Daliborka Tower is a tower located in Prague Castle in the Czech Republic. It used to be a prison and originally housed nobility only, but later held those of other statuses. The Daliborka Tower was built in 1496 by architect Benedict Reid and initiated by King Vladislas II Jageillo. Though only five stories tall now, it was originally much taller.

The cells are tiny, but the prisoners who commit worse crimes go to the bottom of the tower. The bottom floor, which served as an oubliette, had walls up to 320 centimeters thick, and the only way out was through a hole at the top. Prisoners who caused problems would be lowered down into it with a pulley and left to starve. Throughout the tower, there are torture devices used as decoration. The dungeon would have been the only form of torture used on the prisoners during its operation. They have a thumb screw which was used to crush a person’s fingers and they also have iron cages from the Romantic era.

Today the Daliborka Tower is no longer a prison and is now open to the public as of the late 19th century. But what is the namesake of the Daliborka Tower? Though the tower was home to many different prisoners, its name is derived from its very first occupant, a man named Dalibor of Kozojedy.

Dalibor of Kozojedy was a Czech nobleman who famously got caught up in a dispute between another Czech noble and his peasant serfs in the Litomerice region. In 1496, the subjects of Adam Ploskovsky of Drahonice revolted against their master because of his cruel nature and were able to force him into promising to free them from servitude. As the story goes, the peasants sought out Dalibor of Kozojedy and asked to be put under his protection, as they knew he treated his subjects well. Dalibor accepted the offer, but upon learning of this agreement, Adam Ploskovsky went against his promise and reported Dalibor and the peasants to the royal authorities.

The court ruled in 1497 that taking in rebellious subjects was punishable by death and that Dalibor had taken his neighbor’s land for personal gain. Dalibor was arrested and the peasants were defeated and forced to return. King Vladislas Jagiello ordered that Dalibor be imprisoned in a new tower that had just been constructed.

Though most legends portray him as a noble defender of the oppressed, there seems to be some evidence that might suggest otherwise. According to records in the Land Registers in Bohemia, Dalibor had been brought to court twice before in 1490 for dishonesty by his father for misappropriation of family property. The court ruled in favor of his father and Dalibor had to hand over what was owed, but he did not fulfill this and was again brought to court and lost.

Regardless of whether he was an honest or dishonest person, Dalibor spent the rest of his life imprisoned within the tower awaiting his eventual execution. The legend says that he acquired a violin and spent his time practicing playing his instrument. As time passed, his skill improved. He grew famous for his playing of the violin while imprisoned and attracted many locals to come and hear his music from outside his prison tower. Eventually, in 1498, his violin playing stopped forever when he was finally executed. Thus, from that day onward, the tower became known as the Daliborka Tower and served as the inspiration for Bedrich Smetana’s opera Dalibor. Though there are more sinister theories about Dalibor and his violin, his legend ends here.

Written by Mikayla Faires and James Travis

Sources:

“Dalibor z Kozoied.” Czech Wikipedia (2023). https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalibor_z_Kozojed.

“Daliborka Tower.” Prague.net (2008). http://www.prague.net/daliborka.

McEnchroe, Thomas. “Daliborka: Prague Castle’s medieval prison whose first inmate inspired a national legend.” Radio Prague International (2020). https://english.radio.cz/landmark-prague-stories-8685642/3.

“Prague Castle – Daliborka Tower” (2024). Prague.eu. https://www.prague.eu/en/object/places/49/prague-castle-daliborka-tower-daliborka.

Sedlak, Vlad J. “Nouze Naucila Dalibora Housti.” Nase Rec, Rocnik 28 (1944). http://nase-rec.ujc.cas.cz/archiv.php?art=3849.

“The Death of Dalibor of Kozojedy.” Digital Urban Legends (2009). http://www.digital-guide.cz/en/realie/curiosities-and-legends/the-death-of-dalibor-of-kozojedy/