Jaromerice nad Rokytnou

Jaromerice was rebuilt between 1700 and 1737 for Count Jan Adam Questenberg to designs by Jakob Prandtauer and others into a complex on a scale out of proportion to the small town: a chateau, a church, courtyards and a formal garden laid out as one composition, covering a larger footprint than most Czech residences and among the biggest baroque ensembles in Central Europe. Questenberg ran a court that was musically serious - he maintained an orchestra and an opera company, brought Italian singers, and commissioned works; Frantisek Vaclav Mica, his kapellmeister, wrote what is often described as the first opera composed in the Czech lands with a Czech text, performed here in 1730. A music festival continues that. The interiors include a hall of ancestors and painted rooms; the church of St Margaret adjoins directly. The French garden runs to the river with an English park beyond.

History

Legend says Jaroměřice was founded in 1131 by Jaromír, son of Duke Bořivoj II, and named after him; the first written mention is in a document no older than 1265, and in 1420 it is first called a town. Its great period came in the first half of the 18th century under Count Jan Adam Questenberk, who rebuilt the castle into its present form and improved the whole town; his love of music made Jaroměřice a cultural centre and began a musical tradition that continues today. After the Questenberk line died out in 1752 the declining estate passed to the Kounice family and later to the Wrbna-Freudenthal family (Wikipedia, Jaroměřice nad Rokytnou).

What's there

• A vast baroque composition - chateau, church, courts and garden as one design.
• A count's opera company - Italian singers and an orchestra maintained on site.
• Mica's 1730 opera - often called the first with a Czech text.
• A French garden to the river - with an English park beyond it.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Before you go

Guided tours only, seasonal, with several routes. The scale means a lot of walking. Festival dates change the opening. The town itself is small and quiet.

Nearby

Trebic is fifteen kilometres north; Namest nad Oslavou is beyond it.