Černín Palace, Baroque palace in Hradčany, Czech Republic
Černín Palace is a baroque government building in Hradčany with an exceptionally long facade that runs along Loretánské Square and consists of tightly spaced half-columns. The estate includes two courtyards and several wings, including a more modern addition from the 1930s located behind the older structure.
Count Humprecht Jan Černín commissioned the palace after 1664; construction began in 1669 to designs by Francesco Caratti, and the interior was completed in 1717–1723 under Franz Maximilian Kaňka. Damaged by French troops in the 1740s and Prussian artillery in 1757, it later served as a military hospital, barracks and orphanage. Since 1934 it has housed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The palace takes its name from Count Humprecht Jan Černín of Chudenice, who commissioned it after 1664. The family never resided here for long, as social life centred on Vienna; from 1777 the building served as a military hospital, poorhouse, rental flats, workshops and barracks. Since 1934 it has housed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The building now houses the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is not open to the public, but can be admired from outside on the square and surrounding streets. The long facade offers good photo opportunities from the opposite Loreto area.
The Janák extension still operates a paternoster elevator, an open cabin system that runs continuously in a loop and carries staff between floors. Visitors cannot see the device from outside, but it remains one of the few active installations of this type in Czech ministries.
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