Benátky nad Jizerou (; ) is a town in

Mladá Boleslav District Mladá Boleslav District () is a district in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Mladá Boleslav. Administrative division Mladá Boleslav District is divided into two administrative districts of municipal ...

in the

Central Bohemian Region The Central Bohemian Region ( ; ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the central part of its historical region of Bohemia. Its administrative centre is in the Czech capital Prague, which lies in the centre of the regio ...

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 7,900 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone.

Administrative division

Benátky nad Jizerou consists of five municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Benátky nad Jizerou I (2,238) *Benátky nad Jizerou II (3,875) *Benátky nad Jizerou III (290) *Dražice (497) *Kbel (545)

Etymology

Benátky is the Czech exonym for

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. Several settlements in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

founded near rivers and on wet marshy places were named this way, because their location reminded people of this Italian city.

Geography

Benátky nad Jizerou is located about south of

Mladá Boleslav Mladá Boleslav (; ) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 47,000 inhabitants. It lies on the left bank of the Jizera (river), Jizera River. Mladá Boleslav is the second most populated city in the region. I ...

and northeast of

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. It lies in the Jizera Table. The highest point is the hill Benátecký vrch at above sea level. The Jizera River flows through the town.

History

The first written mention of the village of Obodř (today part of Benátky nad Jizerou III) is from 1052. In 1264, the Dražice Castle was founded. In 1346, Lord Jan of Dražice obtained permission to establish a town on a nearby hill. The town was named Nové Benátky (literally "New Venice"). In 1349, the monastery and the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary were built.

Demographics

Economy

The village of Dražice is known for the manufacturer of water heaters DZ Dražice. It is the biggest company of its focus in the country, known throughout Europe. The company was founded in 1900, originally as grain warehouse, craft roller mill and bakery, later also a hydroelectric power plant. The water heaters are produced since 1956.

Transport

The D10 motorway from Prague to Turnov passes through the municipal territory.

Sights

The town is the site of a

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

and

observatory An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysics, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. Th ...

built by astronomer

Tycho Brahe Tycho Brahe ( ; ; born Tyge Ottesen Brahe, ; 14 December 154624 October 1601), generally called Tycho for short, was a Danish astronomer of the Renaissance, known for his comprehensive and unprecedentedly accurate astronomical observations. He ...

. Johann von Klenau, the Habsburg general, was born at the castle in 1758. His old

n family owned the castle at the time. Later it was owned by the counts of

Thun und Hohenstein The House of Thun und Hohenstein, also known as Thun-Hohenstein, belonged to the historical Austrian nobility, Austrian and Bohemian nobility. There is one princely and several count, comital branches of the family. The princely branch of the fami ...

Notable people

Johann von Werth Johann von Werth (1591 – 16 January 1652), also ''Jan von Werth'' or in French ''Jean de Werth'', was a German general of cavalry in the Thirty Years' War. Biography Werth was born in 1591 most likely at Büttgen in the Duchy of Jülich a ...

(1591–1652), German general; lived and died here *

Franz Benda Franz Benda (; baptised 22 November 1709 – 7 March 1786) was a Bohemian violinist and composer, who worked for much of his life at the court of Frederick the Great. Life Benda was born in Old Benatek in Bohemia, the son of Jan Jiří Benda ...

(1709–1786), violinist and composer * Johann Georg Benda (1713–1752), violinist and composer *

Georg Benda Georg Anton Benda (; 30 June 17226 November 1795) was a Kingdom of Bohemia, Bohemian composer, violinist and ''Kapellmeister'' of the Classical period (music), classical period. Biography Born into a Benda family, family of notable musicians in ...

(1722–1795), violinist and composer * Joseph Benda (1724–1804), violinist and composer * Johann von Klenau (1758–1819), field marshal * Zdeněk Kalista (1900–1982), historian and poet

Twin towns – sister cities

Benátky nad Jizerou is twinned with: *

Hustopeče Hustopeče (; ) is a town in Břeclav District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,400 inhabitants. It is known for fruit and wine growing. Etymology The name of the town is derived from the name of the nobleman and ...

, Czech Republic *

Modra Modra (, , Latin: ''Modur'') is a city and municipality in the Bratislava Region in Slovakia. It has a population of 9,201 as of 2013. It nestles in the foothills of the Malé Karpaty (Little Carpathian mountains) and is an excellent centre for ...

, Slovakia * Reinsdorf, Germany * Roßdorf, Germany

References

External links

*
Benátky nad Jizerou - virtual show
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benatky nad Jizerou Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Mladá Boleslav District