Děčín (; ) is a city in the
Ústí nad Labem Region
Ústí nad Labem Region or Ústecký Region () is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the north-western part of the historical land of Bohemia, and named after the capital, Ústí nad Labem. I ...
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 46,000 inhabitants. It is the seventth largest municipality in the country by area. Děčín is an important traffic junction.
Administrative division
Děčín consists of 35 municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census):
*Děčín I-Děčín (4,723)
*Děčín II-Nové Město (5,948)
*Děčín III-Staré Město (3,687)
*Děčín IV-Podmokly (5,376)
*Děčín V-Rozbělesy (342)
*Děčín VI-Letná (7,502)
*Děčín VII-Chrochvice (1,252)
*Děčín VIII-Dolní Oldřichov (704)
*Děčín IX-Bynov (3,670)
*Děčín X-Bělá (907)
*Děčín XI-Horní Žleb (292)
*Děčín XII-Vilsnice (277)
*Děčín XIII-Loubí (185)
*Děčín XIV-Dolní Žleb (141)
*Děčín XV-Prostřední Žleb (232)
*Děčín XVI-Přípeř (97)
*Děčín XVII-Jalůvčí (559)
*Děčín XVIII-Maxičky (100)
*Děčín XIX-Čechy (195)
*Děčín XX-Nová Ves (218)
*Děčín XXI-Horní Oldřichov (445)
*Děčín XXII-Václavov (306)
*Děčín XXIII-Popovice (175)
*Děčín XXIV-Krásný Studenec (594)
*Děčín XXV-Chmelnice (297)
*Děčín XXVI-Bechlejovice (166)
*Děčín XXVII-Březiny (1,757)
*Děčín XXVIII-Folknáře (333)
*Děčín XXIX-Hoštice nad Labem (45)
*Děčín XXX-Velká Veleň (93)
*Děčín XXXI-Křešice (728)
*Děčín XXXII-Boletice nad Labem (4,437)
*Děčín XXXIII-Nebočady (312)
*Děčín XXXIV-Chlum (90)
*Děčín XXXV-Lesná (152)
Etymology
The name is derived from the personal Slavic name Děk.
Geography
Děčín is located about northeast of
Ústí nad Labem and southeast of
Dresden
Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...
. The municipal territory borders Germany in the north. With an area of , Děčín is the 7th largest municipality in the country by area. It lies in the transition zone between the
Elbe Sandstone Mountains in the north and the
Central Bohemian Uplands in the south. The highest point is a
contour line
A contour line (also isoline, isopleth, isoquant or isarithm) of a Function of several real variables, function of two variables is a curve along which the function has a constant value, so that the curve joins points of equal value. It is a ...
on the slopes of
Děčínský Sněžník at above sea level.
The city proper lies at the confluence of the
Elbe
The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...
and
Ploučnice rivers. Most of the built-up area is situated in the river valley with an elevation of , which makes it the lowest city in the country. The entire area of the city falls into the
protected landscape areas České středohoří and Labské pískovce.
Climate
Děčín's climate is classified as
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 cold ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''Cfb'';
Trewartha: ''Dobk''). Among them, the annual average temperature is , the hottest month in July is , and the coldest month is in January. The annual precipitation is , of which July is the wettest with , while April is the driest with only . The extreme temperature throughout the year ranged from on 9 February 1956 to on 28 July 2013.
History

According to archaeological discoveries, the settlement of the area began at the
La Tène times. Slavic settlement can be documented since the 7th century. The first written mention of Děčín is from 993, when the Děčín province existed and it is assumed that Děčín was its administrative centre. Děčín was founded at the
ford over the Elbe in the places where the trade route led. The
Přemyslid dukes of Bohemia had a
gord built for the protection of the waterway. The gord was replaced by a stone castle in the first half of the 13th century. In the second half of the 13th century, King
Ottokar II founded a new royal city under the castle.
The Lords of Wartenberg acquired Děčín in 1305. They made the city their family seat, but had to sell it due to debts. From 1511 to 1515, the estate was owned by Mikuláš Trčka of Lípa, who then sold it to the Salhausen family. In 1534, Knights of Bünau purchased the estate. They had rebuilt a part of the castle into a comfortable Renaissance residence.
During their rule, the city experienced rapid development. Trade, transport on the Elbe and handicrafts flourished. Stone quarries, a lime factory and a brickyard were established.
[
The Knights of Bünau introduced ]Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
to the region, however the Protestant belief was suppressed by the Habsburg kings in the course of the Counter-Reformation
The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...
, and the Bünaus were driven out upon the 1620 Battle of White Mountain. In 1628, they sold the estate to the Thun und Hohenstein family. This family owned Děčín until 1918.[ The city suffered during the ]Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
. In 1631 it was occupied by the Saxons
The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...
and in 1639 and 1648 it was conquered by the Swedish army
The Swedish Army () is the army, land force of the Swedish Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Sweden. Beginning with its service in 1521, the Swedish Army has been active for more than 500 years.
History
Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1 ...
.[ As a result of the war, Děčín turned into a small insignificant town.][
In the 1768, a spring of mineral water was discovered in the nearby village of Horní Žleb (today part of Děčín). Count Johann Joseph Thun founded here a small spa in 1777. The spa prospered and the Thun family built additional infrastructure. Due to the development of industry and traffic, which brought noise to the area, the spa began to decline, and in 1906 the Thuns sold it. In 1922, the spa was finally closed.
A new development of Děčín took place in the 18th century. The biggest impetus to the development of industry was the construction of a railway from Prague to Dresden in 1851. Děčín on the left bank of the Elbe and the village of Podmokly () on the right bank became an important transport hubs. The growth of industry triggered the construction of apartments and an influx of residents. Between 1890 and 1914, population of Podmokly raised to 20,000 inhabitants. Podmokly was promoted to a town in 1901.][
Following ]World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, since 1918, the area was part of Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
. Upon the 1938 Munich Agreement
The Munich Agreement was reached in Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, the United Kingdom, the French Third Republic, French Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy. The agreement provided for the Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–194 ...
, both towns were 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 incorporated into the Reichsgau Sudetenland. Under German occupation, a Gestapo
The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...
prison and a forced labour camp were located in the city. After the war, the ethnic German population was expelled under terms of the 1945 Potsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement () was the agreement among three of the Allies of World War II: the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union after the war ended in Europe that was signed on 1 August 1945 and published the following day. A ...
and the Beneš decrees
The Beneš decrees were a series of laws drafted by the Czechoslovak government-in-exile in the absence of the Czechoslovak parliament during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in World War II. They were issued by President Edvard Beneš fr ...
. Both towns were merged in 1942. After 1945, the neighbouring municipalities gradually also merged with Děčín.[
Děčín was badly hit by the 2002 European flood.
]
Demographics
Economy
The largest employer based in Děčín is ČEZ Distribuce, a part of ČEZ Group engaged in the distribution of electricity. The largest industrial companies are Constellium Extrusions Děčín, a manufacturer of aluminium products, and Chart Ferox, a manufacturer of gas storage systems.
Tourism is a significant part of the city's economy. The city benefits from its location in protected landscape areas and the proximity of the Bohemian Switzerland National Park.[
]
Transport
Děčín is a significant junction of land, rail and water transport, situated near an important Czech-German border crossing. The city is located at the intersection of roads I/13 (from Teplice to 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 ...
) and I/62 (from Ústí nad Labem to the Czech-German border), which are parts of the European route E442).
The railway station Děčín hlavní nádraží is located on one of the most important Czech railway lines, which leads from Prague to Děčín via Ústí nad Labem, and continues to Dresden, Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
, Hamburg
Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
and Kiel
Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...
. Other lines that lead from or through the city are Ústí nad Labem–Liberec, Děčín– Kadaň, and Děčín– Rumburk. In addition to the main railway station, the large territory of Děčín is served by eleven other train stations: ''Děčín-Staré Město'', ''Děčín východ'', ''Děčín-Přípeř'', ''Děčín-Prostřední Žleb'', ''Děčín-Čertova Voda'', ''Boletice nad Labem'', ''Březiny u Děčína'', ''Dolní Žleb'', ''Dolní Žleb zastávka'', ''Křešice u Děčína'' and ''Vilsnice''.
Other three train stops, ''Děčín zastávka'', ''Děčín-Oldřichov'' and ''Děčín-Bynov'', are located on the Děčín hlavní nádraží– Telnice line, which operates only during the tourist season on weekends and holidays. The ČSD Class M 152.0 retro train drives there.
There are two public river ports.
Sights
Děčín Castle
Děčín Castle is one of the most popular sights in the region. It is located on a hill near the city centre and overlooks the Elbe. Not later than in 1128, it was constructed as a wooden fortress
A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...
, and replaced by a royal stone castle in the 13th century. In the 16th century, a grand Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
palace was constructed on the site, to be renovated in the Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
style from the 17th century onward.
From 1628, the castle served as the administrative centre of the Thun und Hohenstein family. They built an unusual feature of the castle – the long, straight-walled road leading up to it, known as the "Long Ride" (''Dlouhá jízda''). The last major renovation was completed in 1803. In 1835, Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period who wrote primarily for Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...
wrote his '' Waltz in A-flat major, Op. 34 No. 1'' here.[
In 1932, financial problems forced the Thun und Hohenstein family to sell the castle to the Czechoslovak state. It served as army barracks, then it was appropriated by occupying Germans as a military garrison during World War II. Lastly, it was occupied by ]Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
troops, who invaded from the east and rousted the Germans.[
The Soviet Army departed in 1991, leaving the castle in a state of disrepair. In 2005, the government completed a restoration of a large part of the castle and opened it as a museum and venue for private gatherings and public events.][
]
Sacral monuments
The Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is one of the most important monuments of the city. It was built in the early Baroque style in 1687–1691 by the Thun und Hohenstein family as a castle church. A covered corridor on pillared arcades connects the church with the castle. The Chapel of Our Lady of the Snows adjoins the church from the south side.
The Church of Saints Wenceslaus and Blaise was built in the Baroque style in 1754–1778. It replaced a church destroyed by a fire in 1749.
The Church of Saint Francis of Assisi in Děčín-Podmokly is a neo-Romanesque building. It was built in 1856–1858. The interior was painted by Joseph von Führich.
The Evangelical church in Děčín-Podmokly was built in 1881–1884. It is a three-nave eclectic building.
The Church of Saint Wenceslaus is located in Děčín-Rozbělesy. Built in 1723–1783, it was designed by Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer
Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer (; 1 September 1689 – 18 December 1751) was a German Bohemians, German Bohemian architect of the Baroque architecture, Baroque era. He is among the most prolific and renowned architects of his era in Bohemia. He was bo ...
.
The synagogue in Děčín-Podmokly was built in 1906–1907 in a faux Oriental style with Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
elements. During World War II, it lost its function and served as a warehouse. In 1994, it was returned to the local Jewish community. Today the former synagogue serves cultural and social purposes.
Bridges
Staroměstský Bridge ("Old Town Bridge") dates from 1574. This stone bridge replaced an older stone bridge, destroyed during the 1561 floods. The bridge is decorated by a Baroque sculpture group of Saints Vitus, Wenceslaus and John of Nepomuk, created by Michael Brokoff in 1714.
''Ovčí můstek'' ("Sheep Bridge") is a small Renaissance bridge from 1561. The bridge is significantly arched to protect it from floods.[
Tyrš Bridge is one of the main landmarks of Děčín. This steel bridge was built in 1933 on the site of the older Empress Elisabeth Bridge, which was no longer suitable for increased traffic. The steel structure is supported by modified pillars from the original bridge. The bridge was named in honor of the local native Miroslav Tyrš.][
]
Other
In the river Elbe near the left bank stands a basalt hunger stone, which is visible only when water levels are low. It is one of the oldest hydrological monuments in Central Europe. It is an indicator of drought in the region. The oldest legible record for which the time of origin is verified dates from 1616.
The most visited tourist destination in the city is Děčín Zoo. It was founded in 1948.
Notable people
* Wenzeslaus of Thun (1629–1673), clergyman and bishop
* Anton Kern (1710–1747), painter
* Johann Münzberg (1799–1878), textile manufacturer in Bohemia
* Miroslav Tyrš (1832–1884), founder of the Sokol physical education
* Franz, Prince of Thun and Hohenstein (1847–1916), Austro-Hungarian politician
* Adolf Wilhelm (1864–1950), Austrian classical philologist and epigrapher
* Johann Radon (1887–1956), mathematician
* Julius Arigi (1891–1985), Austro-Hungarian fighter pilot
* Maria Paudler (1903–1990), German actress
* Hans-Georg Münzberg (1916–2000), German engineer
* Egon Klepsch (1930–2010), German politician
* Heinrich Hora (born 1931) German-Australian theoretical physicist
* Wolfgang Jeschke (1936–2015), German sci-fi author
* Bronislava Volková (born 1946), Czech-American poet and translator
* Jiří Bartoška (1947–2025), actor and the president of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (, KVIFF) is an annual film festival held in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has become Central and Eastern Europe, Central and Eastern Eur ...
* Dana Chladek (born 1963), American slalom kayaker
* Jaroslava Fabiánová (born 1965), serial killer
* Vladimír Šmicer (born 1973), footballer
* Jan Švec (born 1975), media pedagogue
* Karolína Kurková (born 1984), model
Twin towns – sister cities
Děčín is twinned with:
* Bełchatów
Bełchatów () is a city in central Poland with a population of 55,583, as of December 2021. It is located in Łódź Voivodeship, southwest of Warsaw.
The Bełchatów Power Station, Elektrownia Bełchatów, located in Bełchatów, is the largest ...
, Poland
* Jonava, Lithuania
* Pirna
Pirna (; , ) is a town in Saxony, Germany and capital of the administrative district Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge. The town's population is over 37,000. Pirna is located near Dresden and is an important district town as well as a ''Große ...
, Germany
* Přerov
Přerov (; ) is a city in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 41,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Bečva River. In the past it was a major crossroad in the heart of Moravia in the Czech Republic. The historic city centre is we ...
, Czech Republic
* Ružomberok, Slovakia
Gallery
Děčín, Levý břeh Labe s Pastýřskou stěnou Dm113435-5765 IMG 7499 2018-08-11 08.25.jpg, Left bank of the Elbe with Pastýřská stěna
Děčín, Masarykovo náměstí (2021) (5).jpg, Masarykovo Square
Děčín I, roh ulic Nerudova a 28. října.jpg, 28. října Street
Děčín (Tetschen) - Rose Garden.jpg, Děčín Castle's Rose Garden
Děčín, kostel svatého Václava a Blažeje Dm255205-4084 positie2 IMG 7469 2018-08-10 18.21.jpg, Church of Saints Wencelaus and Blaise
DC-Husovo-nam-kath-Kirche.jpg, Church of Saint Francis of Assisi
Synagoga (Děčín).JPG, Former synagogue
References
External links
*
Official tourist portal
Děčín Castle
Virtual show
by Petrus Bertius
{{DEFAULTSORT:Decin
Cities and towns in the Czech Republic
Populated places in Děčín District
Elbe Sandstone Mountains
Populated riverside places in the Czech Republic
Populated places on the Elbe