Libočany (german: Libotschan) is a municipality and village in

Louny District Louny District ( cs, okres Louny) is one of seven districts ('' okres'') located within the Ústí nad Labem Region in the Czech Republic. Its administrative center is the town of Louny. Louny is the largest district in the Ústí nad Labem regi ...

in the

Ústí nad Labem Region Ústí nad Labem Region or Ústecký Region ( cs, Ústecký kraj, , ), is an administrative unit ( cs, kraj) of the Czech Republic, located in the north-western part of the historical land of Bohemia, and named after the capital, Ústí nad La ...

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 500 inhabitants. It is known as the birthplace of

Wenceslaus Hajek Wenceslaus Hájek of Libočany ( cz, Václav Hájek z Libočan; german: Wenzeslaus Hagek von Libotschan; la, Wenceslaus Hagecius, Wenceslaus Hagek a Liboczan; died 18 March 1553) was a Bohemian chronicler, author of famous '' Czech Chronicle'' (15 ...

, the most renowned Czech chronicler.

Geography

Libočany is located next to the town of

Žatec Žatec (; german: Saaz) is a town in Louny District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře river. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monumen ...

, about west of

Louny Louny (; german: Laun) is a town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 18,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Ohře. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Administrat ...

and northwest of

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

. It lies in an agricultural landscape of the

Most Basin The Most Basin (also known as North Bohemian Basin; cs, Mostecká pánev, german: Nordböhmisches Becken) is a tectonic depression and geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is named after the city of Most. It forms the southwes ...

. The municipality is situated on the right bank of the

Ohře The Ohře () or, slightly less commonly in English sources, the Eger (, Czech also: ''Oharka'' or ''Ohara'', Celtic: ''Agara'', pl, Ohrza), is a 316 km river in Germany (50 km) and the Czech Republic (266 km), left tributary of ...

River. The Liboc River flows through the village, its confluence with the Ohře is located just beyond the municipal border.

History

The first written mention of Libočany is from 1226, when it was a property of the Premonstratensian monastery in

Doksany Doksany (german: Doxan) is a municipality and village in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 400 inhabitants. History The oldest settlement dates back between 4500 and 2500 BC. In 1993, arc ...

. In 1770, Václav Karel Schroll of Schrollenberg built a new castle on the site of an older stronghold with a new church and rectory. Before 1918, Libočany was part of the Bohemian part of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...

. In 1919 it became part of the newly independent

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

. In 1938, it was annexed by

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

Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...

and administered as part of

Reichsgau Sudetenland The Reichsgau Sudetenland was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1939 to 1945. It comprised the northern part of the '' Sudetenland'' territory, which was annexed from Czechoslovakia according to the 30 September 1938 Munich Agreement. ...

. In 1945, the municipality was restored to Czechoslovakia and most of its German speaking inhabitants were expelled.

Beer

The brewery from the 19th century produced beer even for US trade with a stock in New York. The ''Liebotschaner Beer'' was among four Bohemian beer brands exported to the USA (the others were

Pilsner Urquell Pilsner Urquell (; cs, Plzeňský prazdroj ) is a lager beer brewed by the Pilsner Urquell Brewery in Plzeň (German name: Pilsen), Czech Republic. Pilsner Urquell was the world's first pale lager, and its popularity meant it was much copied ...

, Budweiser Bier, and

Michelob Anheuser-Busch, a wholly owned subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, is the largest brewing company in the United States, with a market share of 45 percent in 2016. The company operates 12 breweries in the United States and nearly 20 in othe ...

). The latter beer, as well as Liebotschaner, was produced in the

Saaz hops Saaz is a "noble" variety of hops. It was named after the Czech city of Žatec (german: Saaz). This hop is used extensively in Bohemia to flavor beer as the Czech pilsener. Saaz hops accounted for more than of total 2009 hop production in the Cze ...

region. Several local American breweries have produced beer under the name of the village, or abbreviated to ''Lieb'' (e.g. Chattanooga Brewing Co. in

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, Stegmaier Brewing Company, or Lion Brewery, Inc.,

Wilkes-Barre Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the s ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

; ''

Genesee Genesee, derived from the Seneca word for "pleasant valley", may refer to: Geographic features Canada *Genesee, Alberta, an unincorporated community United States *Genesee, California *Genesee, Colorado *Genesee County, Michigan *Genesee Co ...

's Liebotschaner Beer'' was pronounced best of

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

's post

repeal A repeal (O.F. ''rapel'', modern ''rappel'', from ''rapeler'', ''rappeler'', revoke, ''re'' and ''appeler'', appeal) is the removal or reversal of a law. There are two basic types of repeal; a repeal with a re-enactment is used to replace the law ...

brews in 1932. The production of beer in Libočany ended after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

when the Austrian-Hungarian Empire was dissolved and

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...

authorities took over. The buildings of the brewery were demolished in 1939 (during the era of German occupation of Czech lands). After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, in socialist Czechoslovakia, it was replaced by a collective farm.

Demographics

Economy

Libočany is located in an area known for growing the

Sights

The Church of All Saints is among the main landmarks of Libočany. It was built in the

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

style in 1749–1769. The Libočany Castle is a Baroque building from 1770. Next to the castle is a park. The castle is privately owned and inaccessible.

Notable people

(?–1553), chronicler * Božena Viková-Kunětická (1862–1934), politician, writer and feminist; lived here in 1921–1934

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Libocany Villages in Louny District