Ratibořice Chateau: Where European nobility and Russian Tsar Alexander I met
Ratibořice Château stands in Babiččino údolí (Grandmother's Valley), north of Česká Skalice in the Hradec Králové Region. This national cultural monument has welcomed visitors ranging from Austrian Chancellor Metternich to Russian Tsar Alexander I. Its history and extensive natural landscape attract visitors from all over Europe and beyond.
The Ratibořice Chateau is famous as the residence of Princess Vilemína Zaháňská, a wealthy heiress with great influence and a non-conformist woman, who many in Czechia know from Božena Němcová's book Babička (Grandmother). The tour guide on what made her so enlightened:
“The Duchess was indeed a highly enlightened aristocrat, thanks in part to her upbringing. Her father was the ruling Duke of Courland and Semigallia, a very enlightened ruler himself. Because of this, she was raised with broad perspectives and became a follower of early Romanticism. She was a non-conformist for the time, and her enlightened approach was also reflected in how she treated her estate.
“Even though Ratibořice was a summer and less formal residence, she opened it up to the landscape; there were no high walls or impenetrable fences. The creation of a natural, English-style landscape park shows how open-minded and progressive she was.”
The princess chose the Ratibořice Chateau as her permanent summer residence. She also added something of her enlightened view of the world at that time. Between 1825 and 1826, she had the originally Baroque building rebuilt in the Classicist and Empire styles, following the example of Italian architects.
An extensive natural landscape park gradually developed around it, connected to today's Babiččino údolí (Grandmother's Valley). It was a free territory, unrestricted by walls or other barriers, full of trees, paths, avenues, bridges, and even an exotic greenhouse.
During Zaháňská's reign, the castle was a meeting place for the highest European aristocracy. The princess hosted world figures and the elite of the time, such as Austrian Chancellor Metternich and Russian Tsar Alexander I. In 1813, a secret meeting of the anti-Napoleonic coalition of Prussia, Austria, and Russia even took place here.
The light charm of fading classicism
In 1840, Karel Octavio of Lippe purchased the Náchod estate, including Ratibořice, but sold it to the Schaumburg-Lippe family just two years later. The Schaumburg-Lippe family managed the Ratibořice Chateau until 1945, when it was taken over by the state.
The last owners from the Schaumburg-Lippe family gave the castle its contemporary pseudo-Renaissance appearance of a simple villa, which, with a little imagination, evokes the silhouette of a historical treasury or jewelry box. The roof of the residence was complemented by a gazebo that cannot be overlooked.
Today, stories related to this family come to life in the castle's interior. Among other things, they reveal the responsibilities of those who cared for the property and the people who lived on the estate. You can learn more on two tours. The short tour on the first floor of the castle introduces the era of Duchess Zaháňská and takes you to salons from the Classicist, Empire, and Biedermeier periods. These are the living quarters of Princess Zaháňská.
The large tour called Ratibořice Castle takes visitors through all the castle interiors, including the ground floor, where they can see 19th-century furniture and portraits of the Schaumburg family and Danish kings.
From Česká Skalice, you can reach Ratibořice Castle on foot by following the red tourist trail, which is approximately two kilometers long. There is a parking lot directly in front of the castle for cars. You can also use the regular bus service, which stops at the square in Česká Skalice and in front of the train station.
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