remains were integrated into subsequent buildings. The foundations of the castle buildings are to a large extent identical to the surrounding castle wall.

These remains give us a good idea of how the castle might have looked during the 12th century.

Kumburk Castle

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