A fairytale place in South Moravia
Between hills covered by vineyards, a small town seems to have just come out of a fairy tale. However, walking through the streets of Mikulov it is easy to scratch its colorful surface to perceive a harsh history, full of power struggles, forced migrations and unwanted occupations.
It is something that should be written in a global manual of world cities: “Any city that sits on a border post between two quite different nations is going to tend to have a rough existence.”
Perhaps then many residents of Mikulov would have thought better of the option of living in it in the past.
Walking through the streets of Mikulov, it is easy to scratch its colorful surface to perceive a harsh history.
However, today, when climbing to the top of the holy Mikulov hill to visit the church of San Sebastián - which already has almost five centuries of history -, the panorama that is presented to the traveler is none other than that of a small and idyllic city in which the domes of the churches and synagogues rise towards the sky and a legion of reddish roofs serves as a cover for hundreds of houses with facades painted in cheerful tones.
THE MIKULOV CASTLE, WITNESS OF THE PAST
Completing the beautiful picture, a majestic castle towers over everything else, crowning a hill covered with everlasting grass. Mikulov Castle is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful in the Czech region of South Moravia.
Destroyed and renovated several times, the history of this fortress dates back to the thirteenth century, when the Czech monarch Premysl Otakar I he had it built to jealously guard the border with Austria.
Under its walls, which had a much more defensive and threatening aspect than the current one, paraded the caravans that ventured along the lucrative Amber Road in order to bring that precious material from the Balkans to the center of the continent.
Over time, two powerful Central European families who took over the city would make it their own: the Liechtensteins, first, and the Dietrichsteins, later.
A majestic castle towers over everything else
The latter, who would extend their rule over Mikulov between the 16th century and the end of World War II, they transformed the castle into a beautiful palatial residence. However, a tremendous fire would destroy it, to be rebuilt in baroque style before the nazis will destroy it in his hasty flight from Czech lands.
Its last deep reconstruction dates from 1950. Inside it stands out its 17th century bookstore, its beautiful courtyards, the wine cellar – with its century-old giant press that was used by all the villagers to crush their grapes, and one of the largest wine barrels in the world – and a regional museum in which the history of Mikulov and South Moravia is perfectly explained.
A LAND OF GOOD WINES
The cellar of the Mikulov castle is a clear representation of the importance of wine in the history of the city.
It may sound strange in a country like the Czech Republic - known throughout Europe for the quality and variety of its beers - but the historic region of South Moravia hides, among its gentle hills, some of the best vineyards in central Europe.
From them are obtained good white wines, especially, and red wines, that can be tasted in the many restaurants of the city combined with the great cheeses which are also made here.
The historic region of South Moravia hides, among its gentle hills, some of the best vineyards in central Europe
However, the best way to delve deeper into Mikulov's wine tradition is by visiting one of its cellars. silova wine It is a very good option for know the history of wine in Moravia, the way in which the vineyards are worked and carry out a varied tasting of different red, rosé and white wines.
To enjoy the wine festival in all its essence, it must visit Mikulov in mid-September, when it occurs the harvest festival. Old medieval jousts, concerts by rock and folk groups, open-air banquets, craft markets, theater and puppet shows, fireworks, and, of course, tastings, are spread throughout the streets of the city center.
THE HISTORICAL CENTER OF MIKULOV, FROM GHOST TOWN TO SUMMER RESORT
That center of Mikulov not only boils with life during the harvest festival, but it is very busy during the summer, when local and foreign tourists come to forget their routines and immerse themselves in a fairytale town.
During those weeks, Mikulov's main monuments – such as the tomb of the Dietrichsteins, the House of Cannons, the castle, the Jewish cemetery and the churches of Saint Václav, Saint John the Baptist and Saint Mikulás – are filled with onlookers and the local businesses literally make a killing.
No one complains about the wave of tourism, Well, they come from a time when everything was very different.
Nobody complains about the wave of tourism, because they come from a time when everything was very different
After the end of World War II, Czechoslovakia became a communist government and the Dietrichsteins – of German origin – were expelled from Mikulov. Thus began a period of absolute oblivion, in which the city became a kind of ghost town.
Its nearly 7,000 inhabitants survived without more, without the color of the houses in the center being able to be reflected in their souls, painted in the most absolute grey.
The end of communism and the international opening of the country changed the atmosphere of Mikulov. It was then that he awoke from his lethargy and, having been on the fringes of the capitalist development of the world, he did so maintaining the same appearance with which she had fallen, decades before, in his deep sleep.
THE JEWISH HERITAGE
For a long time, in Mikulov Jews, Protestants, Catholics and Orthodox lived together in peace. bringing prosperity to the city.
The Jewish community, specifically, it became really significant until the arrival of the Nazis, leaving behind an important cultural and patrimonial legacy.
It stands out from him Mikulov Jewish Cemetery, one of the most important in the Czech Republic. The first Jewish funerals date back to the 15th century and the oldest grave in this cemetery is from 1605. More than 4,000 beautiful tombs populate it today.
More than 4,000 beautiful tombs populate it today
In the husova street can be seen old Jewish houses up to 400 years old, as well as a 16th century synagogue.
Finally, the medieval Jewish baths are found on the site of the old Lázeňské náměstí (Bath Square) . The Jewish mikveh served for the symbolic ritual purification of Orthodox Jews before the start of the Sabbath and other Jewish holidays.
One more face of a city that, despite its size, hides a dense and tortuous history.