The Dyje–Svratka Valley ( cs, Dyjsko-svratecký úval, german: Thaya-Schwarza Talsenke) is a geomorphological feature (a special type of

vale A vale is a type of valley. Vale may also refer to: Places Georgia * Vale, Georgia, a town in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region Norway * Våle, a historic municipality Portugal * Vale (Santa Maria da Feira), a former civil parish in the municipali ...

) in South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic.

History

The Dyje–Svratka Valley has been a natural pass between the Vienna Basin ( Carpathians) and the

Vyškov Gate The Vyškov Gate ( cs, Vyškovská brána, pl, Brama Wyszkówska, german: Wischau Pforte, sk, Vyškovská brána) is a geomorphological feature in the Moravia (Czech Republic). It is formed by the depression between the Western Carpathian Moun ...

, the Upper Morava Valley, Moravian Gate and later, the North European Plain ( Poland - Lower Silesia -

Galicia Galicia may refer to: Geographic regions * Galicia (Spain), a region and autonomous community of northwestern Spain ** Gallaecia, a Roman province ** The post-Roman Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Gallaecia ** The medieval King ...

) since ancient times. It served as an arm of several important trade routes from southern Europe to the Baltic Sea such as the Amber Road, as well as routes from Moravia to Upper Silesia and Lesser Poland. The Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway from Břeclav to

Brno Brno ( , ; german: Brünn ) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic ...

traverses the Dyje–Svratka Valley.

Geography

The floodplains of several rivers end in the Dyje–Svratka Valley, including Svratka, Jihlava, Svitava, Thaya,

Jevišovka Jevišovka (until 1949 Frélichov; german: Fröllersdorf, hr, Frjelištorf, Frielištof) is a municipality and village in Břeclav District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 700 inhabitants. Geography Jevišovka is ...

and Litava. Many towns are located within it, including the southern districts of

, Slavkov u Brna,

Židlochovice Židlochovice (; german: Groß Seelowitz) is a town in Brno-Country District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,800 inhabitants. Geography Židlochovice lies approximately south of Brno. It is located in the valley ...

, Pohořelice, Hrušovany nad Jevišovkou and

Šlapanice Šlapanice () is a town in Brno-Country District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 7,600 inhabitants. Administrative parts The village od Bedřichovice is an administrative part of Šlapanice. Geography Šlapanice ...

. The lowlands are poorly forested, mostly by riparian forest ( oaks,

populus ''Populus'' is a genus of 25–30 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar (), aspen, and cottonwood. The we ...

and willows), with higher areas forested by false akacia ( Robinia pseudoacacia). The lowlands are intensively farmed, with significant numbers of orchards ( peaches, walnuts,

apricot An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus ''Prunus''. Usually, an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are also ...

s and

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...

s), vineyards and small woods. Only a few small sections are still covered by natural vegetation.Penka, After Water management
/ref> The west valley contains numerous vineyards that are part of the wine making sub-regions of Mikulovská and Znojemská. It is formed by the depression between the

Carpathian Mountains The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The range stretches ...

in the east ( Ždánice Forest, Kyjov Hills and

Mikulov Highlands The Mikulov Highlands ( cs, Mikulovská vrchovina) is a mountain range in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. The Highlands, together with the Waschberg Zone and Lower Austria Inselberg threshold, form the South-Moravian Carpathians ...

) and the Bohemian Massif in the west. Drainage runs into the river Morava, from there into the Danube basin and finally into the Black Sea. It includes the low

drainage divide A drainage divide, water divide, ridgeline, watershed, water parting or height of land is elevated terrain that separates neighboring drainage basins. On rugged land, the divide lies along topographical ridges, and may be in the form of a singl ...

Svratka-Dyje close to Mušov. Its soils mainly consist of chernozem and

loess Loess (, ; from german: Löss ) is a clastic, predominantly silt-sized sediment that is formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. Ten percent of Earth's land area is covered by loess or similar deposits. Loess is a periglacial or aeolian ...

, local fluvisol and sand.

Transport

Highways that traverse the Dyje–Svratka Valley include D1 from Prague to

, D2 from Brno to Břeclav and

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

, and D52 from Brno to Vienna).

Gallery

Svratka v Brně-Dolních Heršpicích.jpg,

Svratka river The Svratka (), formerly ''Švarcava'' (german: Schwarzach) is a river in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It is long, and its basin area is . It rises in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands, converges with the Svitava (river), Svitav ...

south of Brno Akatova vez na Vyhonu - Palava.JPG, Look from Výhon, Akátová tower to the south Palava.od.SZ.JPG, View from Dolní Kounice to the southeast Roman fortress south Moravia.JPG, Look from Roman fortress vallum ruins to Dyje–Svratka

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

riparian forest Rajhrad - Svratka.jpg, Svratka river in Rajhrad

History

Geography

Transport

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading