Smetana's Litomyšl
genius loci
Walking one hundred meters through Litomyšl can transport you through centuries. The city has come a long way from a Medieval hill fort on the border between Bohemia and Moravia. And, personalities that have fundamentally influenced the course of national history have kept pace along with it. Today, their footprints can still be seen in the city – such individuals have been drinking deeply from the spring of this spa of the spirit throughout history.
Litomyšl’s Renaissance Castle
/ a UNESCO historical site
There are 8,000 sgraffito motifs ornamenting the facade of this Renaissance castle, the seat of the Pernštejns.
Castle Hill
/ a living architecture textbook
Home to a diocese, it is now the setting for a festival. A place where Jirásek, Němcová, Rettigová, and Zoubek all went for walks – as did Havel with six other presidents.
the historic center
/ a city extraordinarily full of culture and well-being
Romantic alleys full of galleries, cafes, and shops. Art and traces of the city’s historic personalities are everywhere, bringing healing for the soul.
modern architecture
/ from sandstone to laminates
“Litomyšl is the premier city for contemporary Czech architecture,” architect David Vávra has asserted in his appraisal of the city.
venues
“Litomyšl is the premier city for contemporary Czech architecture,” architect David Vávra has asserted in his appraisal of the city.
the Castle Courtyard
/ Litomyšl’s Renaissance Castle
Each year, this courtyard, with its excellent acoustics and open arcades reminiscent of theater boxes, turns into a concert hall under the stars.
the Piarist church
/ Church of the Finding of the Holy Cross
Spiritual and ecclesiastical music, chamber concerts, concerts by individual artists, church services.
the Castle Riding Hall
/ the Amber Chamber
Due to the golden color of the laminate material that dominates the room’s design – which includes a “tunable” ceiling – the castle’s riding hall has been given the nickname “the Amber Chamber.”
Smetana House
/ the city’s cultural center
Little Smetana gave his first concert in the summer palace in whose place now stands the city’s Neo-Renaissance cultural center.
the chapter church
/ Church of the Raising of the Holy Cross
This Gothic church conceals a new organ designed to be able to interpret music from all styles and periods.
the Nové Hrady château
/ little Versailles
the Monastery Gardens
/ a park embraced by churches
The new design for the garden in which the Piarists formerly grew vegetables invites one to relax with a view of the entire city.
the Castle’s wooden theater
/ jewel of the castle interior
festival hall
/ a modern space by architects Burian and Křivinka
