jump to the content

Gardens and Castle at Kroměříž

Gardens and Castle at Kroměříž

Kroměříž stands on the site of an earlier ford across the River Morava, at the foot of the Chriby mountain range which dominates the central part of Moravia. The gardens and castle of Kroměříž are an exceptionally complete and well-preserved example of a European Baroque princely residence and its gardens.

Jardins et château de Kroměříž

Kroměříž est situé sur un ancien gué traversant la Morava, au pied des monts Chriby, qui dominent le centre de la Moravie. Les jardins et le château de Kroměříž offrent un exemple exceptionnellement complet et bien conservé de résidence princière baroque européenne et de ses jardins.

حدائق كروميهرجيج وقصرها

تقع كروميهرجيج على معبر قديم يجتاز منطقة مورافا أسفل جبال خرشيب المطلة على وسط مورافيا. وتجسد حدائق كروميهرجيج وقصرها مثالاً فريداً متكاملاً محفوظاً على مساكن الأمراء الأوروبية الباروكية الطراز وحدائقها.

source: UNESCO/ERI

克罗麦里兹花园和城堡

克罗麦里兹坐落在横贯摩拉瓦河(the River Morava)的一处浅滩上,位于占据了摩拉维亚中心位置的赫日比山(Chriby mountain)山脚下。克罗麦里兹的花园和城堡是一处保存完好的欧洲巴洛克式的王族宅邸及花园的稀世典范。

source: UNESCO/ERI

Сады и замок Кромерица

Кромериц расположен на месте существовавшей в прошлом переправы через реку Морава, у подножия горного массива Хржибы, возвышающегося над центральной частью Моравии. Сады и замок Кромерица – исключительный архитектурный ансамбль, хорошо сохранившийся образец величественной постройки  в стиле европейского барокко с садами.

source: UNESCO/ERI

Jardines y castillo de Kroměříž

Situados junto a un antiguo vado del río Morava, al pie de la cadena montañosa de Chriby que domina el centro de Moravia, el castillo y los jardines de la ciudad de Kroměříž ofrecen un ejemplo excepcionalmente completo de residencia principesca barroca en admirable estado de conservación.

source: UNESCO/ERI

クロミェルジーシュの庭園群と城

source: NFUAJ

Tuinen en kasteel in Kroměříž

Kroměříž werd halverwege de 13e eeuw een versterkte stad, toen er een gotisch fort werd gebouwd en bloeide in de daaropvolgende eeuwen. Het is gebouwd op een vroegere doorwaadbare plaats aan de overkant van de rivier de Morava, aan de voet van de Chriby bergketen die het centrale deel van Moravië domineert. De tuinen en het kasteel van Kroměříž zijn een bijzonder compleet en goed bewaard gebleven voorbeeld van een Europese barokke prinselijke residentie met bijbehorende tuinen. Het complex heeft een belangrijke rol gespeeld in de ontwikkeling van het barokke paleis- en tuinontwerp in Centraal-Europa.

Source: unesco.nl

  • English
  • French
  • Arabic
  • Chinese
  • Russian
  • Spanish
  • Japanese
  • Dutch
Gardens and Castle at Kromeríz
Justification for Inscription

Criterion (ii): The ensemble at Kroměříž, and in particular the Pleasure Garden, played a significant role in the development of Baroque garden and palace design in central Europe.

Criterion (iv): The Gardens and Castle at Kroměříž are an exceptionally complete and well preserved example of a princely residence and its associated landscape of the 17th and 18th centuries.

Long Description

The Gardens and Castle at Kroměříž are an exceptionally complete and well-preserved example of a princely residence and its associated landscape of the 17th and 18th centuries. The ensemble, and in particular the pleasure garden, played a significant role in the development of Baroque garden and palace design in central Europe

Kroměříž did not achieve the status of a fortified until the mid-13th century, when a Gothic fort was constructed, and the town prospered in the succeeding centuries. In 1497 Stanislav Thurzo became Bishop of Olomouc and he set about reconstructing and modernizing his castle at Kroměříž. At first this work was carried out using the late Gothic style of the period, but Renaissance elements began to filter in as the work progressed. Bishop Thurzo also established a garden, comprising orchard, kitchen garden and flower garden, which was praised by King Vladislav II when he visited Kroměříž in 1509.

The castle suffered grievously in the Thirty Years' War when the town was sacked by the Swedish army in 1643, a disaster that was followed by an outbreak of plague two years later. When Count Karel Liechtenstein-Castelcorn became Bishop of Olomouc in 1664, the town's fortunes began to change. He undertook many building projects and brought in the talented imperial civil engineer and architect Filiberto Lucchese, who designed an entirely new pleasure garden (Lustgarten ) for him after having brought the ruined castle back into a habitable state. When Lucchese died in 1666, his work was taken over by Giovanni Pietro Tencalla; the work on the garden was not completed until 1675. Once it was finished Tencalla's attention turned to the design and construction of a magnificent Episcopal castle and residence.

The castle was affected by the fire that swept through the town in March 1752. Bishop Leopold Bedrich Eglik oversaw the restoration, bringing in artists and craftsmen to carry out the work. The first archbishop, Colloredo-Waldsee, was responsible for the restyling of the castle garden in accordance with the Romantic approach of the late 18th century; the pleasure garden, however, preserved its Baroque geometrical layout. The work on the castle garden continued well into the 19th century, with the construction of arcades, bridges and even a model farmstead. Much of this work was carried out under the supervision of the architect Antonín Arche between 1830 and 1845.

The main building of the castle is a free-standing structure with four wings round a trapezoidal central courtyard and rising to three storeys, with an attic half-storey above. The ground floor is set on a high platform, built to compensate for the uneven nature of the ground. It was originally surrounded by a moat, filled in 1832. In the interior, the first floor is, according to custom, the piano nobile, where the main rooms were located - Throne Room, Conference Hall and two dining rooms; the second floor houses the guest rooms, the Library, the Vassal or Feudal Hall and the Chapel. On the garden front of the castle there is a small Baroque terrace garden, the giardino segreto , which is approached by an arcaded corridor with a double staircase, known as the Colloredo Colonnade and built in 1795.

The castle is linked to the castle garden through spacious ground-floor rooms with grottoes opening out of them, one of them reproducing a mine. Within the garden there are several important architectural features. A semi-circular colonnade in classical style was built in 1846 to house sculptures from Pompeii. On the western periphery Max's Farmstead is a luxurious building in French Empire style, with an impressive colonnade and projecting wings. Cast iron, produced at the archiepiscopal foundry, was used for the elegant Little Silver, Vase and Little Lantern bridges. The pleasure garden, in the south-western part of the historic centre of Kroměříž, is a formal garden in the Italian style, entered by an arcaded gallery which contains many statues and busts.

Source: UNESCO/CLT/WHC
Historical Description

The history of Kromeríz began with the establishment of a settlement in the floodplain of the Morava river in the 9th century AD during the Greater Moravian Period. By the 12th century, when it belonged to the Bishopric of Olomouc, the original fortified site had disappeared. It did not achieve the status of a fortified town again until the mid-13th century, when a Gothic fort was constructed. The town prospered in the succeeding centuries, becoming the centre of the organization of vassals of the episcopal domains.

In 1497 the wealthy and well-connected Stanislav Thurzo became Bishop of Olomouc. He set about reconstructing and modernizing his castle at Kromeríz. At first this work was carried out using the Late Gothic style of the period, but Renaissance elements began to filter in as the work progressed. Bishop Thurzo also established a garden, comprising orchard, kitchen garden, and flower garden, which was praised by King Vladislav II when he visited Kromeríz in 1509.

Thurzo's successors made minor modifications and additions to his castle. The castle suffered grievously in the Thirty Years' War when the town was sacked by the Swedish army in 1643, a disaster followed by an outbreak of plague two years later. It was not until Count Karel Liechtenstein-Castelcorn became Bishop of Olomouc in 1664 that the town's fortunes began to change. He wanted the town where he lived to have an aristocratic air, and so he undertook many building projects, as well as compelling the burghers to renew their buildings and equipment.

He brought in the talented Imperial civil engineer and architect Filiberto Lucchese, who designed an entirely new Pleasure Garden (Lustgarten) for him after having brought the ruined castle back into a habitable state. When Lucchese died in 1666, his work was taken over by his successor as Imperial architect, Giovanni Pietro Tencalla; the work on the Garden was not completed until 1675.

Once the garden was finished Tencalla's attention turned to the design and construction of a magnificent episcopal castle and residence. This was to be his masterpiece, in the tradition of the north Italian Baroque school of Genoa and Turin. Nonetheless, it respected its Gothic predecessor, elements of which were blended into the new complex. Meanwhile, Bishop Karel was furnishing the interiors, creating a picture gallery that contained many masterpieces.

The castle was affected by the fire that swept through the town in March 1752. Bishop Leopold Bedrich Eghk oversaw the restoration, bringing in artists and craftsmen to carry out the work, notably the Viennese painter Franz Anton Maulbertsch and the Moravian artists Josef Stern.


The see was raised to an archbishopric in 1777 and the first archbishop, Colloredo-Waldsee, was responsible for the restyling of the Castle Garden in accordance with the romantic approach of the late 18th century. The Pleasure Garden, however, preserved its Baroque geometrical layout. The work on the Castle Garden continued well into the 19th century, with the construction of arcades, bridges, and even a model farmstead. Much of this was carried out under the supervision of the architect Antonín Arche between 1830 and 1845.

Source: Advisory Body Evaluation