Mladá Boleslav

Mladá Boleslav (Czech pronunciation: [ˈmladaː ˈbolɛslaf]; German: Jungbunzlau) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 45,000 inhabitants.

Mladá Boleslav
Statutory city
Aerial view of the historic centre
Flag Coat of arms
Mladá Boleslav Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 50°24′45″N 14°54′16″E / 50.41250°N 14.90444°E / 50.41250; 14.90444
Country	Czech Republic
Region	Central Bohemian
District	Mladá Boleslav
First mentioned	1130
Government
• Mayor	Raduan Nwelati (ODS)
Area
• Total	28.90 km^2 (11.16 sq mi)
Elevation	235 m (771 ft)
Population  (2023-01-01)^[1]
• Total	45,000
• Density	1,600/km^2 (4,000/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	293 01
Website	www.mb-net.cz

Mladá Boleslav is the second most populated city in the region. It is a major centre of the Czech automotive industry thanks to the Škoda Auto company and therefore the centre of Czech industry as a whole. The historic city centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone.

Administrative division

 

New city hall

Mladá Boleslav is made up of the city parts and villages of Mladá Boleslav I (locally called Staré Město, i.e. "Old Town"), Mladá Boleslav II (locally called Nové Město, i.e. "New Town"), Mladá Boleslav III (locally called Podolec), Mladá Boleslav IV (locally called Pták), Bezděčín, Čejetice, Čejetičky, Chrást, Debř, Jemníky, Michalovice, Podchlumí and Podlázky.^[2]

Etymology

Mladá Boleslav was named after its founder, Duke Boleslaus II, who was called "the Young One", to distinguish him from his father. Because there was already a town known as Boleslav near Prague, this new town was called "Město Boleslava Mladého" ("the town of Boleslav the Young"), later abbreviated to Mladá Boleslav ("young Boleslav"), to distinguish it from the older town of Boleslav, which in the 15th century became known as Stará Boleslav ("old Boleslav").^[3]

Geography

Mladá Boleslav is located about 45 km (28 mi) northeast of Prague. The eastern part of the municipal territory lies in the Jičín Uplands, the western part lies in the Jizera Table. The highest point is located on the slopes of the Chlum hill, at 301 m (988 ft) above sea level. The city is situated on the left bank of the Jizera River, at its confluence with the Klenice River. The historic city centre is situated on a promontory above the confluence.

History

 

Mladá Boleslav Castle

 

Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary

Mladá Boleslav was built in 995, under Boleslaus II., as the seat of a gaugraf or royal count, in the area of today's historic centre.^[4] The first trustworthy written mention of the gord is from 1130, when it was also called "New Boleslav" for the first time.^[5] Probably in the 11th century, a settlement was founded below the promontory, on an important site on the road from Prague to northern Bohemia, Lusatia and Brandenburg.^[5]

Early in the 13th century it was given the privileges of a town and pledged to the lords of Michalovic. In the Hussite wars Jung-Bunzlau adhered to the Taborites and became later the metropolis of the Bohemian Brethren.^[4]

A new stone royal castle was built on top of the promontory next to the gord in the middle of the 13th century and the gord was abandoned. In 1548 and after a fire in 1555, Renaissance reconstructions were made.^[6] In 1600, Mladá Boleslav was promoted to a royal city by Emperor Rudolf II.^[3] During the Thirty Years' War it was twice burned, in 1631 by the imperialists, and in 1640 by the Swedes.^[4]

In the 16th century, Mladá Boleslav was a leading centre of the Moravian Church, hosting the Brethren's bishop, a Renaissance church and a printing house. In 1518, the very first map of Bohemia was printed by Mikuláš Klaudyán in Mladá Boleslav. After the Thirty Years' War in the 17th century, the city's population declined by 40% and the castle was in ruins.^[5]

At the beginning of the 18th century, the former castle was rebuilt into barracks. During the World War II, it was an internment centre of Jews. Since 1972 the castle serves as the Regional Museum and as the seat of the district archive.^[6]

In the 19th century, new prosperity came: the city became an important regional centre as new schools, theatres, museums and factories (including the automobile factory Laurin & Klement, today Škoda Auto) were founded. Since the 1990s, the factory has made it one of the richest and most prosperous Czech cities.

Jewish community

The first written mention of the presence of Jewish community in Mladá Boleslav is from 1471. In 1634, Jacob Bassevi von Treuenberg, the first ennobled Jew in the Habsburg monarchy, was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Mladá Boleslav.^[7]

In the 17th and 18th centuries, Mladá Boleslav (called Bumsla by Jews) was an important Jewish centre.^[8]

The synagogue was demolished in 1962.^[7]

Historic churches

There are several old churches. In that of St Maria the celebrated bishop of the Moravian church, Johann August, was buried in 1595; but his tomb was destroyed in 1621. The church of St Bonaventura with the convent, originally belonging to the friars minor and later to the Bohemian brethren, is now a Piaristic college. The church of St Wenceslaus, once a convent of the brotherhood, was used in the early 20th century for military stores.^[4]

Demographics

The population rapidly increased between 1960 and 1980 because of the rapid growth of production in the Škoda Auto factory and the construction of housing estates for its employees.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% 1869 11,003 —     1880 12,249 +11.3% 1890 14,452 +18.0% 1900 17,017 +17.7% 1910 20,640 +21.3%	Year Pop. ±% 1921 21,425 +3.8% 1930 24,488 +14.3% 1950 23,204 −5.2% 1961 26,021 +12.1% 1970 31,085 +19.5%	Year Pop. ±% 1980 41,226 +32.6% 1991 43,859 +6.4% 2001 44,255 +0.9% 2011 44,303 +0.1% 2021 42,536 −4.0%
Source: Censuses^[9]^[10]

Economy

 

Aerial view of Škoda Auto factory

Mladá Boleslav became an industrial centre already in the 19th century. The main factor of its success was its location next to the Jizera River, which was a water source for newly founded factories. The most significant was the textile industry – its largest representative, the Česana factory, had more than 2,000 employees at the end of the 19th century. Another industry in the Jizera valley included mills, breweries, distillery, soaps and perfumes factory, and production of artificial fertilizers. Most of the factories was gradually shut down during the 20th century, mainly due to World War II and politics of the socialist republic.^[11]

In 1895, the Laurin & Klement company (the predecessor of Škoda Auto) was founded and the automotive industry became the main pillar of the city's economy. In 1925, Laurin & Klement was acquired by Škoda works. During the 20th century, many car parts manufacturers were established in the city, including the producer of accumulators for motor vehicles AKUMA (founded in 1903), now part of the FIAMM company.^[12]

Since its inception, Škoda Auto is the most important and most influential industrial company in the Czech Republic. As of 2017, the company had 32,000 employees worldwide, out of which 23,000 worked in Mladá Boleslav.^[13]

Transport

The D10 motorway passes next to the city.

Mladá Boleslav lies on the railway lines Mladá Boleslav–Turnov, Kolín–Rumburk and Tanvald–Všetaty.

Education

 

Secondary Industrial School

Škoda Auto University is a private university, founded by the company in 2000.^[14]

The Secondary Industrial School in Mladá Boleslav was founded in 1867 as one of the very first vocational schools in the Czech lands. The development of the school was closely connected with the boom of the Škoda Auto factory. Before the World War II and the first decade after it, the school was the only specialized industrial school in the country.^[15]

Sport

The football team FK Mladá Boleslav has played in the Czech First League since 2004. They were runners-up in 2005–06, have been Czech Cup winners twice (2011 and 2016) and have qualified for the European cups for multiple times.

The ice hockey team BK Mladá Boleslav has been playing in the top-tier Czech Extraliga without interruption since 2014.

The city's floorball team, Florbal MB, belongs to the most successful Czech teams of the modern era. The team is a three-time national champion.

Sights

 

Old City Hall in the historic centre

 

Templ Palace

The Renaissance Castle is the main landmark of the city. It houses the Regional Museum with historical, cultural and social history collections.^[16]

The Old City Hall in the historic centre is a Renaissance house built in 1554–1559. It is decorated with ornamental and figurative sgraffiti. In the second half of the 19th century and in 1939–1941, the building was reconstructed and other wings were completed. It has two towers, the higher of them was built in 1779 and is open to the public as a lookout tower. The nearby New City Hall was built in the neo-Romanesque style in 1865–1867 and still serves its original purpose.^[16]

The Gothic building of Templ Palace comes from 1488–1493. It includes a historic exhibition and also serves cultural purposes.^[16]

The history and products of Škoda Auto are exhibited in Škoda Museum. It was opened in the reconstructed premises of the old factory in 1995.^[16][17]

An important architectural monument, protected as a national cultural monument, is the building of the Secondary Industrial School. It was designed by Jiří Kroha in the Functionalist and Constructivist styles and built in 1923–1927. It is an exceptionally large building, still serving its original purpose. The sculptural decoration of the interiors is also valuable.^[18]

Religious monuments

 

Church of Saint John of Nepomuk

The Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is located next to the Old City Hall and is the main parish church of the city. It has a Gothic core from the mid-15th century. Baroque modifications were made in 1701–1702 and in 1761.^[19]

The Church of Saint John of Nepomuk is located on the eastern edge of the historic city centre and form the dominant feature of Míru Square. It was originally a Gothic church from the 14th century, built outside the city gates. It was rebuilt in the Baroque style in 1727.^[20]

The Church of Saint Gall is located on a former cemetery, currently converted into a park. It is a Baroque church with a Gothic-Renaissance core. The tower dates from 1735.^[21]

The former Church of Saint Bonaventure served as a Benedictine monastery in the mid-14th century, but it is probably much older. A school of Moravian Church was established in the monastery in the 15th–17th centuries. After the Battle of White Mountain, the monastery complex was acquired by the Catholic Church, which rebuilt it in the Baroque style. In 1784–1785, the Piarists established a gymnasium and college here. The church was completely devastated in the 20th century and was only repaired in 2007. Today it is used for social and cultural purposes.^[22]

Notable people

• Mikuláš Klaudyán (died 1521/1522), scholar
• Elijah Landsofer (died 1702), rabbi
• Siegfried Kapper (1821–1879), writer
• Alfréd Meissner (1871–1950), politician
• František Gellner (1881 – c. 1914), poet
• Frantisek Schubert (1894–1942), chess master
• Adina Mandlová (1910–1991), actress
• Mila Rechcigl (born 1930), scientist, long-term president of the SVU
• Zdenek Sekanina (born 1936), Czech-American astronomer
• Přemysl Sobotka (born 1944), politician
• Jiří Hrdina (born 1958), ice hockey player
• Jan Železný (born 1966), javelin thrower, three-time Olympic winner
• Miroslav Bobek (born 1967), natural scientist and manager
• Jiri Vlcek (born 1978), Italian rower
• Radim Vrbata (born 1981), ice hockey player
• Martin Havlát (born 1981), ice hockey player
• Marek Schwarz (born 1986), ice hockey player
• Radim Šimek (born 1992), ice hockey player
• Filip Salač (born 2001), motorcycle rider

Twin towns – sister cities

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

Mladá Boleslav is twinned with:^[23]

•   Dieburg, Germany
•   Fano, Italy
•   Pezinok, Slovakia
•   Vantaa, Finland

References

1. "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2023". Czech Statistical Office. 2023-05-23.
2. "Části obcí". Územně identifikační registr ČR (in Czech). Retrieved 2023-11-14.
3. "Dějiny města automobilů" (in Czech). City of Mladá Boleslav. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
4.   One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Jung-Bunzlau". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 556.
5. "Historie města" (in Czech). City of Mladá Boleslav. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
6. "Hrad v Mladé Boleslavi" (in Czech). Hrady.cz. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
7. "Židovský hřbitov v Mladé Boleslavi" (in Czech). Město Jičín. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
8. Spector, Shmuel; Wigoder, Geoffrey (2001). The Encyclopedia of Jewish Life Before and During the Holocaust: K-Sered. NYU Press. p. 832. ISBN 9780814793770.
9. "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011 – Okres Mladá Boleslav" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2015-12-21. pp. 11–12.
10. "Population Census 2021: Population by sex". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. 2021-03-27.
11. "Zaniklé mladoboleslavské továrny" (in Czech). City of Mladá Boleslav. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
12. "Sto let mladoboleslavské akumulátorky" (in Czech). ELEKTRO Magazine. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
13. Macek, Jiří (2018-03-23). "Škoda Auto hlásí: Rekord. Rekord. A zase rekord". Boleslavský deník (in Czech). Retrieved 2021-01-04.
14. "About us". ŠKODA AUTO University. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
15. "Stručně o SPŠ" (in Czech). Secondary Technical School in Mladá Boleslav. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
16. "Památky" (in Czech). City of Mladá Boleslav. Retrieved 2020-10-18.
17. "Škoda Museum". Škoda Auto a.s. Retrieved 2020-10-18.
18. "Průmyslová škola" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
19. "Kostel Nanebevzetí Panny Marie" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
20. "Kostel sv. Jana Nepomuckého" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
21. "Kostel sv. Havla" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
22. "Kostel sv. Bonaventury v Mladé Boleslavi" (in Czech). CzechTourism. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
23. "Partnerská města" (in Czech). City of Mladá Boleslav. Retrieved 2019-08-21.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mladá Boleslav.

 

Wikisource has the text of a 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article about Mladá Boleslav.

• Official website
• Regional Museum
• Youtube-channel about the history of Mladá Boleslav