Meziměstí () is a town in

Náchod District Náchod District () is a district in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Náchod. Administrative division Náchod District is divided into four administrative districts of municipalities with extended ...

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 2,300 inhabitants.

Administrative division

Meziměstí consists of six municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Meziměstí (1,546) *Březová (105) *Pomeznice (5) *Ruprechtice (266) *Starostín (75) *Vižňov (234) Březová forms an

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

of the municipal territory.

Geography

Meziměstí is located about northeast of

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 ...

and south of the Polish city of

Wałbrzych Wałbrzych (; ; or ''Walmbrich''; or ) is a city located in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in southwestern Poland, seat of Wałbrzych County. Wałbrzych lies approximately southwest of the voivodeship capital Wrocław and about from the Czec ...

. It borders Poland in the west and north. It lies in the Broumov Highlands, in the

Broumovsko Protected Landscape Area The Broumovsko Protected Landscape Area (, abbreviated CHKO Broumovsko) is a protected landscape area in Hradec Králové Region in the Czech Republic, on the border with Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in ...

. The highest point of Meziměstí and one of the two highest mountains of the whole Broumov Highlands is the Ruprechtický Špičák mountain at above sea level. The Ścinawka River flows through the town.

History

The first written mention of Meziměstí is from 1408, under the name Dolní Vižňov. From 1434, it was called by its German name Halbstadt. In 1499, it became a property of Benedictine Broumov Monastery. The abbots of the monastery set up a summer residence here. In the late 19th century, Meziměstí was industrialized. In 1918, it received its Czech name. During the

German occupation of Czechoslovakia German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

in 1944–1945, the Germans operated a subcamp of the

Gross-Rosen concentration camp Gross-Rosen was a network of Nazi concentration camps built and operated by Nazi Germany during World War II. The main camp was located in the German village of Gross-Rosen, now the modern-day Rogoźnica in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland, di ...

, whose prisoners were

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

women from Poland and Hungary, transported from the

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the German population was expelled and replaced by Czech settlers. During the 1960s and 1970s, intensive housing construction took place here. In 1992, Meziměstí received the town status.

Demographics

Transport

There are six border crossings with Poland in the municipal territory. In addition to four pedestrian crossings, there is the road crossing ''Starostín / Golińsk'' and the railway crossing ''Meziměstí / Mieroszów''. Meziměstí is located on the railway line Broumov– Starkoč.

Sights

A valuable Baroque building is the Meziměstí Castle. It was built according to the plans of the architect

Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer (; 1 September 1689 – 18 December 1751) was a German Bohemians, German Bohemian architect of the Baroque architecture, Baroque era. He is among the most prolific and renowned architects of his era in Bohemia. He was bo ...

in 1750. Today the building is privately owned. The Church of Saint Anne in Vižňov, designed by K. I. Dientzenhofer, was built in 1724–1727. The Church of Saint James the Great in Ruprechtice was built in 1720–1723 according to the design by architect Christoph Dientzenhofer. Both these Baroque churches are very valuable and are protected as national cultural monuments.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mezimesti Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Czech Republic–Poland border crossings