Chrudim () is a town in the
Pardubice Region
Pardubice Region ( cs, Pardubický kraj; , ; pl, Kraj pardubicki) is an administrative unit ( cs, kraj) of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. It ...
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 23,000 inhabitants. It is the second largest town of the region. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an
urban monument zone.
Administrative parts
Chrudim is made up of town parts of Chrudim I–IV and villages of Medlešice, Topol, Vestec and Vlčnov.
Geography
Chrudim is located about south of
Pardubice
Pardubice (; german: Pardubitz) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 89,000 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 monu ...
. It lies mostly in the
Svitavy Uplands
The Svitavy Uplands or Svitavy Hills ( cs, Svitavská pahorkatina) are uplands and a geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located in the Pardubice Region and it belongs to the largest mesoregions in the country.
Geomorphology ...
. The highest point is the hill Podhůra at . The hill is situated in the southern tip of the municipal territory, which extends into the
Iron Mountains
The Iron Mountains are a mountain range, subrange of the Blue Ridge Mountains. These mountains are located around the common meeting point of Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina.
A portion of the Appalachian Trail runs the crest of the Iron ...
and the eponymous protected landscape area.
The
Chrudimka River flows through the town.
History
The oldest archeological findings which provide first signs of the settlement in this area date back to the 5th millennium BC. Various cultures succeeded one on another in the territory of today's town of Chrudim and its vicinity. Since the 7th–8th century, the area is inhabited by
Slavs
Slavs are the largest European ethnolinguistic group. They speak the various Slavic languages, belonging to the larger Balto-Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout northern Eurasia, main ...
.
The first written mention of Chrudim is from 1055, when Duke
Bretislav I
Bretislav I ( cs, Břetislav I.; 1002/1005 – 10 January 1055), known as the "Bohemian Achilles", of the Přemyslid dynasty, was Duke of Bohemia from 1034 until his death.
Youth
Bretislav was the son of Duke Oldřich and his low-born concubin ...
died here according to ''
Chronica Boemorum
The ''Chronica Boemorum'' (Chronicle of the Czechs, or Bohemians) is the first Latin chronicle in which the history of the Czech lands has been consistently and relatively fully described. It was written in 1119–1125 by Cosmas of Prague.
The ...
''. The royal town of Chrudim was founded in 1276 by King
Ottokar II of Bohemia
Ottokar II ( cs, Přemysl Otakar II.; , in Městec Králové, Bohemia – 26 August 1278, in Dürnkrut, Lower Austria), the Iron and Golden King, was a member of the Přemyslid dynasty who reigned as King of Bohemia from 1253 until his deat ...
for its location on a route from
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 ...
to
Moravia
Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia.
The me ...
. From 1307, it became a
dowry town Dowry town ( cs, věnné město) was a town that had been devoted by a Bohemian king to his wife – the queen consort.
This was sometimes indicated by the name of the town, as in the case of Hradec Králové (''Castle of the Queen''), Dvůr Krá ...
administered by Bohemian Queens.
[
At the beginning of the ]Hussite Wars
The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, European monarchs loyal to the Cat ...
, Chrudim sided with the anti-Catholic side and the German-speaking population left the town. Since then, Chrudim has been an almost exclusively Czech territory by nationality. The town was in opposition to the ruling Habsburgs during the failed Estates Revolt in 1547 and Bohemian Revolt
The Bohemian Revolt (german: Böhmischer Aufstand; cs, České stavovské povstání; 1618–1620) was an uprising of the Bohemian estates against the rule of the Habsburg dynasty that began the Thirty Years' War. It was caused by both religi ...
in 1618–1620, which always had serious consequences for it. Chrudim was also severely affected by the Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...
, during which the evangelical population left as a result of re-Catholicization.[
During the 18th and 19th centuries, Chrudim lost partly lost its economical and administrative importance, but it has become important educational and cultural centre, which led to its gain of the nickname "Athens of Eastern Bohemia". In 1871, the railway was built and the town regained economic significance.][
Until 1918, the town was part of the ]Austrian monarchy
The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...
(Austria side after the compromise of 1867
The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 (german: Ausgleich, hu, Kiegyezés) established the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary. The Compromise only partially re-established the former pre-1848 sovereignty and status of the Kingdom of Hungary ...
), head of the Chrudim District
Chrudim District ( cs, okres Chrudim) is a district ('' okres'') within Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Chrudim.
Overview
The district has mostly flat terrain with slopes of Iron Mountains appearing on the sout ...
, one of the 94 ''Bezirkshauptmannschaften'' in 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 ...
.
Demographics
Economy
There are no major industrial companies in Chrudim. A middle-sized company based in the town is BASF Stavební hmoty Česká republika, part of the BASF
BASF Societas Europaea, SE () is a German multinational corporation, multinational chemical company and the List of largest chemical producers, largest chemical producer in the world. Its headquarters is located in Ludwigshafen, Germany.
The ...
conglomerate producing building materials.
Culture
Chrudim is known for the Loutkářská Chrudim Festival. The festival was established in 1951 and is the oldest continuous festival of puppetry
Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets – inanimate objects, often resembling some type of human or animal figure, that are animated or manipulated by a human called a puppeteer. Such a perform ...
in the world.
Sights
The main landmark of Chrudim is the Church of Assumption of the Virgin Mary on the town square. The originally Gothic building was founded before 1349 on the site of a castle. After it was damaged by several fires, it was reconstructed to its current Neo-Gothic form in 1857. Another notable churches with Gothic bases are Church of Saint Catherine, Church of Saint Michael, and Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
Resselovo Square is the main square of the historic centre. It is lined with preserved burgher houses and includes the originally Renaissance town hall with Baroque façade. In the middle of the square there is the Baroque richly decorated sculptural column of the Transfiguration.[
One of the architectural symbols of the town is the Renaissance Mydlářovský House, typical with arcades and oriental-looking triple tower. Today it houses the Museum of Puppetry Culture. A significant sight is also the Neo-Renaissance and Neo-Baroque building of the Regional Museum.][
The historic centre was delimited by the town walls. Most of the walls, including several bastions, have been preserved.][
]
Notable people
*Bretislav I
Bretislav I ( cs, Břetislav I.; 1002/1005 – 10 January 1055), known as the "Bohemian Achilles", of the Přemyslid dynasty, was Duke of Bohemia from 1034 until his death.
Youth
Bretislav was the son of Duke Oldřich and his low-born concubin ...
(1002/1005–1055), Bohemian duke; died here
*Viktorin Kornel of Všehrdy
Viktorin Kornel ze Všehrd (of Všehrdy) or simply Všehrd (1460-1520), was a Czech humanist and lawyer, working towards the end of the 15th century as Vice-scribe at the Land Court in the Prague Castle. He is famous for the most penetrating analy ...
(c. 1460–1520), humanist, lawyer and writer
* Johann Andreas Kauchlitz Colizzi (c. 1742–1808), musician
* Jan Nepomuk Štěpánek (1783–1844), actor and theatre director
*Josef Ressel
Joseph Ludwig Franz Ressel ( cs, Josef Ludvík František Ressel; June 29, 1793 – October 9, 1857) was a forester and inventor of Czech-Austrian descent, who designed one of the first working ship's propellers.
Ressel was born in Chrudim, B ...
(1793–1857), inventor
* Adrienne von Pötting (1856–1909), Austrian painter
*Kurt Freund
Kurt Freund (17 January 1914 – 23 October 1996) was a Czech-Canadian physician and sexologist best known for developing the penile plethysmograph (a measurement of sexual arousal in males), research studies in pedophilia, and for the "courts ...
(1914–1996), Czech-Canadian physician and sexologist
* Miloslav Výborný (born 1952), politician
*Dagmar Pecková
Dagmar Pecková (born 4 April 1961) is a Czech operatic mezzo-soprano.
Born in the Medlešice district of Chrudim, Pecková studied singing at the Prague Conservatory. She then became part of the young artist's program at the Semperoper in Dres ...
(born 1961), operatic mezzo-soprano
*Dušan Salfický
Dušan Salfický (born 28 March 1972 in Chrudim, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech former professional ice hockey goaltender. He was drafted 132nd overall by the National Hockey League's New York Islanders in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft but only played ...
(born 1972), ice hockey player
*Michal Bobek
Michal Bobek (born 30 August 1977) is a legal scholar currently serving as a justice at the Czech Supreme Administrative Court of the Czech Republic, Supreme Administrative Court. He is a visiting professor at the Institute for European, Internati ...
(born 1977), judge
* Jiří Magál (born 1977), cross-country skier
*Petr Průcha
Petr Průcha (born September 14, 1982) is a Czech former professional ice hockey forward who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers and the Phoenix Coyotes.
Playing career
Průcha led the Czech Republic Junior Leagu ...
(born 1982), ice hockey player
* Jakub Pešek (born 1993), footballer
Twin towns – sister cities
Chrudim is twinned with:
* Motovun
Motovun (, it, Montona or ''Montona d'Istria'') is a village and a municipality in central Istria, Croatia. In ancient times, both Celts and Illyrians built their fortresses at the location of present-day Motovun. The name of the village is also ...
, Croatia
* Oleśnica
Oleśnica (pronounced ; german: Oels; szl, Ôleśnica) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland, within the Wrocław metropolitan area. It is the administrative seat of Oleśnica County and also of the rural district of ...
, Poland
* Svidník
Svidník ( hu, Felsővízköz, german: Oberswidnik, rue, Свідник, uk, Свидник) is a town in eastern Slovakia, the capital of the Svidník District in the Prešov Region. It has a population of around 11,000.
There is a monumental S ...
, Slovakia
* Znojmo
Znojmo (; german: Znaim) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. Znojmo is the historical and cultural centre of southwestern Moravia and the second most populated town in the South Moravian R ...
, Czech Republic
References
External links
*
Virtual show
{{authority control
Populated places in Chrudim District
Cities and towns in the Czech Republic