Dolní Heřmanice – Village History, the Oslava Valley and Historic Trails

Dolní Heřmanice combines an engaging local history with trails through the Oslava and Nesměř valleys. If, for your stay, you are looking not only for a place to spend the night but also for specific discoveries, you will find historic buildings, a nature trail and a circular route with clearly described trail guidance here. The selection ranges from small monuments in the village to a castle ruin and a preserved historic mill.

Local History Around the Village Square and Chapels

Dolní Heřmanice was first mentioned in 1349. A chapel with a bell tower dating from 1842 stands on the village square. The rustic, masonry village chapel has a square floor plan and dates from the early 19th century. In front of the entrance, a cast-iron cross bears the engraved date 1814. These details give the village centre several clearly identifiable historical points of reference that can be placed in context during a walk through the village. Smaller reminders of regional sacred and everyday history can also be found outside Dolní Heřmanice. Opposite house no. 14 stands a masonry wayside shrine. The municipality also includes the settlement of Oslava, where there is a chapel. This chapel is one of four immovable cultural monuments in the municipality of Dolní Heřmanice.

Circular Route and Nature Trail in the Municipality

For a combination of exercise and landscape, the Okruh Nesměřským Údolím circular route is a particularly concretely described option: Most of the route runs along paved paths. The Dolní Heřmanice bus stop is located near this circular route. This makes it possible to include the route in your own day plan without assuming any particular means of arrival or walking time. The “NS Balinského a Nesměřského údolí” nature trail also passes through the municipality. The section through the Nesměř Valley offers an immersive journey of discovery into the world of invertebrates. For travellers who want not only to observe the landscape but also to perceive its smaller life forms more closely, this nature trail provides a different focus from the historic buildings in the village.

Oslava Valley, Templštejn and Řihákův mlýn

The Templštejn ruins lie on a rock above the Oslava Valley. To this day, the remains of the walls of a prismatic tower, approximately two metres high, have survived at the site. By arrangement, guided tours with commentary on the history and architectural history of Templštejn can be offered. The tour is therefore explicitly subject to prior arrangement and supplements the visible wall remains with historical and architectural explanations. Another focal point is the heritage-listed Řihákův mlýn on the Oslava in Dolní Heřmanice. The site includes a very old so-called single-blade saw dating from 1775, whose equipment has been preserved in fully working order. The mill also retains technical equipment, including a waterwheel. Its location on the Mlynářská stezka connects the historic mill site with this route and makes it an independent subject in local and regional history. You can therefore get to know Dolní Heřmanice according to your interests through several different approaches: via the chapels and small monuments, via the trails through the Nesměř Valley, or via the architectural and technological history of Templštejn and Řihákův mlýn.

Other Places in the Locality Selection

For further orientation: Sázava, Daňkovice, Kněževes, Zadní Zhořec, Račín, Věstín, Sviny and Horní Rožínka.

For the higher-level travel overview: Žďár nad Sázavou District.