Bojnice Castle

A small town Bojnice is located in the Western part of Slovakia at the foot of the mountains. Its population is below 5 000 people but regardless of this small fgure, the town has a rich history.

The history of Bojnice Castle

According to archeologic research, the frst lime buildings appeared here in the IX century. However, if we take a look at the historical document, we can see that there were stone and wooden houses here in the XII century. Bojnice Castle was mentioned the same time dominating the whole town.

This castle is one of the oldest in Europe and was initially made of wood. Later it was reconstructed and the wood was substituted by stone. Bojnice Castle had several upgrades during its history. They depended on architectural preferences of a particular time. In the XVI century, for example, the gothic style receives some traits of the Renaissance. This upgrade was ordered by the head of Turzo family. However, one century later Bojnice castle was modernized again and it was restyled again receiving Barokko traits. In 1852 there were made some crucial changes in the appearance of the castle when Jan Frantisek Palf decided to modernize it again and include some Romanticism traits. It is to mention that the castle was never ruined completely.

There are also many other things to see there aside from splendid architecture. The legendary lime of Mateja king is situated opposite the main gates of the castle. The age of the tree is about 700-800 years and its diameter is 15 meters. This is a true Slovakian natural legacy, which has seen the times of knights and kings. 

Each hallway and each hall of the castle may be described as the masterpiece of the architectural philosophy. Each space has it sown style, refned decoration, and furniture with rich upholstery. There is a room made in Turkish style here. There is another room decorated with dozens of angels. All those features are the legacy of multiple kings of this country. This is why the security follows you everywhere here and there are special conditions to make a simple photo inside.

This fairy tale environment inspires both tourists and famous scenarists. This castle hosted the flming of a famous The Cave of the Golden Rose series. Regardless of the variety of the elements of décor including pictures, carpets, tapestries, mirrors, dinner services, you can't say that everything is tacky here. This combination of items fts well.

The altar deserves particular attention. It is situated in one of the spaces on the frst floor. The canvases were created by an Italian artist in the XVI century. There is a true knights hall above this space. It is austere which is unusual for this very castle. To reach this knights hall, you need to take marble steps, made in the rock. This element is monumental.

Along with bright spaces decorated with gold and silk, there are also dark cellars full of mystery. Palf tomb where the latest castle owner rests is shrouded by secrets. A strange liquid started to ooze from the tomb right after the death of duke. The scientists were unable to understand the nature of the liquid. There are caves under the castle, which were home for humans during the Stone Age.

All this legacy became public today as the museum works 24/7. The castle became an exhibition thanks to Jan Palf who mentioned this in his testament. Jan didn't want to leave the castle to his family as he was disappointed in love and was alone, left by everybody. Despite all the disputes within the family, the Slovakian government decided to create a museum here after the fre of 1950.

If you know in advance when you are going to visit the castle, you need to learn what events will take place at that time. You can watch theatrical performances here, inspired by the local legends and fairy tales. Most of them are connected to the ghosts, who live in the castle. Once the tour is done, you can walk through the town. Here you can fnd the oldest Slovakian zoo. There are also healing mineral sources, thermal pools, and beautiful caves. The town is rich in religious monuments like any other old town in Europe.