Our Story
700 Years of Inspiration
700 years of leadership, wars, wine, defenestrations, love, music, literature, democracy, Nazis, Communists, restitution, restoration, blockchain...and the story continues.
2024 Opening of the Antonín Dvořák Birth House
Public opening of the renovated Antonín Dvořák Birth House as a new museum and international musical heritage site.
2022 A Tribute to Heroes
House of Lobkowicz hosts A Tribute to Heroes Benefit event for Ukraine. It includes a performance of Beethoven’s Third Symphony (Eroica), the “Heroic Symphony,” by the Czech Sinfonietta, followed by a silent auction of works from the exhibition Queens of Ukraine, which highlights the stories of Ukrainian women affected by the war. The auction raised 250,000 CZK, which was donated to the humanitarian organization Magna to supply medicine and materials for hospitals and clinics in Ukraine.
2021 Cellist Yo-Yo Ma visits Antonín Dvořák’s Birth House
Cellist Yo-Yo Ma visits the Antonín Dvorak Birth House, marking a historic moment where he performs the first movement of Dvořák’s American String Quartet, op. 96, in a masterclass with young musicians from the Czech Chamber Music Academy (AKH).
2018 The Rolling Stones at the Lobkowicz Palace
Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones visits the Lobkowicz Palace for a celebration with friends and family.
2012 A Royal loan
Canaletto’s painting of London: The River Thames on Lord Mayor’s Day goes on loan to the National Maritime Museum (Royal Museums Greenwich) for Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee, celebrating her 60 years on the throne. This historic occasion marks the first time the work had returned to England since it was painted in the 18th century.
1997 First exhibition opening at Nelahozeves Castle
Opening of first permanent exhibition at Nelahozeves Castle: Six Centuries of European Art Patronage.
1991 Restitution
William E. Lobkowicz returns permanently to Czechoslovakia to begin the restitution process to reclaim his family’s confiscated heritage, an opportunity made possible by President Václav Havel. The family began their over 25-year journey to reclaim, reassemble, and restore the Lobkowicz Collections and heritage sites.
1948 Communist coup and confiscation
The Communist regime takes power and confiscates all Lobkowicz property. Max Lobkowicz narrowly escapes under the pretense of his wife, Gillian, being gravely ill in London. He leaves with his hat and his coat, never to return to his homeland.
1804 World premiere of Beethoven’s Symphony no. 3 (Eroica)
Beethoven’s revolutionary Eroica Symphony is world-premiered at the Lobkowicz Palace in Vienna. It was dedicated to Franz Joseph Maximilian, 7th Prince Lobkowicz, who was a principal patron of Beethoven. A first-printed edition is displayed on exhibition at the Lobkowicz Palace in Prague Castle.
1656 Velázquez paints Doña Margarita Teresa of Spain
The Infanta Margarita Teresa, daughter of King Philip IV of Spain, is painted by Diego Velázquez. Come see her iconic face in Velázquez’ painting on display at the Lobkowicz Palace in Prague Castle.
1618 Second Defenestration of Prague
Catholic Habsburg representatives, Wilhelm Slavata and Jaroslav Martinic, who were appointed by King Ferdinand II (soon to be Holy Roman Emperor), are thrown out of a window of the Old Royal Palace in the Prague Castle by Protestant members of the Bohemian Estates. Surviving the fall, they take refuge in the adjoining Lobkowicz Palace, where they were protected by Polyxena. This seminal event sparked the onset of the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648), killing over one third of Europe’s population.
2024 3D Scan of Střekov Castle
Completed 3D scan of Střekov Castle in partnership with ČVUT (Czech Technical University)
2021 Non-Fungible Castle is born
Launch of Non-Fungible Castle, which explores the convergence of the arts with NFTs (non-fungible tokens), blockchain technology, and artificial intelligence as a creative platform and philanthropic tool to restore, preserve, and authenticate cultural heritage. The sale of NFTs from this event funded an unprecedented over 60 restoration projects in the Lobkowicz Collections.
2020 250th Anniversary of Beethoven
On the occasion of Beethoven’s 250th anniversary, we celebrated his legacy by lending some of our greatest Beethoven works, including the Fifth Symphony and original accounting records, to the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna for a monumental exhibition, Beethoven Moves, and the Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn. In addition to a temporary exhibition dedicated to Beethoven in the Lobkowicz Palace, we also published a catalogue entitled: The Lobkowicz Collections Music Series: Beethoven.
2016 Paulo Coelho at the Lobkowicz Palace
Renowned Brazilian novelist and best-selling author of The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho, celebrates his 70th birthday at the Lobkowicz Palace.
2007 Lobkowicz Palace opening
Opening of the Lobkowicz Palace Museum and permanent exhibition: The Princely Collections.
1996 Opera singer Renée Fleming performs at Nelahozeves Castle
Opera singer Renée Fleming performs at Nelahozeves Castle
1989 Velvet Revolution
On November 17, Czechoslovakia celebrates the Velvet Revolution which peacefully ended over 40 years of Communist rule.
1939 Nazi invasion and confiscation
On March 15, the Nazis invade Czechoslovakia just after Max Lobkowicz narrowly escapes with his family to London. All Lobkowicz properties and collections are confiscated by the Nazis. As an outspoken critic of Hitler, Max is declared an enemy of the Reich shortly thereafter.
1748 Canaletto paints two views of London
Antonio Canal, called Canaletto, paints his famous view of London: The City of London from the River Thames with St. Paul’s Cathedral on Lord Mayor’s Day. During this time, Ferdinand Philipp, 6th Prince Lobkowicz, met Canaletto in London and brought the painting (along with Canaletto’s second view of London and the River Thames Looking Towards Westminster from Lambeth, c. 1746/7) to Bohemia. Both can be seen on display at the Lobkowicz Palace in Prague Castle.
1624 A love letter from Princess Polyxena Lobkowicz
Princess Polyxena Lobkowicz writes a love letter to her husband Zdenko Adalbert Popel, 1st Prince Lobkowicz, originally written in Spanish: “My dearest, May God bless you and protect you from all harm, my darling, may He give you all you desire, with the exception of another woman, because my husband shall have no one but me.”
1555 Infant Jesus of Prague
Spanish noblewoman Maria Manrique de Lara y Mendoza marries Vratislav Pernstein, Chancellor of the Kingdom of Bohemia. It is believed that she came into possession of the famous statue known as the Infant Jesus of Prague and brought it from her native Spain to Bohemia. She later bequeathed it to her daughter, Princess Polyxena Lobkowicz, née Pernstein, who presumably donated it to the Carmelite Order at the Church of our Lady Victorious where it remains today. Considered one of the most revered Catholic icons, the statue is said to have miraculous healing powers, drawing people from all over the world on pilgrimages to Prague.