Municipality in Plze?, Czech Republic
Velhartice
(
German
:
Welhartitz
) is a municipality and village in
Klatovy District
in the
Plze? Region
of the
Czech Republic
. It has about 900 inhabitants. The historic centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an
urban monument zone
.
Administrative parts
[
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]
Villages of Brani?kov, Chot??ov, Drouhavec, Hory Matky Bo?i, Jarkovice, Konin, Nemilkov, Radvanice, Stojanovice and Tvrdoslav are administrative parts of Velhartice.
Geography
[
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]
Velhartice is located about 16 kilometres (10 mi) south of
Klatovy
and 51 km (32 mi) south of
Plze?
. It lies in the
Bohemian Forest Foothills
. The highest point is at 966 m (3,169 ft) above sea level. The Ostru?na River flows through the municipality.
History
[
edit
]
Velhartice Castle
The first written mention of the Velhartice settlement is from 1318.
[2]
However, the Gothic Velhartice Castle was built already in 1290?1310 by Bu?ek the Elder and Bu?ek the Younger, who later became known as Lords of Velhartice and became chamberlains of Emperor
Charles IV
.
[3]
In the 15th century, a significant owner of Velhartice was
Zden?k Lev of Ro?mital
, who granted the estate the right to mine precious metals. The prosperity ended with the
Thirty Years' War
. After the war, Velhartice was acquired by Don Martin de Hoeff Huerto who had the castle rebuilt in the late Renaissance style. Huerto tried to forcefully re-catholicize the region, but he also abolished the
corvee
.
[3]
At the end of the 18th century, the then-owners of Velhartice, the
Desfours
family, founded a
paper mill
. The second paper mill was founded in 1865. A leather-tanning factory opened in 1882.
[2]
The last owner of the Velhartice Castle, Prince Joseph
Windisch-Graetz
, was
expelled
to
Austria
in 1946.
[4]
Demographics
[
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]
Historical population
| Year
| Pop.
| ±%
|
|---|
| 1869
| 2,913
| ?
|
|---|
| 1880
| 2,856
| ?2.0%
|
|---|
| 1890
| 2,641
| ?7.5%
|
|---|
| 1900
| 2,584
| ?2.2%
|
|---|
| 1910
| 2,625
| +1.6%
|
|---|
| | Year
| Pop.
| ±%
|
|---|
| 1921
| 2,650
| +1.0%
|
|---|
| 1930
| 2,409
| ?9.1%
|
|---|
| 1950
| 1,653
| ?31.4%
|
|---|
| 1961
| 1,580
| ?4.4%
|
|---|
| 1970
| 1,350
| ?14.6%
|
|---|
| | Year
| Pop.
| ±%
|
|---|
| 1980
| 1,087
| ?19.5%
|
|---|
| 1991
| 977
| ?10.1%
|
|---|
| 2001
| 939
| ?3.9%
|
|---|
| 2011
| 841
| ?10.4%
|
|---|
| 2021
| 824
| ?2.0%
|
|---|
|
| Source: Censuses
[5]
[6]
|
Sights
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]
Church of Saint Mary Magdalene
The main landmark of Velhartice is the Velhartice Castle. Today it is owned by the state and opened to the public.
[3]
In Nemilkov is the Nemilkov Castle. It is a Renaissance-Baroque residence built on the remains of a medieval Gothic fortress from the 14th century. The fortress was rebuilt in the 16th century and extended in the late 18th century. During the 20th century, it was damaged by careless use. Today it is in private ownership and is gradually being repaired.
[7]
The Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary. It was originally a Romanesque church founded around 1240, rebuilt and extended in the Gothic style in 1325. Renaissance modifications were made after 1510, further baroque modifications date from the 18th and 19th centuries.
[8]
The Church of Saint Mary Magdalene is a cemetery church which is said to be one of the scariest places in the country, and is associated with several legends. It was built in 1373 and rebuilt in the 16th century.
[9]
Gallery
[
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]
See also
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]
References
[
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]
External links
[
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]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Velhartice
.