Havlíckuv Brod - is a town in the Vysocina Region of the Czech
Republic. It is also the capital of the district (okres)
Havlickuv Brod. It is located on the Sazava River in the
Bohemian-Moravian Highlands and has a population of 24,321 as of
2003. It belongs to the historical land of Bohemia. Settlement
in Brod has been documented as far back as the 12th century.
After silver was discovered in the area, the Bohemian nobleman
Smil of Lichtenburk (Lichtenburg) invited German miners to
settle the area; Brod received its city rights in 1257. Although
the townspeople were German-speakers in a predominantly
Czech-speaking land, the people of Brod became loyal subjects of
the Bohemian crown. In the 13th and 14th centuries it was a
center for silver mining, although its importance gradually
declined in the latter century. Because the German townspeople
supported King Sigismind during the Hussite Wars, Brod was
sacked on 22 January 1422 by Jan Žižka. The town was resettled
in 1429 and experienced a cultural flowering during the 16th and
17th centuries. Brod was industrialized during the 19th century
with an emphasis on textiles, and became an important railway
junction. |