|
Bojnice Castle is the most famous castle of
Slovakia. It is situated in Bojnice, a town 167 km northeast of Bratislava,
the capital of Slovakia.
The Bojnice castle was first mentioned in the 12th century and
since then it was owned by Matthias Corvinus, the Thurzo family or the Pallfy
family amongst others.
Currently the castle hosts a museum and is a major tourist
attraction of Slovakia. The castle is also the scene of the annual
International Festival of Ghosts and
Spirits.
Interior of Bojnice
Castle
There is a room of arms in one tower, complete with all sorts of
medieval tools of destruction - swords, halberds, maces, shining suits of
armour.
In one room, the ornately carved ceiling glitters with pressed
gold. A lustrous oil portrait of Jan Pallfy occupies the centre panel of that ceiling. Another
room is covered in hand-painted Turkish tiles, with huge Chinese vases sitting on either side
of the porcelain mantlepiece.
The legend of the black lady
The Black Lady and her husband, the lord of the castle, were a
happy, successful couple. The lord was a military leader with a record of many battlefield
victories. She was known for her virtue. Then, some relatives came to stay. They soon became
envious of the Black Lady and her husband. Beautiful, young, rich - they had it
all.
So they told the lord that while he was out waging war, his wife
was having fun with other knights. He was enraged. He devised a simple test of her virtue. She
had to jump from the castle's highest tower into the moat with their newborn child. If she
lived, she was innocent. The people of the village gathered to see if the lord of the castle
would change his mind.
The Black Lady jumped with her child without hesitation, because
she knew she was innocent. Before they hit the water, they suddenly floated upand away,
proving her innocence. Then the crowd heard a noise: It was the relatives, going up in a puff
of smoke. And from that time on, she has wandered the halls and stairs of the castle, wearing
black, or sometimes appearing only as a strange shadow.
The story of Petr Poky
Poky was the boss of all the castle's servants. Near Bojnice
Hrad (one of many Slovak words for castle) are some natural mineral springs. To this day,
people go to the spas at Bojnice for their health.
In Poky's day, the spas were open and free to the public,
peasants and royalty alike. But Poky was a profiteer. He built a rampart around the spa and
began charging - and pocketing - an entrance fee.
One day an old man came to the spa. He was a poor sage. When
Poky's guards told the old man he had to pay, he grew angry. The guards called Poky, who set
dogs on him. As the man was driven away, he screamed that he would curse Poky - that all his
gold pieces would turn to black stones and that he would be executed for his
evil.
As it happened, the old man's curse came to pass. The lord of
the castle learned of Poky's operation and had him executed. There is a historical record of a
man named Petr Poky being drawn and quartered in 1496.
Bojnice
Castle Visitor
Information
Opening Times
Ticket Info and Tours
-
A ticket for an adult costs 5.70 euro, for children
aged 6 – 15 it is 2.90 euro and for children between 3 and 6 years the entrance fee
is 0.70 euro.
-
A night tour is also available for groups above 15
persons, and the entrance fee in that case is 6.70 euro.
Bojnice
Castle
Map&Location
Address: Zámok a okolie 1, 972 01
Bojnice, Slovakia. Get help with directions using the map provided
bellow:
View Larger Map
|
