Černý Důl ( or ''Schwarzental'') is a market town in

Trutnov District Trutnov District () is a Okres, district in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Trutnov. Administrative division Trutnov District is divided into three Districts of the Czech Republic#Municipalities with e ...

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 700 inhabitants. It lies in the

Giant Mountains The Giant Mountains, Krkonoše, or Karkonosze (Czech: , , ), are a mountain range located in the north of the Czech Republic and the south-west of Poland, part of the Sudetes mountain system (part of the Bohemian Massif). The Czech–Polish bor ...

Administrative division

Černý Důl consists of three municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Černý Důl (334) *Čistá v Krkonoších (274) *Fořt (110)

Etymology

The name literally means 'black valley', 'black mine'. It probably refers to the location in deep (black) forests, when it was founded.

Geography

Černý Důl is located about northwest of

Trutnov Trutnov (; ) is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 30,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. Administrative division Trutnov consists of 21 ...

and north 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

. The highest point is located on the slopes of the Černá hora Mountain at above sea level. The northern half of the municipal territory lies in the

Krkonoše National Park Krkonoše National Park (, abbreviated as KRNAP) is a Protected Areas of the Czech Republic#National Park, national park in the Liberec Region, Liberec and Hradec Králové Region, Hradec Králové regions of the Czech Republic. It covers most of ...

. The Čistá River originates here and creates a valley, in which the villages are situated.

History

The first written mention about

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

mining in the area of today's Černý Důl is from 1383. The estate was purchased by Kryštof Gendorf in 1533. In that time, the area was formed by three parts: Nová Ves village, settlement of Gottes Hilf, and grouping of huts called ''III. horský díl''. The oldest was Nová Ves, which was first mentioned in 1489. Gottes Hilf established near Nová Ves nad named after one of mines. It was first mentioned in 1556, when a chapel was built here. In 1564, Gottes Hilf 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 ...

with right of a free

mining town A mining community, also known as a mining town or a mining camp, is a community that houses miners. Mining communities are usually created around a mine or a quarry. Historical mining communities Australia * Ballarat, Victoria * Bendig ...

and renamed Černý Důl. In 1607, the chapel was rebuilt and extended to the Church of Saint Michael the Archangel. After the mining ended, the population had to reorientate to

linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen is very strong and absorbent, and it dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. Lin ...

making,

spinning Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

, agriculture and livestock, as the land consisted mostly of mountain pastures. In the 18th century,

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

began to be mined here.

Demographics

Transport

The I/14 road (the section from

Liberec Liberec (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 108,000 inhabitants, making it the fifth largest city in the country. It lies on the Lusatian Neisse River, in a basin surrounded by mountains. The city centre is well preserved and is pr ...

to Trutnov) passes through the southern part of the municipal territory.

Sport

Černý Důl is known as a

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area–a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North Am ...

with several slopes with lifts.

Sights

The main landmark of Černý Důl is the Church of Saint Michael the Archangel. It was built in the Renaissance style in 1556. Among the most valuable buildings of the town is Hotel Pošta. It is a late Baroque house from the second half of the 18th century, located on the town square. It still serves as a hotel and restaurant. The Church of the Holy Trinity is located in Fořt. It was built in 1606 and completely rebuilt in the Baroque style in 1775. Its current form is the result of the Rococo restoration in 1902. The Fořt Castle was originally a Renaissance fortress, rebuilt in 1597 into a small aristocratic residence. Later it was rebuilt and extended in the Baroque and Neo-Renaissance styles. Today the castle is privately owned and inaccessible.

Twin towns – sister cities

Černý Důl is twinned with: *

Kowary Kowary () is a town in Karkonosze County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland, with a population of around 11,000. It lies approximately south-east of Jelenia Góra, and south-west of the regional capital Wrocław. The town is ...

, Poland

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cerny Dul Market towns in the Czech Republic