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History, Colonization and Discovering the Rocks
Thousands years ago, the whole area including the rocks as well as the border mountain ranges of the Krkonose and the Orlicke Hory Mountains was covered with virgin forest. This vast forested area was known even to the Romans as the Hercynian Forest. It is believed that an old route connecting the Elbe River Basin (via the East Bohemian settlement area, the Branka (Gate) Pass and the Klodzko Basin) with the Baltic Sea coast where rich amber deposits were located once led through this region. There is an unique finding of a bowl along with some fragments of ceramics from the Upper St. Hill near Adrspach originating from the Early Laten (Celtic) Age.
As far as the countryside was covered by the vast and thick forest that started to be colonized as late as the 13th century, the interesting rock formations were not visible. The border forest provided natural protection to the Czech Land. The first historic references to the sandstone rock formations describe the Broumov Walls. This rocky range dividing the Police and Broumov Basins was known even to the prehistoric people. The apt name of the Walls is first documented in 1213 and 1229 in the Brevnov Monastery documents. At that time, the colonization had reached the edge of the Adrspach-Teplice Rock area from two directions: from the east along the Metuje River and from the west along the Drevic (Olsovka) Creek. The starting point here was probably the village of Starkov.
At the end of the 13th century the town of Teplice was found on the Metuje River and two fortified castles (Strmen and Adrspach) built in the rocks. Along with the third fortified castle (Skaly) that was built later, they were strong defensive points in the wilderness.
Coins from the Thirty Years' War, a Finding from Horni Adrspach
In the middle of May, 1971, when making earthwork, a coin deposit was found and (unfortunately) partly damaged. The coins scattered in the excavated earth were brought home mostly by children. The finding was withheld from the public. Only later, 21 coins of the finding were caught as some children had brought them to school or to the Broumov museum. The coins were in a leather bag an imprint of which has been preserved on one of the coins. The coins date back to 1629 or later. At the present time, they are deposed in the District Museum in Nachod.
The Finding Consists of the Following Coins:
- Seven three-kreutzel coins minted by Ferdinand II. (1619 to 1637)
- Two Silesian twenty-four-kreutzel coins
- Five Austrian three-kreuzel coins
- One Marian groschen from the Hervoden Abbey
- One Falc-Simmernian halfbatzen
- One Saxon half-taler from 1624
- One taler minted by the town of St. Gallen in Switzerland .
In the draft code of law issued by Charles IV, the Adrspach Castle is named among the inalienable royal properties (that may, however, be pawned)
The Adrspach "Rock Town" was the first place to attract the first inhabitants or visitors for its wild and romantic rock formations. The first person to be acquainted with the rock labyrinth was Ignac Dobrava - a former centurion of the Kolowrat Regiment. Ignac Dobrava sent several reports upon this area to Bohumir Langhans who was a head of the protestant School in Silesian Swidnica. He published a printed essay on the area accompanied with a 26 x 14.5 cm copperplate engraving depicting the rocks - the so-far oldest known picture of the area.
The Silesian Wars, the Seven Years' War and The Last of the Mohicans
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Before he died (on October 20, 1740) Charles VI ensured his 23-year-old daughter Maria-Therese the right of succession and also the indivisibilty of the Monarchy by issuing a new succession rules (the Pragmatic Sanctions). The same year, Friedrich II (Friedrich the Great) came to the throne in Prussia. He sent a letter of condolence to Vienna and almost at the same time, he occupied Silesia without any formal declaration of war. By this act, the first Silesian War (1741 to 1742) of the Austrian inheritance began.
There is a quotation by an intellectual, warrior and military tourist Friedrich II: "Who did not see the Adrspach Rocks, the Princely Chapel in Grusau (Kresov) or the Charnel House in Sedlec, he did not see any beauties of nature, splendour or art".
Maria Therese accepted the Czech crown in Prague on April 29, 1743. At this occasion, miller T. Hampel had a column dedicated to Virgin Mary .built in Adrspach. The people of the neighbouring villages however had to go into hiding in the rocks soon after that - in 1745, during the Second Silesian War (1744 to 1745). This is also the oldest date inscribed on the rock in the Rock Chapel behind the Burned-up Mill. Among the years and dates inscribed on the rock there are also Tomas Hampel's initials who helped the people take refuge in the rocks in the hard times.
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Until that time, Maria Therese's ally had been England and Friedrich II's ally had been France. Nevertheless, in the following Seven Years' War the powers' allies were swapped. During this war, some Adrspach villagers were in hiding in the rocks again, which is witnessed by the two inscriptions (1757 and 1762)on the rock in the Rock Chapel.
The Seven Years' War also took place out at sea as well as in North America between "New England" and "New France", i.e. Canada. In the autumn 1757, Fort William Henry was captured. The events related to this war have been immortalized in The Last of the Mohicans novel by J. F. Cooper. By a strange play of fate, the Seven Years' War events on various continents are interconnected by the year of 1757 that is inscribed in the Rock Chapel. And what is even more interesting? In the place of Hony and in the village of Viznov you could find the so-called Laudon's Barrages dating back to 1758. At that time, General Laudon occupied also Teplice and vicinity. The general who was defeated on the American continent was Earl of Loudon, allegedly his distant relative. It is more probable, however, that general Laudon's ancestors came from Livland and the Scottish Loudons had nothing to do with them.
In 1770, the rocks were visited by poet Johan Wolfgang Goethe who was fascinated by them.
The Potato War, the Prussian Shower or Rather a Lot of Fuss at the Plum Time
The name reflects the period of the war that took place at the potato harvest and plum ripening time. Prussians were often said to come to Bohemia to pick cherries. Their favourite stop would be the Branka (Gate) Pass where, on its southwest slopes cherry trees bloom and cherries ripen as the first in the whole region up to this day. That place also offers a wide view of the country and is also suitable for military encampments. The Prussian army used up this place very often during their invasions.
The oldest map in which the Adrspach Rocks is plotted was published in 1789 in Berlin and is connected to the year of 1779. It is a Prussian military staff map used during the "Potato War" or also the "Prussian Shower". These names were given to the war by Josef Myslimir Ludvik in his History of Nachod book. The war was nicknamed "the Potato War" because the people in this region acquainted themselves with potatoes for the first time. Potatoes had already been common in Prussia and Prussian army was well-stocked with them. The Czech name for potatoes "brambory" is probably derived from "Brandenburg".
In 1781 Adrspach Rocks was also visited by Josef Dobrovsky. With unfeigned admiration he wrote verses in the ancient Greek language into the Adrspach visitors' book.
In spring 1813, having returned from Russia, Napoleon Bonaparte was again at the head of an army of 150,000 soldiers in Germany and won the battle of Bautzen. The French penetrated Germany up to Breslau (Wroclaw). After that, on June 4, 1813 a truce was called until August 10, 1813. "In May 1813 on a Saturday before dusk, 3000 French infantrymen rolled up from Silesia to Braunau (Broumov) unexpectedly. They were mostly from Bayern and Winterberg, did not have any weapons, and were accompanied by their officers. Besides, they pulled to Braunau 300 hundred carts and wagons with two military cashboxes. The officers were accommodated in burghers' homes while the ordinary men pitched their tents at the Upper Suburb. We, students at that time, walked among them and spoke to them. They told us that they had sought refuge in Bohemia to avoid being taken as Prussian prisoners of war. Then, after 10 o'clock in the evening at the dark night, they got on the move and were in a frightful hurry to Adrspach in order to be able to get to Saxony to join their people. The next day early in the morning, fifty Russian Cossacks galloped in here. They were all well built, wearing colourful uniforms and having long pikes. Having asked about the French in the square, they rushed at full gallop to Adrspach to catch the French soldiers. Nevertheless, they returned back in a few hours and left the town the same day after midday. They had made a great impression on all of us. ...There was a congress held in Opocno from the 15th to the 23rd day of June where the final Austria 's joining the anti-Napoleonic coalition was discussed. At that time, our Duchess was honoured by the Russian Tsar's and the Prussian King's visit to the Ratiborice Castle."
Josef Myslimir Ludvik: "History of the Nachod Castle, Town, Demesne and their Owners" (1857).