After the fall of Szigetvár in 1566, Iskender, the bey of Szigetvár, built a palisade castle in Barcs in 1567. The castle was built on the bank of the Drava to control the crossing and the boat traffic. In 1567, the Turkish navy of the Drava region was also summoned here.
The castle was surrounded by three rows of filled plank walls and a moat, and inside the guards’ residential houses, warehouses and a small mosque took place. The number of guards was 193 people in 1568, 178 in 1619, most of them belonged to the infantry. Until the fall of Kanizsa (1600), the castle belonged to the outer defensive line of the Turkish Empire, after fall it was no longer important.
It was completely destroyed by a Hungarian attack in 1595, but was soon rebuilt by the Turks. During Miklós Zrínyi’s 1663-64 winter military campaign, the castle was occupied and destroyed and was never rebuilt. Its location was identified in 1978 by local history research. Between 1989 and 1994, minor excavations took place in the former area of the castle in four excavation seasons, then in 2002-2003 the excavating archaeologist was able to uncover larger details within the framework of the previous excavation.
The foundation of the park began with a parliamentary resolution in 1991 and it was inaugurated in April 1996 with the union of several other areas previously declared as protected. The National Park is located between the mouth of the rivers Danube and Sió, the country border and the river Drava. It covers an area of about 50,000 hectares. The area of operation of the Danube-Drava National Park Directorate covers the entire territory of Baranya and Tolna counties, Somogy county (except for the southern shore of Lake Balaton), and to a lesser extent Fejér and Bács-Kiskun counties. The national park has six territorial units: Gemenc, Béda-Karapancsa, Drava plain, Barcs Juniper woodland, Lankóczi forest, Zákány-Őrtilos area; and can be divided into five landscape protection areas: Boronka-Melléki Landscape Protection Area, Southern Mezőföld Landscape Protection Area, East-Mecsek Landscape Protection Area, Western Mecsek Landscape Protection Area and Zselic Landscape Protection Area.
The staff of the Danube-Drava National Park Directorate will help you discover this mysterious region, the special flora and fauna, in every season with a number of presentation places (e.g. Drava Gate Visitor’s Centre)), programs, educational trails, camps, lectures and guided tours.
The Barcs Juniper woodland is a habitat complex of the Inner Somogy sand region and marshland, which is of special natural value. The Barcs Juniper woodland is a protected area of Somogy county, formerly a landscape protection area, today it is part of the Danube-Drava National Park. Some of it can be visited by everyone, but there are some highly protected parts that can only be accessed with permission.
The botanist Ádám Boros drew the attention of the public to the natural values of the sand region and marshlands on the border of Barcs-Darány already in 1923, but the first five smaller areas were declared protected only in 1942. Then, in 1974, the Barcs Juniper Woodland Landscape Protection Area was established on an area of 34 square kilometres, which became the fourth landscape protection area in Hungary. In 1996, this status was ended, and with the establishment of the Danube-Drava National Park, as part of it, this protected area was also granted the status of a national park. In 2000, unfortunately, much of the juniper woodland burned down and the wildlife suffered significant damage. In 2014, a commemorative plaque was placed there and professional presentations were held on the 40th anniversary of the Barcs Juniper woodland.
Its formation is due to grazing activities in the past: the prickly-leaved juniper bushes appearing in open areas have been avoided by grazing animals. It is characterized by lime-avoiding vegetation formed on acidic sandy soils, where mosses and lichens appear among the junipers first, followed by the formation of a sand steppe grassland.
Its plant rarities are the black anemone (Pulsatilla nigricans), the peucedanum (Peucedanum arenarium) and the immortelle (Helichrysum arenarium). In the endorheic parts of the juniper woodland marsh forests grow, the main tree species here is the European alder (Alnus glutinosa). Peat moss colonies live on the alders due to water cover. This region is the only Hungarian habitat of rare plant species such as the willowleaf meadowsweet (Spiraea salicifolia) and the highly protected crested wood fern (Dryopteris cristata) and Osmundaceae. The sandy grasslands of this area are also famous for animal species that do not live elsewhere, such as the cone-headed grasshopper and the woodlark, and the characteristic nocturnal bird of the pastures and birch forests, the nightjar. Collared flycatchers and black storks nest in the marshy alder forests. The European pond turtle and ferruginous duck stocks in the marshes are particularly valuable.
The Barcsi Borókás educational trail is 2 km long and can be conveniently explored in an hour. On the section of the main road 6 between Darány and Barcs, it is easily accessible by car, visitors can leave their cars in the car park and from there they can start exploring the area on foot; the trail is open throughout the year. The area is the grazing area of the racka sheep, the flock is in the care of the Danube-Drava National Park Directorate, so the visitor may also encounter this old Hungarian domestic animal breed, which plays an important role in the nature conservation management of the area.
Karikó lake is the natural bay of the Drava, east of the Barcs bridgehead of the road bridge. The pond, named after its approximately circular shape, is now only in direct contact with the river at times of higher water levels. It is a popular place for children to fish.
The significant right tributary of the Danube is the Drava, which is the third largest river in Hungary. The Drava is one of its kind, and perhaps one of the most exciting rivers in Hungary. This fast-flowing, whimsical river is so clean, two-thirds of the country’s fish species live in it. This is why the river and its backwaters are considered a fishing paradise.
The Drava originates in the Tyrolean Alps, near the Italian-Austrian border, with a catchment area of about 40,000 square kilometres and a total length of 749 kilometres. A significant part of the Danube-Drava National Park stretches along the riverbed.
In Barcs, there is now a pleasant walk along the Drava, the almost 1,300-metre-long Drava Promenade, which is a popular place for people looking for relaxation and active recreation. At the Barcs section, the other side of the river is Croatia.
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