Located high above the Vltava river in Bohemia inthe Czech Republic, 30 minutes by car north of Prague, lies thebeautiful Renaisance Nelahozeves Castle, dating from 1566. It'sremarkable exhibition 'Six Centuries of European Art Patronage'offers a unique collection of never before seen paintings, musicalinstruments and precious manuscripts spanning the last six centuries.The exhibition was inaugurated by the Czech President Vaclav Havel,himself a great lover of fine art and music.
'My father's family has played a central role inthe history and culture of Bohemia for more than 600 years,' sayswith a smile the 39-year old American-born William Lobkowicz. 'Theyincluded many Princes of the Holy Roman Empire and High Chancellorsof Bohemia. Many of them were awarded the Order of the Golden Fleece,the highest honor of the Holy Roman Empire, but today we arevirtually paupers.'
'You see, I was born in United States. It neveroccurred to me that I would leave America - until the fall of 1989.One evening, I saw a television news report showing hundreds of EastGermans taking refuge in the West German Embassy in Prague - proofthat the Communists' grip on the country was weakening. But whatriveted my attention was the building the Germans were storming: itwas a former Lobkowicz palace. Suddenly I knew that I wanted to finda way to live in Czechoslovakia - to learn Czech and try to rebuildthe family identity that the Nazis and Communists had tried so hardto kill. So, during 1990, I took a crash courses in Czech, boughtevery language tape I could find and took a three-week scouting trip.In January 1991, I moved to Prague.'
This impressive art collection is an importantpart of Czech cultural heritage, and it rivals the collection ofpaintings at the Prague Castle itself. It reflects the major themesof the cultural and political history of Bohemia and Europe, from theRenaissance until 1930's. In it are thousands of works from thecollection of the Roudnice branch of the Lobkowicz family. Among themare paintings by Lucas Cranach the Elder, both Pieter Brueghel theElder and Younger, Paolo Veronese, Rubens, Velasques, and Canaletto.The exhibition also features a major collection of furniture,ceramics, porcelain, family photographs, manuscripts, arms and armorswhich decorated the many Lobkowicz castles over thecenturies.
Highlights of the 25 exhibition rooms include theFamily Portrait Galleries, which contain among others paintings bySpranger, Sanchez-Coello, and Hans von Aachen. Other galleriesinclude court, diplomatic and marriage portraits illustrating thefamily connections to royal and aristocratic courts of Europe:Emperor Rudolph II, Kings Phillip II and III of Spain, King Henry IIof France and his wife, Catherine de Medici, and the Emperor CharlesVI of Austria.
The Dutch Cabinet room is devoted to Dutch,Flemish and German paintings, while another one focuses on two viewsof London by Canaletto purchased by Prince Ferdinand PhilippLobkowicz in England in 1746. The paintings in all the rooms areaccompanied by relevant decorative arts.
After the fall of communism, Martin and WilliamLobkowicz, the eldest son and grandson of Prince MaximilianLobkowicz, returned to Czechoslovakia. One of the results of the fallof the Berlin Wall and the European Revolution of 1989 was thepassage of restitution laws, designed to repair some of theinjustices of the communist regime, and to revitalize the country.Thus, some real estate and personal property could be returned to itsprevious owners, whose property had been confiscated by thecommunists.
This turned out well for the Lobkowicz family.Nine castles were returned back to the Roundnice branch of thefamily, but most of them in a state of bad disrepair. Two of themwere in relatively best condition: Nelahozeves Castle and RoudniceCastle.
'Deteriorating castles and conservation ofpriceless music were just two fields in which my family suddenlyneeded expertise. Paintings were another. A wonderful canvas,Haymaking, by Pieter Brueghel the Elder, was among the items returnedby the government. Two splendid Canalettos, a Rubens and works byVelasquez, Lucas Cranach the Elder and other European masters werealso recovered - treasures of incalculable worth,' recalls Lobkowicz.'My family felt we owned and cared for these objects as custodians;to make them available to the public was a responsibility. Wededicated ourselves to the goal of keeping the castles open forvisitation, the art work on permanent exhibit and the music (as wellas the library and archives) available for study by scholars,'explains Lobkowicz.
The Roudnice branch of the Lobkowicz family wasperhaps best known as patrons of Beethoven, Goethe and Dvorak.Richard Wagner's stay at the Lobkowicz castle at Strekov inspired himfor the creation of Tannhäuser.
And so, another treasure room is devoted to Ludwigvan Beethoven and his patron, Prince Josef Franz Lobkowicz. Musicalscores, manuscripts and instruments are displayed here, many of whichhave never been seen by the public.
Among other treasures, this collection includesfirst editions of Beethoven's Third, Fourth, and Fifth Symphonies,with the composer's notes; a first edition of Handel's Messiah, withannotations by Mozart; Gluck's autograph score of Enzio; and an earlyprinted edition of Don Giovanni. The family had acquired them thanksto the passion of Josef Franz Maximilian, the seventh PrinceLobkowicz (1772-1816), who from early youth was a friend and generouspatron of Beethoven. Indeed, his patronage led Beethoven to dedicatenumerous works to him, including the Third (Eroica), Fifth, and SixthSymphonies, the Opus 18 string quartets, the Triple Concerto and thesong cycle "An die ferne Geliebte."
Nelahozeves is a charming Renaissance chateau,located in the village in which the composer Antonin Dvorak was born,his birth house also being returned to the family. The castlecontinues the tradition of the family in patronizing the arts byremaining open to the public.
William Lobkowicz continues his story: 'My familynurtures a dream that the musical-instrument collections may some daybe revived, and the previously unplayed or unknown works of greatcomposers - among the several thousand collected by my ancestors -may be played again in the castle. Already, a popular music traditionhas been started: the Dvorak Music Festival at Nelahozeves. In thelast six years, more than 120 concerts have taken place.'
The family had made great financial efforts torepair the castle and keep it operating. One of their successfulventures was re-energizing the family brewery which dates from 1466.They are now selling their Lobkowicz beer internationally. And theysucceeded in doing the same for the Castle Roudnice Vinyards, foundedin 1603, where winemaking had never stopped, even under theCommunists. When Queen Elizabeth II paid the first English Royalvisit to Bohemia in 400 years, their Roudnice wine was served at thestate dinner given in her honor.
With pride, William Lobkowicz looks at his wifeand says, 'My French-Romanian wife Alexandra has been veryenthusiastic about taking part in our work. She now also manages allthe non-profit activities, including the Roudnice LobkowiczFoundation, and oversees the staff who care for all the family artcollections. With an English curator, she created the exhibition "SixCenturies of European Art Patronage,' which was opened by Presidentand Mrs. Havel to critical acclaim in April of 1997. '
The castle is ideal for tourism. With that inmind, the Lobkowicz family started a travel agency, Lobkowicz TravelServices, which specializes in group tourism, business meetings andcongresses for clients coming to the Czech Republic. The castleitself is the site of many popular commercial and cultural eventsyear-round. Groups and individuals can rent rooms in the castle forsocial gatherings, gala dinners, garden parties and weddings.Post-conference programs, tours of the nearby city of Prague, allkinds of transportation and custom-made tours in the Czech Republicare also available.
What is the greatest challenge ahead for Williamand Alexandra? "I think it is the creation of an archive building forthe library to house music manuscripts and approximately 28,000 boxesof materials, dating back more than 600 years. This is our mostimportant project at this time, and we give it all our energy. Ourphilosophy is to make positive contributions to society by supportingarts and culture,' concludes the young and energetic man.