The Gratzen Mountains (german: Gratzener Bergland or, more rarely, ''Gratzener Gebirge''; cz, Novohradské hory) are part of the

Bohemian Massif The Bohemian Massif ( cs, Česká vysočina or ''Český masiv'', german: Böhmische Masse or ''Böhmisches Massiv'') is a geomorphological province in Central Europe. It is a large massif stretching over most of the Czech Republic, eastern Ger ...

and run along either side of the border between the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

and the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n states of Upper and

Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Since 1986, the capital of Lower Austria has been Sankt P ...

Geography

The low mountain range covers an area of about 20 x 30 km and lies roughly within the triangle formed by the towns of

České Budějovice České Budějovice (; german: Budweis ) is a city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 93,000 inhabitants. It is located in the valley of the Vltava River, at its confluence with the Malše. České Budějovice is t ...

, Freistadt and Gmünd. * The Bohemian part of the range, known locally as the ''Novohradské hory'', runs from Nové Hrady (german: Gratzen) – via

Benešov nad Černou Benešov nad Černou (until 1948 Německý Benešov; german: Deutsch Beneschau) is a municipality and village in Český Krumlov District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,400 inhabitants. The centre of Benešov na ...

(German: ''Beneschau'') to Horní Dvořiště (''Oberhaid'') on the Upper Austrian border. * The Austrian part, the ''Freiwald'', runs from Unterhaid/ Leopoldschlag eastwards and crosses near Sandl – south of the

tripoint A tripoint, trijunction, triple point, or tri-border area is a geographical point at which the boundaries of three countries or subnational entities meet. There are 175 international tripoints as of 2020. Nearly half are situated in rivers, l ...

s – the border between Mühlviertel and

Waldviertel The (Forest Quarter; Central Bavarian: ) is the northwestern region of the northeast Austrian state of Lower Austria. It is bounded to the south by the Danube, to the southwest by Upper Austria, to the northwest and the north by the Czech Rep ...

districts. There, the Weinsberg Forest branches off, while the main chain swings north to the Tischstein and Nebelstein. In all the summit region approximates the shape of an ellipse and forms the northern boundary of the Granite and Gneiss Highland. Its highest mountain is the Viehberg near Sandl which reaches 1,112 metres, but another 16 mountains exceed 1,000 metres in height. Of these, 13 lie on Austrian soil and 3 in Bohemia. The area of the mountains on the Czech side of the border is 162 km². Their highest point is the Kamenec (''Steinberg'', ) in the Pohorská foothills and in the municipality of Pohorská Ves. The Freiwald is a major part of the natural region of the '' Freiwald and Weinsberg Forest''. The Lower Austrian part of the Freiwald is defined as a rural subregion (''Teilraum'') according to the conservation concept of the state.http://www.noe.gv.at/noe/Naturschutz/Naturschutzkonzept_Februar_2015.pdf After ''

die Wende The Peaceful Revolution (german: Friedliche Revolution), as a part of the Revolutions of 1989, was the process of sociopolitical change that led to the opening of East Germany's borders with the West, the end of the ruling of the Socialist Unity ...

'', a nature park was established called the ''Novohradské hory'' with many natural attractions like the '' Terčino údolí'', '' Žofínský prales'' (Sophien-Urwald) and '' Hojná Voda'' (Heilbrunn). The region has remained largely unspoilt. As a result of its location on the Iron Curtain, the German Bohemians were forced out of the area after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

and it remained inaccessible to tourists. After the border re-opened the trails were waymarked again and tourist infrastructure built. About three quarters of the region is covered in coniferous and deciduous forest. An almost unabating wind builds up in the autumn often into strong gales. In the Gratzen Mountains rise the Lainsitz, Malše, Pohořský potok, Strobnitz and Schwarzau rivers.

Mountains over 1,000 m

* Viehberg, 1,112 m * Kamenec (''Steinberg''), 1,072 m * Schwarze Mauer, 1,071 m * Tischberg, 1,063 m * Taufelberg, c. 1042 m * Myslivna (''Farrenberg''), 1,040 m * Haubenberg, 1,036 m * Vysoká (''Hochwald''), 1,034 m * Hundsberg, 1,030 m * Ahornstein, 1,019 m * Nebelstein, 1,017 m * Gattringerberg, 1,016 m * Vorderer Schanzer Berg, c. 1,013 m * Hinterer Schanzer Berg, 1,010 m * Sepplberg, 1,004 m * Bärenstein, 1,003 m * Höllberg, 1,000 m

References

External links

www.novohradky.info
{{Authority control Bohemian Massif Nature parks Mountain ranges of the Czech Republic Mountain ranges of Lower Austria Mountain ranges of Upper Austria