Horní Věstonice
Position
The wine municipality of Horní Věstonice lies on the northwest edge of the Protected Landscape Area of Pálava, about 10 km to the north of Mikulov.
History
The municipality was founded shortly before 1312. In 1334, the Mikulov manor and the Děvičky castle, along with all the property, were acquired by the Lichtenstein family. From then on, for more than 500 years, the fate of Horní Věstonice was closely connected to the Mikulov manor.
Sights
In 1769, the Church of St. Rosalia was built and consecrated and in the mid-19th century it underwent a thorough reconstruction. Other interesting monuments include the rectory from the last quarter of the 18th century, a cross near the Church, a statue of St. Florian on the town square and a wayside shrine on a turn to Perná on the road to Mikulov.
In the municipality area, there are also remains of a less known, but visible third castle – Neuhaus, New Castle – on the hills called Pavlovské kopce. It was built by the Moravian margrave Jan Jindřich in 1368-1376 as a defence of the provincial border and as a counterbalance to the neighbouring Lichtenstein’s property. During the Hussites Wars, it also ended in the hands of the Lichtenstein’s and was probably destroyed during the Hussite campaign in Moravia in 1426.
Nature
Near the municipality, there are interesting natural sites, such as the Nature Reserve of Věstonice Dam in the north and the National Nature Reserve of Děvín-Kotel-Soutěska to the southeast.