Podebrady (Podiebrad in German) is a spa town in the Central
Bohemia region in the district of Nymburk. The city is located in
the Polabská lowland on the Elbe river, less than 50 km east of
Prague by the D11 highway. It lies at an altitude of 184-190 meters.
Approximately 14 thousand inhabitants live here. The cadastre area
of the city is 33.70 km2.
In the place of today's town, a
settlement has been found since the Early Paleolithic. King Přemysl
Otakar II. here in the years 1262–1268 he built a stone castle,
which was gradually rebuilt into today's Poděbrady castle. The great
flourishing of the Poděbrady estate occurred under the lords of
Kunštát. The most famous representative of this family was the Czech
king George of Poděbrady. His sons elevated Podebrady to the status
of a city in 1472. In the years 1495–1839, the Poděbrady estate was
managed by the royal chamber, after which it was bought by Viennese
banker Jiří Sina. In 1905, a mineral spring was drilled in the
courtyard of the castle, and in the following decades the town
became a well-known spa, specializing in the treatment of diseases
of the heart and circulatory system.
The local city heritage
zone, declared in 1992, protects both the historic core of the city
and the adjacent spa district. Podebrady is known to visitors
primarily as a quiet spa town with many monuments.
Archaeological findings
The convenient location of today's town on
a hill above the river was already used by farmers in the Young
Paleolithic. The settlement of the Bronze Age was also significant,
settlement and grave finds belong to the Mound and Lusatian cultures.
The remains of a settlement from the end of the Early Iron Age were
found in the area of today's Husovy Street. Also significant are parts
of settlements and layers from the Latén period, and above all the
remains of a large settlement from the earlier and younger Roman times,
found on today's George Square. There have also been numerous finds of
Roman coins.
Medieval
In the early Middle Ages, an important
trade route, the so-called "Kladská cesta", led to the location of
today's Poděbrady, which had an impact on the settlement here. There
were several other important settlements in the vicinity of today's
city, such as Oldříš Castle, Sadská or Slavníkovská Libice. The Kladská
route, leading from Prague and Sadská towards Hradec Králové and
continuing to Silesia and today's Poland, crossed the Elbe River at the
local ford (in the area between today's Na Vinici Street and the
bridge). A fort stood near this ford. Another early medieval Slavic
settlement was located approximately 2 km southeast of today's center,
at the site of today's radio station. Today, the name of the city is
associated with the location of an earlier settlement "under the ford",
but it is not known to which specific settlement it referred.
Sometime at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries, a new noble seat of
Poděbrady was created, the first written mention of which is from 1223
and Hroznata from Poděbrady is mentioned here. After the death of
Hroznat's son Vilém of Poděbrady in 1262, the seat was acquired by the
Czech king Přemysl Otakar II. and in the years 1262–1268 he had a stone
water castle built on a marl hill above the river - today's Poděbrady
Castle. The original settlement then gradually disappeared because
people moved to the vicinity of the castle. In Otakar's time, the Gothic
Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross was built near the original
entrance to the castle on its eastern side, and a new village was
created in its vicinity, first named in writing in 1345. Přemysl Otakar
II. and his son Václav II. they liked Podebrady and often stayed here.
Under King John of Luxembourg, the manor lost its importance and was
mortgaged several times, the last of which was Hynka of Lichtenburg, who
acquired it as a manor. After his death, it was acquired by Hynk's
daughter Eliška, wife of Boček from Kunštát. The estate achieved its
greatest prosperity under the lords of Kunštát and Poděbrady, who ruled
here in the years 1347–1495. For example, they rebuilt the castle (it
then withstood three sieges in 1402, 1420 and 1426) and founded a new
town with a large square on its western side, which has remained the
center of Poděbrady to this day. Together with the castle, the town was
protected by a newly built fortification with three gates, but it did
not include the Nymburské and Kostelní suburbs - the church was thus
outside the fortifications. They also had the Sánský canal and the
foundation of the Poděbrady pond system built (until the 18th century,
it was one of the most important pond farming areas). They also founded
a number of villages and courts - today's nearby Lhoty, Zboží and Nové
Ves. The famous "Hussite King" Jiří of Poděbrady, who was crowned in
1458, also came from this family. King Jiří of the Poděbrady estate
gradually built the second largest dominion in the country, right after
Rožmberky. Jiří's sons elevated Podebrady to the status of a city in
1472 and granted them numerous rights and a city coat of arms. After the
death of King George, his son Hynek of Poděbrady administered the
estate, who was fraudulently deprived of it in 1495 in favor of
Vladislav Jagiellonian.
In August 1496, 10 of the 13 leaders of
the Kutnohorské Havíř uprising were executed at a place in Zámostí, near
the so-called Poděbrady Oak, by order of the hetman of the Poděbrady
Castle Oňko Kamenický from Tepic. As according to the laws of the time,
it was not possible to execute more of them on the spot, the last three
wreckers were taken to Křivoklát for execution.
In the possession
of the Royal Chamber
In the years 1495–1839, the Poděbrady manor was
administered by the royal chamber (with the exception of the period when
the manor was stopped). For Ferdinand I. of Habsburg, the Poděbrady
estate became a favorite hunting ground, and his favor brought him new
prosperity. That is why in 1538 he established a branch for the breeding
of fallow deer and pheasants, and had the local castle rebuilt under the
guidance of Italian builders into a Renaissance castle (reconstruction
took place in the years 1548–1582 and was not completed until the reign
of Rudolph II.)
Similar to many other cities, Poděbrady suffered considerable damage
during the Thirty Years' War. The city was looted a few days after the
battle on Bílá hora, it was occupied several times by Swedish and Saxon
troops, but the presence of imperial troops was also a great burden for
its inhabitants. At this time, most of the existing documents about the
history of the city were destroyed. In addition, the great fire of 1681
completely destroyed the city, including both suburbs (the castle did
not burn), while new houses were already built from stone and brick
(however, there were more destructive fires in the history of the city -
for example, in 1453 and 1832). Until the middle of the 18th century,
the city stagnated, mainly due to the enormous burden of taxes and the
decline of trade and crafts, and gradually acquired an agricultural
character, which it retained until the middle of the 19th century.
Empress Maria Theresa showed interest in the castle, who had it
rebuilt in Baroque style between 1754 and 1756 and stayed here several
times.
At the beginning of the 19th century, the city became an
important crossroads of imperial roads. In 1812, the regular collection
of letters for transport by post began in Poděbrady. However, the post
office in Poděbrady was not established until 1832–1833. The telegraph
was introduced after 1850. The first local telephones were installed in
1900 and two years later the intercity lines.
The last owners of
the estate
In 1839, the Viennese banker Baron Jiří Sina bought the
Poděbrady estate. His granddaughter Charicléa Ypsilanti and her husband,
the Bavarian prince Arnošt Filip Hohenlohe from Schillingfürst, who were
the last owners of the manor (they owned it in the years 1885–1912),
settled here permanently. In the second half of the 19th century, a
railway was built through the city and several industrial enterprises
were established here (the city, however, continued to be dominated by
agriculture). The population grew and new neighborhoods were added.
An important milestone in the history of the town was the discovery
of carbonated mineral water, called Poděbradka, during the drilling of a
well in the courtyard of the castle in 1905. The German Count Karel
Bülow of Bothkamp found the drilling site with the help of a stick. From
a depth of 96.7 m, a strong spring of turbid, ferruginous water,
referred to today as the Bülow spring, gushed out.
Poděbrady
after the discovery of mineral water springs
The discovery of mineral
waters changed the city beyond recognition. In 1907, three public
springs (Bülow's, Hohenlohe and Charicléa) were already drilled, and in
1908 the Poděbrady Spa was founded, which had a great influence on the
further development of the city.
Already on June 5, 1908, Bishop
Doubrava of Hradec Králové consecrated the building of the Princely
Baths, founded by Prince Hohenlohe. In June 1910, the city bought the
Princely Spa and had more springs drilled, so that by the beginning of
the 1920s there were 12 springs, and in 1930 there were already 16. The
new character of the city was mainly determined by the architect and
urban planner František Janda, who before the war created the concept of
the development of the spa center in the then art nouveau style. In
1919, a newly established joint-stock company took over the spa from the
city.
During the First Republic, Poděbrady turned into an
important spa, which thanks to the Prague cardiologist professor dr.
Václav Libenský, specialized in the treatment of diseases of the heart
and circulatory system. In 1924, František Janda drew up an urban plan
for the further development of Poděbrady, whose spa center extended to
the railway (previously approx. 1 km from the center) and founded a spa
park. A number of public buildings were built in the city and its
population doubled since the beginning of the century.
Year 1932
In 1932, the following trades and shops were registered in the town of
Podebrady (adj. Malé Zbozi, 7,236 inhabitants):
Institutions:
district office, district court, revenue administration, revenue office,
pension control office, stamp office, cadastral land surveying office,
district gendarmerie headquarters, post office, telephone office,
telegraph office, state radiotelegraph station, spa with 14 healing
springs, 2 Catholic . churches, gospel church, synagogue, higher school
of economics, Ukrainian Academy of Economics, theater, museum, Paroubk's
Institute for the Poor, district hospital, Masaryk's League against
Tuberculosis, corps of volunteer firefighters.
Trades and industry:
trade council, district unity of associations, associations of metal
workers, shoemakers and leather workers, clothing, food and mixed
trades, association of barbers, innkeepers and tapmen, blacksmiths,
millers, bakers, butchers, various trades and wheelwrights, sand lime
factory bricks, paving block factory, vegetable oil factory, brewery,
glass factory, sugar factory, slaughterhouse, power plant.
Services
(selection): 18 doctors, 2 dentists, 3 veterinarians, 5 lawyers, notary,
Czech Bank branch in Poděbrady, cinema Sokol, magazine Obchodní Rozhled,
photo studio, 3 surveyors, hotels (Grandhotel Urazil, Bylina, Lázeňský,
Na Račany, Občanská credit union, Prague, Paris), 2 cafes, medical spa,
medical institution, 2 pharmacies, 12 boarding houses, 7 restaurants
(Buřil, Lázeňska, Nádražní, U Bílé růže, U Orla, Sala Terrena, Na staré
poště), Citizens' Credit Union in Poděbrady , District Economic Credit
Union, Municipal Savings Bank in Poděbrady, Commercial and Trade Credit
Union, 5 wine bars, 2 dental studios.
In the village of Kluk (410 inhabitants, the independent village
later became part of Poděbrady) the following trades and shops were
registered in 1932: car workshop of the Staňková brothers, production of
cement goods, 2 inns, a blacksmith, 10 farmers, 2 general merchandise
stores, a newsagent, a carpenter, 5 gardeners, locksmith.
In the
village of Přední Lhota (512 inhabitants, the independent village later
became part of Poděbrady) the following businesses and shops were
registered in 1932: a car workshop, a cattle shop, a farm machinery
cooperative, 2 inns, a wheelwright, a blacksmith, a shoemaker, a farmer,
2 butchers, 3 general stores, turner, tobacconist, carpenter, gardener,
game and poultry store.
In the village of Velké Zboží (520
inhabitants, the independent village later became part of Poděbrady) the
following trades and shops were registered in 1932: 3 inns, a
wheelwright, a consumer, a tailor, a shoemaker, a saddler, a general
store, a seamstress, 2 newsagents, a gardener.
Natural conditions
The city is located in the flat landscape of the Polaba lowland, which
is sparsely forested and intensively used for agriculture. The city is
located on both banks of the river Elbe at an altitude of 184-190 m
above sea level. There are only three hills in the vicinity of the city,
namely Oškobrh (285 m above sea level), Chotuc (254 m above sea level)
and Kopec Sadský (213 m above sea level). . Beyond the lock there is a
blind arm of the Elbe called Skupice (a remnant of the Elbe flow before
regulation) and further towards Libica nad Cidlinou is the Libický luh
national nature reserve, which is a remnant of floodplain forests that
were in the past in the entire area. Larger forest units are mainly
located between Libica nad Cidlina and Velký Osek. Smaller forests lie
mainly along the Elbe river, for example the Bor forest, located south
of the city.
Polabí has a relatively warm climate. The average
annual temperature here is 9 °C. Spring starts relatively early (usually
mid-April) and winter sets in later. The coldest month is January, when
there are frequent frosts and inversion fog. More permanent snow cover
is not common. The average annual rainfall is low.
In the
vicinity of Poděbrady there are the following national nature reserves
and natural monuments: NPR Libicý luh, NPR Žehuňská obora and Žehuňský
pond, PP Písečný presyp near Osečko, PP Báň, PP Vinný vrch.
Territorial development
The total area of the city is 3369.7 ha.
Poděbrady consists of a total of five cadastral territories. Poděbrady
district (1353.39 ha), Polabec district (256.34 ha), Velké Zbozi
district (493.31 ha), Kluk district (868.25 ha) and Přední Lhota (398.35
ha).
The first noble residence directly called Poděbrady stood on
the site of today's castle, whose original entrance was from the eastern
side towards the Church of the Ascension of St. The local settlement was
transferred to the Cross and the area around the church. Jiří from
Poděbrady founded a completely new town on the eastern side at the
crossroads, which permanently became the new city center. This was also
confirmed by the construction of city fortifications that protected the
castle and this town. However, the church and its surroundings (Kostelní
predměstí) and the Nymburské predměstí remained outside the walls.
The fortifications disappeared at the end of the 17th century and
the new development of the city took place in the middle of the 18th
century. East of the Church of the Ascension of St. The new district of
Bělidla was created in Kříž, and the district of Hráz was created on the
southern side of the dried-up Předměstské rybník. The suburb of Nymburk
was also growing. After the establishment of the spa, the town grew
towards the railway line, and behind it grew a new local part of Žižkov.
These districts of the modern garden city were built according to the
regulatory plan of the architect František Janda.