Jindřichův Hradec


Jindřichův Hradec is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has approximately 21,500 inhabitants and is the capital of the Jindřichův Hradec District.

History

The first written mention of the town is in 1220. Before that, it was probably a Slavic settlement. At the end of the 12th century more people arrived. At the beginning of the 13th century a Gothic castle was built. In the census following the Thirty Years' War, Jindřichův Hradec was the second largest city in the Kingdom of Bohemia. Between 1831 and 1935 it was the first city in the area to get electricity for lighting, in 1888 the water mill was converted to electricity.

Main sights

The city castle and palace is the third largest in the country after those in Prague and Český Krumlov. It covers and contains 320 rooms. More than 10,000 works of art and a similar number of books may be found there.
The district museum, which is in a Renaissance building that was once the Jesuit seminary appeared in the city in 1882 and is one of the oldest regional museums in Bohemia. The most well-known item in the museum is the Kryza, the largest mechanical Christmas manger scene in the world according to the Guinness Book of World Records.
Houses in the marketplace with the pristine Gothic city hall

Surroundings

Jindřichův Hradec's neighbourhood includes sites such as Červená Lhota Castle, the historical town of Třeboň and Stráž nad Nežárkou. The UNESCO World Heritage town of Telč lies to the east.

Notable people

Jindřichův Hradec is twinned with: