Patejdl Cabin Celebrates Its 300th Anniversary

One of the oldest buildings of Charles University, the Patejdl Cabin celebrates the 300^th anniversary of its continuous operation. A former logger cabin granted to the university in 1961 by the then Ministry of Education and Information, it has since been used all year long as the site of sports training courses for students of all faculties.

“It has been always famous for its delicious food”, remembers Professor Karel Malý, former Rector of the university and a regular guest. “As students, we were skiing on the plain right next to the cabin, and Zdeněk Jičínský, who is now a member of the parliament, but then was an assistant at the Faculty of Law, showed us some breathtaking acrobatics. For many years, I would take part in the Department of Physical Education courses that started on January 1^st, at which some of our most renowned professors learnt skiing.”

During the 1990’s there was a discussion at the university, whether to keep the cabin and other similar buildings. Professor Malý backed the decision to keep it, stressing its unique location for cross-country skiing courses.

The building is located on the slope of the Labský důl valley, close to Brádler cabins. It was built in 1710 by the Eichler family, who came to the Krkonoše Mountains from Schlakenwald, Austria, a town not far from Vienna. The owners have used the cabin for farming and cattle herding until 1938, when it was repurposed for tourism. During the World War II, it served as a recreation facility for the German army. After 1945, the cabins became the property of the National Restoration Fund and in 1948, the Revolutionary Trade Union Movement.

The cabin has been renamed after the general and lawyer Josef Patejdl, a former student of the Faculty of Law and later the chairman of the Czechoslovak Legionnaire Society and a member of the interbellum parliament. He was captured during the World War II and died in the Dachau concentration camp. In 1992, he was decorated in memoriam with the Tomas Garrigue Masaryk Order.

P.K.

Translation: Jaroslav Švelch