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The House of Celje was the last important medieval dynasty which rose to the heights of European aristocracy. Their princely palace in Celje was, besides Trieste, the only location in the Slovenian lands where the European cultural and artistic traditions flourished.
The Counts of Celje are still part and parcel of the collective memory of Slovenians. With the help of literature in various genres, and contributions of amateur and scholarly writers, the dramatic life stories of certain Celje family members have survived for the last 500 years – no other Slovenian noble family can claim such an achievement.
On our tour we will visit the most notable places of their presence in valley of Savinja and gaze at the countless hop-growing farms and learn how modern hop growing started…
Program
Our first stop will be at a castle, Žovnek (Sanneck), which is one of the oldest fortresses in Slovenia allegedly built under the rule of Charlemagne as a stronghold against the Avars.
Next we will drive between countless hop fields to Žalec, where we will visit The Eco-Museum of Hop-Growing and Brewing Industry in Slovenia. The stop will enrich us with knowledge about hops and the hop-growing and brewing industry.
Of course we won’t forget to taste a few different types of beer in the local square!
Our next stop takes us to Celje, the third largest city in Slovenia, where we will have a guided tour of the exhibition The Counts of Celje in former Prince’s Mansion. The Counts of Celje is a permanent exhibition showing the rise and fall of the most important noble lineage in the Late Middle Ages within contemporary Slovenian territory.
Lunch break
After lunch we will drive to the old castle in Celje, which dates back to 1323. It was given its appearance and overall architecture by the Counts of Celje, whose reign and power had a long reach, having made a substantial impact on the political fate of the Central European region.
