Castle of Hruba Skala

History:
Hruba Skala was founded by the family of Valdstejn (Wallenstein) as a military stronghold at the beginning of the 14^th century. The castle, standing on a wonderfull place commanding the valley of the Libunka river, comprised several buildings errected on tops of two 60-meter tall rocky towers connected to the near sandstone platform by a drawbridge. The particular location gave it the name: The Big Rock. In the 16^th century the castle was transformed into a confortable but strongly protected Renaissance chateau. During the Thirty Year War the castle belonged to Albert of Wallenstein. After his assasination in 1634, Hruba Skala was plundered by Saxonic and imperial armies. At the end of the war, the castle exchanged between Austrian and Swedish hands incessantly and it was badly damaged. In the 19^th century the castle was bought by J. Aehrentthal, a rich businessman, who instigated the reconstruction of the buildings in the neogothic style. During the communist era the buildings belonged to the Revolutionary Trade Unions which negatively influenced the quality of interiors. Nowadays Hruba Skala is a property of the OREA Hotels Company which is gradually changing the castle into a comfortable hotel and a conference center.