Discover Chválenice

Chválenice combines a distinctive Baroque church with a hilly landscape, striking rock formations, and a historic solitary tree. The Baroque church represents grand sacred architecture, the rock formations and hilly terrain reflect geological and topographical diversity, while the solitary tree and log barn preserve historical traces in the landscape and village character.

St. Martin: Baroque architecture of special distinction

The Church of St. Martin is at the heart of Chválenice’s cultural character. The Baroque building was constructed from 1747 to 1753, allegedly based on a design by K. I. Dientzenhofer. Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer is regarded as the church’s architect. The church is considered one of the outstanding works of Bohemian rural Baroque. Its longitudinal layout and rich articulation define the building’s distinctive architectural character. As a church, St. Martin is the village’s sacred focal point and creates a representative accent within its historic appearance.

Hills, rock formations, and the geographical setting

The surroundings of Chválenice lie in a hilly landscape. Their geographical setting includes the Švihovská vrchovina, the Radyňská vrchovina, the Úslava Valley, the Kozelské polesí forest, and the nearby Brdy. A distinctive point within this landscape is Farská skála. At 537 m above sea level, it is the highest point in Chválenice and is surrounded by Džbánek Hill. Farská skála also belongs to several nearby rock formations in the Barrandian geological system. The character of the landscape is therefore defined not only by ridges, but also by geological formations that give the area its own regional character.

The Niklojc pear tree as a historic landmark

A second unmistakable feature is the Niklojc pear tree. The more than two-hundred-year-old commemorative pear tree stands alone in the fields near Borky above Chouzovy. Since October 5, 2016, it has been designated a protected commemorative tree. The Niklojc pear tree was an important landmark in the historic landscape. The solitary pear tree stands in the Na Borkách area between Chouzovy and the Chválenice fields known as V Babších. A blue-marked hiking trail runs along the field; the tree is about 200 meters from the road.

A preserved testimony to the former village character

The historic village character also includes the log barn on Farm No. 27 U Chmelíků. It is one of the few surviving testimonies to the former appearance of Chválenice, which was characterized by numerous log structures. The barn is therefore a preserved example of the rural building style that once shaped the village on a larger scale. Together with the Church of St. Martin, it shows two different aspects of the village’s history: grand rural Baroque and traditional rural architecture.

For comparing other destinations as part of your travel planning, you can also consider Nezvěstice, Mokrouše, Nezbavětice, Dýšina, Letkov, Vstiš, Pilsen and Kyšice.

For the broader travel overview: Plzeň-Město District.