The renovated riding hall in Světce near Tachov will be open for the whole season starting in 2024

Tachov - In the reconstructed riding hall in Světce near Tachov, the second largest in Central Europe after the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, only the completion of exhibits in the last rooms, corridors, coats of arms on the facade, and adjustments to the surroundings of the monumental building, which is 162 years old, remain. The last major renovation of the riding hall, declared a national cultural monument since 2010, will cost approximately 70 million CZK. A major meeting will take place in mid-October, and the city leadership will announce whether it will open in January 2024 or at the beginning of the tourist season in April, with all spaces available for viewing. This was stated by Pavel Voltr, the guide and custodian of the Tachov castle, during today's guided tour.

Starting in April, the riding hall will be open like other castles and chateaus, that is, all week except Monday. "Next year, we will make all spaces accessible, which is not common for any monument. Even in the Vienna riding hall, you cannot access all areas," said Voltr. All floors will be available for viewing, including the sports riding hall, the roof, and the cellars, facilities for horses and visitors, princely and other boxes, and exhibitions about herbalism and the Czech Forest, which are currently being completed. The blacksmith's shop, horseshoeing room, blacksmith's apartment, ironworking exhibit, carriage hallway, and all four living chambers for nobility and visitors have already been accessible for a while. All exhibits will be completed by the end of the year, he said.

Since 1997, the riding hall has been owned by the city. The pseudo-Romanesque building, which was saved from demolition by a single vote in the council in 1999, has been under renovation for 23 years. In the 20 years since August 2000, Tachov has invested 80 million CZK, including grants from the Ministry of Culture and the region. The ongoing final phase, which began two years ago and was mostly supported by the EU, is considered by Mayor Petr Vrána (I Vote Tachov) to be the most significant and visible one.

Regular tours will be organized by the city cultural center. "We have been organizing (occasional) tours and concerts without interruption since 2000. Attendance has been excellent. Mainly Czechs visit, while there are few foreigners for now," Voltr stated.

According to him, the riding hall is a national cultural monument due to its rare roof structure, 90 percent of which is original. "It is a so-called truss structure, and the upper part is beautifully preserved and even glassed in, known as the lantern," he stated.

After World War II, the building deteriorated for more than 40 years. "State farms used it, and there was also a gymnasium for soldiers, Svazarm, and a large grain granary. In 1985, it was designated for complete demolition," Voltr said. According to him, the riding hall hosted Spartakiads and the Pospíšil brothers trained there for two years for bicycle polo. The riding hall was not monitored, and people looted it. "Eyewitnesses say that the accommodation rooms and stables were still fully equipped and furnished in 1946," Voltr noted. Border guards had a few horses there even in the 1950s.