Častolovice () is a market town in

Rychnov nad Kněžnou District Rychnov may refer to places in the Czech Republic: *Rychnov, a village and part of Krouna in the Pardubice Region *Rychnov, a village and part of Verneřice in the Ústí nad Labem Region * Rychnov na Moravě, a municipality and village in the Pa ...

in the

Hradec Králové Region Hradec Králové Region (, ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic located in the north-eastern part of the historical region of Bohemia. It is named after its capital Hradec Králové. The region neighbours the Pardubice Region in t ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. It has about 1,700 inhabitants.

Etymology

The name is derived from the personal name Častolov, meaning "the village of Častolov's people".

Geography

Častolovice is located about southeast of

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; ) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 94,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech R ...

. It lies in the

Orlice Table The Orlice (, ) is a river in the Czech Republic, with a brief stretch in Poland. It is a left tributary of the Elbe River. It flows through the Hradec Králové Region. It is formed by the confluence of the Divoká Orlice and Tichá Orlice rivers. ...

. The highest point is at above sea level. The market town is situated on the

Bělá Bělá may refer to: Places in the Czech Republic *Bělá (Havlíčkův Brod District), a municipality and village in the Vysočina Region * Bělá (Opava District), a municipality and village in the Moravian-Silesian Region * Bělá (Pelhřimov Di ...

River, near its confluence with the

Divoká Orlice The Divoká Orlice (, ) is a river in the Czech Republic and Poland. It flows through Lower Silesian Voivodeship in Poland and through the Hradec Králové and Pardubice regions. It is the upper and middle course of the Orlice, but usually it is c ...

. The Divoká Orlice forms the southern municipal border.

History

Around 1280, a Gothic fortress was built here by a noble family, later named Lords of Častolovice. The first written mention of Častolovice is from 1342, when the village 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 rura ...

by King

John of Bohemia John of Bohemia, also called the Blind or of Luxembourg (; ; ; 10 August 1296 – 26 August 1346), was the Count of Luxembourg from 1313 and King of Bohemia from 1310 and titular King of Poland. He is well known for having died while fighting ...

. Between 1588 and 1615, the fortress was rebuilt into a Renaissance castle. From 1694 until

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Častolovice was owned by the Sternberg family. In 1992, the castle was returned to the family.

Demographics

Transport

Častolovice is located on the railway lines Hradec Králové–

Letohrad Letohrad (; until 1950 Kyšperk; ) is a town in Ústí nad Orlicí District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,400 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. Admi ...

and Rychnov nad Kněžnou–

Choceň Choceň (; ) is a town in Ústí nad Orlicí District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,600 inhabitants. Administrative division Choceň consists of seven municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 c ...

Sights

The main sight of Častolovice is the Častolovice Castle. The castle is open to the public and includes a mini-zoo and an

English park English Park is a football (soccer), football stadium in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is the home stadium of Canterbury United, which competes in the ASB Premiership, as well as Western AFC which currently compete in the Mainland Premier League. ...

with a game park. The Church of Saint Vitus is a Baroque building. It replaced an old Gothic church, first mentioned in 1356. Some elements of the original church are preserved in the present building.

Notable people

* Jiří Pelikán (1906–1984), chess player

References

External links

*
Častolovice Castle
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castolovice Populated places in Rychnov nad Kněžnou District Market towns in the Czech Republic Sternberg family