Šternberk
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Šternberk (; ) is a town in
Olomouc District Olomouc District () is a district in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Olomouc. Administrative division Olomouc District is divided into four administrative districts of municipalities with extended competence: ...
in the
Olomouc Region Olomouc Region (; , ; ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the north-western and central part of its historical region of Moravia (''Morava'') and in a small part of the historical region of Czech Silesia (''České Sl ...
of the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
. It has about 13,000 inhabitants. It is known for the Šternberk Castle. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone.


Administrative division

Šternberk consists of five municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Šternberk (12,503) *Chabičov (144) *Dalov (166) *Krakořice (90) *Těšíkov (104) Těšíkov forms an
exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...
of the municipal territory.


Geography

Šternberk is located about north of
Olomouc Olomouc (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants, making it the Statutory city (Czech Republic), sixth largest city in the country. It is the administrative centre of the Olomouc Region. Located on the Morava (rive ...
. It lies on the border of two geomorphological units. Most of the municipal territory belongs to the
Nízký Jeseník Nízký Jeseník (, ) is a flat highland and Geomorphological division of the Czech Republic, geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located in the east of the country in the Olomouc Region, Olomouc and Moravian-Silesian Region, M ...
range, only the eastern part of the territory lies in the
Upper Morava Valley The Upper Morava Valley () is a lowland and a geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located in the Olomouc and Zlín regions. Its name is derived from the Morava river that forms the axis of the territory. Geomorphology The Up ...
. The highest point is the hill Vysoká Roudná with an elevation of . The Sitka Stream slows through the town.


History

The first written mention of Šternberk is from 1269, when the Šternberk Castle appeared in a deed of King
Ottokar II of Bohemia Ottokar II (; , in Městec Králové, Bohemia – 26 August 1278, in Dürnkrut, Austria, Dürnkrut, Lower Austria), the Iron and Golden King, was a member of the Přemyslid dynasty who reigned as King of Bohemia from 1253 until his death in 1278 ...
. The castle was founded between 1253 and 1269. The town of Šternberk was first mentioned in 1296, in a deed of the Šternberk's owner, Albert of Šternberk. Although it was referred to as a town, it did not become a full-fledged town until the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries. Albert of Šternberk colonized the town with German colonist, which led to an ethnically mixed population. The lords of Šternberk gradually expanded the dominion. The town developed mainly during the rule of Albert II of Šternberk, who had built the town walls and founded the Augustinian monastery in 1371. After the death of Petr of Šternberk in 1397, the Šternberk dominion was inherited by lords of Kravaře. The lords of Kravaře further improved the town. During the
Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, a ...
in 1430, the town was conquered by the
Hussites upright=1.2, Battle between Hussites (left) and Crusades#Campaigns against heretics and schismatics, Catholic crusaders in the 15th century upright=1.2, The Lands of the Bohemian Crown during the Hussite Wars. The movement began during the Prag ...
. After the death of the last male member of the lords of Kravaře, Šternberk further changed its owners, which were the families of Kostka of Postupice (1466–1480) and Berka of Dubá (1480–1570), Dukes of Münsterberg (1570–1647), and
House of Württemberg The House of Württemberg is an uradel, ancient German nobility, German dynasty and former royal family of the Kingdom of Württemberg. History County The House probably originated in the vicinity of the Salian dynasty. Around 1080 the ancestors ...
(1647–1693). In 1633–1634, Šternberk was devastated by a plague epidemic. In the 1640s, during the
Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
, the town was conquered and looted several times by the
Swedish army The Swedish Army () is the army, land force of the Swedish Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Sweden. Beginning with its service in 1521, the Swedish Army has been active for more than 500 years. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1 ...
. After the war, the population was predominantly German. In 1693, Šternberk was acquired by the
House of Liechtenstein The House of Liechtenstein (), from which the principality takes its name, is the family which reigns by hereditary right over the principality of Liechtenstein. Only Dynasty#Dynast, dynastic members of the family are eligible to inherit the thro ...
, which owned it until 1945. New development did not occur until the second half of the 18th century. The town began to grow economically thanks to
weaving Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal ...
. Until 1918, Šternberk was part of
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
, head of the district with the same name, one of the 34 ''Bezirkshauptmannschaften'' in
Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...
. In 1938, after the
Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement was reached in Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, the United Kingdom, the French Third Republic, French Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy. The agreement provided for the Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–194 ...
, it was annexed by
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
and administered as part of
Reichsgau Sudetenland The Reichsgau Sudetenland was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1939 to 1945. It comprised the northern part of the ''Sudetenland'' territory, which was annexed from Czechoslovakia according to the 30 September 1938 Munich Agreement. ...
. The German-speaking population was expelled in 1945–1946 according to the
Beneš decrees The Beneš decrees were a series of laws drafted by the Czechoslovak government-in-exile in the absence of the Czechoslovak parliament during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in World War II. They were issued by President Edvard Beneš fr ...
and replaced by
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
settlers.


Demographics


Transport

The I/46 road from Olomouc to
Opava Opava (; , ) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Opava (river), Opava River. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia and was a historical capital of Czech Sile ...
passes through the town. Šternberk is located on the railway line
Šumperk Šumperk (; ) is a town in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 25,000 inhabitants. It is an industrial town, but it also contains valuable historical and architectural monuments. The historic town centre is well preserved and i ...
Vyškov Vyškov (; ) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 21,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. Administrative division Vyškov consists of 13 mun ...
.


Sport

Šternberk is known for racing track called ''
Ecce Homo ''Ecce homo'' (, , ; "behold the man") are the Latin words used by Pontius Pilate in the Vulgate translation of the Gospel of John, when he presents a scourged Jesus, bound and crowned with thorns, to a hostile crowd shortly before his crucif ...
'' on which the eponymous
hillclimbing Hillclimbing, also known as hill climbing, speed hillclimbing, or speed hill climbing, is a branch of motorsport in which drivers compete against the clock to complete an uphill course. It is one of the oldest forms of motorsport, since the firs ...
car race is held annually. The first race was held here in 1905 and the tradition of regular ''Ecce Homo'' race began in 1921.


Sights

Šternberk Castle is the main landmark of the town. The Gothic castle was reconstructed into a modern aristocratic residence in 1886. The castle forest park was founded in 1907–1909. Today the state-owned castle is open to the public and offers sightseeing tours. The castle is protected as a national cultural monument. The former Augustinian monastery is a valuable Baroque monument. After it was used as barracks, a German grammar school and a textile warehouse, the building was repaired and today contains museum expositions and exhibition spaces, including the gallery of painter Johann Christoph Handke. The Church of the Annunciation was founded together with the monastery in 1371. After it burned down two times, the original Gothic church was demolished in 1775, and a new Neoclassical church was built on its site in 1775–1783. After the monastery was abolished, the church became a parish church. It contains paintings by Josef Winterhalder the Younger and Leopold Kupelwieser. The chapel is decorated by a rare ceiling painting by Johann Christoph Handke, depicting the history of Šternberk.


Notable people

* Eduard Reich (1836–1919), physician * Oscar Gelbfuhs (1852–1877), chess player * Walter von Molo (1880–1958), chess player * Lubor Tokoš (1923–2003), actor *
Erica Pedretti Erica Pedretti (; 25 February 1930 – 14 July 2022) was a Swiss author and artist. Pedretti has published texts since 1970, and since 1976 she has worked as an artist, especially as a sculptor. In 1984, Pedretti received the Ingeborg Bachmann ...
(born 1930), Swiss writer and artist *
Eckhart Schmidt Eckhart Schmidt (31 October 1938 – 24 October 2024) was a German film director, producer, writer and photographer. In 1982 he directed the film '' Der Fan'', with Désirée Nosbusch in the lead role, which became a cult film in Germany and wo ...
(born 1938), German film director * Hana Maciuchová (1945–2021), actress *
Mikuláš Bek Mikuláš Bek (born 22 April 1964) is a Czech musicologist and politician, who has been serving as Minister of Education, Youth and Sports in Petr Fiala's Cabinet since May 2023. He previously served as the Minister of EU Affairs from December 2 ...
(born 1964), musicologist and politician * Robert Hock (born 1973), German ice hockey player * Adriana Gerši (born 1976), tennis player * Patrik Siegl (born 1976), footballer *
Tomáš Žižka Tomáš Žižka (born October 10, 1979) is a Czech professional ice hockey defenseman currently playing for Hokej Vyškov of the 2nd Czech Republic Hockey League, the third-tier league in the Czech Republic. He previously played 25 games in th ...
(born 1979), ice hockey player * David Rozehnal (born 1980), footballer * Jana Doleželová (born 1981), Miss Czech Republic 2004 * Petr Vrána (born 1985), ice hockey player *
David Krejčí David Krejčí (, born 28 April 1986) is a Czech former professional ice hockey centre who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins. He was part of the Bruins' Stanley Cup win in 2011 and led the NHL in points durin ...
(born 1986), ice hockey player * Gabriela Vařeková (born 1987), rower * Blanka Škodová (born 1997), ice hockey player * Václav Chaloupka (born 1998), slalom canoeist


Twin towns – sister cities

Šternberk is twinned with: *
Dobšiná Dobšiná (; ; Latin: ''Dobsinium'') is a small town in the Slovak Ore Mountains along the Slaná River. For 500 years it was a small but prosperous mining village populated by ethnic Germans within the Kingdom of Hungary; today it is a Slovaks, ...
, Slovakia *
Günzburg Günzburg (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Genzburg'') is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It is a ''Große Kreisstadt'' and the capital of the Swabian Günzburg (district), district Günzburg. This district was constituted in 1972 by combining the city ...
, Germany *
Kobiór Kobiór () is a village in Pszczyna County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Kobiór. It lies approximately north of Pszczyna and south of the regional capital Katowice ...
, Poland *
Kungsbacka Kungsbacka () is a urban areas of Sweden, locality and the seat of Kungsbacka Municipality in Halland County, Sweden, with 19,057 inhabitants in 2010. It is a part of Greater Gothenburg Metropolitan Area. It is one of the most affluent parts of Sw ...
, Sweden * Lorsch, Germany


Gallery

Sternberg-2008-05-24-PohledOdZaluzi.JPG, Panorama of the town Sternberg-2008-05-24-HlavniNamesti.JPG, Hlavní Square Sternberg-2008-05-24-Kostel-UpravenaPerspektiva.JPG, Church of the Annunciation and Marian column


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sternberk Populated places in Olomouc District Cities and towns in the Czech Republic House of Liechtenstein