Hrazany: Between the Chapel, Memorial Sites and Routes

The village’s history and the routes that pass through Hrazany offer two concrete starting points for planning your trip: the chapel and memorial sites on the one hand, and a hike or cycle ride on the other. The Chapel of the Holy Spirit stands in the centre; the red-marked hiking trail and cycle route 1154 also pass through Hrazany. You can therefore decide whether to focus your stay mainly on the memorials or plan a route connected to the village.

Chapel of the Holy Spirit

The Chapel of the Holy Spirit stands in the centre of Hrazany. It was built in 1926 and extensively renovated in 2003. The dates refer to two different stages: construction in 1926 and the later renovation in 2003. This distinction helps separate the building’s history from its subsequent restoration. The chapel bells regularly ring the Angelus in the morning and evening. If the timing matters to you, ask locally.

Memorial Sites and Architecture

Hrazany’s monuments include memorial lime trees and several stone crosses. The lime trees were planted in honour of the Jubilee Exhibition in Prague in 1891. A memorial stone in the village square commemorates Soviet troops under Marshal Malinovsky, who rested there on 11 and 12 May 1945. The memorials refer to different contexts: the lime trees are connected with an exhibition in Prague, while the stone commemorates a stay in the village square on two specific dates. Hrazany is also home to several traditional timber-framed wooden buildings, which are now privately owned. Their construction adds a different architectural accent from the chapel and stone crosses.

Hiking Trails, Cycle Route and Surroundings

The mode of transport is a useful starting point when choosing a route: cycle route 1154 runs through Hrazany on its way from Kostel nad Vltavou to Sedlec-Prčice, while the red-marked hiking trail passes through the village between Milevsko and Vysoký Chlumec. The number and red marking help distinguish the two routes; the places named indicate which route is meant. Check the current signs locally if the route is important to your plans.

Near Hrazany are two crosses, each carved from a single stone. One is more than a metre high and bears engravings of a sword and tailor’s shears. The geological formation “Kněz” lies about 0.5 km north of Hrazany. For orientation, distinguish three locations: the chapel stands in the centre, the memorial stone is in the village square, and Kněz is north of Hrazany. Here you will encounter a central building, a memorial site within the village and a geological formation in the surrounding area.

Chronologically, the sequence runs from the planting of the lime trees in 1891, through the chapel’s construction in 1926 and the Soviet troops’ stay in 1945, to the renovation in 2003. This sequence distinguishes a memorial, a building, a historical event and a later construction project.

Discover more destinations: Cimelice, Boudy, Jestrebice, Cervena, Drhovle, Cizova, Chyšky, Chrást.

For the broader travel overview: Okres Písek.