Opatovice nad Labem is a municipality and village in

Pardubice District Pardubice District () is a Okres, district in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Pardubice. Administrative division Pardubice District is divided into three Districts of the Czech Republic#Municipalities with ex ...

in the

Pardubice Region Pardubice Region () is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. It is named after its capital Pardubice. As an administrat ...

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 2,800 inhabitants.

Administrative division

Opatovice nad Labem consists of two municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Opatovice nad Labem (2,195) *Pohřebačka (591)

Etymology

The name Opatovice is derived from the Czech word ''opatství'', i.e. 'abbey'. It indicated a village in the vicinity of the monastery that was founded here.

Geography

Opatovice nad Labem is located about north of

Pardubice Pardubice (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 92,000 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 Cultural monument (Czech Repub ...

and south 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 in a flat landscape of the

East Elbe Table The East Elbe Table () is a plateau and a geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located in the Hradec Králové, Pardubice and Central Bohemian region. The Elbe River flows through the territory, after which the plateau is nam ...

lowland. It is situated on the right bank of the

Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) 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 Republic), then Ge ...

River. There are several flooded

quarries A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to manage their safet ...

used for recreational purposes. The largest of them is Opaťák in the northern part of the municipality. The Opatovice Canal flows through the village. It was built in the 15th century to supply the large pond system and is a cultural technical monument. Today it is long.

History

Archaeological research confirmed that mild climate and fertile surroundings of the Elbe had been exploited by ancient peoples. The first written mention of Opatovice nad Labem is from 1073, when Benedictine monks founded here a monastery. The Opatovice Monastery was finished in 1086 and existed until 1421, when it was burned down by the

Hussites upright=1.2, Battle between Hussites (left) and Crusades#Campaigns against heretics and schismatics, Catholic crusaders in the 15th century upright=1.2, The Lands of the Bohemian Crown during the Hussite Wars. The movement began during the Prag ...

. In the 15th century, the village was shortly owned by Diviš Bořek of Miletínek and by

George of Poděbrady George of Kunštát and Poděbrady (23 April 1420 – 22 March 1471), also known as Poděbrad or Podiebrad (; ), was the sixteenth King of Bohemia, who ruled in 1458–1471. He was a leader of the Hussites, but moderate and tolerant toward the ...

, and in 1491, it was acquired by the

Pernštejn family The House of Pernštejn () was one of the oldest and most important (uradel) families originating from Moravian nobility, along with the House of Rosenberg, that played an important role in the medieval history of Bohemian nobility from the 13th ...

. The Pernštejns built here the first

weir A weir or low-head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the water level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

on the Elbe and the Opatovice Canal to feed the system of breeding

fish pond A fish pond or fishpond is a controlled pond, small artificial lake or retention basin that is stocked with fish and is used in aquaculture for fish farming, for recreational fishing, or for ornamental purposes. Fish ponds are a classical g ...

s. In 1560, however, they lost the manor for financial reasons and it was acquired by the royal chamber. During 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 ...

, Opatovice was looted by the

Swedish army The Swedish Army () is the army, land force of the Swedish Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Sweden. Beginning with its service in 1521, the Swedish Army has been active for more than 500 years. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1 ...

Demographics

Economy

Opatovice nad Labem is known for its large

power station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electr ...

that was first activated in 1959.

Transport

The D35 motorway passes through Opatovice nad Labem. The municipality is known for commissioning one of the largest

road junction A junction is where two or more roads meet. History Roads are a means of transport, historically linking locations such as towns, forts and geographic features such as river fords. Where roads met outside of an existing settlement, these junct ...

s in the country.

Sights

The main landmark is the Church of Saint Lawrence. It was built in the Gothic style in the second half of the 13th century and rebuilt in 1421. The current appearance is a result of the Baroque reconstructions in the second half of the 18th century.

Notable people

* Emanuela Nohejlová-Prátová (1900–1995), numismatist, archaeologist and historian

References

External links

* {{authority control Villages in Pardubice District