Written by Veronika Rajchartova
This castle lies in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. More accurately, it is in the Beroun District above the village Tocnik.
This castle is a landscape dominant on the edge of Krivoklad hunting forest.
Tocnik castle was built during the reign of Wenceslas IV above the already existing castle Zebrak. The two castles, Tocnik and Zebrak, make up a picturesque couple standing almost right next to each other.
The history of Tocnik Castle is quite expanded. It all started in the 14th century. Probably the most probable cause for built a new castle was the large fire which damaged Zebrak Castle in 1395. After this, the king started to build a new and fancier castle on an elevated point less than 500m from Zebrak. This new castle was called Tocnik.
Tocnik was probably built in the years 1398 – 1401.
In the year 1400, Wenceslas IV had a part of the royal treasure transported to Tocnik. After the burning of Rev Jan Hus, Wenceslas IV no longer stayed at the castle to the same extent as before. He had Novy Hradek built near Kunratice and his last visit to Tocnik is recorded in September 1415. In 1421, Sigismund, Wenceslas’s brother, had the castle stopped by Erkinger of Seinsheim, the ancestor of the Schwarzenbergs. He betrothed his son Herman to Eliska, daughter of Bedrich Kolowrat. Bedrich of Kolowrat pledged the castles of Zebrak and Tocnik as collateral. In the end, both castles remained.
The destruction of Tocnik was during the Thirty Years’ War and the events that preceded it. The final blow of the castle came on October 18, 1639, when the local population took refuge and hid in the castle destroying in interior and furnishings. In 1674, no one lived in the castle, only a guard.
From January 1, 2001, the castles were taken over by the State Monument Institute of Central Bohemia and then from January 2003 by the National Monument Institute. And after the reorganization of the NMI on January 1, 2013, Tocnik and Zebrak Castle are managed by the NMI TMA in Prague (National Monument Institute and a Territorial Monument Administration in Prague
Tocnik and Zebrak may be visited as well as a bear enclosure that has the famous brown bears Agatha and Martin. who are known due to Vaclav Chaloupek.
For more information about the Central Bohemian Region, from which this castle comes, click here and here.
