English
History of the castle
The Old Yard Castle in Rychvald is originally Renaissance and dates back to the 16th century. During the reign of Prince Václav III, Rychvald was part of the Principality of Těšín, which was heavily indebted during this period due to the poor management of co-ruler Bedřich Casimir, and the prince had to sell part of the estate. Rychvald was also located in this part. The buyer was Burian Barský from Bašt'. His son Bernard chose Rychvald as his residence a year later and had a sizeable two-story chateau built there in 1575-1577. The Barský family held Rychvald until 1630, and then the estate was owned by other těšín families.
18th century
In the middle of the 18th century, the Gašíns sold Rychvald to Baron Jan Václav Mönnich due to the poor financial situation. He had only one daughter, Anna Maria Tekla, to whom he bequeathed his entire fortune. Anna Maria married Count Jan Josef Lariš of Lhota in 1791, to whom she brought her inherited wealth as a dowry.
19. století
Jan Josef and Anna Marie Tekla had a son Heindrich and he and Henrietta von Haugwitz had a son Eugen Larisch-Mönnich, who together with his daughter Franziska von Larisch-Mönnich gradually rebuilt the castle in the second half of the 19th century. In addition, thanks to Eugen's efforts, a railway station of the Košice-Bohumün railway Reichwaldau Schloβ (Rychvald-castle) was established in front of the castle in 1869. Franziska then brought Rychvald as a dowry to her husband, Prince Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg.
20th century
From 1903 to 1945, the chateau and the manor were in possession of the Starhemberg family. The last aristocratic owner of the castle and the estate was Ernst Rüdiger, Franziska's son Georg Adam von Starhemberg, and his wife, Anna Agnes. Their daughter Friederike was born at the castle in 1936. After 1945 the Starhembergs left for Austria.
After 1945, the National Property Administration acquired the chateau as part of the expropriation. In 1950 it was handed over to the JZD Rychvald, which turned the magnificent castle into a warehouse, apartments, and a farm for its own needs.
Between 1962 and 1989, the castle belonged to the OKD company, the Reclamation Plant. During this time, the castle fell into severe disrepair and disturbed its statics.
After the Velvet Revolution, the Starhembergs visited the chateau, but their plans for restoration were eventually abandoned. In the 1990s, the castle was gradually handed over to various persons, who mostly left it to decay.
21th century
Since 2005, the castle has been undergoing renovation, at the end of which it should serve as a place for accommodation, recreation, and as a wedding venue. It is currently protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic. Over time, the castle has been rebuilt, repaired, and beautified.
