Nové Hrady - Town Square

Trail "People and their Landscape"

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namesti 2In the year 1590, Wilhelm Rozmberk donated the ground for the town square to the citizens of Nove Hrady. At that time, some houses were already present. The square itself was not level but irregular; the area was levelled in 1837-1839. The well in the centre dates from 1744. During the levelling works, it was raised and fitted with surrounding stairs. Initially only the town hall and houses of court officials lined the square. Later new houses were erected facing the square. Behind them were the gardens and sheds.

The centuries-long development of the individual houses and the town centre as a whole was abruptly interrupted by the fire of 1906. The fire started in Údolská Street and rapidly spread over into the square. Nine houses were completely and a further four partly destroyed, with a lot of collateral damage. The extend of the fire can be judged from photographs of that period. They also give a unique impression of the layout and view of the western part of the square. Replacing the lost houses brought a new architectural style to the square: Jugendstil. In particular, some of the new houses in the Údolská Street are fine examples of that new style.

Namesti 1     namesti 3

Due to the fire and normal development, several of the original buildings on the square were lost. Similar, many of the original owners of the houses or the trades carried out there are not present anymore. Such is life; people and things come and go. The Nove Hrady town square is a good example of that showing a mix of historical valuable objects next to restored and rebuild houses next to post-war buildings.

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