Sokolov Castle

Sokolov, formerly known as Falknov (Falkenau in German), lies in the heart of the city of the same name and belongs among the oldest locations in the Karlovy Vary region. The first mansion in this place was established in the second half of the thirteenth century. Over the centuries, the owners of various noble families took turns, which influenced the form of the building until it finally protected it in 2009 as a cultural monument to the Czech Republic.

The oldest written mention of Sokolov dates back to 1279, when it appears in the predicate of Albert Nothaft from Falknov. The Nothafts belonged to a fortress or castle for many years, until in 1339 the Winklers acquired it. But they soon, before 1366, had to hand it over to the Royal Chamber. The fundamental change came in 1480, when Mikuláš Šlik built a late Gothic castle here, which became the foundation of today's construction. The Šlik, which besides Sokolova also owned the estate of Jindřichovice and the castles of Seeberg and Nedek, became the founder of the local branch of his family. After his death in 1522, he was inherited by the son of Volf, who expanded the estate. After Volf's death in 1556, his nephew Christopher took over the estate. The last Šlik who lived in Sokolov was Jan Albino (1615-1621), who later had to go to exile as one of the leaders of the state uprising.

The chateau was confiscated in 1621 and bought shortly afterwards by the Imperial Council of the Ota Nostic, which becomes the founder of the long ownership of the Nostics until 1945. The Thirty Years' War has caused considerable damage to the building. In 1621 he was besieged by the armies of Maximilian of Bavaria; The city was burned down in 1632, but the castle was defended. In 1647, it was conquered by Swedish General Wrangel, but the Nostics soon recovered it. A year later, the Swedish troops repossessed it under General Königsmark's command, who burned down the building. In 1663, Nostico built a new castle in Baroque style on the ruins of the damaged castle.

The construction originally had a round floor plan defined by the wall and there was a three-space palace in the courtyard. It was converted in its Gothic form into a square floor plan with four mat towers (north towers round, south with round ground and polygonal upper parts). Along three sides, one-story palace wings spread out. The architectural details of this period date back to the first third of the 16th century. However, today's appearance of the castle is determined by the classical reconstruction from 1805. The castle has been visited in the past by important personalities, including Josef Dobrovský and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Currently, there is a city information centre, a small museum and a wedding hall. The castle is kept in very good condition and is worth visiting those interested in Czech history and architecture of various epoch in one place.