David Venclík
The putative guard of the St Václav crown. The symbolism of Karlštejn Castle in the context of the Czech state rights programme
In the early 1860s the restoration of constitutionality enabled the Czech political representatives to revive their demands for state rights and to launch the fight for a ‘new’ status for the Czech lands within the Austrian Empire. The coronation of Franz Joseph I with the Czech royal crown, to which the Habsburg monarch had even given his preliminary assent, was meant to be a symbolic act recognizing the independence and historic traditions of the country. The Emperor's promise stirred up excited discussion in Czech society on the distinctive symbols of Czech statehood. For example, a petition submitted by Czech deputies for the dilapidated Karlštejn Castle to be renovated in order to give it back its representative form to match its historical importance got onto the agenda at the Bohemian Diet. Their defence of this monumental building project contained a unique interpretation which combined the original function of the castle with the safekeeping of the crown of St Václav. During the verbal exchanges the Czech and German politicians touched not only on the financial issues surrounding reconstruction of the castle, but also on the importance of the Czech royal coronation insignia. The rhetoric of these disputes was also reflected in the commentaries made at that time in periodicals, from which rehashed myths on the early history of Karlštejn leaked into the public consciousness.
State rights programme – Karlštejn – heritage conservation
design by Bedřich Vémola
