Sloup Castle is first mentioned in 1324 and stands atop a 33 metre high sandstone column (‘Sloup’ means column in Czech). This column was excavated to improve the Castle’s defences. Despite its commanding position, the castle was burned down in 1427 and again in 1639. From 1670 to 1785 it became a hermitage and many more passages and rooms were carved out of the rock.
After this period the Kinsky dynasty turned the site into a romantic tourist attraction. The maze of voids beneath the castle are a key part of the site and include passages, a dungeon, well, chapel, grain silo and carvings.