Bradlo

Bradlo (Hungarian Bradló) is a 543 m limestone summit, the highest point of the Myjava Hills (Myjavská pahorkatina) in western Slovakia. It lies on the southern edge of the hills, about 2 km north-east of the town of Brezová pod Bradlom, in the Myjava District of the Trenčín Region; its slopes also belong to the villages of Priepasné and Košariská. Despite its modest height, Bradlo is one of the best-known places in Slovakia: on its ridge stands the Mound of Milan Rastislav Štefánik, the monumental mausoleum of one of the founders of Czechoslovakia.

How to get there / routes

The marked trails lead mainly to the mound, which stands on the ridge south-west of the summit itself.

• Red — the Štefánik Trail (Štefánikova magistrála), largely following the SNP Heroes’ Trail: from Brezová pod Bradlom (last section green, about 2.2 km) or from the town of Myjava — about 11.3 km, roughly 3 hours.
• Yellow, then green: from the village of Košariská, Štefánik’s birthplace.
• Green: from the Dlhý vŕšok settlement of Priepasné — the only trail passing just below the summit.

A paved road with a car park also leads from Brezová pod Bradlom almost to the monument.

What you can see from the summit

The summit itself is wooded, so it offers hardly any view. The mound, however, gives a view in practically all directions — over the picturesque landscape of scattered hamlets (kopanice) around Brezová pod Bradlom, the surrounding hills and, in good weather, Veľká Javorina, Inovec and occasionally even the northern Alps.

Nature and history

Bradlo is a limestone outlier exposed by the erosion of softer surrounding rocks. Most of the hill is covered by mixed forest, with mountain meadows giving limited views.

General Milan Rastislav Štefánik — astronomer, diplomat and soldier — died in a plane crash on 4 May 1919 near Ivanka pri Dunaji while returning home. Three days later he was buried on Bradlo with his Italian crew, above his native Košariská. The architect Dušan Jurkovič, who during the First World War had built dozens of military cemeteries in Galicia, conceived a monumental tomb for him. The foundation stone was laid five years after Štefánik’s death, and about two million crowns were raised by a national collection. The mound was solemnly unveiled on 23 September 1928, for the tenth anniversary of the Czechoslovak Republic.

The white terraced structure of massive travertine blocks consists of two truncated pyramids and a three-stepped pyramid bearing the tomb; four 12 m obelisks stand at the corners of the upper terrace. It was declared a national cultural monument in 1968, thoroughly restored in 1988–1996 and added to the European Heritage Label list in 2009. The Štefánik Trail ends at the mound.

Safety, season and rules

The routes to Bradlo are easy and open all year; in winter a small ski tow runs on the slopes. The mound is a place of remembrance: please behave quietly and respectfully. Emergency number 112; in the Slovak mountains the Mountain Rescue Service (HZS) also operates: 18 300 (+421 18 300).

Interesting facts

• The tomb bears the inscription “To a great son — the liberated Czechoslovak nation”.
• The Italian airmen U. Merlino and G. Aggiunti are buried here alongside Štefánik.

Photos: Baca12 (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0; Akul59, CC BY-SA 4.0; Akul59, CC BY-SA 4.0; Akul59, CC BY-SA 4.0; Akul59, CC BY-SA 4.0; Akul59, CC BY-SA 4.0; Lure, CC BY-SA 4.0 — Wikimedia Commons.