Strakonice (; german: Strakonitz) is a town in the

South Bohemian Region The South Bohemian Region ( cs, Jihočeský kraj; , ) is an administrative unit (''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located mostly in the southern part of its historical land of Bohemia, with a small part in southwestern Moravia. The western part ...

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 22,000 inhabitants.

Administrative parts

Strakonice is made up of town parts of Strakonice I and Strakonice II, and villages of Dražejov, Hajská, Modlešovice, Přední Ptákovice, Střela and Virt.

Geography

Strakonice is located about northwest of

České Budějovice České Budějovice (; german: Budweis ) is a city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 93,000 inhabitants. It is located in the valley of the Vltava River, at its confluence with the Malše. České Budějovice is t ...

. It lies mostly in the northern tip of the

České Budějovice Basin The České Budějovice Basin ( cs, Českobudějovická pánev) is a geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located in the South Bohemian Region and it is named after the city of České Budějovice. It is known as a cultural lan ...

, but the municipal territory also extends to the Blatná Uplands on the north, and to the

Bohemian Forest Foothills Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, ori ...

on the south. The highest point of the territory is the hill Velká Kakada with an altitude of . The town is situated at the confluence of the

Volyňka Volyňka is a river in the Czech Republic in the South Bohemian Region rising on the hill called Světlá hora and flowing northeast to the city of Strakonice, where it merges with Otava River. Volyňka flows through towns such as Vimperk Vimp ...

and Otava rivers. There are several ponds in the territory, the largest of them are Velkoholský and Blatský. In the municipal territory there are the nature reserve Bažantnice u Pracejovic and the nature monument Tůně u Hajské.

History

A moated castle on the Otava River was built by the noble family Bavors of Strakonice at the beginning of the 13th century, the first written mention of the castle is from 1235. The first written mention of the village of Strakonice is from 1243, when the Church of Saint Wenceslaus already existed and when Bavors donated a part of the castle and several villages in the vicinity to the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headq ...

of the Order of Saint John. In 1318, Strakonice already was a town. From 1402, the Knights Hospitaller owned the whole castle as well as the surrounding manor. In 1420 the

Hussite The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Huss ...

commander

Jan Žižka Jan Žižka z Trocnova a Kalicha ( en, John Zizka of Trocnov and the Chalice; 1360 – 11 October 1424) was a Czech general – a contemporary and follower of Jan Hus and a Radical Hussite who led the Taborites. Žižka was a successful milit ...

occupied Strakonice, but failed to capture the fortress. Strakonice Castle experienced an extensive reconstruction to a representation residence of the Grand Priors of the Order in the 16th century, the later modifications were minor only. After the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

, the castle has lost its significance. During the 19th century, the town was industrialized. In the 1860s, the town was connected with

and Plzeň by railroad, which helped its further development.

Demographics

Climate

Strakonice has a cool, wet, and

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...

inland version of a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

(''Dfb'').

Economy

Since the 19th century Strakonice was a main production site for

fez Fez most often refers to: * Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire * Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco Fez or FEZ may also refer to: Media * ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...

hats and it also became an industrial centre known for its motorbikes and hand guns production. Strakonice is also known for its brewery called "Dudák – Burghers' Brewery Strakonice", located nearby the castle. It produces the beer under the brand Strakonický Dudák. The Strakonice Burghers' Brewery is the last brewery in the Czech Republic to still be owned by a town. The tradition of beer brewing in the town started in 1367 and the Burghers' Brewery was founded in 1649.

Transport

Strakonice lies the railway line of national importance Brno–

Jihlava Jihlava (; german: Iglau) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 50,000 inhabitants. Jihlava is the capital of the Vysočina Region, situated on the Jihlava River on the historical border between Moravia and Bohemia. Historically, Jihlava ...

–

–Strakonice– Plzeň, and on the regional railway line Strakonice–

Volary Volary (; german: Wallern) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,700 inhabitants. It is located in the Bohemian Forest, close to the border with Germany. An area in the northern part of the town with timber-f ...

Culture

Every year, the town hosts the International

Bagpipe Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...

Festival. The town's bagpipe tradition refers to the famous work of

Josef Kajetán Tyl Josef Kajetán Tyl (4 February 180811 July 1856; ) was a significant Czech dramatist, writer, and actor. He was a notable figure in the Czech National Revival movement and is best known as the author of the current national anthem of the Czech Re ...

''Strakonický dudák'' ("The Bagpiper of Strakonice").

Sights

Most of the historic buildings were demolished during the 20th century. The Strakonice Castle today serves as a regional museum and gallery. Its exhibitions focus on motorcycles, weapons, bagpipers and the traditional

production. The Rumpál Tower serves as a lookout tower.

Notable people

Jan Antonín Losy Jan Antonín Losy, Count of Losinthal (German: ''Johann Anton Losy von Losinthal''); also known as Comte d'Logy (''Losi'' or ''Lozi''), (c. 1650 – 22 August 1721) was a Bohemian aristocrat, Baroque lute player and composer from Prague. His lut ...

(c. 1650–1721), lute player and composer *

František Čelakovský František Ladislav Čelakovský (7 March 1799 Strakonice - 5 August 1852 Prague) was a Czech poet, translator, linguist, and literary critic. He was a major figure in the Czech " national revival". His most notable works are ''Ohlas písní rus ...

(1799–1852), writer and translator * Martin Mathias Secor (1841–1911), American businessman *

Leopold Ehrmann Leopold Ehrmann (March 6, 1886 Strakonice – April 11, 1951 Chicago) was a German speaking architect living in Prague. Ehrmann was born in Strakonice, in Southern Bohemia, then part of Austria-Hungary, as a son of local haberdashery shop ...

(1886–1951), architect *

Riccardo Pick-Mangiagalli Riccardo Pick-Mangiagalli (July 10, 1882 – Milan, July 8, 1949) was an Italian composer and pianist of Czech birth. Life and career Born in Strakonice, South Bohemia on July 10, 1882, Riccardo Pick-Mangiagalli moved with his family to Milan ...

(1882–1949), Italian composer * Xena Longenová (1891–1928), actress *

Josef Skupa Josef Skupa (16 January 1892 in Strakonice – 8 January 1957 in Prague) was a Czech puppeteer. He studied at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague, and worked as stage designer in the Plzeň City Theatre, also as designer in ...

(1892–1957), puppeteer * Věra Machoninová (born 1928), architect *

Marie Poledňáková Marie Poledňáková (, 7 September 1941 – 8 November 2022) was a Czech film director, screenwriter, writer, and media entrepreneur. She graduated from the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague in 1970. Biography Poledňáková was born in St ...

(1941–2022), film director *

Pavel Pavel Pavel Pavel (born March 11, 1957 in Strakonice) is a Czech engineer and experimental archaeologist best known for investigating how ancient civilizations transported heavy weights. Pavel Pavel studied electrical engineering at the university in ...

(born 1957), engineer and experimental archaeologist *

Roman Turek Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

(born 1970), ice hockey player *

Alexander Salák Alexander Salák (born January 5, 1987) is a Czech professional ice hockey goaltender. He is currently an unrestricted free agent who most recently played for Djurgårdens IF of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). He played two games in the National ...

(born 1987), ice hockey player * Zdeněk Ondrášek (born 1988), footballer * Jindřich Staněk (born 1996), footballer *

Vít Krejčí Vít Krejčí (born 19 June 2000) is a Czech professional basketball player for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Early life and career Krejčí was born in Strakonice, Czech Republic and played basketball for the ...

(born 2000), basketball player

Twin towns – sister cities

Strakonice is twinned with: *

Bad Salzungen Bad Salzungen () is a town in Thuringia, Germany. It is the capital of the Wartburgkreis district. Geography Location Bad Salzungen is situated on the river Werra, east of Tiefenort and south of Eisenach. Divisions In July 2018 the former m ...

, Germany * Calderdale, England, United Kingdom * Lengnau, Switzerland Strakonice also has friendly relations with

Rawicz Rawicz (; german: Rawitsch) is a town in west-central Poland with 21,398 inhabitants as of 2004. It is situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship (since 1999); previously it was in Leszno Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the capital of Rawicz ...

in Poland.

References

External links

* {{authority control Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Strakonice District Prácheňsko