The Václav Tunnel is the most important drainage tunnel in the Jílové gold mining district. Its initial sections were likely in operation as early as the 13th century, but its current form was shaped primarily by mining operations in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries.
In the 18th century, extensive mining activities occurred on the so-called Kocourské veins, a series of parallel veins extending from the southern bank of the Sázava River to Jílové u Prahy. One of these veins is the Václav vein, mined through the Václav Tunnel. The tunnel followed a system of decline shafts up to 80 meters below the Sázava River. The neighboring Michal vein, explored through the Karel VI tunnel, was particularly rich, yielding pieces of pure gold weighing up to several hundred grams. From 1710 to 1730, gold from this vein was minted into highly valued gold ducats.
In 1828, it was decided to extend the Václav Tunnel towards the Pepř shaft to drain and access the southern parts of the Šlojíř vein. As the richest vein in the area, the Šlojíř vein had been mined to significant depths in the Middle Ages, and the Václav Tunnel was intended to help resume mining of this once very rich vein. After nearly 40 years of tunneling through very hard rock, the tunnel broke through to the Pepř shaft and its drainage. Just before reaching the shaft, a vein considered to be Šlojířská was intersected and followed by a drift, but gold content was very low. Further significant work in this area was then halted. It wasn't until Professor Barvíř studied old maps in the early 20th century that it was discovered there had been a mix-up between the Šlojířská vein and the Římsko-říšská vein, a fact confirmed in the final phase of mining.
The entire Jílové district was last opened for gold mining between 1939 and 1968. During this period, additional kilometers of tunnels were driven at the level of the Václav Tunnel, and the Pepř shaft was deepened by two more levels. A connecting drift was driven from the Václav Tunnel to Bohuliby, linking to the Bohulibská Nová shaft. Mining finally ceased in 1968, but the tunnel continues to function, draining the main part of the Jílové mining district.
