Trakoscan Castle is the most visited castle in Croatia.
Located 81 kilometers or 50 miles from Zagreb (near Varazdin),
it a very popular day trip destination. The second week of
June,
just before the school term was over, a colleague of Tracy’s
offered to
take us there. This is a “story-book” castle, something
right out
of Disney movie or a fairy tale. We spent a Saturday exploring
the
castle and grounds.
Historical Background In many ways the story of Trakoscan Castle
parallels that of
Samobor Castle which we visited
earlier in our stay in Croatia. Both were built up
from smaller initial fortifications, both transitioned from
fortifications to residential structures, and both fell into
disrepair
in the 19th century as the cost of maintaining large residences
became
prohibitive. In the case of Trakoscan Castle, it began as a
small
fortress monitoring the trade route from Ptuj to Bedna Valley.
Sources
dispute the origin of its name, some claiming it was named after
another fortification, while others claimed it was named after
the
knights of Drachenstein. It is first mentioned in written
records in
1334, and changed hands many times until it passed into the
Draskovic
family in 1525. However, by the late 18th century the fortress
was
abandoned. However, it did not meet the fate of Samobor Castle,
as the
Draskovic family, led by Juraj V. Draskovic, began its
restoration
in the mid-19th century, turning into a Neo-Gothic style private
residence--the style it retains today. The Draskovic family
inhabited
the castle until 1944 when the family fled to Austria and the
castle
was nationalized. By this point it had again fallen into
disrepair and
it has steadily been renovated, bringing it to its current state
as a
museum.
The Castle Grounds When the Castle was renovated
in
the Romanticist vein, the surrounding area was turned into a
park and
lake complex surrounding the palace, and these features remain
today.
The grounds are on full display as one leaves the parking lot,
passes
by a small bistro, and begin the zig-zagging path up to the
castle.
Midway up there is a small round plaza and, ascending higher,
the path
offers stunning views of the valley below. Sadly, the lake seems
to have
been drained, robbing photographers of that beautiful mirror
image of
the castle in the water.
Aerial
Views of Trakoscan Castle and Grounds
Layout of the Trakscan Castle
While it is impossible to catalog all of the rooms of the
castle, here is a description of the main rooms on each of the 3
floors
or levels of the castle proper. Click on the image of any of the
floor plans to enlarge them.
Floor 1:
the first floor of the castle is accessed by passing through the
gate
and courtyard. This level
contains the Knightly Hall, the Library, Lobby, Hunting Hall,
Family
Hall, and an inner courtyard leading to an Armour Collection
spanning 3
rooms.
Floor 2:
the second floor of the castle is devoted to the Draskovic
family, the
last private owners of the castle. It
includes an exhibit of the history of the castle, phoots
detailing the
lives the family, a bedroom and foyer, a small library with an
adjacent
prayer room, a music room, Juliana's Room (paintings), the
dining room
and a small salon.
Floor 3:
the upper floor of the castle is largely devoted to the arts,
both
painting and decorative. It includes a two-room picture gallery,
rooms
dedicated to Baroque, Rococo, Neo-Renaissance, Classisist
and
Biedermeier decor, a painted wall paper room, a and a room of
officer's
portraits.
Take a Virtual Tour of
Trakascan
Castle
About this Tour:
While our website offers many
virtual tours of historic
sights, they are done with basic free software and cannot
compare with
professional tour makers using cameras costing thousands of
dollars and
software that is equally pricey (not to mention the steep
learning
curve involved). In researching the castle we found one such
professional tour
of Trakoscan Castle, and it is the most detailed virtual tour we
have
ever seen. It was created using Matterport VR software and hosting
(https://matterport.com). The tour
was built by Tornado 360 (http://www.tornado360.eu) and
posted on the Trakoscan.hr
website (https://trakoscan.hr). Consulting the Matterport "Users
Agreement" we found that they
in fact encourage the sharing of their product in their and so
we are
embedding it here for your convenience. (It
is a bit buried on the castle's website.) This is about as
"real" as
virtual reality gets!
How to
take
the tour:
There are 3 ways to take the tour, using the buttons at the
bottom left
of the screen
PLAY:
click on the "Play" button for a guided tour of the
Castle.
Pressing "Pause" stops the tours and you may look around the
room.
DOLLHOUSE:
offers a cutaway view of each room in the castle. Click on this
icon
and then click on the room you wish to visit
LAYERS: you may select any
one of
the castle's 3 levels, and from there select the room you wish
to visit
In many ways the story of Trakoscan Castle
parallels that of
Samobor Castle which we visited
earlier in our stay in Croatia. Both were built up
from smaller initial fortifications, both transitioned from
fortifications to residential structures, and both fell into
disrepair
in the 19th century as the cost of maintaining large residences
became
prohibitive. In the case of Trakoscan Castle, it began as a
small
fortress monitoring the trade route from Ptuj to Bedna Valley.
Sources
dispute the origin of its name, some claiming it was named after
another fortification, while others claimed it was named after
the
knights of Drachenstein. It is first mentioned in written
records in
1334, and changed hands many times until it passed into the
Draskovic
family in 1525. However, by the late 18th century the fortress
was
abandoned. However, it did not meet the fate of Samobor Castle,
as the
Draskovic family, led by Juraj V. Draskovic, began its
restoration
in the mid-19th century, turning into a Neo-Gothic style private
residence--the style it retains today. The Draskovic family
inhabited
the castle until 1944 when the family fled to Austria and the
castle
was nationalized. By this point it had again fallen into
disrepair and
it has steadily been renovated, bringing it to its current state
as a
museum.
When the Castle was renovated
in
the Romanticist vein, the surrounding area was turned into a
park and
lake complex surrounding the palace, and these features remain
today.
The grounds are on full display as one leaves the parking lot,
passes
by a small bistro, and begin the zig-zagging path up to the
castle.
Midway up there is a small round plaza and, ascending higher,
the path
offers stunning views of the valley below. Sadly, the lake seems
to have
been drained, robbing photographers of that beautiful mirror
image of
the castle in the water.
Floor 1:
the first floor of the castle is accessed by passing through the
gate
and courtyard. This level
contains the Knightly Hall, the Library, Lobby, Hunting Hall,
Family
Hall, and an inner courtyard leading to an Armour Collection
spanning 3
rooms.
Floor 2:
the second floor of the castle is devoted to the Draskovic
family, the
last private owners of the castle. It
includes an exhibit of the history of the castle, phoots
detailing the
lives the family, a bedroom and foyer, a small library with an
adjacent
prayer room, a music room, Juliana's Room (paintings), the
dining room
and a small salon.
Floor 3:
the upper floor of the castle is largely devoted to the arts,
both
painting and decorative. It includes a two-room picture gallery,
rooms
dedicated to Baroque, Rococo, Neo-Renaissance, Classisist
and
Biedermeier decor, a painted wall paper room, a and a room of
officer's
portraits.
While our website offers many
virtual tours of historic
sights, they are done with basic free software and cannot
compare with
professional tour makers using cameras costing thousands of
dollars and
software that is equally pricey (not to mention the steep
learning
curve involved). In researching the castle we found one such
professional tour
of Trakoscan Castle, and it is the most detailed virtual tour we
have
ever seen. It was created using Matterport VR software and hosting
(https://matterport.com). The tour
was built by Tornado 360 (http://www.tornado360.eu) and
posted on the Trakoscan.hr
website (https://trakoscan.hr). Consulting the Matterport "Users
Agreement" we found that they
in fact encourage the sharing of their product in their and so
we are
embedding it here for your convenience. (It
is a bit buried on the castle's website.) This is about as
"real" as
virtual reality gets!
PLAY:
click on the "Play" button for a guided tour of the
Castle.
Pressing "Pause" stops the tours and you may look around the
room.
DOLLHOUSE:
offers a cutaway view of each room in the castle. Click on this
icon
and then click on the room you wish to visit
LAYERS: you may select any
one of
the castle's 3 levels, and from there select the room you wish
to visit