Black Tower

The Black Tower is a remnant of a Gothic citadel from the turn of the 13th century.

The four-story tower, with a 6×6 metres ground plan and a height of 28 metres, is a unique monument of building activities of the lesser gentry in Central Moravia. The builder of the citadel is unknown; he was probably a minor yeoman who owned the village of Drahanovice. The tower had three stories then, i.e., it was one storey shorter than today. The entrance to the tower was seven metres aboveground and accessible only by a pull-down stepladder. The ground floor and basement constituted a shaft leading to an underground area used as a storeroom. It is said that an underground escape passage led out from it in the olden days. The citadel was rebuilt in the 16th century and converted from a defence structure into a Renaissance residential building. The redevelopment also affected the tower, to which another storey was added and the individual floors were connected by an outside spiral staircase. The tower façade was decorated by black-and-white sgraffito – hence probably the name “Black Tower”.

Another redevelopment took place in the 17th century. The residential areas were expanded and a toilet, called a “privy”, was built on the third floor; it has been preserved in its original form to this day. The citadel lost its purpose in the early 18th century and the buildings surrounding the tower were demolished.

Nowadays, the tower is owned by the Drahanovice Municipality and has been open to tourists since 2002. Tours of the tower are individual, with a commentary about the history on request. The tower hosts an exhibit on the village history, and the uppermost floor was turned into a gallery. The tower neighbours a cultural complex used regularly for various social events and gatherings, entertainment programmes for children and adults, concerts, and film screenings.