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Brief history of the Opatovický Watermill

(compiled by Olga Černá)

The earliest written notice of the Watermill Opatowitz situated 2 km south of the town Třeboň was found in archives in 1367. This Watermill is mentioned among the properties of Lords of Rosenberg. Nevertheless, the foundation of the Watermill is dated much earlier, when the land was owned by a Cistercian monastery in Zwettl, Austria. The name Opatovický is related to the extinct village named Opatovice – Opatowitz (“opatovice” means abbot’s people in Czech referring to the property of monastery). When a monastery in Třeboň was established in 1367, the Opatovický Watermill became its property. At that time, the name of a miller who contracted with the monastery, was Fridlín. In the 16th century, a water race of the Watermill (former Landstein’s canal) became a part of the so-called Golden Canal (in Czech “Zlatá stoka”), an artificial waterway constructed in 1505-1520 to supply water to newly-built fishponds.

During the siege of Třeboň in 1621-1622, the Opatovický Watermill was burned to ground and it was partly restored after the Thirty Years’ War. Later, in 1708 the Watermill was fully rebuilt as a property of the Augustinian monastery of Třeboň (a cornerstone remaining this event is situated at the left side of the front façade). In 1727, the Watermill burned out again and it was rebuilt. A monastery’s coat of arms and a commemorative text confirms this reconstruction. On the first floor, a small chapel was set-up which was used by abbots during their visits and summer stays at the Watermill. When the monastery in Třeboň was dissolved, the Watermill was bought by the Duke of Schwarzenberg in 1785. Soon after in 1788, the Opatovický Watermill was sold to Václav Volf for 3000 Florins. It was inherited by his son Josef and after his death in 1816, the property was taken over by the widow Theresia and her second husband Václav Březský. The Watermill was owned by the family Březský of Berkenfels by the 1940s.

In 1962, the Opatovický Watermill was transferred to the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. At present, the Opatovický Watermill is owned by the Institute of Microbiology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. It hosts its detached section, the Department of Autotrophic Microorganisms specialised in basic and applied research of microalgae.

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