A family of Bohemian nobles whose main seat was Hasenburg Castle. Zaječek (Little Hare) Oldřich of Valdek (?-1271) was the first to take the name in 1232. In 1335, Zbyněk Zajíc ('zajíc' is the Czech word for 'hare') of Valdek and Žebrák purchased the Gothic castle near the village of Klapý near Libochovice from King John of Luxembourg and renamed it Hasenburg (the German word for hare is “Hase”). During the Hussite Wars, the Zajíc Lords were on the side of the Catholics allied to Emperor Sigismund. In the 14th century, the family lost much of its property and thereafter historical records of it become rather scant. The Zajíc family gradually dwindled, until it died out altogether in the 17th century.
The best-known representatives of the family include William Zajíc of Valdek (before 1289 – 9 October 1319) who was a friend of the Přemyslid Elizabeth of Bohemia, mother of Charles IV, whom he helped raise when he was at Křivoklát Castle. He was also one of the feudal lords from West Bohemia who accused Henry of Leipa of plotting against the king.
A family of Bohemian nobles whose main seat was Hasenburg Castle. Zaječek (Little Hare) Oldřich of Valdek (?-1271) was the first to take the name in 1232. In 1335, Zbyněk Zajíc ('zajíc' is the Czech word for 'hare') of Valdek and Žebrák purchased the Gothic castle near the village of Klapý near Libochovice from King John of Luxembourg and renamed it Hasenburg (the German word for hare is “Hase”). During the Hussite Wars, the Zajíc Lords were on the side of the Catholics allied to Emperor Sigismund. In the 14th century, the family lost much of its property and thereafter historical records of it become rather scant. The Zajíc family gradually dwindled, until it died out altogether in the 17th century.
The best-known representatives of the family include William Zajíc of Valdek (before 1289 – 9 October 1319) who was a friend of the Přemyslid Elizabeth of Bohemia, mother of Charles IV, whom he helped raise when he was at Křivoklát Castle. He was also one of the feudal lords from West Bohemia who accused Henry of Leipa of plotting against the king.