Počátky

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Počátky
Town
Saint John the Baptist Church
Saint John the Baptist Church
Flag of Počátky
Flag
Coat of arms of Počátky
Coat of arms
Počátky is located in Czech Republic
Počátky
Počátky
Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 49°15′47″N 15°14′33″E / 49.26306°N 15.24250°E / 49.26306; 15.24250Coordinates: 49°15′47″N 15°14′33″E / 49.26306°N 15.24250°E / 49.26306; 15.24250
Country Czech Republic
RegionVysočina
DistrictPelhřimov
First mentioned1285
Government
 • MayorKarel Štefl
Area
 • Total30.83 km2 (11.90 sq mi)
Elevation
620 m (2,030 ft)
Population
 (2020-01-01[1])
 • Total2,531
 • Density82/km2 (210/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
394 64
Websitewww.pocatky.cz

Počátky (German: Potschatek) is a town in Pelhřimov District in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,500 inhabitants. It is situated on both sides of the historical Bohemian-Moravian border. The centre of the town is historically significant and is protected by law as Urban monument zone.

Administrative parts[]

Villages Heřmaneč u Počátek, Horní Vilímeč, Léskovec, Prostý and Vesce u Počátek are administrative parts of Počátky.

South of the town there is the border between Bohemia and Moravia. Bohemian part includes Heřmaneč, Léskovec and Počátky with the exception of agro-forest lands in the south. The Moravian part consists from Prostý, Vesce and the bigger part of Horní Vilímeč.

History[]

A silver denarius of Marcus Aurelius was found in the village. The Želiv Trail (connecting Želiv Monastery with Austria via the nearby hill Strážný), which was mentioned in 1178, also passed through the surroundings.

In the 13th century, the area of today's Počátky was owned by nobility the Vítkovci, whose territory began under the Lísek hill. After the division of the border forest, called "Principality", they started to build settlements under Lískov, it was at the beginning of Bohemia, but also at the beginning of the waters, because there is also a watershed between the North and Black Seas. And at the beginning of the settlement there were certainly the beginnings, from which comed the name Počátky (literally meaning beginnings). In the old papers and maps appear the name Počzaken, Potschaken, Počzatek, Potschatek.

13th–17th century[]

In 1273 the priest Předboř was mentioned here, so in this time the church was already standing here. The first written mention of the village comes from the end of the 13th century (qui apud Pochatek, in domini ducis Austrie). This mention is in Tobiáš of Bechyně's list, in which Počátky is mentioned among the places that were devastated in the fighting between King Wenceslaus II and followers of Zavis of Falkenstein from the Vítkovec family. Some sources say that Počátky belonged to the Benešovice family, when in 1303 Vítek of Švábenice donated his origins to his wife Brecht (or Perchta of Krumlov, later from Kralovany, probably the sister of Zavis of Falkenstein) to Moravany near Brno (testified by Dobeš from Bechyně and Vítkovec Jindřich of Rožmberk and Oldřich of Hradec, mentioned Vítek of Loučky).

In 1359 the earliest mention of the parish church in Počátky comes from, at that time there was the 20th priest Mikuláš, who came from Dačice.

In 1368 Charles IV Počátky of the highest burgrave – Count Jan of Hardek and in 1389 it was bought by the Lords of Hradec. In the same year, the town received the emblem of its lordship, the Lords of Hradec, a golden five-petalled rose in a blue field.

17th–20th century[]

The name of the town has been pluralized since 1654 (Early). Thus, it denotes a multiplicity (female gender, such as Bohemia), because it is the area in which Počátky of flows (similarly Roztoky). In 1698 Počátky was given a better town coat of arms, which connected the coat of arms of the Lords of Hradec with the Šternberk coat of arms. The new coat of arms is a Gothic shield of blue, split in the middle with a gold rod. In the right field there is the eight-pointed golden star of Sternberg and the golden letters of A.W. (i.e. Adolf Wratislav – then owner of the town); in the left field there is a golden five-petalled rose of the Hradec family and the letters A. L. (Anna Lucie – née Slavatová, got Počátky as a dowry, wife of Adolf Wratislav). The shield is adorned by the Count's crown, which is held by two taking off angels. Since February 1, 1994, the village has been using a flag based on emblem motifs.

Počátky were the town of a serf, or feudal, or chess, i.e. under protection. The lord was their lord, set them up with administration, took salaries (taxes) from the town, protected the townspeople and their crafts and granted them rights. A district court was established here in 1850 and František Sedláček, the father of the historian August Sedláček, who went to school here (since 2250, was set up in No. 22). On January 1, 1884, the hospital was handed over to its task when it was declared a general public hospital by min. interior.

Education[]

In Počátky there is a facility with regional significance which comprises educational institute for girls with behavioral problems, children's home with school, high school and primary school. There is also a kindergarten and Otokar Březina Elementary School with local significance.

Sights[]

The list of sights and touristic destinations includes:[2]

  • Otokar Březina birth house
  • Town Museum
  • Church of Corpus Christi – originally a Gothic Baroque church rebuilt in the Baroque style
  • St. John the Baptist Church with an accessible tower
  • Church of St. Catherine
  • St. Anne's Chapel at the building of a former hospital
  • Statue of the Virgin Mary on Stážnický Hill
  • Column with the statue of the Virgin Mary on Marian Square
  • Fountain on Palacký Square with sculpture of St. John of Nepomuk
  • Town Hall on Palacky Square
  • Parish house
  • Post office

Nature[]

Along the road from Počátky to Kaliště, the longest larch alley in the Czech Republic is planted. It was founded in the early 20th century and comprises 280 trees.[3]

Culture[]

In 2011, the former cinema building was reconstructed, which was rebuilt with the support of funds from the European Union into a multifunctional complex, which houses a town library, a hall used as a cinema or theatre, a gallery, a meeting place for volunteer associations and a town information center.[4]

There are two associations of amateur actors (Ochotnický soubor J. K.Tyl and Divadlení spolek AJeTo!), which perform several times a year in Počátky and near surroundings.

Trivia[]

Some of the scenes of the films Cutting It Short (1980), The Ride (1994), When Grandpa Loved Rita Hayworth (2001) and the TV series Visitors (1983) were shot here.

According to the name of the town, the asteroid No. 14974 Počátky was named by its discoverer and Miloš Tichý, a native of Počátky.

Notable people[]

Mayors[]

  • 1990–1994 Jan Třebický
  • 1994–2002 František Peroutka
  • 2002–2006 Jan Třebický
  • 2006–2010 Marie Hrnčířová
  • 2010– Karel Štefl

Twin towns – sister cities[]

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in the Czech Republic

Počátky is twinned with:[5][6]

Gallery[]

  • Marian square

  • Elementary school

References[]

  1. ^ "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2020". Czech Statistical Office. 2020-04-30.
  2. ^ "Akce a kultura - Počátky". Informuji.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  3. ^ "Nejdelší modřínová alej v Česku vede z Počátek do Kališť. Podél roste 280 stromů". Regiony (in Czech). 2017-03-27. Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  4. ^ Pertl, Martin. "Rekonstrukce kina Počátky". www.stavbavysociny.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  5. ^ "V Počátkách mají Švýcarské jaro". pelhrimovsky.denik.cz (in Czech). Pelhřimovský deník. 2013-03-07. Retrieved 2020-09-11.
  6. ^ "V počátecké škole zazněla slovenština". pocatky.cz (in Czech). Město Počátky. August 2018. p. 7. Retrieved 2020-09-11.

External links[]


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