LOCATIONS — 255/262 — Skalitz
The area where Skalitz (Skalice), the birthplace of our hero Henry, is situated today, was probably settled in the 13th century. The development of the town was prompted by silver mining in the area as well as the existence of the nearby parish of Rovná. The owners of the castle included Ješek of Skalitz (from 1384) and Bohdal of Drahonice (1402-1403). In 1403, Wenceslas IV took possession of it and placed it under the governance of the knight Sir Radzig Kobyla. However, in the same year, he had to leave the castle in order to save the inhabitants of Skalitz from Sigismund’s army, who torched the castle and the adjoining village; the estate was never rebuilt. In December of 1403, Wenceslas IV granted the remains of the village to Jan Sokol of Lamberg. The ruins of the medieval castle and its fortifications was scavenged for building material for the Church of St. John of Nepomuk. Today, only a small part of the masonry of the gate, the bailey and the walls remain.
TRIVIA
— According to a legend, Skalice already existed in 832 during the reign of the mythical prince Neklan, a predecessor of Přemysl the Ploughman. As the story goes Neklan got into a quarrel with Krasník, the Duke of Kouřim, and when Neklan sent out men to conquer Krasník's home, the duke fled to the castle in Skalice. As this too was besieged, Krasník is said to have escaped through a secret passage – much like Racek Kobyla according to some accounts – making it safely to Moravia. Skalice's true history is directly tied to the Sázava Monastery. Under the monks Skalice's later parish church in Rovná was founded in the 12th century. The church was dedicated to Saint James the Greater, the patron saint of miners, indicating the long mining tradition of the region. Around 1240, it was renovated in a late Romanesque style, and it retained much of the sculptures and frescoes of this time, making it one of only nine churches in the Czech Republic with original Romanesque artwork. After Wenceslas gifted Skalice to Jan Sokol of Lamberk, and Sigismund mortgaged it to Jan Zajímač of Kunštát, it ended up as property of the Sázava Monastery in 1417. At this time, Skalice is first mentioned as an independent market town under the name “Skalice of the Silver Mountains”, later developing to Stříbrná Skalice, Silver Skalice. The short distance between Sázava and Skalice is also rich of the monastery's legends. When you walk through the woods from one place to the other, you will come by an old haul road known as the Devil's Furrow. Legend has it that this road was created by Saint Prokop by ploughing the ground with the Devil himself, harnessed to his plough. A little bit further up the road lies a hill plateau with the nickname Saint Prokop's Bowling Ground. After ploughing for a while, Prokop is said to have found some rest here – by playing bowling with the Devil. Of course, the Devil cheated. Prokop still won the game.
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