The story of Bojnice Castle

Picture a king dictating his royal decrees under a linden tree. King Matthias Corvinus liked to visit this place, and that tree is still known as the Linden tree of King Matthias. Bojnice Castle was first mentioned in 1113. It began as a wooden fort, later replaced by stone, its outer walls following the uneven rocky ground.

In 1489 Matthias gave it to his illegitimate son John Corvinus. The Thurzó family acquired it in 1528 and turned the fortress into a Renaissance castle, and from 1646 the Pálffys owned it. Count János Ferenc Pálffy rebuilt it from 1888 to 1910, creating the imitation of the Loire valley castles you see today.

In his 1907 will he asked for it to be opened to the public. A fire on 9 May 1950 destroyed all the towers of the middle castle, yet the first exhibition opened on 2 September 1951. Of the many local legends, the most famous is the Legend of the Black Lady.