Teplice comprises the administrative parts of Teplice, Hudcov, Nová Ves, Prosetice, Řetenice, Sobědruhy and Trnovany.[2]
Etymology
The Old Czech word teplice is an Old Czech word meaning 'warm (hot) water'.[3]
Geography
Teplice is located about 14 kilometres (9 mi) west of Ústí nad Labem and 72 km (45 mi) northwest of Prague. The northern part of the municipal territory lies in the Most Basin, the southern part lies in the Central Bohemian Uplands. The highest point is the hill Doubravská hora at 393 m (1,289 ft) above sea level. There are several small fish ponds in the territory.
History
According to the 1541 Annales Bohemorum by chronicler Wenceslaus Hajek, the thermal springs are fabled to have been discovered as early as 762; however, the first authentic mention of the baths occurred in the 16th century. The settlement of Trnovany was first documented in a 1057 deed, while Teplice proper was first mentioned in 1154, when Judith of Thuringia, queen consort of King Vladislaus II of Bohemia, founded a Benedictine convent near the hot springs, the second in Bohemia.[4] A fortified town arose around the monastery, which was destroyed in the course of the Hussite Wars after the 1426 Battle of Aussig. In the late 15th century, queen consort Joanna of Rožmitál, wife of King George of Poděbrady, had a castle erected on the ruins.
Teplice figures in the history of the Thirty Years' War, when it was a possession of the Protestant Bohemian noble Vilém Kinský, who was assassinated together with Generalissimo Albrecht von Wallenstein in Cheb in 1634. The Habsburg emperor Ferdinand II thereafter enfeoffed castle and town to his general Johann von Aldringen, who nevertheless was killed in battle in the same year, and Teplice fell to his sister Anna Maria von Clary-Aldringen. Consequently, and until 1945, Teplice Castle was the primarily seat of the princely House of Clary-Aldringen. After the Thirty Years' War, the devastated town was the destination of many German settlers.
After World War II the Czechoslovak government enacted the Beneš decrees, whereafter the German-speaking majority of the population was expelled from Teplice. In 1945, the Princes of Clary-Aldringen, lords of Teplice since 1634, were expropriated.
In 1994, Jaroslav Kubera of the ODS became mayor of Teplice and he held the position until 2018.
The largest employers based in the city are AGC Flat Glass Czech (manufacturer of flat glass for the construction and automotive industries) and Severočeská servisní (a company that deals with construction and maintenance of pipelines), both with more than 1,000 employees.[10]
The city used to be nicknamed "Little Paris" and "Salon of Europe" for its spa architecture and cultural level until World War II.[14] The opening of the spa season is an annual three-day celebration with a rich cultural program.[15] The Krušnohorské Theatre is the city's main venue for operas and plays.[16]
Sport
Teplice is home to the professional football club FK Teplice playing in the Czech First League. The stadium Na Stínadlech is one of the largest in the country and has hosted international matches.
Sights
The main landmark is Teplice Castle. It houses a regional museum with historic castle interiors and a library. In the inner courtyard of the castle, there is a unique Romanesque exposition with the remains of Queen Judith and the remains of a Romanesque basilica with a rarely preserved Romanesque crypt. Adjoining the castle is a large castle garden.[17]
The Church of Saint John the Baptist is a baroque building from 1594, rebuilt in 1703 to its current form. Its tower is open to the public and serves as a lookout tower.[18]
The neo-Gothic Church of Saint Bartholomew was built in 1884 for German population of Lutheran faith. After their expulsion, the church changed owners several times and ceased to serve its purpose. Today it is conserved as a cultural monument and there are expositions concerning the history of the Jewish community in Teplice, and other.[19]
Doubravka Castle is a castle ruin located in Trnovany part of Teplice. It was built in 1483 and conquered in 1639 during the Thirty Years' War. The castle began to serve as a destination for walks and in the 19th century, a restaurant and the neo-Gothic extension were built. Today there is a restaurant and a private lookout tower.[20]
^"Historie" (in Czech). Lázně Teplice. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
^Encyklopedie branné moci Republiky Československé, Jiří Fidler & Václav Sluka
^Osterloh, Jörg (2015). "Sudetenland". In Gruner, Wolf; Osterloh, Jörg (eds.). The Greater German Reich and the Jews: Nazi Persecution Policies in the Annexed Territories 1935–1945. War and Genocide. Translated by Heise, Bernard. New York: Berghahn Books. pp. 68–98. ISBN978-1-78238-444-1.
^Kocourek, Ludomír (1997). "Das Schicksal der Juden im Sudetengau im Licht der erhaltenen Quellen" [The Fate of the Jews in Sudetengau in Light of the Surviving Sources]. Theresienstädter Studien und Dokumente (in German) (4): 86–104. CEEOL155844.
^"Lázeňská 2023" (in Czech). Lázně Teplice. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
^Kobzová, Jana; Matoušková, Anna (1999). The Cultural Heritage of the Czech Republic on the Threshold of the Third Millennium: European Heritage Days, Campaign Europe--a Common Heritage. Association of Historical Settlements in Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia. p. 163.
^"Teplický zámek" (in Czech). Město Teplice. Retrieved 15 July 2021.