České Velenice (, , 1938–1945: ''Gmünd III'') is a town in

Jindřichův Hradec District Jindřichův Hradec District () is a Okres, district in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Jindřichův Hradec. Administrative division Jindřichův Hradec District is divided into three Districts of the Cz ...

in the

South Bohemian Region The South Bohemian Region () is an administrative unit (''Regions of the Czech Republic, kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located mostly in the southern part of its historical land of Bohemia, with a small part in southwestern Moravia. The western ...

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 3,700 inhabitants. It lies on the border with

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and is adjacent to the town of Gmünd, to which it once belonged.

Geography

Suchdol nad Lužnicí is located about south of

Jindřichův Hradec Jindřichův Hradec (; ) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 21,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservations, urb ...

and southeast of

České Budějovice České Budějovice (; ) is a city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 97,000 inhabitants. The city is located in the valley of the Vltava River, at its confluence with the Malše. České Budějovice is the largest ...

, on the border with

. It lies in the Třeboň Basin. The highest point is the flat hill Andělský kopec at above sea level.

History

Until 1870, there were only small settlements of Česká Cejle, Josefsko and Dolní Velenice in the area constituting current České Velenice, and it was part of the Austrian town of Gmünd. In 1868 the main railway station and the factory for repairing rolling stock and locomotives were established. The development of this border area was decisively increased by the inauguration of the Emperor Franz Joseph Railway connecting

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

in 1869. Due to the construction, housing estates were built and the population grew, especially of Czech nationality. At the end of World War I, the

Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1919) The Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye () was signed on 10 September 1919 by the victorious Allies of World War I on the one hand and by the Republic of German-Austria on the other. Like the Treaty of Trianon with Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946 ...

awarded the territory to

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. On 31 July it was officially attached to Czechoslovakia and became the new municipality, at first under the names ''Cmunt v Čechách'' and ''Český Cmunt'', and since 1922 under the name České Velenice. Until 1938, České Velenice was a prospering municipality with an important railway junction. During World War II, České Velenice changed to a town with 95% of population being of German nationality. On 23 March 1945, the town and the railway workshops were severely damaged by American-English air strikes. This caused a mass exodus from the town of people who lost both their homes and their employment. After the war, the depopulated town was partially inhabited by the original residents.

Demographics

Economy

The largest employer based in the town is the company Magna Cartech, a branch of Magna International. It focuses on sheet metal pressing and welding for automotive industry.

Transport

České Velenice railway station is located of the international line

–

and is the terminus of the line from

. The town shares the railway and pedestrian border crossing with Gmünd in Austria.

Education

České Velenice is home to one secondary school and one primary school. The secondary school mainly focuses on business, transport and mechanics.

Sights

České Velenice is poor in monuments. The only protected monument is the Church of Saint Agnes of Bohemia. It was built in 1935. Around the church is an English-style park.

Notable people

* Adolf Born (1930–2016), painter, cartoonist and illustrator

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ceske Velenice Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Jindřichův Hradec District Austria–Czech Republic border crossings Divided cities