For more than 760 years now, the castle ČESKÝ ŠTERNBERK, set on the steep stony bank of the Sázava, has dominated the landscape around the central reaches of the river. Called the “Pearl of Posázaví” by a romantic poet [Posázaví is the region around the river], the castle was built in 1241 by Zdeslav of Divišov, and given the name “Šternberk” according to the custom of the day. The family’s new aristocratic particle, of Sternberg [Šternberk is the Czech spelling of the same name, meaning star-castle], dates from same period, along with its coat of arms bearing an eight-pointed star.
One quite remarkable and certainly unique aspect of Český Šternberk is that the castle belongs now to a descendant of the man who first had it built, Zdeslav of Sternberg.
The Early Gothic medieval castle is concealed within the core of the structure that stands today, the product of several different periods of reconstruction. The architecture underwent a series of changes, from the Late Gothic reconstruction work improving the fortifications, through to the extravagant Early Baroque remodeling of the interiors, done convert it into a comfortable residency.