September 22: Horni Hrad

Distance traveled: 147.0 km

Cumulative distance: 1085.4 km

Top speed: 93 kph

Temperature range: 15 - 20 degrees

Get your mind out of the gutter.

Horni Hrad is the loction of Hauenstejn our first zricenia or ruin of the day. It is not clear when the castle was initially founded but it is believed to have been in the latter part of the 13th century.  However, the first definitive date the castle is mentioned is 1336. 

The castle is a ruin that is in very dire condition due to it not being used and with no maintenance since 1958.  It had been used as a Nazi youth centre during WWII and after the war, confiscated by the Czechoslovakian government who used it as recreation centre for a mine and then later, a youth detention centre until 1958, when it was last occupied. 

A public trust had attempted to acquire the funds to have the castle renovated but lacking resources, failed to achieve that objective. By 1982, it was considered to be derelict and was on the verge of being demolished and to leave only the tower however, as it was considered a national monument, approval for demolishion was denied and eventually, the castle was acquired privately in 1999. The current owner is restoring the castle somewhat fragmentally with major renovation work being done to shore up the the structure of the main building. The tower was restored in 2002 after a large portion of the top collapsed.

In an effort to raise funds for the restoration, there was a fee for entry and as well, there are kitchy displays and attractions presumably meant to appeal to toddlers and thus, families as well as several cafes in the court yard, probably all selling the same things. However, there are good things happening there as well. Orphans visit regularly and are invited to sleep at the castle in a modern but modest dormitory and plays, musical events and group outings come. 

If you look carefully, you can see lighter coloured stone at the top of the tower and on the right hand side. That is all stone that was replaced in 2002.

Castle cat. There were a number about and when we first went to the ticket office, we noticed a great many 20 kg bags of kitty litter.

The first mention of Andelska Hora (Angel Hill) Castle dates back to 1402 and appears to have changed hands perhaps a dozen times throughout the 1400s.  Unlike other reformed or renovated castles, Andelska Hora is also a zricenia. After the overwhleming disappointment yesterday visiting Wolkenstein Castle, Andelska was what we had been hoping to see: original structure (for the most part) without adornments from any time in the last 200 years. 

In the mid to latter 1500s, a Gothic reconstruction took place and in 1635 the castle was looted and occupied by the Swedish in the Thirty Years War and then was occupied by squatters until a fire consumed the castle in 1718, which was when it was last occupied. The castle continued to change hands over the centuries until it was acquired by a local family in 1868, who owned it until 1945, when it was confiscated by the government. That last family to own it has filed a grievance with the government to have it returned, which is currently before the Czech courts. 

Officially, it is currently in the hands of the local municipality who have a plan to rescue and do restoration work on the the castle but will not be likely to proceed until the ownership issue is resolved.

It does have a long and complicated history and because over 300 years have elapsed since it was last occupied, it has fallen to quite a bit of disrepair. However, it is still amazing to visit and touch the stones and see its structure up close, as well as the magnificent view from the top.  Of course, that was pretty much the whole point of a castle: to have a magnificent view to be able to see the enemy coming and to fight them off as they approach from below.  Despite these structures appearing overwhelmingly impenetrable, given they changed hands so many times means that they were not immune from falling to the enemy, despite the fortifications. I imagine that scores of mercanaries were tasked with charging the castle as "sacraficial lambs" with the hopes that a few get through and ultimately take the castle. It would have to be a matter of just overwhleming the occupants. And maybe a few well pace catapult shots. 

After careful consideration, Nan and I decided that the telecommunications instruments were probably not originally part of the castle.

A bucket arrangement used in past renovation work. It looked as old as the castle.

This is to say nothing of the spectacular ride we had today.

Twice today we passed through traffic circles with six "spokes".