Žďár nad Sázavou

Žďár nad Sázavou
Town
Castle courtyard
Flag
Country Czech Republic
Region Vysočina
River Sázava
Elevation 580 m (1,903 ft)
Coordinates CZ 49°33′54″N 15°56′26″E / 49.56500°N 15.94056°E / 49.56500; 15.94056Coordinates: CZ 49°33′54″N 15°56′26″E / 49.56500°N 15.94056°E / 49.56500; 15.94056
Area 37.06 km2 (14.31 sq mi)
Population 21,467 (2015)
First mentioned 1100
Postal code 591 01
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Name Pilgrimage Church of St. John of Nepomuk at Zelená Hora
Year 1994 (#18)
Number 690
Region Europe and North America
Criteria iv
Location in the Czech Republic
Wikimedia Commons: Žďár nad Sázavou
Website: www.zdarns.cz

Žďár nad Sázavou (Czech pronunciation: [ˈʒɟaːr ˈnat saːzavou̯]; German: Saar) is a city in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has approximately 24,000 inhabitants and is the administrative capital of the Žďár nad Sázavou District. The city is a prominent centre of tourism, as a cross country ski resort in winter and a popular destination for cycling and bathing in the summer. It is also situated on a major rail link between Prague and Brno.

Žďár nad Sázavou gained prominence after World War II when the communist government decided to build steel works in the city, called ŽĎAS. Within less than twenty years the population of the city grew fivefold, from about 3,000 in 1950 to 15,000 in 1969, and the number of inhabitants continued to grow until the 1980s. With the fall of the communist regime in 1989 the significance of heavy industry started to fall; however, ŽĎAS continues production today.

This is the site of a branch of the Czech National Museum, the Museum of the Book.[1] The Baroque library of the former Capuchin Monastery from Roudnice nad Labem has been reconstructed, along with the library of the Czech historian, Gelasius Dobner, a beautiful, classical interior, and the library of the Mladá Vožice Chateau. Especially interesting are the collection of printing pressed and technology, and the reconstruction a medieval Scriptorium.[2]

Villages Mělkovice, Radonín, Stržanov and Veselíčko are administrative parts of Žďár nad Sázavou. The Pilgrimage Church of Saint John of Nepomuk, one of the World Heritage Sites, is situated there.

A school in the town was the location of an October 2014 knife attack, resulting in the death of a 16-year-old boy as well as injuries to three other pupils.[3]

References

  1. ↑ National Museum (Prague)
  2. ↑ http://www.nm.cz/Knihovna-nm/Long-term-Exhibitions-NML/The-History-of-the-Book-and-the-Letterpress-from-their-Beginnings-to-the-Present.html
  3. ↑ Willoughby, Ian (14 October 2014). "Boy of 16 killed in school knife attack". Radio Prague. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
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