Bělá Castle, Medieval castle ruins in Dolní Bělá, Czech Republic

Bělá Castle is a ruin of a castle rebuilt into a chateau on a hill above Dolní Bělá in the Plzeň-North District. Of the whole structure, the massive earthen fortifications and small fragments of masonry survive, most visibly the torso of a round tower or bastion in the outer bailey and a section of perimeter wall reinforced by three pillars in the castle core. It has been protected as a cultural monument since 1964.

Racek of Bělá founded the castle in 1313 as a stronghold that later passed to the Lords of Gutštejn. King Vladislav seized it in 1509, ending its role as a noble residence.

The name Bělá comes from the Czech word for white, and the village below the ruin still bears it. The castle was confiscated from Volf of Gutštejn in 1509 after his band of robbers, based at Bělá, raided the citizens of Plzeň. The site is protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic.

The ruin stands on a hill above Dolní Bělá and is reached on foot; the path climbs through the village and the ground around the walls is uneven. The most visible remains are the earth ramparts, the torso of a round tower or bastion in the outer ward, and a stretch of perimeter wall reinforced by three pillars in the core.

The castle was confiscated from Volf of Gutštejn in 1509 because he kept a band of robbers there who raided the citizens of Plzeň. The Plzeň burghers had earlier forced him to supply timber for rebuilding their city after a fire in 1507.