Březová nad Svitavou (until 1949 Březová; ) is a town in

Svitavy District Svitavy District () is a district in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Svitavy. Administrative division Svitavy District is divided into four administrative districts of municipalities with extended competenc ...

in the

Pardubice Region Pardubice Region () is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. It is named after its capital Pardubice. As an administrat ...

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 1,600 inhabitants.

Geography

Březová nad Svitavou is located about south of

Svitavy Svitavy (; ) is a town in Svitavy District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 16,000 inhabitants. It is the birthplace of Oskar Schindler and the centre of the Czech Esperanto movement. The historic town centre is well pr ...

and north of

Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...

. It lies in the

Svitavy Uplands The Svitavy Uplands or Svitavy Hills () are uplands and a geomorphological mesoregion of the Czech Republic. It is located in the Pardubice Region and it belongs to the largest mesoregions in the country. Geomorphology The Svitavy Uplands is a ...

. The highest point is at above sea level. The town is situated on the stretch of the Svitava river which marked the historical border between

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

and

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

History

Březová was founded in around 1300. In 1497, it was promoted to a town by Vladislaus II. From the end of the 15th century, cloth production developed. In the 16th century, other crafts flourished and Březová developed rapidly. From 1784, flax production developed. In the middle of the 18th century, a road was built through the town that connected

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

with

and

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, which helped the success of local manufactures. The greatest development of the industry occurred after 1849, when the railway was built. The town was mainly focused on the textile industry. New residents, mainly of German ethnicity, came to work in the factories. In the 20th century, there was an outflow of inhabitants to the surrounding villages. In 1938, the town was annexed by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

and administered as part of

Reichsgau Sudetenland The Reichsgau Sudetenland was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1939 to 1945. It comprised the northern part of the ''Sudetenland'' territory, which was annexed from Czechoslovakia according to the 30 September 1938 Munich Agreement. ...

. After World War II, the Germans were expelled and the population continued to decline. In 1949, the name was changed from Březová to Březová nad Svitavou.

Demographics

Transport

The I/43 road (part of the

European route E461 E 461 is a European B class road in Czech Republic and Austria, connecting the cities Svitavy, Brno, and Vienna. Route * ** Svitavy ** E50, E65, E462 Brno * ** E49, E58, E59, E60 Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, ca ...

) from Brno to Svitavy passes through the town. Březová nad Svitavou is located on the main railway line heading from Prague to Brno.

Sights

The main landmark of Březová nad Svitavou is the Church of Saint Bartholomew. It was built in the Baroque style in 1721–1725. In front of the church stands an early Baroque column with a statue of the

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

from 1690.

Notable people

* Karl Kořistka (1825–1906), geographer, cartographer and mathematician

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brezova nad Svitavou Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Svitavy District