Oroslavje Gornje Castle/Vranyczany Park

The Oroslavje Gornje Castle, owned by a Sermage family, was one of the centers for social and cultural gatherings for the aristocrats of the second half of the 18th century. The castle’s owners were aristocratic families Čikulin, Sermage, and Vranyczany.

We assume that the castle’s foundations were built in the 1730s by Julije Čikulin. However, there is no accurate information about it. Over the centuries, the castle was renovated several times. Its architecture had baroque features, a four-winged form with an inner courtyard and round towers. The castle had a beautiful entrance facade with a tower and a clock on top of it. It was the only castle in northwestern Croatia covered with tiles.

Next to the castle was a landscaped garden modeled and inspired by the one in Versailles, with a lake and an island at the bottom of the garden. The statues of Flora and Satyr, the baroque statues with mythological creatures in Croatia, have been preserved in this park. The beauty of the castle and the surrounding garden attracted the famous composer Franz Liszt to visit and stay here on two occasions in 1846 and give a concert for the local nobles.

One of the owners, Ivan Franjo Čikulin (1681-1746), had one of the richest libraries in northwestern Croatia, with the works of the greatest European lawyers, philosophers, and writers of the time.

The last owner, baron Ljudevit Vranyczany, further refined the park in the romanticism and historicism style. Vranyczany was a lover of literature and fine arts. He often hosted some of the greatest Croatian writers and painters. In 1920, businessman Milan Prpić became the castle’s owner and opened a textile factory there. Unfortunately, the castle burned down in 1949.