Soběslav (; german: Sobieslau) is a town in Tábor District in the South Bohemian Region 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 6,800 inhabitants. The historical town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone.

Administrative parts

The town is made up of town parts of Soběslav I–III and villages of Chlebov and Nedvědice.

Geography

Soběslav is located about south of

Tábor Tábor (; german: Tabor) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. Administrative parts The followi ...

and northeast of České Budějovice. It lies on the border between the Třeboň Basin and the Tábor Uplands. The town is situated on the river Lužnice. There are several ponds in the area. The Nový pond with its surroundings is protected as the Nový rybník u Soběslavi Nature Monument.

History

The first written mention of Soběslav is from 1293 when the castle and surrounding areas belonged to the Rosenberg family. In obtained towns rights in 1390. Four years later was the King

Wenceslaus IV Wenceslaus IV (also ''Wenceslas''; cs, Václav; german: Wenzel, nicknamed "the Idle"; 26 February 136116 August 1419), also known as Wenceslaus of Luxembourg, was King of Bohemia from 1378 until his death and King of Germany from 1376 until he w ...

imprisoned in a local castle. In the 16th century, Soběslav was the seat of Peter Vok of Rosenberg and one of the most important towns of the Rosenbergs estate. It represented the economic centre of southern Bohemia with ties to

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 ...

and

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. This most important stage in the history of the town is evident in numerous historic buildings in the town to this day. The town was burned twice during 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 ...

. At the end of 19th century, the town was connected by a railroad with

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 ...

and České Budějovice.

Demographics

Transport

The D3 motorway runs next to the town. There is a small civil airport on the southern edge of the town.

Sights

The historical part of the town is protected as an urban monument zone. The Church of Saint Vitus is a Gothic building from 1375, founded by Oldřich I of Rosenberg. In the 15th–18th centuries it was modified, but retained its Gothic character. The Soběslav Castle is known for its well-preserved cylindrical tower Hláska, which is a landmark of the town. The castle fell into disrepair in the 1980s. Its northern wing was reconstructed in 2010 and today it houses the town library. The parish Church of Saints Peter and Paul is a landmark of the town square. An old church was completely rebuilt in the late Gothic style in 1493–1517. It has a high tower, open to the public as a lookout tower. There are two museums in the town: Smrčka's House (an ethnographic museum in the only preserved Renaissance house in the town) and Rosenberg House (museum with nature-related expositions). Nearby the town border there is a forest called Svákov with an eponymous observation tower, small Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows, and remnants of an old Slavic gord.

Notable people

František Josef Studnička František Josef Studnička (27 June 1836, Soběslav, Bohemia – 21 February 1903, Prague, Bohemia) was a Czech mathematician and popular pedagogue at Charles University in Prague. He was also an active contributor to astronomy and meteorology ...

(1836–1903), mathematician, astronomer and Czech science life organizer *

Otakar Ostrčil Otakar Ostrčil (25 February 1879 in Prague – 20 August 1935 in Prague) was a Czech composer and conductor. He is noted for symphonic works ''Impromptu'', ''Suite in C Minor'', and ''Symfonietta'', and in his opera compositions '' Poupě'' and ...

(1879–1935), pedagogue, composer and conductor; visited regularly the town and composed here

Twin towns – sister cities

Soběslav is twinned with: *

Sabinov Sabinov ( la, Сibinium, hu, Kisszeben, german: Zeben, russian: Сабинов) is a small town located in the Prešov Region (north-eastern Slovakia), approximately 20 km from Prešov and 55 km from Košice. The population of Sabinov ...

, Slovakia

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sobeslav Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Tábor District