Dolní Břežany is a municipality and village in

Prague-West District Prague-West District () is a district in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is Prague. The most populated town of the district is Jesenice. Administrative division Prague-West District is formed by only one administ ...

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 4,700 inhabitants.

Administrative division

Dolní Břežany consists of four municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Dolní Břežany (3,598) *Jarov (88) *Lhota (699) *Zálepy (291)

Etymology

The name Břežany is derived from the word ('

iver Iver is a civil parishes in England, civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. In addition to the central nucleated village, clustered village, the parish includes the residential neighbourhoods of Iver Heath and Richings Park and the hamlets o ...

bank' in Czech, but in old Czech also meaning 'hillside') or from the word ('birch forest'). The word ''břežané'' denoted people who live near a bank, hillside or birch forest, so Břežany was a village of such people. In the 17th century, when church owned two villages named Břežany and needed to distinguish them, this village became known as Dolní ('lower') Břežany.

Geography

Dolní Břežany is located south 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 ...

, in its immediate vicinity. Most of the municipal territory lies in the

Prague Plateau The Prague Plateau () is a plateau and a geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located in the area of Prague and in the Central Bohemian Region. Geomorphology The Prague Plateau is a mesoregion of the Brdy Macroregion within ...

. The northwestern part lies in a tip of the Brdy Highlands and includes the highest point of Dolní Břežany, the hill Závist at above sea level. The

Vltava The Vltava ( , ; ) is the longest river in the Czech Republic, a left tributary of the Elbe River. It runs southeast along the Bohemian Forest and then north across Bohemia, through Český Krumlov, České Budějovice, and Prague. It is com ...

River flows along the western municipal border. The brook Břežanský potok flows across the municipality into the Vltava and supplies several small fishponds.

History

The first written mention of Břežany is from 1332. In 1364, Břežany and Lhota were acquired by the bishopric in Litomyšl, then they were owned by the

Zbraslav Monastery The Cistercian Abbey of Zbraslav (, , ) located in Zbraslav near Prague (today part of Prague) was one of the most significant monastery, monasteries of the Cistercians, Cistercian Order in the Kingdom of Bohemia (present-day Czech Republic). Fou ...

. In 1436, King

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it ''Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

pledged the estate to Bened of Nečtiny. Then the owners changed frequently. Between 1627 and 1632, the village changed its name to Dolní Břežany. From 1683 to 1715, Dolní Břežany was property of the Trauttmansdorff family, who sold it to the Prague archbishopric. The Prague archbishops owned it until 1945.

Demographics

Economy

Building of the HiLASE research centre Dolní Břežany is the seat of HiLASE Centre. It is a workplace of the

Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences (FZU, ''Fyzikální ústav Akademie věd České republiky'') is a public research institution in the Czech Republic and a part of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The Institute specialises in B ...

that deals with the innovation of laser technology. It was founded in 2011. With about 100 employees, it is the main employer in the municipality.

Transport

There are no major roads passing through the municipality. The

–

Vrané nad Vltavou Vrané nad Vltavou is a municipality and village in Prague-West District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,700 inhabitants. Geography Vrané nad Vltavou is located about south of Prague. It lies in the Prague Pl ...

–

Čerčany Čerčany is a municipality and village in Benešov District in the Central Bohemian Region in the Czech Republic. It has about 3,100 inhabitants. Administrative division Čerčany consists of 15 municipal parts (in brackets population according t ...

Dobříš Dobříš (; ) is a town in Příbram District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,900 inhabitants. It is known for the Dobříš Castle. Administrative division Dobříš consists of two municipal parts (in brack ...

line runs through the western part of the municipality and is served by Esko lines. The train stop called ''Dolní Břežany-Jarov'' is located just outside the municipal territory.

Sights

The main landmark of Dolní Břežany is a Renaissance castle, which was created by rebuilding a medieval fortress. It was built during the rule of Krištof Želínský of Sebuzín between 1590 and 1606. The Chapel of Saint Mary Magdalene was added to the castle in the 1880s. Today it serves as a hotel. There are the remains of a Celtic

oppidum An ''oppidum'' (: ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age Europe, Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celts, Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread acros ...

on the Závist hill. A wooden observation tower was built in the area in 2021. It is high.