Český Krumlov

The castle was founded in the mid-13th century by the Vítkovci family, and a town grew in two parts beneath it: Latrán below the castle and the Old Town inside the river bend. From 1302 the Rosenberg family held the estate for three centuries, and under them the town reached its peak, with the castle rebuilt in Renaissance style in the 16th century. Peter Vok, the last Rosenberg, sold it to Emperor Rudolf II in 1602.

After the Battle of White Mountain the estate passed to the Eggenbergs, and from 1719 to 1947 to the Schwarzenbergs, who gave the castle much of its Baroque character, including the theatre in the fifth courtyard. The town's German-speaking majority was expelled after the Second World War, and the centre decayed under communist rule. Restoration after 1989 and UNESCO listing in 1992 brought it back to life, although the 2002 floods caused serious damage.

Český Krumlov is a working town of around 12,600 people, not just a museum, and life outside the tourist core follows a South Bohemian rhythm of breweries, river sports and forest walks. The biggest local celebration is the Five-Petalled Rose Festival on the summer solstice weekend, named after the rose in the Rosenberg crest, when residents in period costume fill the streets with crafts, jousting, music and dance.