Moravian Gate

The Moravian Gate (Czech: Moravská brána, Polish: Brama Morawska, German: Mährische Pforte, Slovak: Moravská brána) is a geomorphological feature in the Moravian region of the Czech Republic. It is formed by the depression between the Carpathian Mountains in the east and the Sudetes in the west. The drainage divide between the upper Oder river and the Baltic Sea in the north and the Bečva River of the Danube basin runs through it.

It stretches from Moravia towards Czech Silesia north-eastward in the length of about 65 km (40 mi) and is bordered by the confluence of the Olza and the Odra rivers in the north. Its crest is located between the villages of Olšovec und Bělotín at 310 m (1,020 ft).

The Moravian Gate has been a natural pass between the Sudetes and the Carpathians since the ancient times. Here ran the most important trade routes from southern Europe to the Baltic Sea (e.g. the Amber Road) and also routes from the Czech lands to Upper Silesia and Lesser Poland. Today the D1 highway leads from the Moravian capital Brno to Ostrava, the centre of the Moravian-Silesian Region. Further to the north the road reaches the border with Poland near the town of Wodzisław Śląski. The Austrian Northern Railway built in 1847 from Vienna to Bohumín also traversed the Moravian Gate.