Zovnek Castle in Slovenia — the ancestral seat of the Counts of Celje.
When the last member of the Wovbrških Counts dynasty (blood relatives of the Žovnek noblemen) died in 1322, the Žovnek family inherited half of their possessions, and by 1341 they bought out the other half. Becoming the rightful owners of Celje, the Žovnek noblemen moved their residence to the city. On April 16, 1341, Emperor Ludwig IV of Bavaria bestowed the title of Count on Ulrich I of Žovnek, and the dynasty received the name of Cilli (Celje).
The last Count of Žovnek and the first Count of Cilli was Ulrich I’s father, Frederick I of Cilli (1300–1359).
Document from Emperor Ludwig IV of Bavaria for Frederick I of Žovnek, in which he declares that he has raised Frederick and his heirs to the Counts of Cilli.
Žovnek Castle
The Cilli Counts dynasty ruled these lands for a long time. Their city residence was located directly in the city, and during troubled times, they lived in Cilli Castle. What happened to Žovnek Castle? No, the Cilli Counts did not forget their ancestral home and often came to visit, and in their absence, Žovnek was managed by caretakers.
The Cilli chronicles state that there was a tower on the hill above Žovnek, which was most likely used as an observatory. However, the tower was demolished in 1439.
When the great Cilli Counts dynasty ceased to exist in 1456, all their possessions, including Žovnek Castle, passed to the Habsburgs.
View of Žovnek Castle
For a while the castle was empty, but after a fire in 1532, it was rebuilt and sold to Adam Schrot. A hundred years later, in 1635, Žovnek was plundered and destroyed again by insurgent partisans. The castle owners changed constantly, and by the beginning of the 19th century Žovnek was in complete decline.
The last owner who lived in the castle was Jožef Čokl von Ruchetal. But in 1816 he started building a new classical style mansion for himself in the valley, a sort of New-Žovnek (Ruchetal), and moved into it after its completion. Ruchetal used materials from the castle for his new mansion, completely turning it into a construction quarry.
Ruins of Žovnek Castle (At the beginning of the 20th century, the half-ruined castle was acquired by the family of Baron Edmund Knobloch, and the last owner of Žovnek was Ana Maria Hünermann, who owned the castle until 1945.
During World War II, German occupiers completely plundered the castle and transported all valuable items to the Graz Museum. In August 1945, Žovnek Castle was nationalized, but only in 1993 did the Žovnek Braslovče Cultural-Historical Association begin restoration work there.
Do you know that the Žovnek Counts family is still alive (at least through the female line), and that descendants of the Žovnek Counts belong to the British Royal Court (the late Princess Diana)?
Žovnek Castle
Žovnek Castle Today
Restoration work on Žovnek Castle is still ongoing, but it is undoubtedly worth coming here to see the “cradle” of the great Cilli Counts. After crossing the bridge, you find yourself in front of the restored entrance portal. This entrance to the castle complex is specially divided into two parts: one for pedestrians, the other for horsemen.
To the left of the portal is the most striking part of the castle ruins — a round defensive tower that served the Žovnek Counts well in defense. The tower is a two-story building, which once had a central part on the first floor, where the castle chapel was located. To the right of the entrance portal are the remains of the southern outer and inner walls.
Defensive tower of Žovnek Castle (Photo from druzinski-izleti.si)
The central part of the castle was once the residential part or palace, but today it is almost completely destroyed. The only remnants of the once powerful palace are two towers, the so-called “peaks,” which were fully restored in 2008.
From the walls of Žovnek Castle, there are beautiful views of the Lower Savinja Valley and the wide expanse of Žovnek Lake, located nearby.
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