Bělá nad Radbuzou (german: Weißensulz) is a town in

Domažlice District Domažlice District ( cs, okres Domažlice) is a district ('' okres'') within Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is Domažlice. Complete list of municipalities Babylon - Bělá nad Radbuzou - Blížejov - Brnířov - Čermná - ...

in the

Plzeň Region Plzeň Region ( cs, Plzeňský kraj; german: Pilsner Region) is an administrative unit (''kraj'') in the western part of Bohemia in the Czech Republic. It is named after its capital Plzeň (English, german: Pilsen). In terms of area, Plzeň Reg ...

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 1,700 inhabitants.

Administrative parts

Villages of Bystřice, Čečín, Černá Hora, Doubravka, Hleďsebe, Karlova Huť, Nový Dvůr, Pleš, Smolov, Újezd Svatého Kříže and Železná are administrative parts of Bělá nad Radbuzou.

Etymology

Bělá nad Radbuzou got its name probably from the river Radbuza, which was called here ''Bílý potok'' ("White Creek").

Geography

Bělá nad Radbuzou is located about north of

Domažlice Domažlice (; german: Taus) is a town in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. Administrative parts The tow ...

and southwest of

Plzeň Plzeň (; German and English: Pilsen, in German ) is a city in the Czech Republic. About west of Prague in western Bohemia, it is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 169,000 inhabita ...

. The town is situated at the confluence of the

Radbuza The Radbuza (; ) is a river in the Czech Republic, the right source river of the Berounka. Its source is situated at the foot of Lysá mountain (869 metres) near the village of Závist, near Domažlice. It passes through the villages and towns of ...

River and the Bezděkovský Stream. The built-up area lies in the

Upper Palatine Forest Foothills Upper may refer to: * Shoe upper or ''vamp'', the part of a shoe on the top of the foot * Stimulant, drugs which induce temporary improvements in either mental or physical function or both * ''Upper'', the original film title for the 2013 found f ...

, but most of the municipal territory lies in the

Upper Palatine Forest The Upper Palatine Forest (german: Oberpfälzer Wald or ''Böhmischer Wald'', cs, Český les) is a mountain range in Central Europe that is divided between Germany and the Czech Republic. It is part of the larger Bohemian Massif and the German ...

and borders

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in the west.

History

The first written mention of Bělá nad Radbuzou is from 1121, when the near

Přimda Přimda (german: Pfraumberg) is a town in Tachov District the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,500 inhabitants. Administrative parts Villages of Kundratice, Malé Dvorce, Málkov, Mlýnec, Rájov, Třískolupy, Újezd pod Přimd ...

Castle was built. Until 1600, Bělá nad Radbuzou was a part of the Přimda Castle estate. In the 16th century, it became a property of Lamminger of Albenreuth, a

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

n noble family. In 1614 the Lamminger family built a small Renaissance castle and a brewery. After the

Battle of White Mountain ), near Prague, Bohemian Confederation(present-day Czech Republic) , coordinates = , territory = , result = Imperial-Spanish victory , status = , combatants_header = , combatant1 = Catholic L ...

, in 1623, the estate was merged with Újezd Svatého Kříže and the castle ceased to serve as the seat of the estate. In 2014, the castle burned down.

Notable people

Jan Smudek Jan Smudek (8 September 1915 – 17 November 1999) was a Czech people, Czech resistance fighter and soldier nicknamed "The Elusive Jan". His daring actions during the World War II caused international interest and have inspired filmmakers to create ...

(1915–1999), resistance fighter *

Hans Drachsler Hans Drachsler (10 March 1916 in Pleš (Bělá nad Radbuzou) – 18 October 1996 in Munich) was a German politician, representative of the Christian Social Union of Bavaria. He was a member of the Landtag of Bavaria between 1970 and 1978, and was ...

(1916–1996), German politician

Twin towns – sister cities

Bělá nad Radbuzou is twinned with: *

Eslarn Eslarn ( Northern Bavarian: ''Isling'') is a market town and municipality in the district of Neustadt an der Waldnaab in Bavaria in Germany. Neighbouring communities The neighbouring communities clockwise: Waidhaus, Rozvadov, Třemešné, ...

, Germany *

Hindelbank Hindelbank is a municipality in the administrative district of Emmental in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. On 1 January 2021 the former municipality of Mötschwil merged into Hindelbank. History Hindelbank is first mentioned in 1275 as ''H ...

, Switzerland

Galerie

Kostel Bela nad Radbuzou.JPG, Church of

Our Lady of Sorrows Our Lady of Sorrows ( la, Beata Maria Virgo Perdolens), Our Lady of Dolours, the Sorrowful Mother or Mother of Sorrows ( la, Mater Dolorosa, link=no), and Our Lady of Piety, Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows or Our Lady of the Seven Dolours are names ...

Bělá nad Radbuzou - kamenný most přes Radbuzu obr3.jpg, Stone bridge over the Radbuza Staedt rathaus bela nad radbuzou.jpg, Town hall

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bela nad Radbuzou Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Domažlice District