Strážov () is a town in

Klatovy District Klatovy District () is a Okres, district in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Klatovy. With an area of , it is the largest district in the country. Administrative division Klatovy District is divided into three Di ...

in the

Plzeň Region Plzeň Region or Plzeňský Region (also known as Pilsen Region; ) is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the western part of the historical land of Bohemia and named after the capital, Plz ...

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 1,400 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone.

Administrative division

Strážov consists of 16 municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Strážov (892) *Božtěšice (24) *Brtí (45) *České Hamry (7) *Horní Němčice (22) *Javoříčko (6) *Kněžice (10) *Krotějov (26) *Lehom (17) *Lukavice (52) *Mladotice (1) *Opálka (81) *Rovná (13) *Splž (15) *Viteň (72) *Zahorčice (60)

Etymology

The name of the town is derived from ''stráž'' (i.e. 'guard') from its original purpose when there was a guarding point of a trade route from

Zwiesel Zwiesel () is a town in the lower-Bavarian district of Regen (district), Regen, and since 1972 is a Luftkurort with particularly good air. The name of the town was derived from the Bavarian word stem which refers to the form of a fork. The fork ...

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 ...

Geography

Strážov is located about south of

Klatovy Klatovy (; ) is a town in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban monument zone. Administr ...

and south of

Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...

. It lies in the

Bohemian Forest Foothills Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, originally practised by 19th–20th century European and American artists and writers. * Bohemian style, a fa ...

. The highest point is at above sea level. The Jelenka Stream flows through the territory.

History

The first written mention of Strážov is from 1352. The settlement was probably founded in the middle of the 13th century.

Silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

and

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

began to be mined in the 15th century. King

Louis II of Hungary Louis II (; ; ; ; 1 July 1506 – 29 August 1526) was King of Hungary, King of Croatia, Croatia and King of Bohemia, Bohemia from 1516 to 1526. He died during the Battle of Mohács fighting the Ottoman Empire, Ottomans, whose victory led to the Ot ...

granted Strážov's

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...

on 24 July 1524, and the right to the

fortification 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 Lati ...

s and the

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

a year later. Soon after, the mines were depleted. The town was burned 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 1641) 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 ...

. Strážov was recovering slowly. The stimulus for its development was mainly the production of

lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is split into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...

(first mentioned in 1725) and the establishment of a

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning (leather), tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffal ...

factory.

Demographics

Transport

The railway line

–

Horažďovice Horažďovice (; ) is a town in Klatovy District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,100 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. Administrative division Horažďo ...

briefly crosses the municipal territory, but there is no train station.

Sights

The historic town centre is protected as an urban monument zone, because it has retained the distinctive character of a foothill town with several valuable buildings in both folk and urban architecture. The main landmark of the town is the Church of Saint George. First documented in 1384, it was built in the early Gothic style in the 13th century. Modifications were made in the 19th century. The Opálka Castle is located in the village of Opálka. It was a small medieval Gothic castle (sometimes referred to as a fortress) from the 14th century, rebuilt in the Renaissance style in the mid-16th century. In the mid-18th century, during the Baroque period, it was extended. The Chapel of Saint Anne in the area dates from the first half of the 19th century. Today, the castle is in poor condition and is being repaired.

Notable people

Abraham Benisch Abraham Benisch (; 1811 – 31 July 1878, London) was an English Hebraist, editor, and journalist. He wrote numerous works in the domain of Judaism, Biblical studies, biography, and travel, and during a period of nearly forty years contributed ...

(1811–1878),

Hebraist A Hebraist is a specialist in Jewish, Hebrew and Hebraic studies. Specifically, British and German scholars of the 18th and 19th centuries who were involved in the study of Hebrew language and literature were commonly known by this designation, a ...

and journalist * Miroslav Toman Sr. (1935–2023), politician

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Strazov Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Populated places in Klatovy District