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Babice
Translated by Karel Milichovský The village of Babice is located on Sázava left bank ca. 8 km northwest from Havlíčkův Brod. It´s impossible to precisely specify the date of village foundation, however it may be situated to the period of Sázava river colonisation around 1200. The founds of terracotta and iron nail in the fields (on the left from the road to Krásná Hora, marked in cadastre map from 1838 “na Hradissti”) prove settlement in 13 – 15 centuries. There exists written notice about fortified settlement on Sázava left bank but it´s not evidenced by findings. This fortification guarded ford and path around the river. The name Babice originally meant village of Bába´s people. Bába or Babka is a masculine surname. In the list of Světlá manor serf land property from 1591 is mentioned Babice village with manor mill (disappeared in 1688) and there are mentioned names of inhabitants – Buryan Chaluppa, Meteg Plachtu, Jan Rokos, Wd. Dusska, Wacslaw Pečzek, Jakub Dworžak. A toll was collected on the road along Sázava and there was a ferry. Unproven tale even tells that Babice used to be a township – town hall should have been situated on the location of later Rathouz estate. Pub in Babice is proven in 1636. In the list of serfs according to religion from 1651 there are stated 33 persons aged 1 – 60 years, of it 21 non-Catholics as e.g. Pavel Čapek (reeve), Jan Amerle, Jan Mazač, Blažej Moravec, Jan Koss, Jakub Jaroš. They were mostly workers, further there are mentioned 1 cowboy, 1 tailor, 2 herdsmen. In the tax list of serf property from 1654 there are mentioned 10 farmers. 2 settled farmers (one settled farmer meant averagely a 6 members family) Pavel Čapek: owned 50 strychs of fields (strych = korec = 0.29 hectare), 4 strych of woods, 4 oxen, 4 cows, 11 heifers, 17 pc. sheep, 4 pc. swine Jakub Jareš: owned 50 strychs of fields, 2 oxen, 4 cows, 4 heifers, 2 pc. sheep, 1 swine JakubPaťák: 1 newly come farmer Jíra na Pičkové:1 burned-out farmer (burned in 1653) Jan Mazač, Jan Plachta, Jindro Rokos: 3 farmers with bad craft (means due to lack of cattle they cannot work on their fields in other way than with own hands) Matouš Kossa, Mathej Navrátil, Jakub Dvořák: 3 bleak farmers (means with no house or uninhabited house) Further there´s mentioned that “people in the village are very poor and indigent except the two ones mentioned firstly; the soil is good – rye”. Babice belonged to Krásná Hora parish where Babice is mentioned in 1652 at renewed ecclesiastical administration. In 1787 Babice had 18 houses. In 1836 there were 36 houses, 260 Catholics. In 1843 there are mentioned 36 houses, 1 pub, 294 inhabitants. In 1881 there were 37 houses, 306 Catholics, 5 Jews. 31 July 1714 was the sad day for Babice. After a huge storm and a heavy rain over Polná and Žďár manors the pond dams collapsed and lots of water caused unparalleled catastrophe all along Šlapanka and Sázava rivers. It became “valley of only grief and pain”. The worst hit Sázava village was Babice. The whole village was “swept away in a moment by wild water, only 3 houses remained, 42 people drowned”. Martin Kadeřávek was swept away on ruins in Německý Brod (nowadays Havlíčkův Brod) and later was rescued in Babice in branches of a lonely tree. A market song from this period says: Here is village of BabiceThe village chapel including bell tower is valuable folksy building. It has been depicted in a picture by painter Jan Zrzavý. Across the road in the garden there is noteworthy stone cross from 15 – 16th century. The stone is supposed to be either a road sign on the old road to Jihlava or a border stone. The date of first potato planting has been preserved (1774). It is incredible the serfs strongly resisted to plant potatoes from the beginning. They had to be forced by manorial lords. In 1833 the road from Světlá n.S. via Babice to Okrouhlice was fixed. In the years twenty of the 20th century it was “intervened in favour of road, necessary for the municipality, because fields are situated only in direction Krásná Hora. The actual road is in more than critical state … since autumn until full spring impassable with weak cows or oxen carriage”. Voluntary firemen corps started in 1904, they exist until nowadays and are very active. Village theatre started in 1929. Monument to fallen soldiers in the World War I was unveiled in 1935 at the chapel. New cultural house with pub was opened in 1971. The village shop once used to be “V Židovně” (“Jewish House”) , later “U Paštiků”. Newly built shop Jednota was opened in 1980 (nowadays abandoned). The pub “U Pacienta” (“The Patient”) is well prosperous and preferred by locals and trippers. At this pub there was open in 2000 a small shop thanks to initiative and support of local residents. Nowadays Babice has 194 inhabitants, 71 houses, 15 recreational houses (non-residents). All of them create actual history of Babice. Let them all – residents, non-residents and visitors – this brief summary of village history give information, support and encouragement in their future lives and work. May AD 2001 |