Parc du château de Lednice

The first historical record of this locality dates from 1222. At that time there stood a Gothic fort with courtyard, which was lent by Czech King Václav I to Austrian nobleman Sigfried Sirotek in 1249.  In the 16th century it was probably Hartmann II of Liechtenstein who had the old medieval water castle torn down and replaced with a Renaissance chateau. At the end of the 17th century the chateau was torn down and a Baroque palace was built, with an extensive formal garden, and a massive riding hall designed by Johann Bernard Fischer von Erlach that still stands in almost unaltered form.

In the mid-18th century the chateau was again renovated, and in 1815 its front tracts that had been part of the Baroque chateau were removed. The chateau as it looks today dates from 1846-1858, when Prince Alois II decided that Vienna was not suitable for entertaining in the summer, and had Lednice rebuilt into a summer palace in the spirit of English Gothic.

Lednice is state property from 1945. Is managed by the Ministry of Culture through the National Heritage Institute in Prague. It is surrounded by one of Europe’s largest parks (almost 200 ha), in which the visitor finds the palm house, the Venetian fountain, Roman aqueduct, the Chinese pavilion, artificial ruins, a minaret and Johns Castle. Since 1996 by the whole Lednice- Valtice site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.