Lanškroun

Sister cities

• Hajdúszoboszló
• Dzierżoniów
• Kežmarok
• Castiglione in Teverina

History

The first written mention of Lanškroun is from 1285, when it was donated by King Wenceslaus II to Záviš of Falkenstein. Lanškroun was founded during the colonisation in the second half of the 13th century under the name Landeskrone. It became the economical centre of the large estate of Lanšperk and later of separate Lanškroun estate. In 1304, Lanškroun property of the Zbraslav Monastery and in 1358, it was acquired by Litomyšl bishopric. In 1371, an Augustinian monastery was founded. In 1421, the town was conquered by Jan Žižka. After the Hussite Wars, the estate was acquired by the noble family of Kostka of Postupice. It began to prosper and obtained various privileges. In 1507, it was bought by the Pernštejn family. Then it was shortly held by the Hrzáns of Harasov, and after the Battle of White Mountain, it was bought by the Liechtenstein family. During the Thirty Years' War, the town was repeatedly burned down and looted by the Swedish army and the Catholicisation began. After the war, the population was significantly decreased. It was repopulated by German settlers and in 1683, German has become the official language. Until the expulsion of the German-speaking population from Lanškroun in 1946, the majority of population of the town had been German. After the expulsion, the town became completely Czech. In 1945, it ceased to be a district town.

Geography

Lanškroun is located about southeast of Ústí nad Orlicí and east of Pardubice. It lies in the Orlické Foothills. The highest point is at above sea level. The stream Třešňovský potok flows through the town. In the northwestern part of the municipal territory is a system of six fishponds, supplied by the stream Ostrovský potok. The largest of them is Dlouhý rybník, used for recreational purposes and water sports. The northernmost ponds (Pšeničkův rybník and Olšový rybník) and the area around the stream Zadní potok before its confluence with the Ostrovský potok is protected as the Landškrounské rybníky Nature Reserve within the Lanškroun Ponds Nature Park. The Moravská Sázava River briefly crosses the territory of Lanškroun in the south, and the Ostrovský potok joins the Moravská Sázava there.