It was founded as a Gothic fortress in the style of French castles at the end of the 13th century, probably by Bishop Tobias of Benešov. Konopiště was turned into a Baroque residence in the 18th century by the Vrtba family. Franz Ferdinand d'Este, who bought the castle in 1887, rebuilt Konopiště into a magnificent imperial residence.

The Art Nouveau house No. 74 was built in 1904-5 according to the project of Marcel Dusil by the District Credit Union in Benešov. In 1992, an exposition dedicated to the history of the town and its surroundings, artistic monuments of the region and artists who worked here was opened to the public. Ethnography is an interesting feature. It presents mainly folk clothing and textiles, furniture, underpaintings on glass and folk sculpture.

The District Museum was already operating on the ground floor in the years 1950 - 1962 and returned in 1992, when it opened an exhibition on the history of Benešov and its surroundings on the first floor. In 2002, it added an exhibition on the second floor dedicated to the history of the Benesov military garrison.

The first city brewery in Benešov was built in 1872. In 1897 the brewery was bought by Franz Ferdinand d’Este. He built a whole new brewing facility to which he shifted the production from Konopiště. In that time it was one of the best modern breweries in the country. The main building is built in a typical Central-European industrial style from the turn of the centuries. This style is characterised by elementary decorations. After 1990 the brewery started using the brand name „Ferdinand“ and the whole premises became a cultural sight.

As the chronicle written by the so called Beneš Minorita states, the Benešov Minorite Convent was established in 1247 by a provost of the Old Boleslav canonry Tobiáš of Benešov. Tobiáš was supposed to give the new community the Benešovicové family seat that was located on a promontory, nowadays known as Karlov, above the present day town. Only the remains of the pentagonal presbytery with two gothic windows were preserved.