Boskovice Furrow
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Boskovice (; ) is a town in
Blansko District Blansko District () is a Okres, district in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Blansko. Administrative division Blansko District is divided into two Districts of the Czech Republic#Municipalities with exten ...
in the
South Moravian Region The South Moravian Region (; , ; ), or just South Moravia, is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the south-western part of its historical region of Moravia. The region's capital is Brno, th ...
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. The area of the historic town centre, Jewish quarter, château complex and castle ruin is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone.


Administrative division

Boskovice consists of five municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Boskovice (11,026) *Bačov (81) *Hrádkov (212) *Mladkov (353) *Vratíkov (247)


Geography

Boskovice is located about north of
Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...
. It lies on the border of the
Boskovice Furrow Boskovice (; ) is a town in Blansko District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 13,000 inhabitants. The area of the historic town centre, Jewish quarter, château complex and castle ruin is well preserved and is protec ...
and
Drahany Highlands Drahany is a market town in Prostějov District in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 500 inhabitants. Etymology According to one theory, the name is derived from the personal name Drahan. According to other theory, it is deriv ...
. The Boskovice Reservoir is largely located in the municipal territory. The reservoir lies on the river Bělá which flows through the eastern part of the town and the southern part of the territory.


History

Boskovice was probably founded in the 13th century as a market village. The first written mention of Boskovice is from 1222, when the lord Jimram of Boskovice was listed as a witness in a deed of the King
Ottokar I of Bohemia Ottokar I (; 1155 – 1230) was Duke of Bohemia periodically beginning in 1192, then acquired the title of King of Bohemia, first in 1198 from Philip of Swabia, later in 1203 from Otto IV of Brunswick and in 1212 (as hereditary) from ...
. The Boskovice Castle was first mentioned in 1313. During the reign of
Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...
(1740–1780), Boskovice was promoted to a town. Boskovice used to have one of the largest Jewish communities 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 ...
. The first mention of
Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
s in Boskovice is from 1343. After 1454, many Jews expelled from Brno came to Boskovice. In the first half of the 16th century, the Jewish community was established. A closed ghetto separated from the town with two gates was established in 1727. After 1848, The Jewish community of Boskovice has become a politically independent town with its own mayor. At its peak in 1857, more than 1,800 Jews lived here. Until 1918, ''Boskowitz – Boskovice'' 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 1918, Boskovice became part of independent
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 ...
. From 1848 until 1960, Boskovice was a district town. Since 1960, it has been part of the Blansko District.


Demographics


Economy

Boskovice is known for the Minerva Boskovice company, manufacturer of
sewing machine Diagram of a modern sewing machine Animation of a modern sewing machine as it stitches A sewing machine is a machine used to sew fabric and materials together with thread. Sewing machines were invented during the first Industrial Revolutio ...
s. It was founded in 1881. In 1997, the German company
Dürkopp Adler Dürkopp Adler is a German manufacturer of material handling systems and industrial sewing machines that are used in the manufacture of garment and upholstery. It is headquartered in Bielefeld, Germany. The firm is a result of a merger in 1990 betw ...
became the majority shareholder.


Transport

Boskovice is connected with
Skalice nad Svitavou Skalice nad Svitavou is a municipality and village in Blansko District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 700 inhabitants. Skalice nad Svitavou lies approximately north of Blansko, north of Brno, and south-east o ...
with a short railway of local importance.


Culture

Since 1993, the town has hosted the Boskovice Festival, subtitled ''Festival for the Jewish Quarter''. It is a music festival that aims to draw the public's attention to the existence of this monument and to help save it. From 2001 to 2010, the town hosted the largest festival of dance music in Moravia,
Hradhouse Festival Festival Hradhouse was an annual festival of electronic dance music that took place in Boskovice, near Brno, Czech Republic. The festival was a fixture on the Czech music scene and in the process has grown from a small summer underground party to a ...
.


Sights

The Jewish ghetto is located next to the historic centre on an area of around . There is 79 preserved houses of Baroque and Neoclassical origin and one of the original gates. The Baroque synagogue was built in 1639 and later modified in Empire and neo-Gothic styles. It contains an exhibition on the history and monuments of the local Jewish community. The Jewish cemetery was founded not later than in the 16th century. The cemetery has about 2,400 tombs on of area. The oldest preserved readable tomb is from 1670. The
Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...
castle in Boskovice was founded in the 13th century. In the mid-16th century, it was reconstructed in the Renaissance style. In the early 18th century, several outbuildings were added, but it was soon abandoned, and in the 1830s the castle was dismantled for the construction of buildings in the town. The torso of the castle palace has been preserved from the large building. A technical monument is a deep well powered by a wooden pedal wheel, the only functional in the country. The Boskovice Château was originally a Dominican monastery, rebuilt in 1819–1826 into an
Empire style The Empire style (, ''style Empire'') is an early-nineteenth-century design movement in architecture, furniture, other decorative arts, and the visual arts, representing the second phase of Neoclassicism. It flourished between 1800 and 1815 duri ...
residence. It is surrounded by an English park. The château complex includes a large Neoclassical greenhouse from 1826–1829, a unique building of its type, and a neo-Gothic riding hall. The nearby manor residence was built in 1729–1733 as the seat of the
Dietrichstein family The House of Dietrichstein was one of the oldest and most prominent Austrian noble families originating in the Duchy of Carinthia. The family belonged to the high nobility (German: ''Hochadel''). The Nikolsburg branch was elevated to the rank o ...
. It served its purpose until the family had the château built. After 1826, it served as an administrative building of the manor. Today this simple Baroque building houses the Museum of the Boskovice Region. Next to the manor residence is the original manor house. It was built in the 17th century as a complex of farm buildings. The Church of Saint James the Great on the town square is from 1346. It was rebuilt in 1493–1527 and repaired many times, however, several parts of the original structure are preserved. The second landmark of the square is the town hall. Its current form is from the late Renaissance reconstruction in 1567. It has a high tower.


Notable people

*
Moses Sofer Moses Schreiber (1762–1839), known to his own community and Jewish posterity in the Hebrew translation as Moshe Sofer, also known by his main work ''Chatam Sofer'', ''Chasam Sofer'', or ''Hatam Sofer'' ( trans. ''Seal of the Scribe'', and acron ...
(1762–1839), one of the leading
Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...
rabbis of European Jewry * Hirsch Bär Fassel (1802–1883), rabbi and philosopher *
Hermann Wassertrilling Hermann Wassertrilling, or (Hebrew: ''Tzvi Hirsch ben Natan Wassertrilling''; born in Boskowitz, Moravia) was an Austrian Hebraist who flourished in the 19th century. He officiated as teacher in the Jewish school of Hotzenplotz, Silesia, circa ...
(18??–1887), Austrian
Hebraist A Hebraist is a specialist in Jewish, Hebrew and Hebraic studies. Specifically, British and German scholars of the 18th and 19th centuries who were involved in the study of Hebrew language and literature were commonly known by this designation, a ...
* Solomon H. Sonneschein (1839–1908), Hungarian-American rabbi *
Karel Absolon Karel Absolon (16 June 1877 – 6 October 1960) was a Czech archaeologist, geographer, paleontologist, and speleologist. He was born in Boskovice. Absolon was the grandchild of paleontologist Jindřich Wankel. During his studies at Charle ...
(1877–1960), archaeologist, paleontologist and speleologist *
Otakar Kubín Otakar Kubín (; 22 October 1883 – 17 October 1969) was a Czech painter and sculptor. Biography Kubín was born in Boskovice, Moravia, Austria-Hungary. His works are mainly associated with Impressionism. He was influenced by such artists as V ...
(1883–1969), painter and sculptor *
Hermann Ungar Hermann Ungar (April 20, 1893 in Boskovice – October 28, 1929 in Prague) was a Czech-Jewish writer (in the German language) and an officer in Czechoslovakia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Biography Ungar's father, Emil, was a cider maker who ...
(1893–1929), writer * Moshe Spitzer (1900–1982), Israeli typographer and artist * Josef Augusta (1903–1968), paleontologist and geologist *
Tomáš Špidlík Tomáš Josef Špidlík, S.J. (17 December 1919 – 16 April 2010) was a Czech Catholic prelate and theologian. Pope John Paul II made him a cardinal in 2003. He was a member of the Jesuits. Biography Špidlík was born in 1919 in Boskovic ...
(1919–2010), prelate of the Catholic Church *
Josef Koudelka Josef Koudelka (born 10 January 1938) is a Czech-French photographer. He is a member of Magnum Photos and has won awards such as the Prix Nadar (1978), a Grand Prix National de la Photographie (1989), a Grand Prix Henri Cartier-Bresson (1991) ...
(born 1938), photographer * Pavel Kysilka (born 1958), economist *
Ladislav Maier Ladislav Maier (born 4 January 1966 in Boskovice) is a Czech former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. At club level, Maier helped Slovan Liberec win promotion to the Czech First League in 1993, going on to make 148 First ...
(born 1966), footballer *
Robert Šlachta Robert Šlachta (born 22 July 1971) is a Czech politician and former police and customs officer who has been serving as the senator for Břeclav since 2024. He has been the leader of Přísaha Přísaha () is a right-wing populist political ...
(born 1971), politician * Yvetta Hlaváčová (born 1975), long-distance swimmer


Twin towns – sister cities

Boskovice is twinned with: *
Frasnes-lez-Anvaing Frasnes-lez-Anvaing (; ; ) is a municipality of Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Fl ...
, Belgium *
Levice Levice (; , Hungarian pronunciation: ; ) is a town in western Slovakia. The town lies on the left bank of the lower Hron river. The Old Church Slavonic, Old Slavic name of the town was ''Leva'', which means "the Left One". The town is located i ...
, Slovakia * Prnjavor, Bosnia and Herzegovina *
Rawa Mazowiecka Rawa Mazowiecka is a town in central Poland, with 16,090 inhabitants (2022). It lies in the Łódź Voivodeship and is the capital of the Rawa County. From 1562 the city hosted the ''Rawa Treasury'' for the Military of the Polish–Lithuanian Com ...
, Poland


Gallery

Hrad Boskovice - opevnění, okres Blansko (06).jpg, Entry gate to Boskovice Castle Boskovice, stará radnice.jpg, Town hall on the Masarykovo Square Boskovice (Boskowitz) - Residenz.jpg, Museum of the Boskovice Region Zámecký skleník, Boskovice, okres Blansko (02).jpg, Greenhouse in the château complex Jízdárna, Boskovice, okres Blansko.jpg, Riding hall Židovský hřbitov, Boskovice, okres Blansko (02).jpg, Jewish cemetery Židovský dům, čp. 349, U Koupadel, Boskovice, okres Blansko.jpg, Jewish house Boskovice - Židovská brána.jpg, Gate to the Jewish ghetto Pohled na východní část města z Vyhlídky pod hradem, Boskovice, okres Blansko.jpg, View of the eastern part of the town


References


External links

*
Boskovice CastleBoskovice Château
{{authority control Populated places in Blansko District Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Castles in the South Moravian Region Margraviate of Moravia Jewish communities in the Czech Republic