The House of Pernštejn (German: Pernstein) was one of the oldest and most important (uradel) families originating from Moravian nobility, along with the House of Rosenberg, that played an important role in the medieval history of Bohemian nobility from the 13th century until it's extinction in the first half of the 17th century.

The first mentioned member of House of Pernštejn was Stephen I, Lord of Medlov, who lived in the 13th century and was first doucumented in a deed from 1203.

The next firmly established member of the Pernštejn family is Vilém I who held various offices before becoming the Land Hejtman of Moravia [cz] in 1421.

[4] Jan II's son Vratislav served first as the Oberstlandkämmerer [cz], then as Land Hejtman of Moravia like his grandfather.

In 1526, he was in charge of the martial aid provided to the king Louis Jagiellon before the Battle of Mohács by the lords of Moravia.

After his brother's premature death, he became the sole overlord of the Pernštejn dominion and gained the nickname "Jan the Rich".

He served as an envoy to the Habsburg kings and – during his stay in Spain – married a Spanish noblewoman Maria Manrique de Lara (1538-1608).

They both moved back to Bohemia and Maria Manrique de Lara brought with her a statue that later became famous as the Infant Jesus of Prague.

Their glamorous lifestyle in Prague combined with dowries for their five daughters resulted in a loss of domains and later debts, from which the House of Pernštejn never quite recovered.