Rudolf Kauschka (2 October 1883, in Fukov,

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

– 2 April 1960, Kempten, West Germany) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

sportsman, tourist, and mountaineer from Czechoslovakia.

Biography

He was born in 1883 in the village of Fukov (german: Fukau), which doesn't exist anymore. The area now belongs to

Šluknov Šluknov (; german: Schluckenau) is a town in Děčín District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,700 inhabitants. It lies on the border with Germany in the geographic region that shares its name, the Šluknov Hoo ...

. In 1895, his family moved into Bílý Potok. Kauschka completed his studies in 1904 and became a

customs Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out of a country. Traditionally, customs ...

officer like his father. During that time, he made numerous trips and climbs in the Jizera Mountains and their surroundings. From 1906 to the end of World War II, he was a member of

Liberec Liberec (; german: Reichenberg ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants and it is the fifth-largest city in the country. It lies on the Lusatian Neisse, in a basin surrounded by mountains. The city centre is well preser ...

(Reichenberg in German) section of the Alpenverein ( Alpine club in German), making many trips to the Alps. During World War I, he served as a Third Lieutenant in the first unit of mountain guides in the

Ortler Ortler (; it, Ortles ) is, at above sea level, the highest mountain in the Eastern Alps outside the Bernina Range. It is the main peak of the Ortler Range. It is the highest point of the Southern Limestone Alps, of South Tyrol in Italy, of Ty ...

mountain area. From 1920 until the end of World War II, he and his friends annually visited the

Lasörling The Lasörling is a mountain, , and the highest summit in the eponymous range that stretches from the Virgental to the Defereggental valleys opposite the Großvenediger. Occasionally the mountain is also called the "''Großer'' Lasörling" ("Gr ...

area in East Tyrol, where he played a role in building the New Liberec Chalet ( Neue Reichenberger Hütte in German) that opened in 1926. From 1919 until the end of World War II, he made many "first ascents" in the Jizera Mountains. In 1924, Kauschka wrote a book ''Wandern und Klettern''. After World War II, he was expelled from Czechoslovakia. Kauschka arrived in Kempten either in 1946 or 1947 and would die there in 1960.

Sporting career

As a

luge A luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine (face up) and feet-first. A luger steers by using the calf muscles to flex the sled's runners or by exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh for s ...

r, Kauschka competed in three

European luge championships The FIL European Luge Championships, part of the International Luge Federation (FIL) have taken place since 1914. From 1914 to 1934, these championships were part of the Internationaler Schlittensportsverband (ISSV - International Sled Sport Federa ...

, winning four medals. His first medals came at the inaugural

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It als ...

championships in Reichenberg,

(now Liberec, Czech Republic) where he won the gold in the men's singles and a silver in the men's doubles events. Kauschka followed up with a silver in the men's singles event at Schreiberhau, Germany (now Szklarska Poręba, Poland) in

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

, then with another silver in the men's doubles event the following year in Semmering, Austria.

Tourism

Kauschka's tourism achievements were both in sports and in alpine mountaineering. An example of this was one day, he started with friends at 2 am from Liberec to walk across Jizera Mountains to

Sněžka Sněžka or Śnieżka (in Czech and Polish respectively; german: Schneekoppe, sk, Snežka) is a mountain on the border between the Czech Republic and Poland, the most prominent point of the Silesian Ridge in the Giant Mountains. At , its summit ...

in the Giant Mountains (located at the Czech-

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

border). 17 hours later at 7 pm, they were back in Harrachov after resting on the top of Sněžka for two hours. In 1922, Kauschka and his friends climbed the

Ještěd Ještěd (; german: Jeschken) is the highest mountain of the Ještěd–Kozákov Ridge in the north of the Czech Republic, at . It is the symbol of the city of Liberec. On the summit is the Ještěd Tower restaurant, hotel and television tower, ...

mountain summit twelve times starting at 7 pm one day and finishing at 5:45 pm the next day. During that day they reached an altitude over 5,000 m high, using over 20 different

footpath A footpath (also pedestrian way, walking trail, nature trail) is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as motorized vehicles, bicycles and horses. They can be found in a wide ...

Ascents

From 1904 to 1928, Kauschka did much climbing, starting with the Jizera Mountains, including being the first to climb Zvon (a famous local rock tower) in 1921. He later climbed the Lusatian and Zittauer (part of the

Breiteberg The Breiteberg is a hill in the Lusatian Highlands in Free State of Saxony, Federal Republic of Germany, with an altitude of above mean sea level. It is the local mountain of Hainewalde, and about half-an-hour's drive from the village. Phonolite ...

chain) mountains, Bohemian Paradise (the first ascent on Draci zub in 1906) and Saxon Switzerland (Blocksstockes). He was also in the Alps, the Dolomites (1907 – climbing the Vajolet Towers solo without a rope),

(1908 – Königspitze in German), and Wallis Alps (1928 – Matterhorn, Mont Blanc).

Legacy

A rock in the Jizera Mountains, Kauschkova věž (i.e. "Kauschka's Tower"), was named in his honor. A summit in the Alps high was also named in Kauschka's honor, the year before his death.

Family

Kauschka's son Manfred was also a climber, doing the first ascent on Kobyla in Příhrazy (famous route to the local well-known sandstone tower) in 1937 with friends.

References

Biography on Kauschka
* P. Fajgl, O. Simm, and M. Vrkoslav (1999). ''Horolezecký průvodce Jizerské hory, Nakladatelství a vydavatelství'' Milan Vrkoslav.
Petr Hejtmánek, Hruboskalsko – Dračí skály, Zámecká rokle, 1996

Study about Kauschka
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kauschka, Rudolf 1883 births 1960 deaths People from Šluknov Austrian explorers Austrian mountain climbers Czech mountain climbers Czechoslovak explorers Czechoslovak male lugers Czechoslovak mountain climbers German male lugers German Bohemian people Austrian male lugers Bohemian male lugers