1.
Czech Republic
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The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, is a nation state in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west, Austria to the south, Slovakia to the east and Poland to the northeast. The Czech Republic covers an area of 78,866 square kilometres with mostly temperate continental climate and it is a unitary parliamentary republic, has 10.5 million inhabitants and the capital and largest city is Prague, with over 1.2 million residents. The Czech Republic includes the territories of Bohemia, Moravia. The Czech state was formed in the late 9th century as the Duchy of Bohemia under the Great Moravian Empire, after the fall of the Empire in 907, the centre of power transferred from Moravia to Bohemia under the Přemyslid dynasty. In 1002, the duchy was formally recognized as part of the Holy Roman Empire, becoming the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1198 and reaching its greatest territorial extent in the 14th century. Following the Battle of Mohács in 1526, the whole Crown of Bohemia was gradually integrated into the Habsburg Monarchy alongside the Archduchy of Austria, the Protestant Bohemian Revolt against the Catholic Habsburgs led to the Thirty Years War. After the Battle of the White Mountain, the Habsburgs consolidated their rule, reimposed Roman Catholicism, the Czech part of Czechoslovakia was occupied by Germany in World War II, and was liberated in 1945 by the armies of the Soviet Union and the United States. The Czech country lost the majority of its German-speaking inhabitants after they were expelled following the war, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia won the 1946 elections. Following the 1948 coup détat, Czechoslovakia became a one-party communist state under Soviet influence, in 1968, increasing dissatisfaction with the regime culminated in a reform movement known as the Prague Spring, which ended in a Soviet-led invasion. Czechoslovakia remained occupied until the 1989 Velvet Revolution, when the communist regime collapsed, on 6 March 1990, the Czech Socialistic Republic was renamed to the Czech Republic. On 1 January 1993, Czechoslovakia peacefully dissolved, with its constituent states becoming the independent states of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004, it is a member of the United Nations, the OECD, the OSCE, and it is a developed country with an advanced, high income economy and high living standards. The UNDP ranks the country 14th in inequality-adjusted human development, the Czech Republic also ranks as the 6th most peaceful country, while achieving strong performance in democratic governance. It has the lowest unemployment rate in the European Union, the traditional English name Bohemia derives from Latin Boiohaemum, which means home of the Boii. The current name comes from the endonym Čech, spelled Cžech until the reform in 1842. The name comes from the Slavic tribe and, according to legend, their leader Čech, the etymology of the word Čech can be traced back to the Proto-Slavic root *čel-, meaning member of the people, kinsman, thus making it cognate to the Czech word člověk. The country has traditionally divided into three lands, namely Bohemia in the west, Moravia in the southeast, and Czech Silesia in the northeast. Following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia at the end of 1992, the Czech part of the former nation found itself without a common single-word geographical name in English, the name Czechia /ˈtʃɛkiə/ was recommended by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2.
Pardubice Region
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Pardubice Region is an administrative unit of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. It is named after its capital Pardubice, as an administrative unit, Pardubice Region has in the course of history existed three times. It was established for the first time in 1850, and extended from Český Brod to the Bohemian-Moravian border, in its second existence, it was one of 19 regions as they were set between 1949 and 1960. After 1960, Pardubice became the capital of Pardubice district, which part of the Eastern Bohemian Region. The Pardubice Region as it is now was reestablished in 2000, the Pardubice Region is divided into 4 districts, Chrudim District Pardubice District Svitavy District Ústí nad Orlicí District There are a total of 451 municipalities in the region. Among these are 15 municipalities with extended powers and 26 municipalities with a municipal office. Thirty-two of the municipalities are classified as towns, the regional central offices are in Pardubice. The total population of the Pardubice Region was 516,411 as of 31 December 2011, There are in total 453 municipalities in the Pardubice Region, whereof 17 municipalities have a higher population than 5,000. The largest municipality of the region is Pardubice with a population of almost 90,000, the table below shows the municipalities in Pardubice Region with a population larger than 10,000. Other significant towns in Pardubice Region are Holice, Králíky, Polička, Přelouč, Choceň, with a total size of 4,519 km², Padrubice is the fifth smallest region in the Czech Republic. Králický Sněžník is the highest point in the region, the lowest point is situated on the water surface of the Labe River near Kojice. The southern and southeastern parts of the region are home to the areas of Žďárské vrchy. The central and western parts of the region are formed by the Polabí lowlands, in the northeast, the region reaches the Orlické hory and Hrubý Jeseník Mountains. The European Watershed runs through the region, where it separates the basins of the North Sea, the tripoint of the Danube, Elbe and Oder watersheds is located at the peak of Králický Sněžník. The majority of the region belongs to the basin of the Elbe, consisting of the rivers Chrudimka, Divoká Orlice, Doubrava, Loučná, Tichá Orlice. The rivers in the basin of the Danube are the Morava, Moravská Sázava, Svitava. The Seč Dam and the Pastviny Dam are among the water bodies in the region. The most prevalent soil types in the region are podzol and cambisol, forests cover 29. 6% of the region and are predominantly coniferous
3.
Svitavy District
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Svitavy District is a district within Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. As a part of Pardubice Region the district has borders with Ústí nad Orlicí District to the north, the district was administratively formed in 1960, when former districts of Litomyšl, Moravská Třebová, Polička a Svitavy were merged. Svitavy District incorporates parts of regions of Bohemia and Moravia. From total of 116 municipalities,44 municipalities are situated in Moravia, as of 1 January 200748,864 inhabitants lived in the Moravian part of the district. The Bohemian part counted 67 municipalities with 50,885 inhabitants, five municipalities lie in Bohemia as well as Moravia. With the total area of 1,379 km² it is the largest district of Pardubice Region, from the total area of the district, agricultural land occupies 835.1 km². Forests take 31. 3% of districts area, the district is divided into drainage basins of Elbe and Danube. The main rivers in the district are Svitava, Svratka, Třebůvka, Třebovka, the former three rivers make part of Danube basin while the latter two of the Elbe baisin. The largest water body in Svitavy District is the pond Hvězda with the area of 82ha, as of 31 December 2012, the district had 104,971 inhabitants from which 53,120 were women and 51,851 were men. The average age was 40.9 years,15. 3% of inhabitants were 14 years or younger, while 16. 5% were 65 years or older. The districts workforce counted 53,955 people, the district has a continental climate which is characterized by important variations in temperature in the course of the year. There are slight variations between the climate in parts of the district. The northwestern and southeastern part of the district has an average tempretaure of 7 °C and precipitation up to 600 mm in a year. The central part of the district is slightly cooler and more humid with a temperature of 6 °C and precipitation of 700 mm. Even cooler. The economy of the district is oriented on agriculture and manufacturing, the share of agriculture on the districts employment has been steadily decreasing but it is still higher than in other districts of Pardubice region. The agriculture mainly produces cereals and rapeseed, the structure of manufacturing in Svitavy district is relatively varied. The main volume of production is realized by food and textile manufacturing, however, the importance of textile manufacturing is decreasing in the long term. Glass fiber production, metalworking and mechanical engineering are important branches
4.
Bohemia
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Bohemia is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech lands in the present-day Czech Republic. Bohemia was a duchy of Great Moravia, later an independent principality, a kingdom in the Holy Roman Empire, and subsequently a part of the Habsburg Monarchy, after World War I and the establishment of an independent Czechoslovak state, Bohemia became a part of Czechoslovakia. Between 1938 and 1945, border regions with sizeable German-speaking minorities of all three Czech lands were joined to Nazi Germany as the Sudetenland, in 1990, the name was changed to the Czech Republic, which become a separate state in 1993 with the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. Until 1948, Bohemia was a unit of Czechoslovakia as one of its lands. Bohemia was bordered in the south by Upper and Lower Austria, in the west by Bavaria and in the north by Saxony and Lusatia, in the northeast by Silesia, and in the east by Moravia. In the 2nd century BC, the Romans were competing for dominance in northern Italy, the Romans defeated the Boii at the Battle of Placentia and the Battle of Mutina. After this, many of the Boii retreated north across the Alps, much later Roman authors refer to the area they had once occupied as Boiohaemum. The earliest mention was by Tacitus Germania 28, and later mentions of the name are in Strabo. The name appears to include the tribal name Boi- plus the Germanic element *haimaz home and this Boiohaemum was apparently isolated to the area where King Marobods kingdom was centred, within the Hercynian forest. The Czech name Čechy is derived from the name of the Slavic ethnic group, the Czechs, Bohemia, like neighbouring Bavaria, is named after the Boii, who were a large Celtic nation known to the Romans for their migrations and settlement in northern Italy and other places. Another part of the nation moved west with the Helvetii into southern France, to the south, over the Danube, the Romans extended their empire, and to the southeast in Hungaria, were Sarmatian peoples. In the area of modern Bohemia the Marcomanni and other Suebic groups were led by their king Marobodus and he took advantage of the natural defenses provided by its mountains and forests. In late classical times and the early Middle Ages, two new Suebic groupings appeared to the west of Bohemia in southern Germany, the Alemanni, many Suebic tribes from the Bohemian region took part in such movements westwards, even settling as far away as Spain and Portugal. With them were also tribes who had pushed from the east, such as the Vandals, other groups pushed southwards towards Pannonia. These are precursors of todays Czechs, though the amount of Slavic immigration is a subject of debate. The Slavic influx was divided into two or three waves, the first wave came from the southeast and east, when the Germanic Lombards left Bohemia. Soon after, from the 630s to 660s, the territory was taken by Samos tribal confederation and his death marked the end of the old Slavonic confederation, the second attempt to establish such a Slavonic union after Carantania in Carinthia. Other sources divide the population of Bohemia at this time into the Merehani, Marharaii, Beheimare, Christianity first appeared in the early 9th century, but only became dominant much later, in the 10th or 11th century
5.
Moravia
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Moravia is a historical country in the Czech Republic and one of the historical Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. Moravia has an area of over 22,348.87 km2 and about 3 million inhabitants, the statistics from 1921 states, that the whole area of Moravia including the enclaves in Silesia covers 22,623.41 km2. The people are historically named Moravians, a subgroup of Czechs, the land takes its name from the Morava river, which rises in the northern tip of the region and flows southward to the opposite end, being its major stream. Moravias largest city and historical capital is Brno, however before being sacked by the Swedish army during the Thirty Years War, though officially abolished by an administrative reform in 1949, Moravia is still commonly acknowledged as a specific land in the Czech Republic. Moravian people are aware of their Moravian identity and there is some rivalry between them and the Czechs from Bohemia. Moravia occupies most of the part of the Czech Republic. Moravian territory is naturally strongly determined, in fact, as the Morava river basin, with effect of mountains in the west and partly in the east. Moravia occupies a position in Central Europe. All the highlands in the west and east of part of Europe run west-east. Moravia borders Bohemia in the west, Lower Austria in the south, Slovakia in the southeast, Poland very shortly in the north and its natural boundary is formed by the Sudetes mountains in the north, the Carpathians in the east and the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands in the west. The Thaya river meanders along the border with Austria and the tripoint of Moravia, Austria and Slovakia is at the confluence of the Thaya, the northeast border with Silesia runs partly along the Moravice, Oder and Ostravice rivers. Between 1782–1850, Moravia also included a portion of the former province of Silesia – the Austrian Silesia. Geologically, Moravia covers an area between the Bohemian Massif and the Carpathians, and between the Danube basin and the North European Plain. Its core geomorphological features are three wide vales, namely the Dyje-Svratka Vale, the Upper Morava Vale and the Lower Morava Vale, the former two form the westernmost part of the Subcarpathia, the latter one is the northernmost part of the Vienna Basin. The vales surround the low range of Central Moravian Carpathians, the highest mountains of Moravia are situated on its northern border in Hrubý Jeseník, the highest peak is Praděd. Second highest are the Moravian-Silesian Beskids at the very east, with Smrk, the White Carpathians along the southeastern border rise up to 970 m at Velká Javořina. The spacious, but moderate Bohemian-Moravian Highlands on the west reach 837 m at Devět skal. The fluvial system of Moravia is very cohesive, as the border is similar to the watershed of the Morava river
6.
Hussite Wars
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These wars lasted from 1419 to approximately 1434. The Hussite community included most of the Czech population of the Kingdom of Bohemia and they defeated five crusades proclaimed against them by the Pope, and intervened in the wars of neighboring countries. The Hussite Wars were notable for the use of early hand-held firearms such as hand cannons. The fighting ended after 1434, when the moderate Utraquist faction of the Hussites defeated the radical Taborite faction, the Hussites agreed to submit to the authority of the King of Bohemia and the Church, and were allowed to practice their somewhat variant rite. Starting around 1402, priest and scholar Jan Hus denounced what he judged as the corruption of the Church and the Papacy and his preaching was widely heeded in Bohemia, and provoked suppression by the Church, which had declared Wycliffe a heretic. In 1411, in the course of the Western Schism, Antipope John XXIII proclaimed a crusade against King Ladislaus of Naples, to raise money for this, he proclaimed indulgences in Bohemia. Hus bitterly denounced this and explicitly quoted Wycliffe against it, provoking further complaints of heresy, in 1414, Sigismund of Hungary convened the Council of Constance to end the Schism and resolve other religious controversies. Hus went to the Council, under a safe-conduct from Sigismund, but was imprisoned, tried and this angered Sigismund, who was King of the Romans, and brother of King Wenceslaus of Bohemia. He had been persuaded by the Council that Hus was a heretic and he sent threatening letters to Bohemia declaring that he would shortly drown all Wycliffites and Hussites, greatly incensing the people. Disorder broke out in parts of Bohemia, and drove many Catholic priests from their parishes. Almost from the beginning the Hussites divided into two groups, though many minor divisions also arose among them. This doctrine became the watchword of the moderate Hussites known as the Utraquists or Calixtines, from the Latin calix, in Czech kališníci. The more extreme Hussites became known as Taborites, after the city of Tábor that became their center, or Orphans, under the influence of Sigismund, Wenceslaus endeavoured to stem the Hussite movement. A number of Hussites led by Mikuláš of Hus — no relation of Jan Hus — left Prague and they held meetings in various parts of Bohemia, particularly at Sezimovo Ústí, near the spot where the town of Tábor was founded soon afterwards. At these meetings they violently denounced Sigismund, and the people prepared for war. In spite of the departure of many prominent Hussites, the troubles at Prague continued and it has been suggested that Wenceslaus was so stunned by the defenestration that it caused his death on 16 August 1419. The death of Wenceslaus resulted in renewed troubles in Prague and in almost all parts of Bohemia, many Catholics, mostly Germans — mostly still faithful to the Pope — were expelled from the Bohemian cities. Wenceslaus widow Sophia of Bavaria, acting as regent in Bohemia, hurriedly collected a force of mercenaries and tried to control of Prague
7.
Gothic architecture
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Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished in Europe during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture and its characteristics include the pointed arch, the ribbed vault and the flying buttress. Gothic architecture is most familiar as the architecture of many of the cathedrals, abbeys. It is also the architecture of many castles, palaces, town halls, guild halls, universities and to a less prominent extent, private dwellings, for this reason a study of Gothic architecture is largely a study of cathedrals and churches. A series of Gothic revivals began in mid-18th-century England, spread through 19th-century Europe and continued, largely for ecclesiastical and university structures, the term Gothic architecture originated as a pejorative description. Hence, François Rabelais, also of the 16th century, imagines an inscription over the door of his utopian Abbey of Thélème, Here enter no hypocrites, slipping in a slighting reference to Gotz and Ostrogotz. Authorities such as Christopher Wren lent their aid in deprecating the old medieval style, the Company disapproved of several of these new manners, which are defective and which belong for the most part to the Gothic. Gothic architecture is the architecture of the medieval period, characterised by use of the pointed arch. As an architectural style, Gothic developed primarily in ecclesiastical architecture, the greatest number of surviving Gothic buildings are churches. The Gothic style is most particularly associated with the cathedrals of Northern France. At the end of the 12th century, Europe was divided into a multitude of city states, norway came under the influence of England, while the other Scandinavian countries and Poland were influenced by trading contacts with the Hanseatic League. Angevin kings brought the Gothic tradition from France to Southern Italy, throughout Europe at this time there was a rapid growth in trade and an associated growth in towns. Germany and the Lowlands had large flourishing towns that grew in comparative peace, in trade and competition with other, or united for mutual weal. Civic building was of importance to these towns as a sign of wealth. England and France remained largely feudal and produced grand domestic architecture for their kings, dukes and bishops, the Catholic Church prevailed across Europe at this time, influencing not only faith but also wealth and power. Bishops were appointed by the lords and they often ruled as virtual princes over large estates. The early Medieval periods had seen a growth in monasticism, with several different orders being prevalent. Foremost were the Benedictines whose great abbey churches vastly outnumbered any others in France, a part of their influence was that towns developed around them and they became centers of culture, learning and commerce
8.
Amphitheatre
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An amphitheatre or amphitheater /ˈæmfᵻˌθiːətər/ is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ἀμφιθέατρον, from ἀμφί, ancient Roman amphitheatres were oval or circular in plan, with seating tiers that surrounded the central performance area, like a modern open-air stadium. In contrast both ancient Greek and ancient Roman theatres were built in a semicircle, with tiered seating rising on one side of the performance area. In modern usage, amphitheatre is used to describe theatre-style stages with spectator seating on only one side, theatres in the round. Natural formations of similar shape are known as natural amphitheatres. Ancient Roman amphitheatres were major public venues, circular or oval in plan and they were used for events such as gladiator combats, chariot races, venationes and executions. About 230 Roman amphitheatres have been found across the area of the Roman Empire, the earliest Roman amphitheatres date from the middle of the 1st century BC, but most were built under Imperial rule, from the Augustan period onwards. Imperial amphitheatres were built throughout the Roman empire, the largest could accommodate 40, the most elaborate featured multi-storeyed, arcaded façades and were elaborately decorated with marble, stucco and statuary. After the end of games in the 5th century and of staged animal hunts in the 6th. Their materials were mined or recycled, some were razed, and others were converted into fortifications. A few continued as convenient open meeting places, in some of these, in modern usage, an amphitheatre is a circular, semicircular or curved, acoustically vibrant performance space, particularly one located outdoors. Small-scale amphitheatres can serve to host outdoor local community performances, notable modern amphitheatres include the Shoreline Amphitheatre and the Hollywood Bowl. The term amphitheatre is used for some indoor venues such as the Gibson Amphitheatre. The term amphitheatre can also be used to naturally occurring formations which would be ideal for this purpose. Arena Stadium Thingplatz List of Roman amphitheatres List of contemporary amphitheatres List of indoor arenas List of ancient Greek theatres Roman theatre Bomgardner, the Story of the Roman Amphitheatre
9.
Esperanto
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Esperanto is a constructed international auxiliary language. It is the most widely spoken constructed language in the world, the Polish-Jewish ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, Unua Libro, on 26 July 1887. The name of Esperanto derives from Doktoro Esperanto, the pseudonym under which Zamenhof published Unua Libro, Zamenhof had three goals, as he wrote in Unua Libro, To render the study of the language so easy as to make its acquisition mere play to the learner. Up to two million worldwide, to varying degrees, speak Esperanto, including about 1,000 to 2,000 native speakers who learned Esperanto from birth. The World Esperanto Association has more than 5,500 members in 120 countries and its usage is highest in Europe, East Asia, and South America. The most popular online learning platform for Esperanto, reported 150,000 registered users in 2013, with about 238,000 articles, Esperanto Wikipedia is the 32nd-largest Wikipedia as measured by the number of articles, and is the largest Wikipedia in a constructed language. On 22 February 2012, Google Translate added Esperanto as its 64th language, on 28 May 2015, the language learning platform Duolingo launched an Esperanto course for English speakers. As of 5 April 2017, over 800,000 users had signed up, the first World Congress of Esperanto was organized in France in 1905. Since then, congresses have been held in various countries every year, although no country has adopted Esperanto officially, “Esperantujo” is the collective name given to places where it is spoken. Esperanto was recommended by the French Academy of Sciences in 1921 and recognized by UNESCO in 1954, Esperanto was the 32nd language accepted as adhering to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in 2007. Esperanto is currently the language of instruction of the International Academy of Sciences in San Marino, Esperanto is seen by many of its speakers as an alternative or addition to the growing use of English throughout the world, offering a language that is easier to learn than English. Esperanto was created in the late 1870s and early 1880s by L. L. Zamenhof, and all nations would be united in a common brotherhood. In Białystok the inhabitants were divided into four elements, Russians, Poles, Germans and Jews, each of these spoke their own language. I was brought up as an idealist, I was taught that all people were brothers, while outside in the street at every step I felt that there were no people, only Russians, Poles, Germans, Jews and so on. This was always a great torment to my infant mind, although people may smile at such an anguish for the world in a child. Since at that time I thought that grown-ups were omnipotent, so I often said to myself that when I grew up I would certainly destroy this evil. About his goals Zamenhof wrote that he wants mankind to learn and use, en masse, the proposed language as a living one. The number of speakers grew rapidly over the few decades, at first primarily in the Russian Empire and Central Europe, then in other parts of Europe, the Americas, China
10.
Sister city
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In recent times, town twinning has increasingly been used to form strategic international business links between member cities. In the United Kingdom, the twin towns is most commonly used. In mainland Europe, the most commonly used terms are twin towns, partnership towns, partner towns, the European Commission uses the term twinned towns and refers to the process as town twinning. Spain uses the term ciudades hermanadas that means sister cities, Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic use Partnerstadt / Miasto Partnerskie / Partnerské město, which translate as Partner Town or City. France uses Ville Jumelée, and Italy has Gemellaggio and Comune gemellato, in the Netherlands, the term is Stedenband. In Greece, the word αδελφοποίηση has been adopted, in Iceland, the terms vinabæir and vinaborgir are used. In the former Soviet Bloc, twin towns and twin cities are used, the Americas, South Asia, and Australasia use the term sister cities or twin cities. In China, the term is 友好城市, sometimes, other government bodies enter into a twinning relationship, such as the agreement between the provinces of Hainan in China and Jeju-do in South Korea. The Douzelage is a twinning association with one town from each of the member states of the European Union. In recent years, the term city diplomacy has gained increased usage and acceptance, particularly as a strand of paradiplomacy and public diplomacy. It is formally used in the workings of the United Cities and Local Governments, the importance of cities developing their own foreign economic policies on trade, foreign investment, tourism and attracting foreign talent has also been highlighted by the World Economic Forum. The earliest known town twinning in Europe was between Paderborn, Germany, and Le Mans, France, in 836, starting in 1905, Keighley in West Yorkshire, England, had a twinning arrangement with French communities Suresnes and Puteaux. The first recorded modern twinning agreement was between Keighley and Poix-du-Nord in Nord, France, in 1920 following the end of the First World War and this was initially referred to as an adoption of the French town, formal twinning charters were not exchanged until 1986. The practice was continued after the Second World War as a way to promote mutual understanding, for example, Coventry twinned with Stalingrad and later with Dresden as an act of peace and reconciliation, all three cities having been heavily bombed during the war. Similarly, in 1947, Bristol Corporation sent five leading citizens on a mission to Hanover. Reading in 1947 was the first British town to form links with an enemy city – Düsseldorf. Since 9 April 1956 Rome and Paris have been exclusively and reciprocally twinned with other, following the motto, Only Paris is worthy of Rome. Within Europe, town twinning is supported by the European Union, the support scheme was established in 1989
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(in English) © 2008 Urząd Miejski w Łańcucie, Plac Sobieskiego 18, 37-100 Łańcut. Retrieved 2008-10-25.
