Sedlčany

Sedlčany
Town
Masaryk square and town Hall
Coat of arms
Country Czech Republic
Region Central Bohemian
District Příbram
Commune Sedlčany
Rivers Mastník, Sedlecký potok
Elevation 321 m (1,053 ft)
Coordinates 49°39′N 14°25′E / 49.650°N 14.417°E / 49.650; 14.417Coordinates: 49°39′N 14°25′E / 49.650°N 14.417°E / 49.650; 14.417
Area 36.47 km2 (14.08 sq mi)
Population 7,864
Density 216/km2 (559/sq mi)
First mentioned 1057
Mayor Jiří Burian
Timezone CET (UTC+1)
 - summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 264 01
Location in the Czech Republic
Wikimedia Commons: Sedlčany
Statistics: statnisprava.cz
Website: mesto-sedlcany.cz

Sedlčany (Czech pronunciation: [ˈsɛdl̩tʃanɪ]; German: Seltschan) is a town in Příbram District, in Central Bohemia, Czech Republic.

Geography

The town is located on the Mastník River, a tributary of the Vltava, about 30 km (19 mi) east of Příbram. It is the third largest municipality of Příbram District.

Sedlčany is famous for its Hermelín cheese.

History

Sedlčany with St Martin Church, 1602 woodcut

The settlement in the Duchy of Bohemia was first mentioned in a 1057 deed, when the area was colonised by the ruling Přemyslid dynasty. A parish church dedicated to Saint Martin was erected about 1275, and already in 1294 Sedlčany held market rights. Then held by the Vítkovci Neuhaus (Hradec) family, the estates were given in pawn to the House of Rosenberg by King John of Bohemia in 1337. Sedlčany received town privileges in 1353 and numerous further royal privileges under the rule of Emperor Sigismund. Nevertheless the citizens joined the Hussite movement and during the Hussite Wars the town temporarily was controlled by radical Taborites.

In 1475 the noble House of Lobkowicz took over Sedlčany in exchange for Rožmberk Castle, given in pawn by the Bohemian chamberlain John II of Rosenberg in 1464. The Rosenbergs regained the town, however, in 1580 William of Rosenberg relinquished it to his custodian Jakub Krčín. Upon his death in 1604 the last Rosenberg scion Peter Vok sold Sedlčany to the Bohemian chancellor Zdeněk Vojtěch Popel of Lobkowicz, who administered stern Counter-Reformation measures to its citizens. The town was devastated by Swedish troops during the Thirty Years' War and did not recover until the mid 18th century.

From 1804 Sedlčany/Selčan was part of the Austrian Empire and after the Compromise of 1867 belonged to the Cisleithanian half of Austria-Hungary. The town was the administrative seat of a district (Bezirk) of the same name, one of the 94 Bezirkshauptmannschaften in the crown land of Bohemia.[1] Sedlčany developed to a centre of textile industry, the local economy was further promoted when the town received access to the railway line to Olbramovice in 1894. Under the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia the nearby SS-Truppenübungsplatz Böhmen was laid out from 1941, whereby numerous villages were cleared and the inhabitants expelled.

Notable people

Třebnice Castle, birthplace of Field Marshal Radetzky

References

  1. ↑ Die postalischen Abstempelungen auf den österreichischen Postwertzeichen-Ausgaben 1867, 1883 und 1890, Wilhelm KLEIN, 1967
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