The end of the rocky ridge of the Zámecký Hill was inhabited in prehistoric times already. The path makes a U turn here, hence the name Točník – in Czech, it refers to “the turning point”.

The ancient inhabitants dug a small pond in front of the castle, as a water cistern. In the second half of the 14th century, a small hunting castle stood on the highest point of the rocky ridge, already with the current tower.

After 1395, when the lower castle Žebrák was damaged by fire, Wenceslas IV (1361–1419) built here a residential castle for the Bohemian and Roman king.

The new castle was the last type of Bohemian castles with reduced defensive functions; it was primarily built for residential purposes, and structurally it’s halfway between a castle and a chateau.

The castle was never conquered; instead, it was destroyed from the inside by locals who used it as a shelter from the Swedes during the Thirty Years War.

Since the 18th century, the ruins invite the visitors for romantic walks.

History