Janov (german: Johannesthal) is a town in

Bruntál District Bruntál District ( cs, okres Bruntál) is a district ('' okres'') within Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is Bruntál, but the largest town is Krnov. Part of the district belongs to Moravia, while another part belongs to ...

in the

Moravian-Silesian Region The Moravian-Silesian Region ( cs, Moravskoslezský kraj; pl, Kraj morawsko-śląski; sk, Moravsko-sliezsky kraj) is one of the 14 administrative regions of the Czech Republic. Before May 2001, it was called the Ostrava Region ( cs, Ostravský ...

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 300 inhabitants and it is one of the least populated towns in the country.

Geography

Janov lies about north of

Bruntál Bruntál (; german: Freudenthal) is a town in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 16,000 inhabitants. It is located in the historical region of Czech Silesia. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected ...

. It is situated in the

Osoblažsko Osoblažsko (literally ''Osoblaha Region'', german: Hotzenplotzer Ländchen, pl, Ziemia osobłoska) is a microregion in the Bruntál District in the northernmost part of the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. The microregion is also c ...

microregion, on the border with

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. Janov is located in the valley of the river

Osoblaha Osoblaha (; german: Hotzenplotz; pl, Osobłoga) is a municipality and village in Bruntál District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,100 inhabitants. Administrative parts Osoblaha is made up of one administrati ...

in the Zlatohorská Highlands. The highest point of the municipal territory is on the slopes of Solný vrch Hill, at .

History

Janov was probably founded in 1251 by Bishop

Bruno von Schauenburg Bruno von Schauenburg (also known as Bruno Olomucensis; 1205 – 1 or 17 February 1281 in Kroměříž) was a nobleman and Catholic priest of German descent, bishop of Olomouc in 1245–1281. He was one of the main advisors and diplomats of the ...

as an agricultural forest village. From its inception until 1588, Janov was part of the Osoblaha estate, owned by the

bishops of Olomouc A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

. In 1535, it was promoted to a free mining town by bishop Stanislav I Thurzo. It was assumed that there are rich deposits of precious metals around the town and its mining will bring prosperity and wealth. Although the assumptions were not met and the mining ended in 1581, the already granted privileges helped the development of Janov and gave the town an urban character. The prosperity ended with 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 ...

, when Janov was occupied by the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

army. In 1741 during the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's W ...

, the town was burned down by Prussians. However, the town recovered. In 1938, Janov was annexed by the

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. After the war, the German population was expelled and the town depopulated.

Sights

The square is considered architecturally valuable. In the western corner of the square there is the late Baroque Church of the Holy Trinity built in 1780–1783, with a cemetery located on the grounds. In the middle of the square are the Mining Memorial erected for the 650th anniversary of the town and the baroque statue of the Virgin Mary Immaculate from 1739. The cemetery includes two valuable chapels from the 19th century. A regional museum is located on the premises of the town hall. On the right bank of the Osoblaha there is a linden tree that can be up to 1000 years old. It is one of the oldest and largest trees in the country.

Notable people

Rudolf Mildner Rudolf Mildner (10 July 1902, Janov – unknown) was an Austrian-German SS-''Standartenführer''. He served as the chief of the Gestapo at Katowice and was the head of the political department at Auschwitz concentration camp, conducting "third deg ...

(1902–?), Austrian-German SS officer

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Janov (Bruntal District) Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Bruntál District