Dobruška (; ) is a town in

Rychnov nad Kněžnou District Rychnov may refer to places in the Czech Republic: *Rychnov, a village and part of Krouna in the Pardubice Region *Rychnov, a village and part of Verneřice in the Ústí nad Labem Region * Rychnov na Moravě, a municipality and village in the Pa ...

in the

Hradec Králové Region Hradec Králové Region (, ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic located in the north-eastern part of the historical region of Bohemia. It is named after its capital Hradec Králové. The region neighbours the Pardubice Region in t ...

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 6,500 inhabitants. The town is known as the birthplace of Czech patriotic writer

František Ladislav Hek František () is a masculine Czech and Slovak given name. It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, François and Franz. It can be also surname (feminine: Františková). Notable people with the name include: Given name Arts *Frank Daniel (Franti� ...

, whose career was described in

Alois Jirásek Alois Jirásek () (23 August 1851 – 12 March 1930) was a Czech writer, author of historical novels and plays. Jirásek was a high school history teacher in Litomyšl and later in Prague until his retirement in 1909. He wrote a series of histor ...

's novel ''F. L. Věk''. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone.

Administrative division

Dobruška consists of eights municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Dobruška (5,222) *Běstviny (66) *Chábory (67) *Domašín (222) *Křovice (220) *Mělčany (84) *Pulice (388) *Spáleniště (126)

Geography

Dobruška is located about northwest of

Rychnov nad Kněžnou Rychnov nad Kněžnou (; ) is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban m ...

and northeast of

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; ) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 94,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech R ...

. It lies mostly in the

Orlice Table The Orlice (, ) is a river in the Czech Republic, with a brief stretch in Poland. It is a left tributary of the Elbe River. It flows through the Hradec Králové Region. It is formed by the confluence of the Divoká Orlice and Tichá Orlice rivers. ...

. The eastern part of the municipal territory extends into the Orlické Foothills and includes the highest point of Dobruška, the hill Tábor at above sea level. The town is situated at the confluence of the

Dědina The Dědina (also called Zlatý potok) is a river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another riv ...

River and the brook Brtevský potok.

History

The predecessor of Dobruška was a market settlement called Lešno, located at the crossroads of two trade routes. The first written mention is from 1320. In 1495, with the arrival of the noble family of Trčka of Lípa, the town began to develop. The houses were reconstructed in the Renaissance style and a representative town hall was built. The prosperity and importance of the town ended with 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 large fires in 1806 and 1866 damaged Dobruška and the reconstructions changed the character of the town. At the end of the 19th century, the industry developed, especially the textile industry. In 1908, Dobruška was connected with

Opočno Opočno (; ) is a town in Rychnov nad Kněžnou District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,100 inhabitants. Opočno is known for the Opočno Castle, one of the most magnificent examples of Czech Renaissance archi ...

by railway.

Demographics

Economy

The Military Geographical and Hydrometeorological Office is located in Dobruška.

Transport

The I/14 road (the section from

Náchod Náchod (; ) is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 20,000 inhabitants. It is known both as a tourist destination and centre of industry. The historic town centre with the castle complex is well preserved and i ...

Ústí nad Orlicí Ústí nad Orlicí (; ) is a town in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 14,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban monument z ...

) runs through the town. Dobruška is the start of a short railway line to

. The line further continues to

Meziměstí Meziměstí () is a town in Náchod District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,300 inhabitants. Administrative division Meziměstí consists of six municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 c ...

or to

Týniště nad Orlicí Týniště nad Orlicí () is a town in Rychnov nad Kněžnou District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,300 inhabitants. Administrative division Týniště nad Orlicí consists of six municipal parts (in brackets ...

Culture

The International Music Festival of F. L. Vek is organized in Dobruška every year.

Sights

The historic centre is formed by F. L. Věka Square and adjacent streets. Its main landmark is the Renaissance town hall with a -high tower. In the tower is the town museum and gallery with early works of F. Kupka. In the middle of the square is a

Marian column Marian may refer to: People * Marian (given name), a list of people with the given name * Marian (surname), a list of people so named Places * Marian, Iran (disambiguation) * Marian, Queensland, a town in Australia * Marian, a village in toe c ...

from 1733. The Church of Saint Wenceslaus was first mentioned in 1350. Its part is an early Baroque bell tower. The cemetery Church of Holy Spirit was built in Renaissance style in the 16th century. The former Jewish synagogue in Dobruška is nowadays part of the town museum. The synagogue was built in the 18th century and then rebuilt in the neo-Gothic style in 1867, after it was damaged by a fire. There is also the Jewish cemetery with the oldest preserved tomb from 1688.

Notable people

(1769–1847), patriotic writer *

Alois Beer Alois Beer (February 27, 1833 – October 10, 1897) was a writer and painter born in Bohemia in the Austrian Empire. Information After his apprenticeship in 1849 he went to Vienna, Prague and Styria, all areas in the Austrian Empire. He brief ...

(1833–1897), painter *

František Šubert František Adolf Šubert (sometimes spelled Schubert; 27 March 1849 – 8 September 1915) was a Czech writer, playwright, journalist and theatre director. He was the first director of the National Theatre (Prague), National Theatre in Prague. Ch ...

(1849–1915), writer and theatre director *

František Kupka František Kupka (23 September 1871 – 24 June 1957), also known as ''Frank Kupka'' or ''François Kupka,'' was a Czech painter and graphic artist A graphic designer is a practitioner who follows the discipline of graphic design, eit ...

(1871–1957), painter and graphic artist; lived here in 1872–1889 *

Radim Drejsl Radim Drejsl (29 April 1923 – 20 April 1953) was a Czech composer, pianist and conductor. He is considered an important composer of politically engaged songs promoting visions of Czechoslovak communist regime in the 1950s. Drejsl applied the i ...

(1923–1953), composer, pianist and conductor

Twin towns – sister cities

Dobruška is twinned with: *

Ábrahámhegy Ábrahámhegy is a village in Veszprém county, Hungary. It is located on the shore of Lake Balaton Lake Balaton () is a freshwater rift lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lake in Cent ...

, Hungary *

Hnúšťa Hnúšťa () is a town and municipality in the Rimavská Sobota District of the Banská Bystrica Region of southern Slovakia. It is the birthplace of the well-known 19th-century Slovak writer and member of the Štúr generation, Ján Francisci- ...

, Slovakia *

Miejska Górka Miejska Górka is a town in Rawicz County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, Poland. With 3,190 inhabitants (2010), it lies approximately north-east of Rawicz and south of the regional capital Poznań. History Miejska Górka was granted town rights ...

, Poland *

Piława Górna Piława Górna is a town in Dzierżoniów County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland, in the western part of the Wzgórza Strzelińskie hills. It lies approximately east of Dzierżoniów, and south of the regional capital Wroc ...

, Poland *

Radków Radków () is a town in Kłodzko County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of the administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Radków, close to the Czech border. As at 2019, the town has a population of 2,406. ...

, Poland *

Veľký Meder Veľký Meder (1948–1990 ''Čalovo'', , ) is a town in the Dunajská Streda District, Trnava Region in southwestern Slovakia. Etymology The name is derived from the name of the ancient Hungarian ''Megyer'' tribe. Geography Veľký Meder lies ...

, Slovakia

References

External links

*
The International Music Festival of F. L. Věk in DobruškaVirtual show
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dobruska Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Rychnov nad Kněžnou District