Brandejs Homestead, Prague - Suchdol, Czech Republic

Brandejs Homestead, sometimes called Suchdol Stately House, dominates the Prague District of Suchdol. The origins of the building probably go back to the middle of the 10th century, when on its site stood a local landowner’s dwelling house, first mentioned in written documents in 1045. The fortified dwelling complex was the prince’s stop-over point on the route between the Přemyslid stronghold at Levý Hradec and their newly built establishment on the Žiži Hill, where now the stands the Prague Castle.

On the site of this originally Early Gothic house was later erected a Renaissance fortified keep, which was subsequently rebuilt in the Baroque style. The last extensive alterations took place between 1822 and 1824, when the structure was remodelled in the Classicist style, following a devastating fire. The house also had a brewery, whose existence was first documented in 1648, when the property was owned by the Chancellor of Prince Lichtenstein, Jakub Roden of Hyrcenov. Thirty years later the homestead and the brewery were purchased by Benedictine monks from the Emauzy Monastery. The brewery was closed down in 1866 when one of the monks was allegedly poisoned by saltpetre contaminated water used to brew the beer. At the same time the homestead was leased by the monks to Vilém and Marie Brandejs. It had its heyday under the management of their son Alexander Brandejs (1848 – 1901), an enthusiastic supporter of contemporary art, science and culture. Setting out in the 1870s he established at the property a sort of cultural centre, which a became a meeting place for prominent artists of the time, such as the painters Mikoláš Aleš, František Ženíšek, Václav Brožík, Antonín Chittussi and Jakub Schikaneder, the sculptor Josef Václav Myslbek and writers Julius Zeyer and Jaroslav Vrchlický among others. The painter Mikoláš Aleš actually lived with the family between 1877 and 1879 and conceived here the idea for his famous cycle “My Homeland”.
Since the beginning of the 20th century the management of the smallholding often changed hands and in the 1930s it became the property of the Citizens’ Saving Bank in the town of Poděbrady. It gained fame in 1972 as the location of the popular Czech TV serial “There were once two clerks”. From the end of the 1960s the Brandejs Homestead has been administered by the Czech University of Agriculture, which uses its premises for horse breeding.
Some parts of the historically important building are in a serious state of disrepair and the need for reconstruction is paramount. The company GEMA ART GROUP a.s. was during the years 2010 to 2012 fully responsible for the provision of documentation for the decision on land use and the building permit. The work included setting up and evaluation of a number of geological, geodetic, traffic, hydrological and ecological surveys and analysis.