Špilberk a jeho panství za meziříčských z Lomnice (1499–1547)

The castle Špilberk was a residence of margraves for the last time during the reign of Moravian Luxemburg dynasty. In the next periode was the castle administrated by Brno, king’s administrators or king’s creditors. The situation was changed in 1499. The Moravian hetman Jan Meziříčský of Lomnice gained the castle and its dominion from Vladislav II. The Czech and Hungarian king had to get rid of his debts to the hetman, therefore he put Špilberk in pawn. Jan Meziříčský and his sons had been holding the castle until 1547. House of Lomnice belonged to the most important families in the Moravian margrave. We don’t know much about their possession of castle. The literature mentions only the pawning and end of it. The study finds out Jan Meziříčský’s struggles for the economic profit of his dominion. His sons Jindřich, Václav and Vladislav were holding Špilberk together (it was called “nedíl” in the Czech law). The brothers protected their subjects in the Moravian land court. They were renting the part of their dominion for some period. It is no surprise, that the brothers had quarrels with the burghers of Brno. Their economic interest was crossing (for example the beer brewing). There is no evidence of their attitude to the reconstruction of the castle. The permament complaints about the defensive power of Špilberk from the land officers prove, that the brothers did not invest too much to the defensive of their castle. In the end they did some reconstruction after the year 1543. The brothers of Meziříčští of Lomnice lost the property of Špilberk in the year 1547. The land court decided, that Jan Meziříčský gained the castle and its dominion illegally. The argument was based on king’s document, that was issued before the transaction. The king promised he would never pawn the castle Špilberk.