Stráž pod Ralskem (until 1946 Vartenberk; german: Wartenberg (am Rollberg)) is a town in

Česká Lípa District Česká Lípa District ( cs, okres Česká Lípa) is a district ('' okres'') within the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. Its district seat is Česká Lípa. List of municipalities Česká Lípa - Bezděz - Blatce - Blíževedly - Bo ...

in the

Liberec Region Liberec Region ( cs, Liberecký kraj, german: Reichenberger Region, pl, Kraj liberecki) is an administrative unit ( Czech: ''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located in the northernmost part of its historical region of Bohemia. It is named after ...

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 3,800 inhabitants.

Etymology

The local castle was called Wartenberg (''Warte auf Berge'' meant "guard on the hill" in German). Vartenberk was the Czech transcription of the name. The modern Czech name of the town 'Stráž'' means literally "guard", ''pod Ralskem'' refers to its location below

Ralsko Ralsko (german: Roll) is a town in Česká Lípa District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,100 inhabitants. It comprises area of the former military training area with Hradčany Air Base. Because of the former military ...

Mountain.

Geography

Stráž pod Ralskem is located about east of

Česká Lípa Česká Lípa (; german: Böhmisch Leipa) is a town in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 37,000 inhabitants and it is the most populated town of the Czech Republic without city status. The town centre is well preserved and is p ...

and southwest of

Liberec Liberec (; german: Reichenberg ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants and it is the fifth-largest city in the country. It lies on the Lusatian Neisse, in a basin surrounded by mountains. The city centre is well preser ...

. It lies in the

Ralsko Uplands Ralsko (german: Roll) is a town in Česká Lípa District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,100 inhabitants. It comprises area of the former military training area with Hradčany Air Base. Because of the former military ...

. The highest point is a hill at above sea level, the mountain of Ralsko is located outside the municipal territory. The

Ploučnice The Ploučnice (german: Polzen) is a river in the Czech Republic. It is a tributary of the Elbe, which it flows into in Děčín. It is long, and its basin area is about , of which in the Czech Republic. References External links * Horáčko ...

River flows through the town. The town lies on the shores of Stráž pod Ralskem Reservoir. It was built in 1911–1913 and is one of the oldest reservoirs in the country. The reservoir has an area of and is used for fish farming and for water sports. There are also several ponds around the town.

History

The first written mention is from 1283, when a castle was built here. The castle and the settlement were called Wartenberg and their owners became known as Wartenberg family. In 1504, the Wartenberg family sold the manor to Bartholomew Hirschpergar, who rebuilt the Gothic castle to a chateau. At the end of the 19th century, tourism began to develop and Stráž pod Ralskem turned into a resort. In 1963, uranium ore was found and tourism has partly given way to industrialization. The uranium ore mining ended in 1996.

Demographics

Economy

Stráž pod Ralskem is known for its jailhouse. It was created in 1973 from the original hostels that were used for uranium mine workers. It employs around 300 people.

Notable people

Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber ( bapt. 12 August 1644, Stráž pod Ralskem – 3 May 1704, Salzburg) was a Bohemian-Austrian composer and violinist. Biber worked in Graz and Kroměříž before he illegally left his employer, Prince-Bishop Karl L ...

(1644–1704), Czech-Austrian

baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

composer * Anton von Jaksch (1810–1887), Czech-Austrian physician, rector of

Charles University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , undergr ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Straz pod Ralskem Populated places in Česká Lípa District Cities and towns in the Czech Republic