No-one tells you that the Prague Castle has a precinct that encapsulates a number of palaces, the significant St Vitus Baroque church and….what I was particularly looking for…the Lobkowicz Palace (the no.1 museum in Prague because of its collections).

Lobkowicz Palace was built in the second half of the 16th century by the Czech nobleman Jaroslav Pernštejn (1528-1569). The Pernštejns were then the richest and most powerful lordly family of the Czech kingdom.

The Palace came into the Lobkowicz family through the marriage of Polyxena to Zdeněk Vojtěch, 1st Prince Lobkowicz (1568-1628). Polyxena was the daughter of the famous couple, Vratislav Pernstejn and Maria Manrique de Lara.

In the centuries following that marriage, the Palace witnessed some of Bohemia’s most significant historical events. In 1618, the famous Defenestration of Prague took place when Protestant rebels threw the Catholic Imperial Ministers from the windows of the Royal Palace at Prague Castle. Surviving the fall, they took refuge in Lobkowicz Palace, where they were protected from further assault by Polyxena, 1st Princess Lobkowicz.

Following the defeat of the Protestant faction at the Battle of White Mountain in 1620, the Catholic Lobkowicz family consolidated its influence and power base for the next three centuries. Lobkowicz Palace took on a more formal, Imperial role and functioned as the Prague residence when the family needed to be present at the seat of Bohemian power for political and ceremonial purposes.

With the exception of the sixty-three years (1939-2002) during which the property was confiscated and held by Nazi and later Communist powers, the Palace has belonged to the Lobkowicz family. This is one of MANY properties owned – they are rich, rich, rich!!! Lovely classical concert for an hour in the Palace precinct. 

Great views over Prague from the Palace Terrace …and yummy fresh fruit/ice-cream shop at the end of the 280 step staircase you climb down to get to transport options.