Válka 1866

Válka 1866 — "the War of 1866" — is the name given to the memorial landscape of the Austro-Prussian War preserved in and around the village of Máslojedy near Hradec Králové. On 3 July 1866, the hills between Chlum and the Svíb forest, right on the edge of the village, became the setting for the Battle of Königgrätz (also known as the Battle of Hradec Králové or Sadová) — the largest military engagement ever fought on Czech soil in terms of the number of troops involved.

What happened here in 1866?

Máslojedy sat almost at the heart of the battlefield. Austrian and Prussian forces clashed across the surrounding high ground, and the struggle for Chlum hill and the Svíb woodland ranks among the bloodiest phases of the entire battle. Thousands of soldiers from both armies were killed or wounded on the fields around the village, permanently marking what had been a quiet farming corner of Bohemia.

What traces of the war can visitors see today?

More than a hundred monuments, crosses, and memorial stones stand within the cadastral territory of Máslojedy. Some of the oldest were raised only a year or two after the battle, as relatives and surviving comrades began replacing wooden grave markers with permanent stone ones. The village also has a military cemetery with rows of sandstone gravestones and a sandstone pyramid dedicated to roughly 3,500 Austrian and 700 Prussian soldiers who died in the area.

One of the best-known monuments here commemorates the Austrian Imperial-Royal 12th Infantry Regiment, unveiled in June 1867 in memory of fallen comrades. Seven officers and close to three hundred soldiers of the regiment are buried at its base, and the monument itself is topped with a sculpture referencing a dying soldier. Near the road entering the village from Chlum and Neděliště stands a more modest memorial marking the original burial site of Austrian Colonel Sigmund Gertz von Zertina, a staff officer of the IV Corps.

How does this fit into the wider battlefield?

Máslojedy borders directly on the Svíb forest, home to the so-called Avenue of the Dead, a memorial path recalling the tens of thousands killed and wounded in the fighting for that stretch of woodland. The entire Hradec Králové battlefield is considered the largest complex of war memorials and burial sites tied to a single military event anywhere in the Czech lands, and Máslojedy holds one of its densest concentrations of markers.

When is the best time to visit?

The area functions as an open-air memorial landscape, so spring, summer, and early autumn are the most comfortable seasons, with long daylight hours ideal for walking or cycling between the monuments scattered across the fields and forest edges. Around the anniversary of the battle in early July, the region hosts commemorative events and historical reenactments that draw visitors with an interest in 19th-century military history.

Frequently asked questions

What does the name "Válka 1866" refer to in Máslojedy? It denotes the memorial landscape of the 1866 Austro-Prussian War preserved in the village — the monuments, military cemetery, and burial sites connected to the Battle of Hradec Králové.

How many monuments are there in Máslojedy? More than a hundred memorial objects, including crosses, gravestones, and monuments, stand within the village territory, most of them erected in the years immediately following the battle.

What is the 12th Infantry Regiment monument? It is one of the oldest and best-known memorials in Máslojedy, unveiled in 1867, marking the burial place of officers and soldiers of an Austrian regiment that fell during the battle.

Are there other battle-related sites nearby? Yes — the neighboring Svíb forest with its Avenue of the Dead and Chlum hill belong to the same battlefield and, together with Máslojedy, form a single connected memorial area.