Czocha Castle - visiting, legends and coloring page for children

Czocha Castle, also known as the Polish Hogwarts, is one of the most beautiful castles in Lower Silesia

Czocha Castle is one of the oldest castles in our country! This picturesque fortress, located by the Lesnica Lake, was built in the 13th century to guard the northern border of the then Kingdom of Bohemia. After the war, the castle found itself within the borders of Poland - unfortunately, it was repeatedly looted, deteriorating more and more. After a fire, it was fully rebuilt. The Polish adaptation of The Witcher was filmed at the castle! Because of its secret passages and nooks and crannies, as well as the magic workshops held here, the castle is also called the Polish Hogwarts. When in Lower Silesia, be sure to put it on your list of places to visit!

• The night-time tours are very popular - you can find the dates on the website zamekczocha.com, it's worth booking in advance as tickets sell out quickly
• The castle is open for visitors almost every day of the year
• There is paid parking under the castle

Czocha Castle - visiting

During the castle tour, we can visit the great Knight's Hall, the Treasury, whose interiors were guarded by steel-concrete doors. The famous Duke's Chamber, shrouded in legend about a specially located trap under the marital bed that dropped the sleeper into the dungeon, also arouses interest. During the tour, you can also visit the multimedia room of medieval tortures.

Recently, the observation tower has been reopened for visitors - you can climb it from December to April.

Knightly tournaments and other cultural events often take place at the castle.

Ernst Gütschow - the last owner and collector

The last owner of the castle was Ernst Gütschow, a Dresden collector and a very wealthy producer of tobacco products, dealing with the import and sale of Cuban cigars and Turkish cigarettes. He was so rich that he bought himself a baron's title and a castle. Gütschow was a passionate art collector. He set up a real treasury at the castle – it housed, among other things, the coronation insignia of the Romanovs, antique furniture, porcelain, and paintings. In the castle libraries, he collected over 20,000 books placed on movable shelves, hiding passages to other rooms. Thanks to Gütschow's commission, the castle owes one of its biggest attractions - the labyrinth of secret passages and hiding places, still unsolved today.

Unfortunately, the furnishings of the castle rooms were often stolen by the Soviets - for this reason, the castle now looks much more majestic from the outside. Room tours are conducted with a guide. Children will surely be interested in interesting workshops: fairy tale tours for families or magic workshops.

Czocha Castle legend of the ghost and crying child

Like every castle, Czocha Castle also has its ghost and as it happens with legends reaching back to medieval times - the story is macabre... In the 16th century, the castle was ruled by Johann, who had a beautiful wife, Ulrika. One day, the king sent Johann to overseas countries. When he returned to his wife after two years, he heard rumors that his beloved had betrayed him with a German nobleman. Indeed, when he entered the bedroom, he saw a tiny child next to Ulrika. It was too small to be his father.

He pondered all night by the fireplace in the Marble Hall what to do. In the morning, he ordered Ulrika to be drowned in the well in the castle courtyard, and the child to be walled up alive in the fireplace in the Marble Hall. On dark nights, you can still sometimes hear his quiet cry coming from behind the fireplace - then the ghost of Ulrika comes out of the well and rushes to the castle to soothe her child.

Czocha Castle - mysterious crystals

Apparently, a chimney sweep who was cleaning the castle's chimneys came across an extraordinary find - a small box the size of a matchbox, which contained tiny, transparent crystal sticks. The crystals contained miniature photographs (from one to 10 photos on one crystal!), showing buildings, castles, mountains, cities, monuments from different places in Germany. There were suspicions that the crystals were spy materials - the fact is that the photos show isolated hotels and secluded castles and places where one can feel anonymous. Why were these unassuming crystals created and what were they supposed to serve? Will we ever be able to discover their secret?

Photo from the website schondorf.pl

Czocha Castle - coloring page for children to print out

Are you going to Czocha Castle? Be sure to download and print our coloring page!

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Author: Adelina
Publish Date: 2024-01-24