Tachov

Tachov (Czech pronunciation: [ˈtaxof]; German: Tachau) is a town in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 13,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Mže River, some 55 km (34 mi) to the west from the region capital of Plzeň. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone.

Tachov
Town
Town square with the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in the background
Flag
Coat of arms
Tachov
Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 49°47′43″N 12°37′59″E
Country Czech Republic
RegionPlzeň
DistrictTachov
First mentioned1115
Government
 • MayorLadislav Macák
Area
 • Total40.84 km2 (15.77 sq mi)
Elevation
483 m (1,585 ft)
Population
 (2021-01-01)[1]
 • Total13,072
 • Density320/km2 (830/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
347 01
Websitewww.tachov-mesto.cz

Administrative parts
Southern part of Tachov

Villages of Bíletín, Malý Rapotín, Mýto, Oldřichov, Světce, Velký Rapotín, Vilémov and Vítkov are administrative parts of Tachov.

History

The area was inhabited by humans around 8,000–6,000 BCE. The first written document mentioning Tachov comes from 1115. King Ottokar II of Bohemia (1233–1278) built a new castle with a massive round stone tower there. He also founded a walled town near the castle.[2]

During the Hussite Wars (1419–1434), the town was several times besieged and conquered. In 1427, Prokop the Great defeated the crusaders in the Battle of Tachov. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) damaged the town considerably. In 1664, Count Johann Anton Losy became the new proprietor. The Losy family began conversion of the medieval castle to a large baroque château. In 1784, the title passed to the Windisch-Graetz family. The Windisch-Graetzs, in their turn, rebuilt the house in the classical style at great expense.[2]

Until 1918, Tachov (as Tachau) was part of the Austrian Empire, capital of the district of Tachau, and one of the 94 Bezirkshauptmannschaften in Bohemia.[3]

A post office was opened in Tachov in October 1850.[4]

In 1938, it was occupied by the German army as part of the Sudetenland. Most of the German-speaking population was expelled in 1945 (see the Beneš decrees). The area was only partly repopulated, mostly by Czechs and Slovaks, but also by immigrants from Romania and Ukraine. Later on uranium was mined here, attracting laborers to work in the mines.

After the Velvet Revolution that ended the Communist era in 1989, the uranium mines were closed. Some German companies established factories in the area to make use of the cheap labour. However, the Tachov area is still among the economically least developed Czech regions.

Demography
Historical population
YearPop.±%
18695,433—    
18805,572+2.6%
18905,680+1.9%
19006,590+16.0%
19107,814+18.6%
YearPop.±%
19217,902+1.1%
19308,189+3.6%
19504,843−40.9%
19615,606+15.8%
19708,435+50.5%
YearPop.±%
198011,847+40.5%
199112,833+8.3%
200112,696−1.1%
201112,548−1.2%
202113,072+4.2%
Source: Historical lexicon of municipalities of the Czech Republic[5]

Sights

Town walls

During the 14th century, the town walls were built up around the town. They gradually became a pride of Tachov, especially because of its condition that they are in. In the walls there were three entrances to the town. Thanks to the reconstruction, the walls are very well kept and almost all of the original twenty-four towers, which played an important role during wars and enemy attacks, are preserved.

Tachov Castle
Tachov Castle

The castle with a cylindrical tower was built up during the reign of Ottokar II of Bohemia. In 1802 the tower was taken down, and the Windisch-Graetz family built up the Renaissance castle instead. The construction was finished in 1808 and the Windisch-Graetzs lived here until 1939. During World War II, the castle was used for civil and military purposes, but it was seriously ruined, so in 1968 there was the possibility of demolition. Eventually, the castle was saved and from 1969 to 1983 it was under reconstruction. It is now used as The School of Art and also the town hall today, so it is still open to the public.[6]

Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary

First it was a Gothic church, but it went through many arrangements during the 14th century. The last reconstruction lasted from 1904 to 1908 and the church was rebuilt in Neo-Gothic style. The inside arrangements come from 1670. It does not have only the classical function of a church. Nowadays there are held many concerts during the year.[7]

Church of St. Wenceslaus

It is the oldest church in Tachov and may antedate the town itself. In 1802 the Windisch-Graetzs bought it and they made it a family tomb. It is a simple building located in park, which replaced a former churchyard. There are still many tombstones of significant burgesses, who lived in Tachov during the 15th–18th century. In 1947 the Czechoslovak Hussite Church took over this place.[8]

Franciscan Monastery
Former Franciscan Monastery

The first Franciscans came to Tachov in 1466 and since this year both – the church and the monastery went through many reconstructions. An Italian architect Martino Allio made the first reconstruction in 1686–1694, and the most important one came in years 1745–1750. In 1945 bombs damaged the church and four years later it was closed. Since 1945 it has been used as the County Museum, and it offers information about the history of Tachov and the region surrounding it. The museum is used for many activities and many expositions are held here every year.

Světce

Světce is a complex of three historical buildings. One of them is a monastery built in the 17th century. Josef II cancelled it and so in 1787 the Windisch-Graetzs bought it and rebuilt it as a castle. The castle, which was finished in 1700 went down, and nowadays we can see only some remain of the walls and a small tower. The last one is a riding hall from the time of romanticism, which was built in 1830. It is the second largest riding hall in Central Europe, right after the Viennese riding hall.[9]

Other
Husmann's Mill
Mohyla memorial

The Jewish cemetery was found in 1615 near the Rapotín Street. The oldest extant gravestones come from the 17th century.

Husmann's Mill is a Baroque mill founded by the regent Jan Filip Husmann in 1645. During reconstruction a millwheel was added and at this time it is used by the Cultural Centre of the Town and the Tachov's Children Choir.

Vysoká (563 m (1,847 ft) above sea level) is a hill to the west from the town. There is a 25 m (82 ft) high lookout tower on its top[10] and a monument that commemorates the Battle of Tachov.

Mohyla is a memorial that commemorates the death of 232 people, who were killed during the death marches during the World War II.

Notable people

References
  1. "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2021". Czech Statistical Office. 2021-04-30.
  2. "Historie Města Tachova" (in Czech). Město Tachov. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  3. Klein, Wilhelm. Die postalischen Abstempelungen auf den österreichischen Postwertzeichen-Ausgaben 1867, 1883 und 1890, 1967
  4. Mueller, Edwin. Handbook of Austria and Lombardy-Venetia Cancellations on the Postage Stamp Issues 1850–1864, 1961.
  5. "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011 – Okres Tachov" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2015-12-21. pp. 17–18.
  6. "Tachovský zámek" (in Czech). Město Tachov. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  7. "Chrám Nanebevzetí Panny Marie" (in Czech). Město Tachov. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  8. "Kostel sv. Václava, Tachov" (in Czech). Město Tachov. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  9. "Jízdárna ve Světcích" (in Czech). Město Tachov. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  10. "Rozhledna Vysoká, Tachov" (in Czech). Město Tachov. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
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