Meet the castle Dioš
Dioš is one of the youngest Slavonian castles situated on the hill with the same name, about 7km north of Daruvar, near the settlement Končanica. It was built in 1904 by contemporary owners of Daruvar’s feudal possession, the noble Alajoš Tükory and his wife Paula, born Falkenberger, for their daughter Marija.
The owners did not allow the appearance of the castle to give away an impression of a country-life villa or a house for hunters. They wanted it to look like a lord’s house. The luxuriant architecture of the castle, the room’s interior and the compatibility of outdoor elements make this monument beautiful and rich.Trough hundreds of years of its existence, the owners changed and the castle was used for various purposes.
In 1995, the castle Dioš was returned to the monks (Silesians) and it is not open for public. Every year, in May, on the catholic holiday – a holiday of great importance for the monks, they carry out the procession that gathers a large number of believers and the curious.
Castle of count Janković
The crucial moment in the town’s development was the arrival of Count Antun Janković’s family who purchased the northern part of the Sirač estate, which included Podborje, from the Royal Chamberin in 1745. Queen Maria Theresa, on 28th February 1765, granted count Jankovich the title „de Daruvar“.
In Hungarian “daru” means “crane” which was the symbol on the coat of arms of that family, and “var” means town or castle. In translation, Daruvar means Crane’s town or Crane’s castle. Today the crane is the symbol of Daruvar and its pose represents constant alert on watch.
From 1771 to 1777, Antun Jankovich built a baroque castle, with a park that had already been surrounded by several houses, and the settlement was named after the castle. The German explorer, traveler and writer, Taube listed the Castle Jankovich among one of the most beautiful buildings in the kingdom. The Castle contains three wings that surround a backyard, which is turned towards the north; it is built in the shape of the letter U. On the ground floor and on the first floor there are 60 rooms.
The main place in the central wing is occupied by the main lounge, which is a concert hall. Nowadays the main lounge has the same purpose. You can enjoy the concerts of classical music, organized mainly by the local music school Bruno Bjelinski.
The Daruvar castle park
The castle park was growing simultaneously with the building of the castle, according to Viennese architects designs, and was completed in 1780. At family Jankovic time park was spread over 14 hectares. The park has features from baroque and landscape style, and some of trees planted in that time in the park are still alive today.
In the central part preserved on the south side of the castle, in front of the main entrance, dominates male specimen of Ginkgo biloba tree.
Male tree is the largest and the oldest specimen of its kind in Croatia with range of trunk about seven meters, protected from 1974 as part of urban unit of Daruvar and as immovable culture monument, along with the castle.
Address: Ivana Gundulića 1, 43500 Daruvar
Photography by: Ratko Vuković
