Znojmo

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Znojmo
Town
View from the south
Flag Coat of arms
Znojmo Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 48°51′20″N 16°2′56″E / 48.85556°N 16.04889°E / 48.85556; 16.04889Coordinates: 48°51′20″N 16°2′56″E / 48.85556°N 16.04889°E / 48.85556; 16.04889
Country	Czech Republic
Region	South Moravia
District	Znojmo
Founded	between 1222–1225
Government
• Mayor	Jakub Malačka
Area
• Total	65.90 km2 (25.44 sq mi)
Elevation	290 m (950 ft)
Population  (2021-01-01)[1]
• Total	33,775
• Density	510/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	669 02
Website	www.znojmocity.cz

Znojmo (Czech pronunciation: [ˈznoimo]; German: Znaim) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic, the administrative capital of the Znojmo District. It has about 34,000 inhabitants. Including the surrounding municipalities, the population reaches up to 40,000 people.^[2] Znojmo is the historical and cultural centre of southwestern Moravia and the second most populated town in the South Moravian Region. The historical centre of Znojmo is well preserved and historically significant and is protected as an urban monument reservation.

Administrative parts[]

Villages of Derflice, Kasárna, Konice, Mramotice, Načeratice, Oblekovice, Popice and Přímětice are administrative parts of Znojmo.

Geography[]

The town is situated on a rock outcropping on the steep left bank of the Thaya River, about 55 km (34 mi) southwest of the regional capital Brno. Located near the border with Austria, it is connected to Vienna by railway and road.

History[]

Znojmo Castle

A fortress at the site possibly already existed during the time of the Great Moravian Empire in the 9th century. From about 1055, Znojmo Castle served as the residence of a Přemyslid principality within the Bohemian March of Moravia and a strategically important outpost near the border with the Bavarian March of Austria in the south. In 1101, Luitpold of Znojmo, Duke of Moravia, built the Rotunda of St. Catherine in the castle. Used as the castle's chapel, the Rotunda features one of the oldest fresco compositions in the Czech lands. Besides religious motives, the frescos depict various members of the ruling Přemyslid dynasty. The Znojmo castle was seized and demolished by Duke Vladislaus II of Bohemia in 1145.

In 1190, Duke Conrad II of Bohemia founded the Premonstratensian Louka Abbey at Znojmo, which became the centre for settlement of German-speaking immigrants, as part of the medieval Ostsiedlung movement. The royal city of Znojmo was founded shortly before 1226 by King Ottokar I of Bohemia on the plains in front of the rebuilt castle. The town privileges were confirmed by King Rudolf I of Germany in 1278. On 9 December 1437, Emperor Sigismund of Luxembourg died at Znojmo and lay in state for three days at the St. Nicholas Church, before his body was transferred to Oradea in Kingdom of Hungary.

From the 19th Century, Znojmo is best known as the site for the Armistice of Znaim concluded there on 12 July 1809 after the Battle of Znaim, following the decisive Battle of Wagram, between Emperor Napoleon and the archduke Charles, which had taken place seven days earlier.

The town is also (allegedly) the birthplace of Leopold Loyka, the driver of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand's car when Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo in 1914: the event that triggered the World War I. Since the end of World War I, Znojmo was within the newly established state of Czechoslovakia, except for 1938–1945 during the Nazi German occupation when it was included in Reichsgau Niederdonau. The German population of the town were expelled in 1945, under the Beneš decrees.

Being the birthplace of the sculptor Hugo Lederer and the writer Charles Sealsfield, Znojmo also has special co-operation relations with the Dutch town of Harderwijk.

Znojmo Town Hall Tower

Rotunda of Saint Catherine

Demography[]

Transport[]

There is a railway station where railway lines divide into three directions: Břeclav, Okříšky, and Retz.

Sights[]

Church of Saint Nicholas

The Gothic Church of St. Nicholas and the Late Gothic Town Hall tower are the most recognizable landmarks. The church was built in 1348 by the Emperor Charles IV, and the town hall, with its 75 metres (246 ft) high tower, dates from around 1446.^[4]

Overlooking the Thaya River valley, on the edge of the medieval city, there is the Znojmo Castle, dating back to 11th century, founded by the Přemyslid dukes.^[5] The only remains of the castle used by the Přemysl dukes is the Romanesque Rotunda of Saint Catherine, the interior of which is covered with 11th-century frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible and illustrating the life of Přemysl.^[6]

Beneath the grounds of the old town, there is a vast labyrinth of connected passageways and cellars, Znojmo Catacombs, developed in the 14th and 15th centuries for defence purposes, containing wells, drainage, fireplaces, trap doors and escapeways that led beyond the fortifications of the town.^[7][8] The catacombs are the largest system of underground corridors and cellars in the Czech Republic – they are almost 27 km long and up to 4 levels deep.^[9]

Agriculture, viticulture and nature[]

Znojmo is famous for local production of cucumbers, pickled in the original sweet-sour and spicy pickle, whose cultivation in the Znojmo region was introduced in 1571 by the Louka monastery Abbot George II, coming from the North Bohemian village Čepirohy. The special taste is also the result of local type of cucumbers, cultivation method, soil, climatic conditions, processing and also the packaging in which they are kept. These are also the ingredients of local specialties such as the Znojmo roast or the Znojmo goulash. Nowadays, the cucumber festivals are held in the town every year.

Thanks to the favorable climatic conditions, the town is also successful in winery and fruit growing. It is the center of viticulture of the Znojmo wine-growing sub-region and a destination for nature lovers, mainly thanks to the Podyjí National Park.

Znojmo Catacombs

Column commemorating the plague

Louka Monastery

Sport[]

1. SC Znojmo FK is a local football club competing in the Moravian–Silesian Football League (3rd tier of the Czech football league system).

Orli Znojmo is an ice hockey club playing the international ICE Hockey League.

Culture[]

Znojmo is well known for its wine festival which takes place every September. The main attraction of the festival is the historical parade commemorating the visit of king John of Bohemia to Znojmo in 1327.^[10]

Notable people[]

• Václav Prokop Diviš (1698–1765), priest, theologian and natural scientist, pioneer in the field of electricity and the constructor of the first electric musical instrument Denis d'or
• Clement Mary Hofbauer, C.Ss.R. (1751–1820), Redemptorist priest and patron saint of Vienna, who served as an apprentice baker in the town in his youth
• Anna Spitzmüller (1903–2001), art historian and curator
• Petr Rosol (born 1964), ice hockey player
• Jitka Schneiderová (born 1973), actress
• Květoslav Svoboda (born 1982), swimmer
• Michal Ordoš (born 1983), footballer
• Jiří Orság (born 1989), weightlifter
• Jiří Procházka (born 1992), mixed martial artist

Twin towns – sister cities[]

Znojmo is twinned with:^[11]

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Znojmo.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Znojmo.

• Official website