Oldest in Bohemia
Přimda is the oldest surviving stone castle in Bohemia. This year it celebrates 900 years since its first written mention.
Přimda
The oldest stone castle in Bohemia
While most Czech castles were built in the 13th century, Přimda was standing on its rock a hundred years earlier. Its Romanesque keep – a massive residential tower with walls metres thick – is among the oldest stone buildings of its kind in the country, which is why Přimda is described as the oldest surviving stone castle in Bohemia.
The castle guarded an old trade route to the Bavarian border. Its position on a rocky ridge 848 metres above sea level made it not only a lookout post but also a prison for those whom the Přemyslid rulers wanted kept at a safe distance.
Timeline
Nine hundred years in dates
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1121
The chronicle of Cosmas
The chronicler Cosmas describes an unnamed stone castle near Bělá. Most historians identify it with Přimda.
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1126
First explicit mention
Přimda is named for the first time in written sources. Its 900 years of history are counted from this year.
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12th century
A settlement below the castle
A settlement grows up below the castle and later becomes the town of Přimda. The castle becomes the centre of the Chod villages.
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12th–13th century
Royal prison
Its inaccessible position on the rock made Přimda a prison for the nobility. Both Soběslav II and Ottokar II were held here.
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14th century
Přimda becomes a town
The settlement below the castle is granted town rights and becomes the castle’s economic base.
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1592
Inspection records
Surviving records describe the castle – an upper and a lower courtyard and three gates. They are our main source for how it looked.
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1945
A town destroyed
At the end of the Second World War much of the town below the castle is destroyed by bombing.
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1970s
A new entrance
Blasting the rock creates today’s access path. The original entrance sections are lost for ever.
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2026
900 years of Přimda
We celebrate nine centuries since the first mention. The Přimda Castle Association is working to build a viewing platform inside the tower.
Did you know…
Curiosities of the castle
The castle toilet
Built into the walls of the keep (donjon) is a rare garderobe – the oldest surviving toilet in the Czech lands.
First mention
In 1121 the chronicle of Cosmas describes an unnamed castle near Bělá, but Přimda is named explicitly only in 1126.
Royal prison
Soběslav II and Ottokar II were both held prisoner behind Přimda’s walls – the castle served as a jail for the nobility.
Original layout
The castle had an upper and a lower courtyard and three gates in all. Today’s ruin is only a fraction of its former extent.
A lost entrance
The present access path was created only in the 1970s, by blasting away part of the rock.
Written evidence
We know what the castle looked like thanks to surviving inspection records from 1592.
Rare nature
The castle’s surroundings are a nature reserve on the edge of the Český les Protected Landscape Area.
Below the castle
A town that grew beneath the rock
The settlement below the castle arose in the 12th century and became a town in the 14th. The castle was the centre of the surrounding Chod villages, whose people guarded the border of the kingdom. The 20th century was not kind to Přimda – in 1945 much of the town was destroyed by bombing.
Town rights
The settlement below the castle arose in the 12th century; Přimda became a town in the 14th century.
Upland setting
Přimda lies at around 700 metres above sea level – one of the highest towns in the region.
Scars of war
In 1945 much of the town was destroyed by bombing.
The Chods of Přimda
The castle was the centre of the surrounding Chod villages, whose people guarded the border of the kingdom.
Let the story continue
The castle has endured for nine hundred years. To endure further and stay open to people, it needs the help of those who care about it.