Veltrusy (; german: Weltrus) is a town in

Mělník District Mělník District ( cs, okres Mělník) is a district ('' okres'') within Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Mělník. Complete list of municipalities Býkev - Byšice - Chlumín - Chorušice - Chvatěrub ...

in the

Central Bohemian Region The Central Bohemian Region ( cz, Středočeský kraj, german: Mittelböhmische Region) is an administrative unit ( cz, kraj) of the Czech Republic, located in the central part of its historical region of Bohemia. Its administrative centre is in ...

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 2,300 inhabitants. It is known for the

Veltrusy Mansion Veltrusy Mansion (Czech: ''Zámek Veltrusy'') is a baroque château in Veltrusy, Bohemia, located in the Mělník District of the Czech Republic. The mansion is situated near the banks of the Vltava River, about 25 km north of Prague. The ...

Geography

Veltrusy is located about north of

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 ...

. It lies in the

Central Elbe Table Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

. The town is situated on the right bank of the

Vltava Vltava ( , ; german: Moldau ) is the longest river in the Czech Republic, running southeast along the Bohemian Forest and then north across Bohemia, through Český Krumlov, České Budějovice and Prague, and finally merging with the Labe at M ...

River.

History

The first written trustworthy mention of Veltrusy is in a deed of

Ottokar I of Bohemia Ottokar I ( cs, Přemysl Otakar I.; c. 1155 – 1230) was Duke of Bohemia periodically beginning in 1192, then acquired the title of King of Bohemia, first in 1198 from Philip of Swabia, later in 1203 from Otto IV of Brunswick and in 1212 (a ...

from 1226, but according to some sources there are also older references. Until 1410, the village was owned by the church, then it was property of various noble families, including Zajíc of Hazmburk, Smiřický, Lobkowicz and Waldstein. From the 17th century until 1945, Veltrusy was owned by the

Chotek family The House of Chotek was an old and influential Czech noble family in the Kingdom of Bohemia, whose members occupied many important positions within Holy Roman Empire and later in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. History The family is first docume ...

. Veltrusy was promoted to a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

in 1899 and to a town in 1926, but soon lost the title. In 1994, it was again promoted to a town.

Sights

The most important monument and tourist destination of the town is the

. It is a Baroque castle with a large castle park and deer-park. The castle is open to the public and offwers sightseeing tours. The Church of Saint John the Baptist was built in the 14th century and rebuilt in the Baroque style in the 18th century. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Neoclassical tower was added. The interior is mostly 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. A distinctive element of the interior of the church is the cenotaph of Count Rudolf Chotek.

References

External links

*
Veltrusy Mansion official website
{{authority control Cities and towns in the Czech Republic