Horní Kruty – Baroque Church and Village History

Horní Kruty is part of the hilly, densely forested Hornokrutsko region in the southwest of the Kolín District. To understand the place, it is worth looking at it on both scales: the village itself and the wider landscape of which it is part. The Baroque Church of St. Wenceslas, dating from the 18th century, stands at the highest point of Hornokrutsko, 410 meters above sea level. It is also a prominent landmark of the municipality of Horní Kruty. The church’s location thus connects the village’s appearance with the elevation of the wider area.

Church of St. Wenceslas and Chapel of St. Gothard

The Church of St. Wenceslas is a protected cultural monument and is considered one of the significant examples of Baroque architecture in the Kolín region. The cornerstone of the present-day church was laid on July 28, 1740; it was consecrated on October 6, 1743. The Chapel of St. Gothard in Horní Kruty was also consecrated that day. The date of the church’s construction and the shared consecration date of the two buildings are therefore important points of reference for their chronology. The church represents 18th-century Baroque architecture, while its shared consecration also links it with the chapel.

Village Buildings and Their History

The water tower is a distinctive structure in the middle of the village green. It was completed in 1927, alongside the municipality’s water supply and electrification projects. Its history is thus also connected with these municipal initiatives. The present-day primary school building has a different timeline: its original structure was built in 1849, and it acquired its current form only after a new north wing was added in 1886. While the water tower’s completion is connected with infrastructure, the school’s present-day form reflects an older building and a later extension.

Remembrance and Community

The building of the former Kampelička in Horní Kruty was built in 1931. A memorial plaque on the building commemorates the victims of National Socialism. The family of MUDr. Hugo Teller was deported from there during the Second World War and subsequently murdered in concentration camps. This story is one of the significant historical references associated with the village, linking the building’s history with the remembrance of those persecuted.

The Sokol hall also tells a story of community involvement. It was built through voluntary labor, donated building materials, and contributions from local residents and surrounding municipalities. The first documented event in the building is recorded for 1924. The Sokol hall thus adds a story of people from the municipality and its surroundings working together to the area’s building history.

Getting There and Cycling History

A timetable valid from April 7, 2025, lists PID bus route 821 on the Kolín–Svojšice–Kouřim–Sázava connection via Horní Kruty; stops in Dolní Kruty and Přestavlky are also listed. Check current departures before your journey. This lets you plan your trip using the listed connection without relying on an outdated timetable.

The Hornokrutská 40 is part of local sports history: a public cycling competition covering a 40-kilometer route. It could be completed on a mountain bike or a cross bike. The tenth and last documented edition took place on August 10, 2019. These details give the cycling event a clear historical context and distinguish it from a current event date.

Discover more destinations: Svojšice, Radovesnice I, Choťovice, Klučov, Vitice, Polní Chrčice, Pašinka, Přistoupim.

For the broader travel overview: Kolín District.