Far back in the distant past, approximately from the beginning of the 14th century, the Vimperk branch of the Golden Path crossed the arduously penetrable border of the Šumava Forest through the Strážný basin. In 1689 the settlement of Kunžvart was founded on this main trading thoroughfare, which connected Passau in Bavaria to the Bohemian interior. Caravans of pack animals imported the widest selection of goods - mainly however the greatly needed salt - along it into Bohemia. It got its name from the nearby castle, which guarded the Golden Path as well as the whole border area of the Bohemian Kingdom for centuries. It wasn’t until later that Strážný became commonly accepted as the new name of the parish.
The newly sprung-up parish spread very quickly. Its sudden development is also demonstrated by the fact, that an international main road from Prague to Passau already passed Strážný in 1833 and one of the first bus services in Bohemia operated here. In 1844 the parish obtained the right to three markets a year and was dubbed a small township.
Nowadays Strážný is a typical border community, trying to make maximum use of its beneficial location in close proximity to a busy border crossing to neighbouring Germany.
