Rovný Motte

Welcome to the Rovný monument. Stop for a moment, take a breath and feel the silence of this place. You may feel you're standing in the middle of a plain landscape, but right under your feet and around you is a fascinating story from the days of knights and medieval masters. You're standing in front of a place we now call a extinct settlement complex. This means that even if you can't see the rising walls or the high towers today, life has been throbbing in the past. Imagine going back hundreds of years in time. Here, in the valley of the tavern of Koželuzka near the Drahony Escape, the entire village, the farm yard, the mills, and the fortress was dominant over everything.

Let us now look together at how this place was created and what its original meaning was. The first written mention of Straight dates back to 1367. At that time there was the family of Nicholas of the Equals who was the first documented owner of this fort. In the 14th century such a fortress was the foundation of power and security in the surrounding landscape. It was not just a residence for nobles, but a centre for the management of nearby land and protection for the people who lived and worked here. Rovný was not just a lonely house, but a complex system where the needs of defence, agriculture and craft intertwined.

Now pay attention to the terrain around you. Even though the buildings are gone, we can reconstruct the architecture of this complex in our minds. Imagine you're in a system of ponds that surrounded the entire complex. Water here was not only a source of livelihood, but above all a powerful defense element. The fortress itself had dimensions of 35 times four twenty meters and was very strategically located. Imagine an island in the middle of the third of these ponds. It was on this island that there was a fortress, which made it a very difficult place for any enemy. The perimeter of this island was protected by a wall that probably carried a four-sided tower in the northeast corner. This tower served as a prospect and a last resort. There was a residential building next to her, where the men of Straight lived. Feel this atmosphere of isolation and safety that water and walls provided to their inhabitants.

When we look at the history of this place, we see how its owners changed over the decades, reflecting the troubled times of that time. After Nicholas of Straight, Vojslav Vlk z Miletic settled here in 1410, who bought the fort. Only eight years later, in 1418, the owner became Lvík z Jivjan. Each of these men brought his own history and influence to the Equal. Names like Martin z Rovného or Václav Gut z Dubňan appear among the personalities associated with this place. Each of them saw Rovný as his home or strategic point in the landscape. Imagine how the fate of local peasants was decided in these areas, how trade agreements were held here, and how fire was burning in the fireplace in winter evenings in the residential building, while water was freezing out in the ponds.

We will now stop at one of the greatest mysteries and sad chapters of this place. Rovný was not destroyed by a one-time disaster, but gradually disappeared. The highlight was the period of the Thirty Years' War, which left deep wounds throughout Central Europe. It is during this bloody conflict that the villages have finally ceased to exist. The people left, the houses were burned down or torn down, and once a whistling center began to return to nature. It is fascinating and at the same time freezing to think about how quickly the entire estate that existed for hundreds of years can be erased. Evidence of this decline is a chronological record from 1540, when only the mill remained in the whole area. Everything else, the walls, the tower and the living quarters, became part of the history and layers of the earth.

Now try to imagine the contrast. On the one hand, the medieval blossom, the walls, the ponds and the mighty gentlemen, and on the other hand, the silence that rules here today. Rovný is now a silent witness to the variability of time. What was once a symbol of stability and power is now just a clue in a landscape that can only be deciphered by those who know where to look. It is this invisibility that makes an even place with a certain secret. It's like reading a book with most pages missing, but we're trying to write the whole story out of the remaining pieces.

Imagine the sound of a mill wheel in this valley, the view of a four-sided tower being mirrored in the ponds and the guards moving around the walls. All these details are now part of the country's memory. It is important to remember that even places that are not visible at first sight form the identity of our landscape. Rovný reminds us that history is not only about big cities and famous castles, but also about smaller, local centres that carry the fate of hundreds of ordinary people.

Now that you know what was once in this place, I suggest you go through the neighborhood with a new look. Follow the lines of the terrain, perceive the flow of water in the tributary of the Koželezky and try to draw the contours of the island and the walls in mind. Let your imagination guide you, because in the case of lost monuments, it is the best guide.

Thank you for spending some time with us at the Rovný monument. We hope this trip to the past has helped you better understand the spirit of this place. We now invite you to explore the surroundings and discover other hidden corners of this beautiful landscape. We wish you a pleasant continued journey and many new experiences. Goodbye.