Originally a Gothic castle, founded in the mid-13th century, Náchod Castle was rebuilt in the 16th and 17th centuries during the tenure of the Smiřický family into a Mannerist castle. Its present architectural form was gained during renovations and interior modifications in the 17th and 18th centuries, when it was held by the Italian noble family of Piccolomini. The Early Baroque Spanish Hall spreads over two floors, and there are unique collections of tapestries as well as Baroque flower still lifes. Besides the Smiřickýs of Smiřic and the Piccolominis, other important owners of Náchod included the Duke of Courland and Sagan and the German princely Schaumburg-Lippe family.
References:The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.