Spilberk Castle

Spilberk was founded in the thirteenth century as a royal castle above Brno and turned in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries into a baroque bastioned fortress, which held against the Swedes in 1645 when the rest of Moravia had fallen. Its casemates - vaulted corridors and cells inside the ramparts - were converted from 1783 into a prison, and Joseph II's decision to use them for the harshest category of confinement gave Spilberk a reputation across the Habsburg lands; Italian carbonari including Silvio Pellico were held here in the 1820s and Pellico's memoir made the name known across Europe. The prison closed in 1855. The castle now holds the Brno city museum, with the casemates open, and the lookout tower gives the widest view over the city. The hill around it is a public park with wooded paths.

What you actually see

• The casemates - vaulted corridors and cells inside the ramparts, open to walk.
• A baroque bastioned fortress - which held out against the Swedes in 1645.
• The Brno city museum - collections in the upper buildings.
• The best view of Brno - from the lookout tower on the hill.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Honest expectations

The casemates are cold and dim. Museum sections have separate tickets and close on Mondays. The climb from the city is steep. Winter opening is reduced.

Nearby

The cathedral on Petrov and the old town are below.