Ruins of Čap Castle

Čap Castle was probably founded by Jindřich Berka of Dubá in the late 14th century. The only written reference to the castle dates from 1402, when Jindřich’s estate was divided up and Čap passed to his son Václav Berka of Dubá. Since the castle does not appear in the records of Jindřich’s property from 1391, it must have been founded between 1391 and 1402. It was, however, abandoned soon after 1402. A collection of pottery found at the site dates from this period.

Very little of the castle has survived. The only remaining structure is a cellar cut into the rock, now filled with debris that has washed in over time. You can also see a circular sunken feature, cylindrical in shape and 2.8 metres in diameter. At a depth of around three metres, the wall narrows inwards towards the centre, forming a kind of ledge around a smaller inner cylinder. This implies it was most likely used as a cold store or storage chamber.