Šance Lookout Tower near Jakubčovice

The lookout tower above Jakubčovice stands in a place with a perfect view. Below you is Opava, with the panorama of the Jeseníky Mountains on one side and the Beskydy Mountains on the other.

But this place, called Šance, also has its own history. It was part of the fortifications that formed the Austrian defensive line against Prussia and protected the old imperial road connecting Hradec nad Moravicí with Starý and Nový Jičín. The strategic importance of this place is underlined by the visit of Emperor Joseph II, who came to inspect the fortification in 1789. At that time, the Emperor was accompanied by the famous General Ernst Gideon von Laudon. During the next border inspection a year later, Laudon caught a cold, contracted pneumonia and died of the disease in Nový Jičín.