Letohrad

Letohrad
Basic data
State :	Czech Republic
Region :	Pardubický kraj
District :	Ústí nad Orlicí
Area :	2409 ha
Geographic location :	50 ° 2 ' N , 16 ° 30' E Coordinates: 50 ° 2 '2 " N , 16 ° 30' 10" E
Height:	372 m nm
Residents :	6,402 (Jan 1, 2019)
Postal code :	561 51
License plate :	E.
traffic
Street:	Žamberk - Lanškroun
Railway connection:	Chlumec nad Cidlinou – Międzylesie
structure
Status:	city
Districts:	4th
administration
Mayor :	Petr Fiala (as of 2007)
Address:	Komenského 41 ; 561 51 Letohrad
Municipality number:	580538
Website :	www.letohrad.eu

Letohrad (German: Geiersberg , Czech until 1950: Kyšperk ) is a town in the Okres Ústí nad Orlicí in the Czech Republic . It is located six kilometers southeast of Žamberk .

geography

Letohrad market square

Letohrad lies in the foothills of the Eagle Mountains ( Podorlická pahorkatina ) on both sides of the Silent Eagles . Neighboring towns are Pastviny and Nekoř in the north, Líšnice in the northeast, Jablonné nad Orlicí in the east, Verměřovice in the southeast, Dolní Dobrouč in the south, Lanšperk ( Landsberg ) and Hnánice in the southwest, Žampach in the west and Žamberk in the northwest.

history

Geiersberg Castle , located on a rock spur, was first mentioned in 1308 in the Königsaal Chronicle . It formed the center of an independent rule that was then owned by Ješek, a member of the Lords of Sandbach . It is said to have damaged the neighboring Landsberg rulership , which belonged to the Königsaal monastery . 1349–1370 Ješek's son Buzek is the owner of the castle, who was followed by his son Jeniš. From him the castle and rule Geiersberg acquired before 1396 Nikolaus / Mikuláš von Pottenstein auf Sandbach , who connected the rule Geiersberg with the rule Sandbach. As a result, the Geiersberg / Kyšperk Castle lost its importance as a mansion and remained uninhabited.

The settlement of the same name, which was elevated to a town in 1514, was built in the valley below the castle. After the death of Zdeněk von Žampach and Pottenstein in 1562, an inheritance was divided between his sons Jan Burian and Zdeněk in 1568. The younger Zdeněk received the again independent rule Geiersberg with six villages, but was initially under the tutelage of his older brother Jan Burian. He built a fort on the site of an estate in Geiersberg, which is documented for 1570. After Jan Burian's death in 1574, Zdeněk had to sell the heavily indebted Geiersberg estate. At the end of the 16th century, Geiersberg had a brewery with a malthouse and fermentation cellar, as well as the privileges of two monthly markets and a fair, and embarrassing jurisdiction . Around this time the town, castle and estate of Geiersberg were owned by Adam von Waldstein , from whom the Styrian Protestant Georg von Stubenberg acquired it on March 19, 1601 . When he was forced to emigrate in 1629, he transferred the property to his only grandson, Wolf Georg von Losenstein . He was the son of Georg von Stubenberg's only daughter Anne († 1624), who married the Catholic Georg Christoph von Losenstein († 1622).

After further changes of ownership, Geiersberg came to the Vitanovský von Vlčkovice in 1653. Hynek Dietrich / Dětrich Vitanovský von Vlčkovice ( Hynek Vitanovský z Vlčkovic ) released the subjects from forced labor and built a hospital for the poor and the elderly. He also founded ten guilds . In 1680 he began to convert the fort into an early Baroque style palace, but died a year later. His widow Johanna Magdalena, née von Harras , who soon married Norbert Leopold von Libštejn- Kolowrat , completed the building of the palace around 1685, but died a little later. Geiersberg with the associated villages inherited her second husband. In 1706 his son Franz Karl von Kolowrat ( František Karel Libštejnský z Kolovrat ) took over the rule of Geiersberg, which at that time included 17 villages. He began building the pilgrimage chapel of St. Johann von Nepomuk, which was completed 1734–1736 under the owner Johann Wenzel von Breda. In 1776 Theresa von Breda, married Cavriani , inherited the town and rule of Geiersberg. Around 1800 she initiated extensive alterations to the palace, which, however, could only be completed by her son-in-law Peter Marcolini-Ferrati, who had been married to Maria Anna Cavriani since 1795. An economic boom followed in the 19th century with the establishment of several match factories. In 1820 the landlord Marcolini-Ferrati built a road to Wildenschwert. In 1824 a fire devastated almost all the houses on the market square. In 1834 Theresia Marcolini-Ferrati inherited the town and rule of Geiersberg. In 1836 she married Karl von Nimptsch , to whom she transferred her property. With the connection to the Chlumec nad Cidlinou – Mittelwalde railway , which reached Geiersberg in 1874, the textile industry and electrical engineering companies also developed. After the death of Count Karl von Nimptsch in 1877, Geiersberg inherited his daughter Anna von Nimptsch, who was married to Count Josef Felix Adolf von Stubenberg . 1800 inhabitants were counted in 1890. The mechanical weaving mill Louis-Weiss was founded in the Erlitz district in 1893, and the Fischl-Engel textile factory in Geiersberg in 1901. After the death of Countess Anna von Stubenberg-Nimtsch in 1916, she was followed by her son Karl, who died on June 9, 1928 in Bad Reichenhall . Geiersberg / Kyšperk Castle stayed with his descendants until it was expropriated in 1945.

After the establishment of Czechoslovakia in 1918, Geiersberg received the official place name Kyšperk . In 1950 it was first renamed Orličné . Since this place name was rejected by the population, it was finally renamed Letohrad . In the same year the localities Rotnek (now Červená ), Kunčice and Orlice were incorporated.

After the political change in 1989, the baroque town houses on the market square were repaired and the facades were renovated. Every year there is a pilgrimage to the St. Nepomuk Chapel and an international music festival. During the winter, Letohrad hosts the Biathlon Rollerski Championships of the Czech Republic.

Community structure

The town of Letohrad includes the localities Červená ( Roteneck ) with Jankovice ( Jankowitz ) and Pustiny ( desert ), as well as Kunčice ( Kunzendorf ) and Orlice ( Erlitz ).

Attractions

Letohrad Castle

Letohrad Castle was rebuilt from the former fort in 1680–85 and expanded around 1800.
The St. Wenceslas Church initially served as a castle chapel. It was rebuilt in 1726 and expanded to become a parish church. The stucco work was done by the Italian sculptor Giovanni Materna.
Market square with baroque houses and arcades
The castle Geiersberg was first mentioned in 1308 and devastated 1714-1734.
The construction of the pilgrimage chapel of St. Johannes von Nepomuk was started after 1714 by the landlord Franz Karl von Kolowrat and completed in 1734–1736 under Johannes Wenzel von Breda. Some of the building materials came from the ruins of the Geiersberg / Kyšperk castle. The Geiersberg painter Dominik Umlauf painted the Stations of the Cross pictures around 1866
The handicraft museum in an old baroque warehouse

Personalities

František Vladislav Hek (1769–1847), died in Geiersberg
Josef Korbel (1909–1977), diplomat and father of the former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright
Dominik Umlauf (* 1792 in Mlýnice ( Lenzdorf ) near Rothwaser , † 1872 in Geiersberg), church painter and sculptor, lived in Geiersberg from 1830; as well as his sons
Ignatz Umlauf (1821–1851), academic painter and
Johann Umlauf (1825–1916), academic painter and photographer

Twin cities

Hausen am Albis , Switzerland
Niemcza , Poland

literature

Joachim Bahlcke , Winfried Eberhard, Miloslav Polívka (eds.): Handbook of historical places . Volume: Bohemia and Moravia (= Kröner's pocket edition . Volume 329). Kröner, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-520-32901-8 , p. 162.