Przemyśl Fortress

Carpathian Mountains


Military buffs will want to see the remnants of Austria-Hungary’s Przemyśl Fortress surrounding the town. As these were mostly earth ramparts, however, they are now overgrown and resemble natural rather than artificial bulwarks. They're a fair distance out of town, but among the best examples are Fort I (Salis Soglio) in Sieliska, Fort VIII (Łętownia) in Kuńkowce and Fort XIII (San Rideau) in Bolestraszyce. The tourist office can provide information about the sites and transport details.

Literature fans may be interested in knowing that Czech author Jaroslav Hašek set part of his classic WWI novel The Good Soldier Švejk in Przemyśl, and Hašek’s hapless antihero, Švejk, even spent some time behind bars here. Town fathers have made a virtue of this dubious connection to world literature and you’ll see Czech artist Josef Lada’s famous comical illustration of Švejk on signs around town. There’s even a little statue of Švejk on the Rynek – you can pose with him for a photo.