The Dominican Monastery in Ústí nad Labem was founded in 1186. The church was remodelled in Baroque style in 1718-1722 during extensive reconstruction designed by Litoměřice architect Octavio Broggio. At the wish of the Prior of Ústí, he based his design of the St Adalbert Church on the model of the Prague Church of St Ursula. Under the communist regime it was used for storage and later on, whitewashed and stripped of all furnishings, converted into an exhibition hall. The wall paintings from 1928 were probably by Albin Müller. The original monastery was a single-wing structure at first (in 1617-1650), its enlargement being impossible for financial and political reasons, the second wing was added during the Baroque reconstruction. The south wall of the church and monastery merges with the city walls.
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.