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The Habsburg era
Until 1918 Bohemian Switzerland belonged to the Austrian Empire – from 1867 to the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary, the “k.u.k.” era. Just across our border, Emperor Franz Joseph and great noble families held sway, such as the Thuns in Tetschen, the Clary-Aldringens in Herrnskretschen and the Kinskys in Dittersbach. They turned their forests and rocks into one of the earliest tourist destinations in Europe: with the hotel at the Prebischtor, boat trips through the gorges and lookout towers. Most people spoke German, the railway linked Dresden with Bodenbach, and Tetschen became an industrial town on the Elbe.
Where the name comes from
The name “Bohemian Switzerland” was coined in the 18th century on the model of “Saxon Switzerland” – it is said to go back to the Swiss painters Adrian Zingg and Anton Graff, who were reminded of their homeland here; that has not been proven for certain, though. The area was only properly opened up to visitors in the 19th century.
The Falkennest at the Prebischtor
At the Prebischtor, the largest natural rock arch in Europe, there was already a small inn in 1826. In 1881 Prince Edmund von Clary-Aldringen replaced it with the hotel “Falkennest” (Falcon’s Nest), with 50 beds, built with the help of Italian craftsmen. Since 1982 the arch itself may no longer be walked on because of erosion.
The gorges of Herrnskretschen
For the boat trips through the gorges of the Kamnitz near Hřensko (Herrnskretschen), Prince Edmund Clary had up to 200 Italian workers build paths, footbridges and small weirs. On 4 May 1890 the Stille Klamm (Quiet Gorge) – today the Edmundsklamm – was ceremonially opened; the boatmen wore sailor’s uniforms. The Wilde Klamm (Wild Gorge) followed in 1898. Before the Second World War, 14 and 7 boats respectively plied the two gorges. Legend has it that five daring lads were the first to travel through the gorge – all because of a bet.
Towers and viewpoints
In 1864 Count Franz Anton Thun had the stone lookout tower built on the Hoher Schneeberg (Děčínský Sněžník), designed by a Dresden architect. It served as a trigonometric point for the land surveys of Austria, Saxony and Prussia – and, at the Count’s wish, also welcomed day-trippers from the very beginning; in 1936 the first television signal in Bohemia was received there. Near Jetřichovice (Dittersbach) a rock was named “Marienfelsen” (Mary’s Rock) in 1856 in honour of Princess Marie Anna Kinsky.
Railway and industry
On 6 April 1851 the first through train ran from Dresden to Bodenbach (Podmokly) – the line through the Elbe valley is still the Dresden–Prague railway today. Bodenbach grew into a transport hub of rail, road and Elbe harbour and became a town in 1901; around 1900 Tetschen and Bodenbach each had about 10,000 inhabitants, most of them German-speaking. From 1802 spinning mills sprang up in Tetschen, and later factories for paper, buttons and chemicals; the Empress Elisabeth chain bridge spanned the Elbe. Tetschen and Bodenbach were only merged into a single town in 1942.
The Emperor in Tetschen
From 8 to 10 June 1854 Emperor Franz Joseph visited Schloss Tetschen with the young Empress Elisabeth – “Sisi”; at the state banquet Austria, Prussia and Saxony came together. A son of the castle, Leo Thun-Hohenstein, was at that time Minister of Worship and Education in Vienna.
1918
the end of the monarchy and German Bohemia: With the end of the First World War, Austria-Hungary fell apart. On 29 October 1918 the German-speaking areas of northern Bohemia proclaimed the Province of German Bohemia and wanted to belong to Austria. But from 13 November 1918 Czechoslovak troops occupied the area, and in December the provincial government fled to Vienna – Bohemian Switzerland was now part of Czechoslovakia.
As of: 10/2026
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