Náchod (; ) is a town 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 20,000 inhabitants. It is known both as a tourist destination and centre of industry. The historic town centre with the castle complex is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone.

Administrative division

Náchod consists of ten municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Náchod (12,128) *Babí (635) *Běloves (1,306) *Bražec (257) *Dobrošov (113) *Jizbice (246) *Lipí (402) *Malé Poříčí (246) * Pavlišov (194) *Staré Město nad Metují (3,534)

Etymology

The name is derived from the Old Czech word ''náchod'', i.e. 'place of arrival' (here meaning "the place where one arrives into the land" in connection with the land gate that was located here).

Geography

Náchod is located about northeast 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 ...

, on the border with Poland. It lies in the northern tip of the Orlické Foothills. The highest point is the hill Malinová hora at above sea level. The town is situated in the valley of the

Metuje The Metuje (; ) is a river in the Czech Republic, a left tributary of the Elbe River. It flows through the Hradec Králové Region. It is long. Etymology The river was originally named Medhuje. It was derived from the Illyrian language, Illyrian ...

River. There are two fishponds in the northwestern part of the municipal territory: Podborný and Odkaliště.

History

The predecessor of Náchod was a settlement called ''Branka'' (meaning 'gate') near the land gate, located in the area today known as Staré Město ("Old Town") with the Church of Saint John the Baptist from the 13th century. Knight Hron of Načeradec founded a castle and then a town below the castle in the mid-13th century to protect the territory through which an old trade route from Prague to

Kłodzko Land Kłodzko Land (; ; ) is a historical region in southwestern Poland. The subject of Czech–Polish rivalry in the High Middle Ages, it became a Bohemian domain since the 12th century, although with periods of rule of the Polish Piast dynasty in th ...

passed. The first written mention of Náchod is from 1254. The town was fortified with walls and bastions in the early 14th century. Owners of the castle included kings

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 ...

and

George of Poděbrady George of Kunštát and Poděbrady (23 April 1420 – 22 March 1471), also known as Poděbrad or Podiebrad (; ), was the sixteenth King of Bohemia, who ruled in 1458–1471. He was a leader of the Hussites, but moderate and tolerant toward the ...

. During the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, a ...

, Náchod was conquered and owned by the

Hussites upright=1.2, Battle between Hussites (left) and Crusades#Campaigns against heretics and schismatics, Catholic crusaders in the 15th century upright=1.2, The Lands of the Bohemian Crown during the Hussite Wars. The movement began during the Prag ...

. Over time the castle grew into a large fortress. The powerful and rich Smiřický family acquired the estate in 1544 and had the castle rebuilt into a comfortable Renaissance residence; the town also flourished at the time, and was endowed with privileges almost equal to royal towns. 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 ...

put an end to the prosperity of the town. The properties of the Smiřický family, who had been loyal to King Frederick V, were seized by the imperial treasury after the Battle of the White Mountain and sold to the House of Trčka of Lípa in 1623. When Adam Erdman Trčka was assassinated together with his brother-in-law

Albrecht von Wallenstein Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von Wallenstein, Duke of Friedland (; 24 September 1583 – 25 February 1634), also von Waldstein (), was a Bohemian military leader and statesman who fought on the Catholic side during the Thirty Years' War (1618–16 ...

Cheb Cheb (; ) is a town in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře River. Before the Expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia, expulsion of Germans in 1945, the town was the centre of the G ...

in 1634, the domain was seized again and donated by the Emperor to his general

Ottavio Piccolomini Ottavio Piccolomini, 1st Duke of Amalfi (11 November 1599 – 11 August 1656) was an Italian nobleman whose military career included service as a Spanish general and then as a field marshal of the Holy Roman Empire. Early life Piccolomini was ...

, later Duke of Amalfi. Thus the town fell into the hands of the Italian family, suffered from military operations and forced re-catholicization, but also enjoyed some development: the castle was grandly rebuilt in the Baroque style and the first street in the town was paved in 1638. After the fire of 1663, a new town hall was built and the Church of St. Lawrence on the square was rebuilt. The burgesses were also granted some privileges. The Piccolominis extinct in 1783, the Náchod domain was inherited by the Desfours family and sold in 1792 to Duke Peter von Biron of Courland and Sagan, who established a theatre on the castle and significantly improved overall the level of cultural life in Náchod. When the duke died in 1800, his eldest daughter Katharina Wilhelmine (1781–1839) inherited Náchod and the Duchy of Sagan. After her death, the princes of Schaumburg-Lippe (in today's Lower Saxony) bought Náchod and held the castle till 1945, though the domain system was abolished in the reform of 1849 and succeeded by public administration districts. Beside the district administration and district court, the reform brought about an elected town council, fast development of industry and schools, and a building boom that included the Neo-Renaissance town hall and Art Nouveau theatre. The railway was also built and from 1882, when two factories were established, the textile industry quickly developed. Náchod became the cotton industry centre of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

. At the beginning of the 20th century, Náchod was nicknamed "

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

of the east". Extensive border fortifications were built in and around Náchod in the years prior to World War II to protect the territory of Czechoslovakia against the threat of German invasion. During World War II, the town was occupied by Germany. Náchod had virtually no ethnic German population.

Demographics

Economy

The service sector is the major employer in Náchod. Revenues from tourism are crucial for the economy of the town and the whole region. The largest employer based in the town is the hospital. The largest industrial companies are ATAS elektromotory Náchod and Ametek elektromotory, both producers of

electric motor An electric motor is a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a electromagnetic coil, wire winding to gene ...

s, and the rubber factory of Rubena Náchod. The tradition of textile industry is held by the last surviving cotton-weaving mill Bartoň – textil, founded in 1867. Long tradition has also the Primátor Brewery, founded in 1872.

Transport

On the Czech-Polish border is the road border crossing ''Náchod / Kudowa Słone''. The I/33 road (part of the

European route E67 European route E 67 is an E-road running from Prague in the Czech Republic to Estonia and by ferry to Finland. It goes via Prague, Wrocław, Warsaw, Kaunas, Panevėžys, Riga, Tallinn, Helsinki. The route is known as the Via Baltica ...

) connects

with Náchod and the border crossing. The second main road that runs through Náchod is I/14 (specifically its section from

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 ...

Ústí nad Orlicí Ústí nad Orlicí (; ) is a town in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 14,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban monument z ...

). Náchod is located on the railway lines Broumov– Starkoč and Týniště nad Orlicí– Teplice nad Metují. The town is served by three stations and stops: ''Náchod'', ''Náchod zastávka'' and ''Náchod-Běloves''.

Sights

Náchod Castle

Náchod Castle is the main landmark of the town. Since 1945, the castle is owned by the state. The interiors are open to the public, its exhibits include collections from Prince

's time (e.g. tapestries) or phaleristic and

numismatic Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals, and related objects. Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also inclu ...

collections. Other sights include Gothic cellars and the observation tower (keep), and a moat with bears, which is the largest bear enclosure in the country.

Ecclesiastical buildings

The Church of Saint Lawrence is located in the middle of Masarykovo Square in the historic town centre. It was first mentioned in 1350 and rebuilt in 1570–1578. The Church of Saint Michael the Archangel was built in 1709–1716 in the Baroque style. The Church of Saint John the Baptist in Staré Město nad Metují was built in the Gothic style in the 13th century and reconstructed in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. Since 1791, it is only a cemetery church.

Spa

The village of Běloves was known for its spa. The first mention of the healing water is from 1392. The spa was founded in 1818 and closed in 1996. Although the spa complex is in a desolate state, a small colonnade with two mineral springs and permanent exhibition on the history of spa was built by the town and opened in December 2019.

Notable people

* Jan Letzel (1880–1925), architect * Jan Roth (1899–1972), cinematographer * Václav Černý (1905–1987), literary scholar and writer * Josef Týfa (1913–2007), type designer * Luba Skořepová (1923–2016), actress *

Josef Škvorecký Josef Škvorecký (; September 27, 1924 – January 3, 2012) was a Czech-Canadian writer and publisher. He spent half of his life in Canada, publishing and supporting banned Czech literature during the communist era. Škvorecký was awarded the ...

(1924–2012), writer * Petr Skrabanek (1940–1994), physician * Josef Tošovský (born 1950), economist and former prime minister * Václav Kotal (born 1952), football player and manager * Libor Michálek (born 1968), economist and politician * Vratislav Lokvenc (born 1973), footballer * Pavel Bělobrádek (born 1976), politician * Martin Štěpánek (born 1977), freediver * Petr Schwarz (born 1991), footballer

Twin towns – sister cities

Náchod is twinned with: * Bauska, Latvia *

Halberstadt Halberstadt (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany, the capital of Harz (district), Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town ...

, Germany *

Kudowa-Zdrój Kudowa-Zdrój (, ), or simply Kudowa, is a town located below the Table Mountains in Kłodzko County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in the southwestern part of Poland. It has a population of around 10,000 and is located at the Polish-Czech border, j ...

, Poland *

Kłodzko Kłodzko (; ; ; ) is a historic town in south-western Poland, in the region of Lower Silesia. It is situated in the centre of the Kłodzko Valley, on the Eastern Neisse (Nysa Kłodzka) river. Kłodzko is the seat of Kłodzko County (and of the ru ...

, Poland *

Partizánske Partizánske (, meaning "partisan town", formerly: ''Šimonovany'', from 1948: ''Baťovany'', ) is a town in Trenčín Region, Slovakia. Geography Partizánske is located in the northern part of the Danubian Hills around from Nitra and from t ...

, Slovakia * Persan, France * Tiachiv, Ukraine *

Warrington Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...

, England, United Kingdom

Gallery

Nachod castle1.jpg, Náchod Castle Nová radnice (New townhall), Náchod 01.JPG, New Town Hall Nachod Hotel U Beranka.jpg, Hotel and theatre "U Beránka" Náchod, kostel sv. Michala 02.jpg, Church of Saint Michael the Archangel Staré Město nad Metují (Náchod) - Drtinovo náměstí.jpg, Staré Město nad Metují

References

External links

*
Náchod Castle official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nachod Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Náchod District Czech Republic–Poland border crossings