Vlkošov

Vlkošov is a small village in western Czechia, administratively part of the municipality of Bezvěrov, in the Plzeň-North district of the Plzeň Region. It sits in a quiet, wooded stretch of countryside between Manětín and Nečtiny, roughly 4.5 km northeast of central Bezvěrov, and its modest present-day size sits oddly alongside centuries of turbulent history tied to the fortified manor that once stood here.

How far back does the village's recorded history go?

The earliest written record of Vlkošov dates to 1186, when the settlement appears as property of the Benedictine monastery in Kladruby, forming part of the so-called Krašov economic district centered on the nearby village of Krašov. That single entry gives Vlkošov more than 800 years of documented existence, even though it remained a small, largely agricultural settlement for most of that time.

Who were the knights connected with this place?

By the fourteenth century, Vlkošov had become a lesser noble estate, home to a family known as the knights of Vlkošov. This minor nobility held the village for generations, and the first written mention of an actual fortified manor house, or tvrz, on the site dates to 1437, when the estate passed to Racek and Příbram of Račín. It was most likely the Račín family that built or substantially expanded the tvrz during the fifteenth century, turning it into their main seat.

What happened to the manor during the Bohemian Revolt?

Vlkošov's fortunes were shaken hard by the Bohemian Revolt of 1618-1620. The village and its tvrz were damaged by mercenary troops under Ernst von Mansfeld, fighting on the side of the rebelling Protestant estates. Ironically, it was the last member of the Račín family, who had sided with the rebels, who paid the price: once the uprising was crushed, his property was confiscated. In 1623, Vlkošov passed to Jiřík Kokořovec of Kokořov, who carried out alterations to the manor in the years that followed.

How did Vlkošov become tied to Nečtiny?

In 1651, Adam Václav Kokořovec attached Vlkošov to the neighboring Nečtiny estate. That administrative link held for more than two centuries, lasting until the end of serfdom and the feudal system in the nineteenth century. For most of that stretch, Vlkošov functioned as a small, subordinate part of a larger domain rather than a seat of power in its own right.

What survives of the old fortified manor today?

The tvrz served as the residence of the lords of Vlkošov until the middle of the seventeenth century, after which it gradually lost its significance. A two-wing building and a fragment of the original fortifications have survived to the present day, while the rest of the complex was altered or lost over time. The surviving section is now protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic, though it stands on private land and is not set up for regular public visits.

How has the population changed over time?

Before the Second World War, Vlkošov had 203 inhabitants, most of them of German nationality, a pattern typical of many villages in this part of the Sudetenland. After the war, the forced expulsion of the German population left the village only partially resettled, and it never regained its earlier size. Today only 61 people live in Vlkošov, and the site of the former manor farmyard now houses a private agricultural homestead.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Vlkošov located? It is part of the municipality of Bezvěrov in the Plzeň-North district of the Plzeň Region, about 4.5 km northeast of Bezvěrov itself, in the area between Manětín and Nečtiny.

Can visitors tour the tvrz at Vlkošov? The surviving remains of the manor stand on private property and are not maintained as a regularly open tourist attraction, so access can be limited even though the site holds protected monument status.

How many people live in Vlkošov today? Current records put the population at just 61, far below the more than 200 residents recorded before the Second World War.

Who owned Vlkošov over the centuries? Ownership passed from the Kladruby monastery to the knights of Vlkošov, then to the Račín family, and from 1623 to the Kokořovec family, who linked the village to their Nečtiny estate in 1651.