Třebíč (German Trebitsch, used in German from 1850 to 1924, later
between 1940 and 1945, in Yiddish rejרייביטש (Trejbitš)), a town
with extended powers, is located in western Moravia in the
southeastern part of the Vysočina Region and is its second after
Jihlava largest city. It lies on the river Jihlava 30 km southeast
of the regional city of Jihlava and 56 km west of Brno. The altitude
of the town is between 392 m above sea level at Paleček's mill by
the river Jihlava and 503 m above sea level at the top of Strážná
hora with the chapel of St. John of Nepomuk.
Approximately
35,000 inhabitants live here, making Třebíč the 28th largest Czech
city. The beginnings of the town are connected with the founding of
a Benedictine monastery above the river Jihlava in 1101, on the site
of which today stands the Třebíč chateau. The first written mention
of the town, the deed of Abbot Martin, then dates from 1277. The
town received city rights from Margrave Charles in 1335, thanks to
which it gained the right to fortify itself with walls and moats. At
the time of its greatest expansion, Třebíč was the most important
center in Moravia after Olomouc and Brno, and the estates of the
local monastery reached almost as far as Opava. The population began
to grow only after the Second World War, along with the construction
of family houses and subsequently large prefabricated housing
estates with apartments, especially for employees of the newly built
power plant in Dukovany. Today, Třebíč is an important center of
western Moravia and the Třebíč district.
The area of Třebíč
is 57.6 km2 and the city has been divided into 17 parts since 1995,
10 of which are located directly in the city and the remaining 7 in
the vicinity. There are important monuments in the city, the Třebíč
Jewish Quarter and the Basilica of St. Procopius were inscribed on
the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2003. Charles Square in the city
center is one of the largest in the Czech Republic.
The
city's website is also accessible on the Internet for people with
disabilities, such as the blind and the like. In the Golden Like of
2020 competition, the Facebook profile of the city of Třebíč took
second place in the category of cities with more than 10,000
inhabitants.
The neighboring villages of the seat are
Okřešice, Vladislav, Trnava, Kožichovice, Střítež, Petrůvky, Výčapy,
Mikulovice, Mastník, Petrovice, Krahulov, Nová Ves, Číhalín, Horní
Vilémovice and Stařeč.
There are many monuments and important places in Třebíč. There is an
ancient Jewish city and the Basilica of St. Procopius, and both
monuments were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2003. In
the center of the city is Karlovo náměstí, which is one of the largest
squares in the Czech Republic.
On the left bank of the river
Jihlava, in a place called Židy or Zámostí, is one of the largest Jewish
districts in Europe. The Jewish quarter of Třebíč is the only Jewish
monument outside the territory of Israel, separately listed in the
UNESCO list. It was added on July 3, 2003. There are winding streets,
original houses, arched passages and many other typical features.
However, the town hall, rabbinate, hospital and most other monuments no
longer serve their original purpose.
The Basilica of St. Prokop
is located in the Podklášteří, which, together with the Jewish quarter,
is on the UNESCO list. There used to be a Benedictine abbey here, which
was founded in 1101. Over time, the monastery became a religious center
and a military fortress, a position it maintained until the Hussite
Wars. In 1468, during the so-called Battle of Třebíč, it was captured by
Hungarian soldiers. Later secular authorities rebuilt the monastery into
a castle. Today, the Museum of the Třebíč Highlands is located here,
later reconstructed, together with other premises of the castle.
Across the river, opposite the Jewish town, lies the center of the city,
which is made up of Charles Square, popularly also called the market
square, laid out as a market place with an area of 22,000 m² when the
city was founded. With these dimensions, it is only a few square meters
smaller than Wenceslas Square in Prague, so that in the past the city
could be equal to the size of the royal cities. At the beginning of the
19th century, the square still had a Renaissance and Baroque appearance,
which was destroyed by fire in 1822. Today, morning markets, cultural
events such as the Třebíč Folklore Festival and celebrations of the
city's entry into the UNESCO World Heritage List are held on Charles
Square.
On a hill in the Inner City there is a 75-meter high city
tower, which belongs to the church of St. Martin of Tours. However, it
was not previously connected to it, but served as part of the
fortifications. There is also a Capuchin monastery, an Orthodox and an
Evangelical church. On Charles Square there is also the Painted House
with a gallery and information center, the Black House and the statue of
Cyril and Methodius. In the same way, the National House with a
permanent exhibition of František Mertl, a native of Třebíč, is located
on Karlov náměstí. The Ladislav Novák Gallery is located in the Jewish
town.
The eastern area of the city center, towards the Borovina
district, is called na Starečka. There is a chapel of the Exaltation of
St. Kříže, on the highest point of Třebíč, not far from the observatory
and the clubhouses of the scout groups, called Kostelíček, which have
not yet been delivered. This chapel has the plan of a cross and its
builder was the architecturally uneducated builder Jan Fulík. It was
built in 1644. Not far from the chapel is the original waterworks, from
which an observation tower with an exposition of the water industry in
Třebíč should be created in 2015.
By the river Jihlava lies the
Polanka river bath from 1933. The wooden changing rooms from the same
year are still in use and are still an object of admiration. The author
of the design was Bohuslav Fuchs. The Games without Borders were held in
this spa in 1992, and the team from Třebíč eventually won in the finals
of that year in the Azores. On the so-called Kancibork, there is a
Windmill, which was used to prepare tannery for tanners, today it is no
longer functional.
There are also several city parks in Třebíč,
which are fairly evenly distributed, with at least one in almost every
local area. The founding of parks has a tradition in Třebíč, for
example, Lorenz's gardens date back to 1899.
The monuments
included in the list of UNESCO monuments in 2011 received a grant from
the Vysočina Region through the city, tied to the inclusion of camera
recordings and transmissions of the monuments in the program Panorama of
Czech Television, together with the city of Třebíčí, the cities of Telč
and Žďár nad Sázavou also received the same grant. On television
screens, the filmed images appeared in the premiere from May 1, 2012
until the end of October of the same year. Records were available
throughout the year on the websites of cities, regions, UNESCO and other
organizations. In January 2016, reporter Pavel Horký, a native of
Třebíč, filmed a report on the transformation of the site of the former
Baťový závodí and Alternátor science center for the Czech TV program
Toulavá kamera.
The name of the town most likely comes from the local name les
Třebečský (Třebečský les) mentioned in the Třebeč copy of the Chronicle
of Kosmos, written in the Třebeč monastery (in silva trebecensis – in
the Třebeč forest). The name Třebečský les can come from the proper name
Třebek, or from the word třeby, which were sacrificial places to pagan
gods. The name can also come from the word třebiti, which has the
meaning of destroying a forest or also cutting down a forest, from which
it is concluded that there were deep forests in the territory of the
city, but this possibility is less likely.
According to the
analysis of all topographical names in the Třebíč region carried out by
Rudolf Šrámek at the end of the 20th century, several conclusions were
drawn, which today are generally considered the most probable, as far as
the origin of the name of the town of Třebíč is concerned. According to
Šrámek, the name Třebíč fits into the Vladislav – Stařeč axis. It has in
common with the name of the village Vladislav that it most likely comes
from a personal name. As well as the name Stareč, which should come from
the personal name Starek. In Třebíč, the name Třebek (similar to the
village of Trzebiesláw) is considered that personal name. According to
this, the designation Třebeč would be a designation for Třebk's
property, i.e. the place where Třebek lived and probably owned some
land. Given this fact, it is obvious that the name Třebečský les
mentioned in the Třebeč copy of Kosm's Chronicle could be an area that
was either located near Třebč's seat or was directly under his
administration. Regarding the change from the name Třebeč to Třebíč, the
name of the city is related to the already mentioned name of the nearby
village Stareč. The forms Třebeč and Stařeč are very similar and at the
same time they are inflected in the same way. The genitive of both names
is therefore similar: without Třebče, without Starče. The form bez Starč
was changed over time to bez Starč, and thus a version of this local
name Starč was created, still used in the 19th century. Similarly, the
name Teleč changed to Telč. It was the creation of a new nominative to
the genitive and other cases that gave rise to the name Třebč, and
subsequently Třebíč. The name Staríč was also used in a similar way.
In his analysis, Šrámek practically ruled out, among other things,
that the name Třebíč should originate from the verb třebit, i.e. to
uproot, burn or clear the given place, especially from afforestation. He
finds the justification in the word třebež, which is an old Czech term
for a refined, uprooted place, i.e. a place where it was cultivated. The
original name of the place and town would then have to be Třebež, and
such an entry has never been found. This fact is even more confirmed by
the fact that there would probably not have been such a big change and
the suppression of the original meaning, as would have happened in the
case of the change from Třebež to Třebíč.
The name was originally
used in the masculine gender, but in the 19th century, following the
example of the municipality, it began to be used in the feminine gender
- Třebíč. The name in German Trebitsch used from 1850 to 1924, later
between 1940 and 1945.
There were no older settlements in the places where Třebíč was
founded. The only finds were documented on Charles Square and in the Old
Town section. In these places, the remains of the foundations of houses
were found, which could be older than the buildings of the city itself
and, according to Fišer, could even be older than the Třebíč monastery.
According to the chronicle of Eliáš Střelka Náchodský, the Dřevín or
Dřevíč castle could have been located on the site of the monastery, but
this possibility was ruled out in more recent research by dr. The
fissure has almost been disproved. It is more likely that there was a
fortified manor here, which could have belonged to a certain Třebko. His
name could be connected with the local name Třebečský les. This
fortified manor could be located on a hill in the center of the city
called Horka.
The first mentions of Třebíč go back to 1101, when
the Moravian provincial princes Oldřich Brněnský and Litold Znojemský
founded a Benedictine monastery on the territory below Strážná hora and
by the river Jihlava. The first building of this monastery was the
church of St. Benedict consecrated in 1104. Later, a new monastery
building was added and around 1260 the basilica of St. Prokop. The
oldest document in which Třebíč was mentioned as a city was written in
1277. Permission to fortify itself with walls and to follow city law was
granted to the city in 1335 by Charles IV. and Jan Luxemburgský. In
1468, during the wars between George of Poděbrady and Matthias Corvín,
the city was besieged by the Hungarian army, conquered and badly
damaged, and it even ceased to exist for several years.
After
1492, the city burned down many times and was rebuilt several times, and
except for some houses, its Renaissance appearance was not preserved.
Třebíč became the property of the Pernštejn family, and in 1525 the
monastery was forcibly abolished. Later, in 1527, the town became the
property of the Osovský family from Doubravice, this family was
responsible for the development of the town. After obtaining the seal
right in 1582, the city became the property of the Valdštejn family. In
the second half of the 17th century, the parish of St. Martina was
promoted to the deanship, this event greatly influenced
re-Catholicization. In the years 1765–1769, the city, like the whole of
Moravia, suffered from a famine that lasted until 1772.
In 1821
and 1822, the city was destroyed by great fires. The first were
retribution for anti-robot riots, leaflets with threats were distributed
around the surrounding villages, which were carried out from May to July
1821. Many houses burned down in Žide, Týn and Jejkov. The second fire
started in the U zlatého leva house and burned down 290 houses, a church
and a church tower. The damage was estimated at one million guilders.
Ten years later, in 1832, cholera began to attack the population in
Třebíč. Meanwhile, in 1830, one of the biggest floods swept through the
city, flooding the entire Charles Square. After 1850, a savings bank
(1863), the National House and a gymnasium (both 1871) were gradually
established in the city. In 1885, a statue of St. Cyril and Methodius on
Charles Square, a year later the city was connected to the railway. At
the end of the 19th century, the now significant enterprises ZON
(founded in 1879) and BOPO (formerly Carl Budischowski, now defunct)
were also established.
At the beginning of the 20th century, a
hospital was founded in Třebíč by doctor Jaroslav Bakeš. In the 1930s,
the Budischowski tannery was purchased by Tomáš Bata's company, which
began to build workers' colonies in Borovina, the well-known
semi-detached brick houses, and thus created a large part of today's
local part of Borovina. In the 1920s and 1930s, when the prominent
patriot Josef Vaněk was mayor of the city, the city experienced a great
boom. He also welcomed President T. G. Masaryk on an official visit to
the city on June 13, 1928, who also viewed the Romanesque-Gothic
Basilica of St. Prokop, for the repair of which he made a personal
donation (CZK 15,000). In 1935, Třebíč celebrated its 600th anniversary
as a city, to which personalities from all over the Czechoslovak
Republic were invited.
During the Second World War, the
development of the city was slowed down, one of the reasons was supposed
to be the expulsion of Jews from Třebíč and their transport to
concentration camps. A German garrison was also based in Třebíč. After
the Second World War, the power of the communists grew in Třebíč, this
could also be due to the high number of workers and because of some of
the then politicians or army officials who came from Třebíč. After the
so-called February 1948, large Třebíč companies were nationalized and
the city was developed according to central plans. In the 1970s, new
housing estates, schools and other facilities began to be built. The
reason was the construction and operation of the Dukovany nuclear power
plant. At the turn of the 1980s and 1990s, due to the acceleration of
public transport in and around Třebíč, the introduction of trolleybuses
in Třebíč was planned, which was never implemented. In 1985, another of
the big floods swept through the city, later floods returned in 2005 and
2006.
After the Velvet Revolution, Třebíč experienced great
development. On July 3, 2003, the Jewish ghetto and the basilica became
part of the UNESCO list. After 2000, regional development is supported
in Třebíč, an industrial zone was opened, new shops are opened here (the
first Spar supermarket in the Czech Republic was opened here) and
business is developing. For the years 2009–2013 and from 2017, the
modernization and electrification of railway line No. 240 leading
through Třebíč was planned in several stages, and route proposals for
the construction of a large urban ring road were also published.
There is very well-preserved nature near Třebíč. Only in the
south was the original vegetation disturbed by the large fields that
were established in the 1950s. Thanks to the occurrence of many rare
species of plants and animals in the vicinity of Třebíč, there are
several nature parks:
Třebíčsko Nature Park
Pojihlaví Nature
Park
Rokytná nature park
There are also several monuments
and nature reserves and approximately 100 memorial trees in the
vicinity of Třebíč.
The Libušino údolí nature park also has
an important natural value in the city.
The xerothermic rocks
and slopes above the river in Třebíč are very important from the
point of view of biodiversity, which host a number of rare
organisms. These are mostly heat-loving plants and animals that
penetrated here along the Jihlava River from the warmer regions of
South Moravia and often have their northern distribution limit here.
To the east of the city, along the river Jihlava, we find partly
preserved floodplain meadows, where a population of European beaver
(Castor fiber) lives and a number of endangered plant species grow,
for which PP Hluboček was also created.
Geological structure,
relief and soils
From a geological point of view, practically the
entire built-up part of the town of Třebíč is located on the
so-called Třebíč massif (in older literature also the
Třebíč-Velkomeziříč massif), sometimes referred to as the Třebíč
plateau or the Třebíč triangle. It is a magmatic body with an area
of approx. 500 km2 located approximately between the towns of
Jaroměřice nad Rokytnou, Polná and Velká Bíteš. The age of the rocks
is approximately 340 million years, according to isotopic dating.
The composition of the rocks of the Třebíč massif corresponds most
often to granite and, in the case of a lower amount of quartz, to
syenite. Dark minerals such as biotite and amphibole are relatively
abundant in the rock, which together with large feldspar grains give
it a characteristic appearance. It is interesting from a chemical
point of view: it has a relatively high potassium content combined
with an unusually high magnesium content. Rocks of this type were
first described in the German Black Forest at the location of
Durbach, to which the rock owes its name - durbachite. The Třebíč
massif is known mainly for the finds of amethysts and amethysts near
Hostákov and Bochovice.
The rock is also characterized by
increased contents of uranium and thorium, which, together with the
radioactive isotope of potassium, cause relatively high
radioactivity. This is, among other things, the cause of the
blackening of quartz - Hradec Morion. As a result of the radioactive
decay of uranium and thorium, radioactive radon gas is produced, the
presence of which in the underlying rocks entails the need to apply
measures against its penetration into buildings. The release of
radon occurs mainly in the northern part of the city, which was and
is an obstacle in the expansion of the city towards the north.
Durbachites create very extensive outcrops in the city,
stretching along the northern perimeter of the Jewish Quarter along
the river to Kočičina and further to the east. However, they are
also exposed in a number of other places. In Třebíč, vein-related
rocks are very abundant. These are light aplite veins, the thickness
of which reaches a maximum of several meters. The most striking
outcrop of these rocks is located on the slope at Hrádek below the
Žižková mound, where the veins are visible from a great distance due
to their light color.
The westernmost part of the city, which
mainly includes the local part of Borovina, already lies outside the
Třebíč massif, and the subsoil here is made up of migmatized
(melted) sillimanite biotite paragules containing cordierite in
places. These rocks can be found, for example, in the outcrops
between Polanka and Pousov. They are usually banded, but this
structure is wiped away in places due to their melting. These rocks
also contain inserts of calcium-silicate rocks of erlans. These
rocks were subjected to intensive chemical weathering in the
Tertiary tropical climate, which gave rise to the well-known
brightly colored Borovin and Rípov opals. As part of the building
modifications in 2017, opals of various colors were rediscovered,
the most green, brown and red, the least white and yellow. Opals had
previously appeared in the area of the former Borovinská brick
factory, which later disappeared and finds were only sporadic.
Interesting minerals are only occasionally found in Třebíč,
especially during construction work and excavations.
During
the excavations on Karlov náměstí, through which the river probably
once flowed, one can come across boulders of crystal and shards.
Apart from them, however, also with vivianite, the formation of
which in our locality is related to the accumulation of organic
substances in medieval sewers. Allanite was found in Stařečka during
the construction of the bus station. The occurrence of the rare
mineral priority is documented from Týn.
Třebíč is also known
for a large deposit of Vltavíns in the south of the city in the
Horka-Domky district near the polyclinic in Vltavínská Street, which
is named after them. Beautiful minerals were also found at the
so-called Kostelíčka: black tourmaline, brown chert, gray-green
chlorite and grains and octahedral crystals of purple and green
fluorite or grains of purple-red garnet - almandine. White quartz
used to be abundant in Jejkov and in the old cemetery in Domce.
Brick clay was also mined in the west of the city.
Třebíč is located in the central part of the Třebíč district, which
lies in the southeastern part of the Vysočina Region. Třebíč is 35 km
southeast from the regional capital and is the second largest city in
the region after Jihlava. The second nearby big city is the former
regional capital Brno, 56 km east from Třebíč.
The city center
lies in the valley of the river Jihlava, which is sixty meters deep. The
rest of the city is then spread over hills, which in places alternate
with valleys through which streams flow into the river. The landscape
north of the city is flat with typical draws and large syenite boulders,
complemented by systems of ponds. The southern landscape is of a
different character and offers much greater possibilities for land use.
About three kilometers to the south of the city rises a volcanic massif,
which is part of the Starečská and Jevišovická uplands, stretching from
the southeast to the west. Klučovská hora, with its television
transmitter for Třebíč and its surroundings, is a prominent feature of
the surroundings, which belongs to the Jevišovická uplands. In its
neighborhood is the Hošťanka hill with a nature reserve. Significant
peaks of the massif, but already further from the city, are Pekelný
kopec, a popular destination for tourists, and Zadní hora, on which
there is also a radio and television transmitter.
Třebíč belonged
territorially to several regions, in 1849 to the Jihlavský region, from
1850 to the Brno region, and from 1854 again to the Jihlavský region. It
remained there until the termination of regional self-government in
1868. During the First Republic, it was supposed to become part of the
"Jihlava" County X, but the establishment of counties never took place.
From 1948 it belonged to the Jihlava Region and from 1960 to the South
Moravian Region.
Třebíč is the second city with the highest percentage of insulated
houses in the Czech Republic. Households in Třebíč are also heated with
biomass. In 2011, the third biomass heating plant was opened. There are
also more companies and places near the city that pollute the
environment, unlike protected areas; The nearby Pozďátky landfill was,
for example, a major environmental burden.
In November 2020, a
charging station was created at the transformer station on Kpt. Jaroš.
City expansion and bypass plan
However, an ecological problem
could be the planned construction of the city bypass, which, among other
things, would unsparingly interfere with the surrounding nature and
landscape, including recreational areas. The bypass would also partially
disrupt the character of the Libušina valley, the most important nature
area in the city.
Another negative phenomenon is the current
creation of shopping centers, halls and warehouses on originally
agricultural land, which also has an adverse effect on water retention.
The development is growing most significantly in the direction of
Kožichovice and Střítež, some streets in Třebíč are therefore already in
the cadastres of these municipalities.
Třebíč is located in a moderately warm area with occasional rain. North-western and westerly air currents prevail here. Cold air mainly flows here from the east and more snowfall in winter. About 560 mm of precipitation falls annually (about 350–400 mm in the growing season and 200–250 mm in the winter). The average annual temperature is 7.5 °C, 18.5 °C in July and -3.4 °C in January.
Already in ancient times, there were important trade routes in the
vicinity of Třebíč: Haberská, which led through Čáslavice, Kojetice,
Stareč, Přibyslavice and Brtnice, in Brtnice it intersected with the
Lovetínská trail, later also called the Třebíčská trail, which led from
old Brno, through Zastávka u Brno, Vladislav, Trnava and ended in
Lovetín. Another important crossroads of paths was the former Brod,
which was located at the place where present-day Vladislav is located,
where the Libicka and Lovetínská paths crossed.
Now Třebíč is a
transport hub of district importance. The first class road No. 23 (Písek
– Brno) and the second class regional backbone road No. 360 pass through
the city connecting the city with the D1 highway near Velké Meziříčí. In
close proximity to the town, the second class road No. 405 turns off
from the I/23 road connecting Třebíč with the regional capital Jihlava.
Since 2010, both regional roads have undergone significant
reconstruction.
The Třebíčí railway network runs in an east-west
direction. In the vicinity of Třebíč, the most important railway is No.
240 from Jihlava to Brno. The Třebíč railway station and the
Třebíč-Borovina stop are located right in Třebíč. Currently, the
transfer terminal is ready, which is used for connecting buses and
trains. Route No. 241 from Okříšek to Znojmo also runs near the town.
On the outskirts of the city is the sports airport of the West
Moravian Aeroclub in Třebíč. Public transport operates in the city,
which is provided by nine bus lines in the city. Previously, it was also
planned to introduce trolleybuses in Třebíč. From an ecological point of
view, gas buses are replacing it today. A large bus station is being
built in the city and is to be modernized.
There are cycle paths
in and around Třebíč. In 2007, a public decree announced the start of
the construction process for the cycle path Jihlava – Třebíč – Raabs an
der Thaya. This construction was accompanied by problems with the
purchase of land. Another cycle path is called Třebíčský okruh and
starts and ends at the so-called Polance in the western part of the
city. Another cycle path is prospectively planned for the route between
Třebíčí and Dukovany, it should run parallel to the main road around the
Dukovany Nuclear Power Plant. The first section of the cycle path
between Třebíčí and Náměště nad Oslavou should be opened in 2021, and a
memorandum on this construction was approved in 2019. The route should
continue through Lísčí or around the Třebíč Hospital towards Borovina.
The river Jihlava and several of its marginal tributaries flow
through Třebíčí, the river has been regulated several times, most
recently in 2010-2012, flood dams and other equipment were added. There
is no water transport in Třebíč, although it is said that between the
wars river cruises operated in the area near the Polanka river spa. In
1930, Antonín Uhlíř, who ran a boat rental company, built a motor ferry
with a capacity of 25 people and thus operated river transport. Mobile
flood barriers were also purchased, which will be installed on the newly
repaired retaining wall on the bank of the Jihlava river. Part of it is
the fence near the so-called Novodvorský bridge, which is 4.5 meters
high and about 150 meters long, and part of the fence also includes
flood gates. Non-return valves were installed in the sewers that caused
the flooding of the Jewish quarter to prevent this.
According to
the ČP Index, in the first half of 2018, Třebíč ranked first among
district towns in terms of road traffic safety, as did 16 other district
towns. it means that during the first quarter there was no traffic
accident with death or serious injury in the city.
In 2020, the
roundabouts on Znojemská, Táborská, Samešova, Velkomeziříčská, Míčova
and Wenceslas Square were modified to look like the stained glass
windows of the Basilica of St. Prokop.