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| 2905 Images from Jindřichův Hradec |
Posted on 18.01.2016, 17.12.2016
Located near the Austrian border, between Bohemia and Moravia, in a countryside that gradually turns from the ponds of the Třeboň Basin into the hilly horizons of the Křemešnická Highlands, Jindřichův Hradec is a town with rich history, first mentioned in 1220. In the census following the Thirty Years' War, it was the second largest city in the Kingdom of Bohemia. A geographical attraction is that the fifteenth meridian goes right through the centre of the town. |
| 2228 Jindřichův Hradec Castle |
The oldest part of the town with the castle is reflected in the waters of two ponds called the Vajgar and the Malý Vajgar (Small Vajgar), which are fed with water from the Hamerský brook and from the left tributary stream of the Nežárka River, which flows through the town. The castle (Gothic at the beginning, then gradually rebuilt into a Renaissance chateau in the 16th century) is the third largest in the country, after those in Prague and Český Krumlov.
The castle grew from an original Slavic fortified settlement from the 10th century on a rocky headland above the confluence of the Nežárka River and the Hamerský Brook. The construction of the mediaeval castle, called Novum castrum (the New Castle) in the oldest preserved historical record from 1220, is connected with the name of Jindřich Vítkovec, the founder of the independent Vítek branch of the Lords of Hradec. It served the Lords of Hradec as their main residence until the family died out in 1604.
In the latter half of the 16th century, the castle underwent under Adam II of Hradec a radical rebuilding to a representative chateau, after the example of the palaces of the Italian Renaissance. The fortress thus became a luxurious residence that satisfied the requirements of a Renaissance nobleman. Under the management of Balthasar Maggi and other Italian builders, Adam’s building and the Spanish wing were built, and both these buildings were linked by great arcades.
It was under the Černíns that the last major architectural changes of the chateau. Thus the chapel was remodelled between 1709 and 1735 in the Baroque style, after a design by F.M. Kaňka. In 1773, the chateau as well as the town were struck by a vast fire that destroyed a major part of the Renaissance interiors along with artistic collections. The wave of Romanticism brought new interest in rescuing the chateau. The Černíns owned it until 1945, when it was confiscated. A general reconstruction was started in 1976 and lasted, with intervals, 17 years.
About the stamp
On the postcard 2228
The stamp, designed by Marie Svobodová, was issued on April 15, 2015, to mark the 6th Czech and German Philatelic Exhibition, which took place at Chomutov between 6 and 10 May 2015.
On the postcard 2905
The stamp, designed by Zdeněk Ziegler, was issued on March 16, 2016 to mark the 60th Anniversary of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research - Dubna, Russia.
References
Jindřichův Hradec - Wikipedia
Town of Jindřichův Hradec - visitjindrichuvhradec.cz
Jindřichův Hradec State Castle and Chateau - Official website
Sender 2228: Ivana / Ifca73 (postcrossing) CZ-791759
Sent from Jindřichův Hradec (Czech Republic), on 09.01.2016
Photo: Stanislav Maxa
Sender 2905: Krystyna / kitinka (postcrossing) CZ-1082238
Sent from Velké Meziříčí (Czech Republic), on 10.12.2016
Photo: Libor Svacek
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