A visit to Slavkov u Brna, where Napoleon celebrated victory at Austerlitz: 3 km

• Early on the foggy morning of 2 December 1805, Napoleon stood on the low hill of Žuráň, 10 km to the southeast of Brno, and surveyed the terrain of the coming battle. His French troops were outnumbered by the opposing allied army of Austria and Russia. The enemy had more than twice the number of canons. Yet this was perfect terrain for Napoleon’s disciplined and battle hardened soldiers.
• The fog obscured key French troop movements. The critical central area around the village of Prace and the nearby hill of Pracký kopec, initially controlled by the allied forces, became the key battleground. After fierce fighting, the French took control of the hill top and Napoleon was able to divert forces from the center to crush the allied flanks. More than a third of the allied army of nearly 90000 men were killed or wounded in the subsequent rout.
• The defeat of the combined Austrian and Russian forces near the village of Austerlitz (today named Slavkov u Brna) is viewed as Napoleon’s greatest victory, and changed the political map of Europe. It was a damaging and embarrassing defeat for Austrian Emperor Francis II and Russian Tsar Alexander I, both of whom were in Austerlitz on the eve of the battle. Napoleon celebrated his victory by staying at the chateau in Austerlitz (Slavkov) , vacated by the defeated Austrian and Russian rulers.
• It is a 13 km walk from Slavkov to the battlefield memorial site in not particularly exciting terrain. Most visitors generally drive to the battlefield, walk around the hill, visit the museum there and then head to Slavkov to see the chateau. So, this two-step approach is repeated in these pages!
• There is more to Slavkov than the magnificent Baroque chateau, though. The extensive park area behind the chateau is well worth exploring (it is open year-round), including a remarkable fountain area with countless Baroque period statues. The town actually dates back to the 13th century and fragments of the medieval walls can still be seen. There are also some nice examples of late Renaissance architecture in the main square.
• However, the main reason to visit Slavkov is to tour the chateau (which can be done March to December) and visit the museums (including the excellent new Austerlitz 1805 interactive museum). The walk around town and the full park area is around 3 km, assuming a start from the bus station (direct connections with Brno). There are many refreshment spots in the town, including a café in the chateau. A nice café option on the main street is Styl kavárna (map point 6).

Note: click ‘Show on Mapy.com’  to go to a full screen version of the route directly on the mapy.com site. This can be used for on line navigation, saved or exported as a GPX file.

Directions

• From the bus station, follow the GREEN trail up the main street. The chateau is at the end of the long thin main square