Tajchy - History

History

Banská Štiavnica was an important medieval mining center, producing mostly silver. The first water reservoirs were founded by the local miners in the 15th century. However, the most significant development of tajchy was precipitated by a crisis in the mining industry in the 17th century. The depth of the mines' shafts started to reach below the level of the drainage tunnels. As a result, mines were flooded by ground water. The draining mechanisms of that period were powered by human or animal power, which was too expensive. Due to the prohibitive costs, the Royal Court Chamber in Vienna decided to close the mines in Banská Štiavnica and its surroundings. A mining expert and inventor Jozef Karol Hell challenged the decision, submitting a courageous proposal to rescue mining in his home town. An innovative plan based on the use of tajchy was finally endorsed by Emperor Charles VI.

In the 18th century, tajchy gradually expanded into a complicated system of lakes and channels, designed by three famous engineers: Jozef Karol Hell, his father Maximilian Hell, and especially Jozef's teacher Samuel Mikovíny. The project was technically and economically demanding. For example, construction of two Richňava tajchy required the work of 4,000 people working every day for three years (1738–1740). But after their completion, tajchy proved capable of draining all the water from the flooded mines and they even provided enough energy for other booming industries.

The renewed prosperity resulted in great economic and cultural development of Banská Štiavnica. In 1782, Banská Štiavnica was the third biggest town in the Kingdom of Hungary (with 23,192 or including suburbs 40,000 inhabitants), after Bratislava and Debrecen. In 1762, Queen Maria Theresa ordered the establishment of a Mining Academy in Banská Štiavnica, creating the first technical university in the world. The town was chosen "because it had mining, hydrological, metallurgical, propulsion, and testing equipment as well as fire, water and air devices, and pendulum-action drainage devices which did not exist in other mining locations," in other words because of its tajchy. Tajchy were also praised by their royal visitors, including Francis I, Joseph II, and Leopold II.