Prague-Kunratice, Prague
Medieval castle ‘Nový hrad’ u Kunratic and siege camp
(15th cent.)
Second gate wuth a waled-in moat. Masonry of a tower-like palace is in the background.
Photo Z. Kačerová, 2014.
‘Nový hrad’ (‘New Castle’) near Kunratice was the last royal structure built in the pre-Hussite period. At the beginning of the 15th century, King Wenceslaus (Václav) IV had the new royal residence built near Prague. The king stayed at the castle on a number of occasions before dying there in 1419. The garrison of his brother, King Sigismund (later Roman Emperor), took up residence at ‘Nový hrad’ beginning in 1420, and in December of this same year the castle was attacked by the Hussite army of the Prague Old and New Towns. The garrison surrendered, and the castle was subsequently burned and never again restored. Preserved in the area around the castle ruins are very interesting and well-preserved remains of the siege camp with banks, ditches and firing positions.
References: Drobná 1953; Durdík 1984; Sedláček 1998b; Durdík – Sušický 2000; Koscelník 2013.
Navigation points: N 50°01'14.84", E 14°28'38.19"; N 50°01'10.64", E 14°28'19.79"; N 50°01'07.68", E 14°28'14.70".
Map notes: A – castle; B – ditch carved into rock; C – tower gateway; D – bailey; E – fortification; F – tower gateway with drawbridge; G – tower palace; H – staircase; I – room with defensive walls forming an edge; J – the 18th and 19th centuries quarry; K – remains of a Baroque gamekeeper’s lodge; L – siege camp; M – siege camp banks; N – doubled banks and ditches; O – forward trenches. Map symbols are available in the Downloads section.
Selected fulltext articles and reports for further reading. Complete bibliographical records are available in the Downloads section as the List of publications.
Archeologický atlas Čech – Praha-KunraticeDurdík, T. 1984: Nový Hrad u Kunratic (Praha 4) a jeho postavení ve vývoji české hradní architektury, Archaeologica Pragensia 5/1, 173–190.