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Observation towers

People have always been looking for the place where they could have overlooked an extensive territory. Already a legend about the arrival of our ancestors to the Czech basin tells about the climbing of the forefather Čech to the mountain of Říp from which he could have overlooked the land and decided to stay there.

Already in the oldest times elevated locations with a good view were popular. Mankind used to seek distant views to be able to find the danger on time no matter they were enemy armies or life-threatening fire. The high towers of churches or separately built bell towers, high town halls or town hall towers were the first buildings which offered a good view. Today when they do not have the guarding function any more they have become popular tourist objects from which one can see from the bird´s eye view both the structure and housing development of the nearby and distant surroundings.

The development of tourism since the second part of the 19th century had brought back interest in places of distant lookouts. So that people could have enjoyed the view of the countryside, tourist clubs in cooperation with municipalities and private benefactors started to build special-purpose buildings - towers, identified only as buildings of unimpeded view of the countryside. Unlike the northern and northwestern Bohemia, where German unions built stone tower lookouts, the towers built until the mid-20th century in the Hradec Králové Region were either part of the Czech Tourist Club huts, or formed a simple, mostly wooden structure.

After the year 1989 there was a huge expansion of lookouts. The construction of telecommunication towers of mobile operators and the initiative of associations, municipalities and private individuals bring renewal or creation of a large number of towers. Tourists can enjoy a unique panoramic view not only from the highest East Bohemia mountains.