LOCATIONS — 250/262 — Raborsch fortress
The first written mention of Raborsch appears in 1362. At that time, the adjacent village belonged to Mikuláš Velkuš, a townsman from Kuttenberg, who sold it to Mikuláš Wonderbute between 1386-1389. The rapid change of owners is characteristic of the fortress, even to this day: after his death it passed to King Wenceslas IV, from whom it was acquired by another Kuttenberg burgher, Martin Oderin. In 1402, the fortress and the village were burnt down by King Sigismund of Hungary during the siege of Kuttenberg. The remains of the fortress continued to change hands during the 15th century until they came under the administration of King George of Podiebrad and from there to the captain of Kolin, Jan Hrabaň, at Přerubnice. The list of subsequent owners is extensive. Today the fortress (rebuilt into a castle) is privately owned. Only part of the masonry of the south-east corner and one room with a ribbed vaulting have been preserved from the original Gothic building.
TRIVIA
— Although Ratboř fortress changed owners many times and was heavily damaged during Sigismund’s siege of Kuttenberg in 1402, the wider settlement of Ratboř continued to develop in the following centuries. The village itself is first mentioned in records connected to the Benedictine monastery of Kladruby in 1115, though the surviving document is believed to be a later forgery. More reliable references reference it in 1352. Over time, Ratboř became associated with several noble families and estates linked to nearby Malešov and Suchdol.
The older castle complex (Raborsch fortress), known today as Starý zámek Ratboř ("Old castle Ratboř "), was rebuilt in the Baroque style and altered again in the 19th century, while Nový zámek Ratboř ("New castle Ratboř ") was constructed beside it between 1911 and 1915.
One of the most important figures connected to Ratboř was Ludmila Františka of Rzavé, who inherited the estate in 1673. During her administration, she restored much of the settlement after being neglected since 1400s. She rebuilt the burned Schodecký mill and founded the nearby Hrázský and Skokanovský mills, restored the village itself, and oversaw the construction of a brewery, manor house, blacksmith shop, and several cottages near the estate courtyard. She also repaired the Church of St. Wenceslas in Ratboř and expanded the neighbouring settlement of Těšinky after purchasing additional land from the Malešov estate in 1695.
-> -> ->
