Chvaletice () is a town in

Pardubice District Pardubice District ( cs, okres Pardubice) is a district (''okres'') within the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Pardubice. Overview Pardubice District is the smallest district of the region but has the highest po ...

in the

Pardubice Region Pardubice Region ( cs, Pardubický kraj; , ; pl, Kraj pardubicki) is an administrative unit ( cs, kraj) of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. I ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. Th ...

. It has about 2,900 inhabitants.

Administrative parts

The village of Hornická Čtvrť is an administrative part of Chvaletice.

Geography

Chvaletice is located about west of

Pardubice Pardubice (; german: Pardubitz) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 89,000 inhabitants. It is the capital city of the Pardubice Region and lies on the Elbe River. The historic centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monume ...

. It lies in the

Polabí Polabí (german: Elbeland) is the traditional and informal name for a lowlands region located mainly in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Etymology The name comes from Czech ''po Labi'', meaning "along the Elbe". The same linguis ...

region; the northern part of the municipal territory lies in the

East Elbe Table East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

and the southern part lies in the northwestern tip of the

Iron Mountains The Iron Mountains are a subrange of the Blue Ridge Mountains. These mountains are located around the common meeting point of Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina. A portion of the Appalachian Trail runs the crest of the Iron Mountains abov ...

. The river

Elbe The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Rep ...

forms the northern municipal border.

History

In the area there were originally two villages, Telčice and Chvaletice, both administered by Chvaletice. The first written mention of Telčice comes from 1143 and of Chvaletice from 1393. Ownership of the place has changed several times between king, monastery and local nobles. The

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battl ...

followed by forced conversion to Catholicism depopulated the area but the tradition of Protestantism survived. The railway

–

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

built in 1845 brought the village into the modern age. In 1953 Telčice became a separate municipality, however in 1975 Telčice and Chvaletice were merged into one municipality. In 1981 Chvaletice obtained town rights.

Economy

Since ancient times

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the ...

was mined here, until the Thirty Years' War; then again since the end of 18th century. Mining of

pyrite The mineral pyrite (), or iron pyrite, also known as fool's gold, is an iron sulfide with the chemical formula Fe S2 (iron (II) disulfide). Pyrite is the most abundant sulfide mineral. Pyrite's metallic luster and pale brass-yellow hue giv ...

-manganium ore started in the 20th century. The mines got exhausted and were finally closed in 1975. In 1973–1979, the

Chvaletice Power Station Chvaletice Power Station is a large lignite-fired power station at Chvaletice in the Czech Republic, owned by Pavel Tykač. Its installed power output is 4x 200 watt, MW. Blocks 3 and 4 use a chimney which is 305 metres tall, built in 1977. It is ...

was built, with the coal being moved in from mines in northern Bohemia by ships on the

river. To make such shipping possible large excavation works (Elbe Waterway project) on the riverbed were carried out. Use of ships stopped in 1996.

References

External links

* {{authority control Populated places in Pardubice District Cities and towns in the Czech Republic