Benátky nad Jizerou (; german: Benatek) is a town in

Mladá Boleslav District Mladá Boleslav District ( cs, okres Mladá Boleslav) is a district (''okres'') within Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Mladá Boleslav. Complete list of municipalities Bakov nad Jizerou - Bělá pod Bezd ...

in the

Central Bohemian Region The Central Bohemian Region ( cz, Středočeský kraj, german: Mittelböhmische Region) is an administrative unit ( cz, kraj) of the Czech Republic, located in the central part of its historical region of Bohemia. Its administrative centre is in ...

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. The ...

. It has about 7,400 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone.

Administrative parts

The town is made up of town parts of Benátky nad Jizerou I–III and villages of Dražice and Kbel.

Geography

Benátky nad Jizerou is located about south of

Mladá Boleslav Mladá Boleslav (; german: Jungbunzlau) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 42,000 inhabitants. Mladá Boleslav is the second most populated city in the region and a major centre of the Czech automotive ind ...

and northeast of

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 ...

. It lies on the Jizera River in the

Jizera Table The Jizera Table ( cs, Jizerská tabule) is a plateau and a geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located mostly in the Central Bohemian Region, northeast of Prague. Geomorphology The Jizera Table is a mesoregion of the Centr ...

plateau. The highest point of the municipal territory is the hill Benátecký vrch with an elevation of .

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 (lit. "New

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

"). In 1349 the monastery and the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary were built.

Demographics

Economy

The town part 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.

Sights

The town is the site of a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

and

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

built by astronomer

Tycho Brahe Tycho Brahe ( ; born Tyge Ottesen Brahe; generally called Tycho (14 December 154624 October 1601) was a Danish astronomer, known for his comprehensive astronomical observations, generally considered to be the most accurate of his time. He was k ...

Johann von Klenau Johann Josef Cajetan Graf von Klenau, Freiherr von Janowitz ( cs, Jan hrabě z Klenové, svobodný pán z Janovic; 13 April 1758 – 6 October 1819) was a field marshal in the Habsburg army. Klenau, the son of a Bohemian noble, joined the Ha ...

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

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

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 and Bohemian nobility. There is one princely and several comital branches of the family. The princely branch of the family lived at Děčín (Te ...

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 ...

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

Franz Benda Franz may refer to: People * Franz (given name) * Franz (surname) Places * Franz (crater), a lunar crater * Franz, Ontario, a railway junction and unorganized town in Canada * Franz Lake, in the state of Washington, United States – see Fran ...

(1709–1786), violinist and composer *

Johann Georg Benda Jan Jiří Benda, also Johann Georg Benda (baptized 16 April or 30 August 1713 – 1752), was a Bohemian violinist and composer active in Germany. Life Johann Georg Benda was born in Benátky nad Jizerou, the son of a weaver, Jan Jiří Benda and ...

(1713–1752), violinist and composer *

Georg Benda Georg Anton Benda ( cz, Jiří Antonín Benda, italic=no, link=no; 30 June 17226 November 1795) was a composer, violinist and Kapellmeister of the classical period from the Kingdom of Bohemia. Biography Born into a family of notable musicians ...

(1722–1795), violinist and composer *

Joseph Benda Josef Benda, also Joseph Benda (baptized 7 May 1724 in Benátky nad Jizerou – died 22 February 1804 in Berlin), was a Bohemian violinist and composer active in Germany. Life Joseph Benda was born in Benátky nad Jizerou, the son of a weaver Ja ...

(1724–1804), violinist and composer *

(1758–1819), field marshal

Twin towns – sister cities

Benátky nad Jizerou is twinned with: *

Hustopeče Hustopeče (; german: Auspitz) is a town in Břeclav District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,000 inhabitants. It is known for fruit and wine growing. Etymology The name of the town is derived from the name of ...

, Czech Republic *

Modra Modra (german: Modern, hu, Modor, Latin: ''Modur'') is a city and municipality in the Bratislava Region in Slovakia. It has a population of 9,042 as of 2018. It nestles in the foothills of the Malé Karpaty (Little Carpathian mountains) and i ...

, Slovakia * Reinsdorf, Germany *

Roßdorf Roßdorf is a municipality in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg, in Hesse, Germany. It has a population of 12,619 (as of 2020). It is situated 8 km east of Darmstadt. Geographic Situation Neighbouring Towns and Municipalities Roßdorf ...

, Germany

References

External links

*
Town castle

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