Litomyšl

Litomyšl ( Pronunciación checa: [ ˈlɪtomɪʃl̩ ]^ⓘ ;alemán:Leitomischl) es una ciudad endistrito de Svitavyen laregión de Pardubicede laRepública Checa. Tiene alrededor de 10 000 habitantes. La ciudad está ubicada a orillas delLoučnáen lastierras altas de Svitavy. Fue sede episcopal ytitular.

Litomyšl es conocida por el complejo del castillo de Litomyšl , de estilo château , declarado Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la UNESCO . El centro histórico de la ciudad, con el complejo del castillo, se conserva en buen estado y está protegido como reserva de monumento urbano .

Litomyšl consta de diez partes municipales (entre paréntesis la población según el censo de 2021): ^{[ 2 ]}

Nová Ves u Litomyšle y Pohodlí forman un enclave del territorio municipal.

The name is derived from the personal name Litomysl (in Old Czech written as Ľutomysl), meaning "Litomysl's (castle)".^[3]

Litomyšl is located about 16 kilometres (10 mi) northwest of Svitavy and 41 km (25 mi) southeast of Pardubice. It lies in the Svitavy Uplands. The highest point is at 558 m (1,831 ft) above sea level. The Loučná River flows through the town. There are several fishponds in the municipal territory, the largest of which is Velký Košíř, located northwest of the town proper.

The first written mention of Litomyšl is from 981. It is a record in Chronica Boemorum mentioning death of Duke Slavník. Litomyšl was originally a protective fortified settlement of the Slavník dynasty principality on a significant trade route from Bohemia to Moravia. In 1259, Litomyšl was promoted to a town by King Ottokar II.^[4]

During the following centuries the town was owned by various noble families: Kostka of Postupice, Pernštejn, Trauttmansdorff, Waldstein-Wartemberg and last Thurn und Taxis. The Litomyšl Castle was built in 1568–1581 by the Pernštejns.^[4]

From 30 April 1344 till its suppression in 1474, the town was the seat of the Latin Catholic Diocese of Litomyšl, until its territory was merged back into the (meanwhile Metropolitan Arch) Diocese of Prague. In 1970, it was nominally restored as titular see.^[5]

A congregation of the proto-Protestant brotherhood Unitas Fratrum (Unity of the Brethren) was documented in Litomyšl as early as 1490. The Brethren flourished in Litomyšl, being protected by the Kostka family. The Brethren founded a printing press there. The town, along with Mladá Boleslav, became a major centre for the Brethren. However, after the Catholic emperor emerged victorious from the Schmalkaldic War, bishop Jan Augusta was captured and imprisoned in 1548 and the Brethren were expelled from Litomyšl and many emigrated to Poland and Moravia.^[6]

En el siglo XIX, Litomyšl dejó de ser el principal centro económico de la región, pero siguió siendo el centro cultural y educativo. ^{[ 4 ]} Hasta 1918, la ciudad formó parte de Austria-Hungría , siendo la cabeza del distrito homónimo, uno de los 94 Bezirkshauptmannschaften de Bohemia. ^{[ 7 ]}

La existencia de la comunidad judía está documentada al menos desde finales del siglo XVI. Durante el Holocausto , en 1942, las últimas familias fueron deportadas. ^{[ 8 ]} Litomyšl tuvo una comunidad de habla alemana hasta que fue expulsada en 1945 como resultado de los decretos Beneš .

La carretera I/35 (el tramo entre Hradec Králové y Svitavy , que forma parte de la ruta europea E442 ) atraviesa la ciudad.

Litomyšl es el punto de partida de la línea ferroviaria de importancia local que se dirige a Choceň . La ciudad cuenta con tres estaciones y paradas de tren. ^{[ 11 ]}

Desde 1946, la ciudad acoge el "Smetanova Litomyšl", un gran festival anual de música clásica. Lleva el nombre del compositor Bedřich Smetana , el nativo local más famoso. ^{[ 12 ]}

En la galería de la bóveda del castillo de Litomyšl se encuentra una extensa exposición permanente de esculturas y obras de arte de Olbram Zoubek . ^{[ 13 ]}

The main landmark of Litomyšl is the Litomyšl Castle, one of the largest Renaissance castles. The buildings of the castle precincts are exceptional for their architectural refinement. The castle complex also includes the birthplace of Bedřich Smetana, carriage house, stables, riding school, castle brewery, castle park and French-style garden. The castle complex was added to the UNESCOWorld Heritage List in 1999.^[15]

Next to the castle is the Piarist college with the seat of members of the order, the Church of the Finding the Holy Cross and adjacent monastery gardens. Today the gardens serve as a town park. The gardens include sculptures by Olbram Zoubek.^[15]

On the elongated square, which is almost 500 metres (1,600 ft) long and one of the largest in Central Europe, is a town hall of Gothic origin and series of Renaissance and Baroque houses, many with arcades and vaulted ground floor rooms. One of the most significant burgher houses is the house U Rytířů ("At the Knights"), a Renaissance house built from 1540 to 1546 with a notable stone façade.^[15]

Litomyšl is also home to the "Portmoneum", a museum of the artist and writer Josef Váchal in the home of his admirer Josef Portman, who commissioned Váchal's murals and painted furniture in the house.^[15]

• Jan Augusta (1500–1572), bishop of the Unitas Fratrum and Protestant reformer; lived here
• Magdalena Dobromila Rettigová (1785–1845), author of the first cookbook written in Czech; lived here in 1834–1845
• August von Jilek (1819–1898) physician and oceanographer
• Bedřich Smetana (1824–1884), classical composer
• Julius Mařák (1832–1899), painter and graphic designer
• Eduard Pospichal (1838–1905), Austrian botanist
• Josef Kořenský (1847–1938), traveller, educator and writer; worked here as a teacher in 1871–1874
• Zdeněk Nejedlý (1878–1962), musicologist and politician
• Božena Jelínková-Jirásková (1880–1951), painter
• Arne Novák (1880–1939), critic and historian of literature
• Zdeněk Kopal (1914–1993), astronomer
• Karel Píč (1920–1995), Esperantist and writer
• Miroslav Macek (1944–2024), politician
• Václav Jílek (born 1976), football manager
• Markéta Adamová (born 1984), politician

Litomyšl está hermanada con: ^{[ 16 ]}

• Levoča , Eslovaquia
• Noordenveld , Países Bajos
• San Polo d'Enza , Italia

• Official website
• Tourist Information Centre Litomyšl