Prachatitz 1900.jpg
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Prachatice (; german: Prachatitz) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation.


Administrative parts

Prachatice is made up of town parts of Prachatice I, Prachatice II and Staré Prachatice, and villages of Kahov, Libínské Sedlo, Městská Lhotka, Oseky, Ostrov, Perlovice, Podolí, Stádla and Volovice.


Etymology

The name is derived from the old Slavic personal name Prachata. It meant "the village of Prachata's people".


Geography

Prachatice is located about west of České Budějovice. It lies in the
Bohemian Forest Foothills Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, ori ...
. The highest point is the mountain Libín at above sea level. The Živný Stream flows through the town.


History

Prachatice was founded with the beginning of trade on the Golden Trail, an important salt trade route beginning in
Passau Passau (; bar, label=Central Bavarian, Båssa) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany, also known as the Dreiflüssestadt ("City of Three Rivers") as the river Danube is joined by the Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's popu ...
in Bavaria. Probably in the 9th or 10th century, a settlement was founded in the area of today's Staré Prachatice ("Old Prachatice") town part. In the second half of the 12th century, it was acquired by Vyšehrad Chapter. When the settlement ceased to suit its purpose, a new settlement was established near the old one at the end of the 13th century. In 1312, Prachatice was first referred to as a town. In 1323, King
John of Bohemia John the Blind or John of Luxembourg ( lb, Jang de Blannen; german: link=no, Johann der Blinde; cz, Jan Lucemburský; 10 August 1296 – 26 August 1346), was the Count of Luxembourg from 1313 and King of Bohemia from 1310 and titular King of ...
confirmed to the town of Prachatice the right to use the trade route to Passau and to collect customs duties there. Prachatice was fully completed in the 3rd quarter of the 14th century. 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 Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, European monarchs loyal to the Cat ...
in the 15th century, Prachatice was attacked twice and eventually conquered by the Hussites who killed most of the population of the town. After the end of the conflict, in 1436, Prachatice was granted the status of royal town by King Sigismund, and all its old privileges were confirmed. Only one year later the town was offered as collateral to Jan Smil of Krems, but fell under the control of the Rosenberg family for a short period following Smil's execution in 1439 at Český Krumlov. Oldřich II of Rosenberg sold the town of Prachatice almost immediately after the execution but it again became property of the family in 1501. In the second half of the 15th century, the number of inhabitants increased and new houses had to be built. In the 16th century, trade on the trail reached its peak and the town prospered. The Rosenbergs controlled Prachatice until 1601 when Peter Vok of Rosenberg, the last member of the family, sold the town to Emperor
Rudolf II Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg), Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–160 ...
who would again make it a royal town in 1609. It remained firmly under royal control until the Bohemian Revolt during which it sided with the rebels. However, in 1620 the town was reconquered and connected to the Krumlov manor. After the Battle of White Mountain, Prachatice lost its royal town status and privileges and became the property of the Eggenberg family, though the emperor's troops remained in the town throughout the remainder of the Thirty Years' War. Later on in the war the town was conquered by the
Swedish army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...
and another large ransom was demanded. In the second half of the 17th century, trade on the Golden Trail declined and never was revived. The town and the whole Krumlov manor changed hands again in 1719, following the death of Princess Marie Arnoštka of Eggenberg, this time coming under the control of the affluent
Schwarzenberg family The House of Schwarzenberg is a German (Franconian) and Czech ( Bohemian) aristocratic family, and it was one of the most prominent European noble houses. The Schwarzenbergs are members of the German nobility and Czech nobility and they held the ...
. The weak political and economic situation affected the condition of the houses when old ones were not reconstructed and the new were not built. Until 1918 the town was part of the Austrian monarchy (Austrian side after the
compromise of 1867 The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 (german: Ausgleich, hu, Kiegyezés) established the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary. The Compromise only partially re-established the former pre-1848 sovereignty and status of the Kingdom of Hungary ...
), in the district of the same name, one of the 94 ''Bezirkshauptmannschaften'' in
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
. After 1945 the German population was expelled as a result of World War II.


Demographics


Economy

The dominating industries are machine engineering, electrotechnical industry and timber processing. A new industrial zone has been built.


Culture

The town hosts the Golden Salt Path Celebrations every year with a rich cultural program.


Sights

The historic centre is formed by Velké Square and adjoining streets, and is delimited by the remains of the town walls. Due to the stagnation of economic life in the 17th and 18th centuries, Prachatice have many Renaissance buildings, some of then reconstructed in the Empire style. Since 1981, the historic core of the town has been protected as an urban monument reservation. One of the main landmarks of the town centre is the Old Town Hall, a Renaissance building from 1570–1571. The New Town Hall was built in pseudo-Renaissance style in 1903. The Church of Saint James the Great near the square is the largest building in the historic centre. It is a late Gothic building first mentioned in 1359. Its final form was achieved by reconstructions between 1505 and 1513. Dolní Gate ("Lower Gate"; also called '' Písecká'') is a preserved element of stone town fortifications, which comes from the first half of the 15th century. The gate is from around 1527 and creates the entrance to the historic centre.


Notable people

*
Christian of Prachatice Christian of Prachatice ( cz, Křišťan z Prachatic) (1360–1368, Prachatice, Kingdom of Bohemia – 4 September 1439, Prague, Kingdom of Bohemia) was a medieval Bohemian astronomer, mathematician and former Catholic priest who converted to t ...
(c.1368–1439), astronomer, mathematician and medic * Jan Hus (c.1372–1415), theologian, philosopher and reformer, studied here * John Neumann (1811–1860), first American male saint * Miroslav Soukup (born 1965), footballer and football manager *
Adolf Zika Adolf Zika (born 21 July 1972) is a Czech photographer. Early life Zika was born in Prachatice, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic) in 1972. He graduated from secondary pedagogical school, and in 1988 became a member of the Center for Elite ...
(born 1972), photographer *
David Horejš David Horejš (born 19 May 1977) is a Czech football manager and former player. He was the club captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeropl ...
(born 1977), football player and manager *
Kateřina Nash Kateřina Nash (née Hanušová; born 9 December 1977) is a Czech cross-country skier and cyclist who competed from 1994 to 2003 in skiing and is still active in cycling for the Clif Pro Team. Competing in two Winter Olympics, she finished sixt ...
(born 1977), cross-country skier and cyclist *
Lucie Sekanová Lucie Sekanová (born 5 August 1989) is a Czech long-distance runner competing primarily in the 3000 metres steeplechase. She represented her country at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing without qualifying for the final. In 2017, she com ...
(born 1989), athlete


Twin towns – sister cities

Prachatice is twinned with: *
Castrocaro Terme e Terra del Sole Castrocaro Terme e Terra del Sole ( rgn, Castruchèira or ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Forlì-Cesena in the Italian region Emilia-Romagna, located about southeast of Bologna and about southwest of Forlì. The ''comune'' co ...
, Italy *
Grainet Grainet is a municipality in the district of Freyung-Grafenau in Bavaria in Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russi ...
, Germany *
Ignalina Ignalina ( pl, Ignalino) is a city in eastern Lithuania. It is known as a tourist destination in the Aukštaitija National Park. Ignalina is also famous for the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant in nearby Visaginas. Legend It is said that Ignalina ha ...
, Lithuania * Impruneta, Italy * Mauthausen, Austria * Rahachow, Belarus *
Waldkirchen Waldkirchen is the biggest town in the district of Freyung-Grafenau in Germany. History Mentioned for the first time in 1203, it soon became an important trading place along the "Goldener Steig" (Golden Path), a salt-trading route between Bava ...
, Germany * Zvolen, Slovakia


References


External links

*
Prachatice on DiscoverCzech travel agency
– basic facts, history, sights, one-day trips {{authority control Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Prachatice District Prácheňsko Bohemian Forest