Krnov

Sister cities

• Povegliano Veronese
• Pefki
• Telšiai
• Gmina Prudnik
• Saint-Égrève
• Prudnik
• Rajec
• Głubczyce
• Mińsk Mazowiecki
• Karben
• Nadvirna

History

The first written mention of Krnov is from 1240. At the latest in 1269 and probably already in 1253, Krnov was a town. In the second half of the 13th century, town fortifications were built. In 1273, the Minorites came into the town and established a monastery. Krnov was a part of Duchy of Troppau until 1377, when the Duchy of Krnov separated and the town became its capital. Krnov prospered, guilds were established and textile crafts developed. In 1523, the Duchy of Krnov was acquired by the Hohenzollern family. They had built a castle here and during their rule, the town achieved its greatest prosperity and population growth. From 1938 to 1945 it was occupied by Germany and administered as a part of the Reichsgau Sudetenland. During World War II, the German administration operated a Gestapo prison and four forced labour subcamps of the Stalag VIII-B/344 prisoner-of-war camp in the town. After the war, the German population was expelled, in accordance to the Potsdam Agreement. In 2024, Krnov was damaged by the Central European floods.

Geography

Krnov is located about northwest of Opava and northwest of Ostrava, in the historic region of Czech Silesia on the border with Poland. The town is situated at the confluence of the Opava and Opavice rivers. The northern part of the territory with the town proper lies in the Zlatohorská Highlands. The western and the southern part lie in the Nízký Jeseník range. A small part on the southeast extends into the Opava Hilly Land. The highest point is the hill Bednářský vrch at above sea level.