Velhartice

Velhartice (German: Welhartitz) is a municipality and village in Klatovy District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 900 inhabitants.

Velhartice
Municipality
Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary and the municipal office building
Coat of arms
Velhartice
Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 49°15′55″N 13°23′23″E
Country Czech Republic
RegionPlzeň
DistrictKlatovy
First mentioned1318
Area
 • Total27.26 km2 (10.53 sq mi)
Elevation
622 m (2,041 ft)
Population
 (2020-01-01[1])
 • Total850
 • Density31/km2 (81/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
339 01
Websitewww.velhartice.cz

Administrative parts

Villages and hamlets of Braníčkov, Chotěšov, Drouhavec, Hory Matky Boží, Jarkovice, Konín, Nemilkov, Radvanice, Stojanovice and Tvrdoslav are administrative parts of Velhartice.

History
Velhartice Castle

The first written mention of Velhartice settlement is from 1318.[2] However, the Gothic Velhartice Castle was built already in 1290–1310 by a nobleman who later became courtier and close friend of the Emperor Charles IV.[3]

During the Thirty Years' War, Emperor Ferdinand II gave the castle to one of his generals, Don Balthazar de Marradas who, in 1628, sold it to Don Martin de Hoeff Huerta who bought it for his beautiful adopted daughter Anne-Marie of Moldavia.

In 1790s, the Desfours family, who at the time also owned the castle, built a paper-making factory in Velhartice which, during the World War II, made sleeping bags for the German Army. A leather-tanning factory opened in 1882 and during the World War II provided leather for military boots made in the neighbouring town. In 1945, several armoured units of George S. Patton's Third Army were stationed in Velhartice. The last owner of the Velhartice Castle, Prince Windisch-Graetz, was expelled to Austria in 1946. Presently the castle is claimed by the Czech Republic.

  • A street in Velhartice

References
  1. "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2020". Czech Statistical Office. 2020-04-30.
  2. "Stručná historie Velhartic" (in Czech). Obec Velhartice. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
  3. "Velhartice in the Middle Ages and in the Renaissance period". Velhartice Castle. Retrieved 2020-12-23.
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