Dvůr Králové nad Labem

Town

Flag	Coat of arms

Name origin: Queen consort's court on the Elbe

Country

Czech Republic

Region

Hradec Králové

District

Trutnov

Commune

Dvůr Králové nad Labem

River

Elbe

Elevation

298-482 m (-1,283 ft)

Coordinates

50°25′59″N 15°48′44″E / 50.43306°N 15.81222°ECoordinates: 50°25′59″N 15°48′44″E / 50.43306°N 15.81222°E

Area

35.82 km² (13.83 sq mi)

Population

16,282 (2010-12-10)

Density

455 / km² (1,178 / sq mi)

First mentioned

1270

Mayor

Mgr. Edita Vaňková (ČSSD)

Timezone

CET (UTC+1)

- summer (DST)

CEST (UTC+2)

Postal code

544 01 - 544 04

Location in the Czech Republic

Wikimedia Commons: Dvůr Králové nad Labem

Statistics: statnisprava.cz

Website: www.mudk.cz

Dvůr Králové nad Labem (Czech pronunciation: [ˈdvuːr ˈkraːlovɛː ˈnad labɛm], German: Königinhof an der Elbe); is a town in the Czech Republic in Hradec Králové Region, in the Labe (Elbe) river valley. It is located in the Eastern Bohemia close to the Czech highest mountains Krkonoše.

Features

Dvůr Králové is a center of the textile and machinery industries.

Dvůr Králové Zoo with its African safari theme lies near the town. Visitors may admire well over 2000 animals of 500 species of mostly African hoofstock which makes this zoo one of the largest in Europe. As one of the most successful breeders of many endangered species it is of note that within the last 30 years more than 200 giraffes were born there.

Outside the city, visitors can view an old residence of the Jesuits in Žireč and a hospital in Kuks, both with many Baroque statues by famous sculptor Matthias Braun.

History

Bohemia

Dvůr Králové was first mentioned in 1270. It was a dowry town, owned by the King's wife and responsible for her expenses when her husband died. Until 1918, the town was part of the Austrian monarchy (Austria side after the compromise of 1867), head of the Königshof an der Elbe - Dvůr Králové nad Labem district, one of the 94 Bezirkshauptmannschaften in Bohemia.^[1]

Austrian KK 2 kronen stamp cancelled in a nearby village in 1918

Textile Industry

Dvůr Králové allowed Jews to settle there in 1848. Various Jewish families arrived in the early 1860s and began developing a local textile industry (the soft water of the Elbe was essential for the dying and printing for the textile industry). By 1930 there were some 200 to 300 Jews living in the town. The textile industry had grown to some 17 textile firms (Sohorts, Neuman, Mautner, Deutsch etc). By the end of 1945 there were no Jews left in the town.

Manuscript affair

On September 16, 1817, Václav Hanka allegedly discovered a manuscript appearing to be from the 13th century in the tower of a local church. The Manuscript of Dvůr Kralové, probably in fact created by Hanka, was intended to help Czech patriots in the struggle against German culture. It was proven to be a forgery at the end of the 19th century by Professor Tomáš Masaryk and confirmed as such by later examinations . A minority of historians still consider it genuine.