Strašná skála Ruin

Strašná skála, also known as Čežkov, Chateau or Watchrock, is a extinct chateau on the cadastral territory of the village Přešína near the village Čežkov in the district Plzeň-jih. Although there was no written report of him, archaeological findings clearly show that the chateau existed here during the second half of the 13th and first third of the 14th century. However, the site was already inhabited in prehistory, as demonstrated by ceramic shards found in the soil.

The historical context of the chateau can be partially reconstructed from records about surrounding villages. The name Čížkov has been in the lists of the Kladrub monastery since 1237, and just two years later it belonged to the same monasteries and neighbouring villages Přešín. Both villages formed the economic background of the region and later became owners of the masters of Rožmitál. The decisive year is 1285, when Protiva z Rožmitálu left part of the estate to Budislav from Čežkov. It is because of its home that Budislav is considered to be a builder of the chateau, although there is a possibility that it relates rather to another building in Čežkov. The story of the chateau is closed in 1347, when both villages received the Archbishop of Prague from Sesima of Rožmital. Since the archbishop managed his estate from Rožmital, the chateau was probably no longer suitable on the Horrible Rock and gradually disappeared.

The physical remains reveal an elaborate structure. The site determined the natural rock ridge that formed its base. It was separated from the rest of the platform by a north moat up to 15 metres wide and six metres deep. The excavated material was used to balance a central courtyard about seven times twenty meters, fortified by a palisade. The entrance to the courtyard led along the bridge through the north moat. At the gate, the farm building stood seven times five metres, the existence of which was evidenced by the findings of shards, nails and slag.

The core of the defense was two square towers. The first tower with a floor plan seven times seven meters and a wall strong one and a half to one and a quarter meters was standing west of the economic building. It was separated by a second tower on the rock ridge, which was divided from the first building by a moat carved directly into the rock. Both towers had a stone suspect, while the other buildings were primarily wooden. The towers also served as connecting elements: the bridge from the ground floor of the second tower led to the neighbouring defensive building, and the gallery from the first tower allowed access to the second tower.

Today the chateau was preserved only by terrain relics: the remains of moats, wallows and one deep building. Although the chateau did not behave like a ruin, its archaeological tracks provide a unique insight into the structures of the High Middle Ages and testify to the elaborate defence strategy of its time.