Strýčice brings together several themes for a stay: St. Peter and Paul tells the story of architectural and artistic history, the school museum focuses on rural life in the past, the Reitinger Mill on its history of operation, and the “Okolo Netolic” route on cycling. For your planning, it helps to distinguish between these highlights: Are you mainly interested in historic architecture, an ethnographic collection, or a cycling route with a specified total length? The Reitinger Mill was built between 1843 and 1845 and remained in operation under its last miller, Reitinger, until 1975. The construction date and the end of its operating period thus mark two distinct phases in its history. The moderately difficult “Okolo Netolic” cycling route passes through Strýčice and has a total length of 35 kilometres. For planning, it answers a different question from the mill: the length and difficulty level describe a cycling route, while the dates place the building’s construction and operating history within the timeline of the village’s history.
Several eras at St. Peter and Paul
The Church of St. Peter and Paul spans different eras. Originally built in the 13th century as a Romanesque structure, it has been protected as a cultural monument since 1958. Valuable early Gothic wall paintings from the first half of the 14th century have been preserved inside, along with a late Gothic bell dating from 1585. The restoration report ranks the wall paintings among the most significant discoveries of medieval wall paintings in the Czech Republic in the last decade. The church building thus reveals several historical layers: its Romanesque origins, the early Gothic paintings and the later bell.
Everyday history at the school museum
The Strýčice School Museum is an ethnographic museum. It documents rural life in the past through historical objects. The collection includes household furnishings from farming households, agricultural and fishing equipment, school supplies, and an original setup for filling bottles with beer from barrels. By prior arrangement, visitors can not only view several hundred exhibits at the school museum but also try them out for themselves. Arrange your visit in advance. Unlike at the church, the focus here is not the architectural history of a religious building, but objects and activities from everyday life in the past.
A German-speaking linguistic island in the Netolicko area
The history of the language also shaped Strýčice: the village was the centre of a German-speaking linguistic island in the otherwise Czech-speaking Netolicko area. German surnames can still frequently be found on gravestones in the local cemetery. This local history adds a cultural perspective to the history of the buildings and collections: it concerns both the former linguistic landscape and traces that can still be found on gravestones today.
Discover more destinations: Hartowitz, Hlawatetz, Lišov-Dolní Slověnice, Veselka, Rimov, Čenkow, Trebícko, Vlhlavy
For the broader travel overview: Okres České Budějovice.
