Brdy
Encyclopedia
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, forming a long massif
Massif
In geology, a massif is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole...
stretching for cca.60 km from Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
in the direction of southwest. The northern section of the Brdy is called "Hřebeny" and features one narrow ridge
Ridge
A ridge is a geological feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance. Ridges are usually termed hills or mountains as well, depending on size. There are several main types of ridges:...
(highest elevation Písek - 690 m.). The Brdy proper starts south of the Litavka
Litavka
Litavka is a river in the Czech Republic, the right tributary of the Berounka River. It originates in the Brdy mountain range at the elevation of 736 m and flows for 54.9 km to Beroun, where it enters the Berounka River....
river gorge and consists of several major elevations connected into one plateau
Plateau
In geology and earth science, a plateau , also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau...
. The highest being "Tok" (864 m.), "Praha" (862 m.) or "Třemšín" (827 m.).
Most of the Brdy is covered by forest making it one of the largest contiguously forested areas in the interior of the Czech republic. However, major sections of the massif have been declared closed military area and are largely banned to public.
The military area of Brdy has been a source of controversy for several decades.
The closed military area was declared shortly after emergence of Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
to cater for needs of growing Czechoslovak armed forces in 1925. It has been expanded and well used by Third Reich military forces during the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia during 1939-1945.
It has been further used for intensive military exercises in post war era with some additional expansion in the southern sector.
After the Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
intervention in August 1968
Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia
On the night of 20–21 August 1968, the Soviet Union and her main satellite states in the Warsaw Pact – Bulgaria, the German Democratic Republic , Hungary and Poland – invaded the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic in order to halt Alexander Dubček's Prague Spring political liberalization...
, southern locality near town Mirosov
Mirošov
Mirošov is a town in Western Bohemia, the Czech Republic , 7 km southeast of Rokycany, 457 m. above sea level. Mirošov is located on the Skořický potok Stream that is joined by Příkosický potok Stream in the town's territory. In the east large forested complex of Brdy hills begins, its highest...
served as base to a small Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
contingent until its repatriation in 1993.
Military use of the Brdy mountains gradually decreased after the Velvet Revolution
Velvet Revolution
The Velvet Revolution or Gentle Revolution was a non-violent revolution in Czechoslovakia that took place from November 17 – December 29, 1989...
in 1989 driven by military cost cutting and eventual professionalization in 2005.
However, the closed military status of the central part persists.
As of 2010, Brdy mountains are currently in the focus of American negotiators attempting to settle a deal with Czech government to install a Ground-Based Midcourse Defense
Ground-Based Midcourse Defense
Ground-Based Midcourse Defense is the United States system for intercepting incoming warheads in space. Currently, it is a major component of the U.S. national missile defense strategy aimed against ballistic missiles, including intercontinental ballistic missiles...
missile defense
Missile defense
Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception and destruction of attacking missiles. Originally conceived as a defence against nuclear-armed Intercontinental ballistic missiles , its application has broadened to include shorter-ranged...
radar system in this military area.http://www.lidovky.cz/projekt-radar-oziva-sdruzeni-ne-zakladnam-chysta-protesty-pog-/ln_domov.asp?c=A100730_071547_ln_domov_pks
Infrastructure
The Brdy mountains haven't seen any substantial developmenent for long decades since 1925. This lack of man-made changes kept the local flora & fauna undisturbed and flourishing. The national forestry company (České lesy) has been in charge of maintaining large parts of the mountains.It still holds in the central parts, while northern rig have seen restitution
Restitution
The law of restitution is the law of gains-based recovery. It is to be contrasted with the law of compensation, which is the law of loss-based recovery. Obligations to make restitution and obligations to pay compensation are each a type of legal response to events in the real world. When a court...
to the legal ownership.
There are several major roads running across the mountains, some of them exclusive to vehicles with valid military and forestry permits only.
There are few buildings remaining in these mountains, usually in lateral areas or highest points.
Apart from several hunting lodges, used by prominent visitors-hunters and forestry workers,
there are eight complexes worth the interest.
- 194m tall broadcasting and transmitting towerRadio masts and towersRadio masts and towers are, typically, tall structures designed to support antennas for telecommunications and broadcasting, including television. They are among the tallest man-made structures...
Cukrak at the hill Cukrak (in proximity of Czech capital PraguePraguePrague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
) - http://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skalka_(Mn%C3%AD%C5%A1ek_pod_Brdy)|Skalka - baroqueBaroqueThe Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
complex of chapelChapelA chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
of Mary-Magdalene & monasteryMonasteryMonastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
at the cliff above the town Mnisek pod Brdy - Abandoned surface-to-air missileSurface-to-air missileA surface-to-air missile or ground-to-air missile is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles...
base "Klondajk" with three long range SAM launchers stretching at plateau over several square kilometers near town DobrisDobríšDobříš is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic with about 8,600 inhabitants the second largest town in Příbram District, located south of Prague. It is part of the Prague metropolitan area.... - Geodetic tower at Studeny Vrch (638 m a.s.l.) near HostomiceHostomice (Beroun District)Hostomice is a town in the Czech Republic.-External links:*...
pod Brdy, formerly used for military exercise, which is currently in ownership of Czech Tourist Club - Radar complex of Czech air traffic controlAir traffic controlAir traffic control is a service provided by ground-based controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and in the air. The primary purpose of ATC systems worldwide is to separate aircraft to prevent collisions, to organize and expedite the flow of traffic, and to provide information and other...
center at the hill Pisek 683 m a.s.l. near JinceJinceJince is a market town and municipality in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It lies on the Litavka river.-Notes:* This article was initially translated from the Czech Wikipedia.... - Meteorological radarWeather radarWeather radar, also called weather surveillance radar and Doppler weather radar, is a type of radar used to locate precipitation, calculate its motion, estimate its type . Modern weather radars are mostly pulse-Doppler radars, capable of detecting the motion of rain droplets in addition to the...
of CHMI at Praha mountain (862 m a.s.l.) scanning precipitation and rainfall over Bohemia and a part of European NEXRADNEXRADNEXRAD or Nexrad is a network of 159 high-resolution Doppler weather radars operated by the National Weather Service, an agency of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration within the United States Department of Commerce...
network - Prototype of concrete bunkerBunkerA military bunker is a hardened shelter, often buried partly or fully underground, designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks...
(type ) built in 1930's at one of the shooting grounds to test weapon efficiency and bunker design, which eventually acted in the Czech film The Elementary SchoolThe Elementary SchoolThe Elementary School is a 1991 Czech comedy film directed by Jan Svěrák. The screenplay comes from the pen of his father Zdeněk Svěrák. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1991 and is considered to belong among the best Czech films ever.-Plot:The film is... - Monument to significant local forester and administrator Gangloff near Tremsin pod Brdy.