Slavkov u Brna - Austerlitz

Slavkov Castle

Slavkov Castle in the plains of south Moravia, just outside the little town of the same name, has a double claim to fame : not only for its architectural and artistic qualities but also for an event of European significance which took place within its walls, namely the meeting, after the battle of 6 December 1805, of the victorious Napoleon with the defeated Emperors Francis I of Austria and Alexander the Russian Czar for the signing of a ceasefire. (One of the castle rooms houses an exhibition devoted to the course of the battle and its consequences.)

Belonging to the powerful Kounic family, the castle has 16th c. foundations. The older structure was swallowed up towards the end of the 17th c. in the new and more splendid residence elaborated by Domenico Martinelli on the basis of Enrico Zuccali's plans. Building was carried out by Vaclav Petruzzi, but it is likely that the famous Austrian architect Josef E. Fischer of Erlach had a hand in the closing stages.

The first floor stucco work is that of Santino Bussi and the murals, dated about 1701 , are by Andrea Lanzani. The paintings of the central hall and the chapel date from the 1760s and are the work of Josef Pichler, and the sculptural decoration is by Frantiçek X. Messerschmidt. The foremost European baroque masters are represented in the castle interiors and galleries by work which the members of the Kounic family collected from their diplomatic missions to many countries on behalf of the emperor. Especially noteworthy among these are the portraits of the Kounic members executed by Louis XIV's court painter, Hyacinthe Rigaud, Andrea del Pozzo from Italy and others. The castle's sculptural decoration, which is today concentrated in the restored baroque garden, were executed by Giovanni Giuliani and Ignac Lengelacher.

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