Houska Castle is an early Gothic castle in the municipality of Blatce in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. So why was this random fortress built? Legends and Romances of Brittany. The castle was built as a fortification to shield the world from the forces of a demonic nature, but more specifically, its the chapel within the castle that covers the supposed gateway to Hell. Objects thrown into the hole arent recovered. Several other tales are also associated with the pool including that it was the source of the winds on the moor. He claimed to be the owner of a property seized by the U.S. government that was the location of a mysterious hole associated with very weird goings-on. linus pauling vitamin c, lysine protocol. houska castle pit shocking incidents and folklore at czech republic the gate of hell , Houska Castle is an early Gothic castle in the municipality of Blatce in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. The lake dried up in 1866 and again in 1869 and 1976 proving that it was not bottomless but subject to drought conditions. Some say the Wehrmacht occupied this castle precisely to investigate whether the gateway to Hell was real, as feverish occultism had consumed its higher ranks. The location was never specified, and it was never found. The unfathomable Mummelsee, in the northern Black Forest, Baden Baden, Germany was called the Lake of Miracles by the Romans. http://visions.indstate.edu:8888/cdm/landingpage/collection/folklore. Groundwater can be found typically within 300 feet of the ground surface. Indeed, to this day, visitors claim to hear screams and scratching noises from beneath the chapel floor. It was filled only to be restored to its original condition the next day. What else you could to Machovo jezero/Doksy. After about 20 hrs of falling, youd reach the center of the earth, but then get stuck in the core trapped in the gravitational center. Madonna pond was said to be haunted by the coach and horse that fell in, never to be retrieved. Filling a sinkhole often doesnt work because the fill material collapses into a bigger opening. Situated on a clifftop and surrounded by dark legends and unsettling accounts, the Houska castle is one of the most feared castles in the world. The chapel was dedicated to the Archangel Michael, who led God's armies against Lucifer's fallen angels. The current explanation is that they are formed from the collapse of previously frozen ground. Then, check out 33 pictures of Spain's Bellver Castle. By 1700, Houska Castle fell into complete disrepair. The Dinglehole is a tiny pond in Millis, MA, that also holds the bottomless attribution. The city is surrounded by water and before the 20th century, the northern portions were undeveloped. https://aforteantinthearchives.wordpress.com/2020/09/27/the-lake-that-has-no-bottom/. This list now takes us to a remote part of the Czech Republic's countryside and to an actual port to Hell. [4] From 1584 to 1590, it underwent Renaissance-style modifications, losing none of its fortress features as it looks down from a steep rocky cliff. Located in a rift valley, the average depth is over 2000 feet with the maximum depth measured at 5,387 feet. The legends surrounding the site of Houska Castle are older than the castle itself. There are scores of examples of lakes in particular that, instead of a bottom, they have a monster. There were many superstitions associated with the lake bolstered by real airplane crashes. Legend has it that the castle, dating back to the 13th century, was built over the Gates of Hell and meant to keep evil spirits from escaping into the world. This has raised doubts as to the castles intended purpose, but if it wasnt built to be a fort or residence, why was it built at all? Sigils adorn the interior courtyard banisters. Petr David, Vladimr Soukup, Lubomr ech, Learn how and when to remove this template message, | Haunted Castles Around the World |October 10, 2017, |This castle is believed to be the entrance to the underworld |TravelBook.de |Annette Schimanski |April 24, 2020, |Discover the dark history of Houska Castle |CzechTourism 2017, |The Most Haunted Places in Prague, Czech Republic |Prague Visitor Staff | September 24, 2019, |The Scariest Places in the World |Bob Curran, |Houska Castle Blatce, Czechia |Folklore says this medieval fortress was plopped atop a portal to hell to trap the demons below |29 January 2018, |This castle is believed to be the entrance to the underworld |Travel Book |Annette Schimanski |April 24, 2020, See the castle in Czech Republic, believed to be the gateway to hell with bottomless pit, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Houska_Castle&oldid=1142138997, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing translation from Czech Wikipedia, Articles lacking reliable references from February 2023, Articles with disputed statements from February 2023, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'inquisitivewonder_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_9',163,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-inquisitivewonder_com-medrectangle-4-0'); Archeological evidence shows that Celtic people had settled in the area hundreds of years prior to the castle being built, and Slavic tribes had migrated to the area as far back as the 6th century. The lake has high peat content turning the water black and the pH to around 5, so its too low for fish. Thors well is a spectacular feature along the Oregon coal near Yachats. In other ghostly tales, a headless black horse is said to gallop through the surrounding area. Houska Castle was built during the reign of Ottokar II of Bohemia between 1253 and 1278 as an administrative hub from which the king could manage royal estates. Bonaparte, M. (1946). And this castle was built in 1271, and the reason they built this castle in this location was to try to conceal a bottomless pit which many believed to be a gateway to hell or an entrance to the underworld. The castle was not built as a residence or as a protective sanctuary, but was instead built because the hole was thought to be a gateway to hell. The most well-known story stemming from the legends of Houska Castle is that of the convict. Even if a lake had a measured floor, it was common to see mentioned a cave passage that existed somewhere within the perimeter that was where the true danger or mystery was. Glass pains were installed during the castles construction, but walls were also built behind them, preventing them from being used. In The Mabinogion, translated by Lady Charlotte Guest [1877] it was said that fish in the lake are deformed and odd and that birds do not visit it. He succeeded in measuring the depth himself at 102 feet. It was built in the ninth century, before a crack in the limestone appeared which locals believed was a gateway to Hell and allowed inhuman entities to enter our world. Secondly, the castle doesnt appear to have been built to withstand battles. Czech poet Karel Hynek Macha visited Houska Castle in 1836, and spent a night there during his walking tour of the region. King Ottokar II of Bohemia had the gothic structure built sometime between 1253 and 1278. The castle's eerie history doesn't stop there, though. Please help this article by looking for better, more reliable sources. It was completely avoided by all residents in the area after dark. Some have water. The term is used primarily in Europe. Priests were said to send the demons from exorcisms into black dogs which were subsequently drowned in the bog. As Bohemian chronicler Vclav Hjek detailed in his Czech Chronicle in 1541, the first known structure at the site was a small wooden fort in the ninth century. A holy chapel was built on the site to cover this "Pit to Hell" and later a castle was constructed to guard against whatever could come out of that hole. The castle was founded by Czech king Pemysl Otakar I in the 13th century. The castle today is littered with unsettling decorations. Some notable features of the castle include a predominantly Gothic chapel, green chamber with late-Gothic paintings, and a . Some say that many top Nazi officials, including Himmler, attended dark ceremonies at Houska Castle in which they attempted to harness the power of Hell. Michel Meurger wrote about the tradition of lake monsters in Europe and North America. The first man to do so happily agreed to be lowered down by a rope but cried out to be raised back up within seconds. This makes it clear that Houska Castle was not built as a protective sanctuary or a residence. The Nazis used Houska Castle as a magical artifact depository of sorts. The story of the hole at Houska castle sounds mighty similar to a more modern version the wholly constructed legend of Mels Hole of Ellensburg, Washington. Its the freeway to hell at the center of the earth. Spence, L. (1917). The characteristic of bottomless is associated with the idea that a lake does not give up its dead. According to folklore, Houska Castle was constructed over a large hole in the ground which was known asThe Gateway to Hell. Volcanic crater lakes often have the folkloric feature of being bottomless. It is believed that this was ordered to be built by Otto Karll of Bohemia, who reigned as ruler from 1253-1278. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. It was described in 1888 as a bowl-shaped feature with a dark pool in the center said to be unfathomable. Upon completion, he offered prisoners facing the gallows a full pardon if they entered the endless abyss and reported on what they saw. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of openings and water bodies were said at one time or another to be bottomless. Dunning, B. Toggle navigation. Two qualities of a lake indicated the almost certain presence of a legendary monster first, dark water, and secondly, it was deemed unfathomable. Houska Castle is an early Gothic castle, 47 kilometres north of Prague, in Czechia. A staff writer for All Thats Interesting, Marco Margaritoff has also published work at outlets including People, VICE, and Complex, covering everything from film to finance to technology. Its also pretty fun to imagine they are the gaping mouth of a subterranean creature or that the earth itself is a living thing that would eat us. It supposedly would reject fish by throwing them out again. He had been so disturbed by whatever he had seen in the pit, that when he reached the surface, he was still screaming. The story was first published in Finland by a Pentecostal Christian journal. Therefore, it might not be surprising to discover how often legendary bottomless holes have a demonstrated bottom that people simply chose to ignore. They tried to fill the hole with stones, but to no avail because it seemed never-ending, a true bottomless pit. The castle was originally constructed in the 13th century, between 1253 and 1278, under the reign of Ottokar II. Whatever is down there is unknown but undoubtedly unpleasant. The cool story became popular. In 1901, English Mechanic magazine reported on a seemingly bottomless hole at 171st St in New York City. Houska Castle, Episodes 1 & 2. Visitors have also reported seeing a line of ghostly people, all chained together each one with an injury or disability walking towards the castle. Naturally, locals would be concerned about the depth of an open hole or pool that they might fall into. Houska, or more specifically, it's chapel, was built over a bizarre hole in the ground that was not only said to be bottomless but was also said to be a literal portal to Hell. Locals avoided the area near Houska Castle even when it lay completely abandoned. Houska Castle, also known as Hrad Houska, is located about one hour's drive north of Prague, Czech Republic. Archaeological evidence shows Celtic tribes inhabited the land far before the Middle Ages, and Slavic tribes migrated to the region in the sixth century.