Horní Branná

Horní Branná
Municipality
Horní Branná Castle
Flag Coat of arms
Horní Branná Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 50°36′30″N 15°34′18″E
Country	Czech Republic
Region	Liberec
District	Semily
First mentioned	1350
Area
• Total	20.86 km^2 (8.05 sq mi)
Elevation	459 m (1,506 ft)
Population  (2024-01-01)[1]
• Total	1,873
• Density	90/km^2 (230/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal codes	512 36, 514 01
Website	www.hbranna.cz

Horní Branná (German: Brennei) is a municipality and village in Semily District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,900 inhabitants.

Administrative parts

The village of Valteřice is an administrative part of Horní Branná.

Geography

Horní Branná is located about 38 kilometres (24 mi) southeast of Liberec. It lies mostly in the Giant Mountains Foothills, only the northern part of the municipal territory extends into the Giant Mountains. The highest point is at 707 m (2,320 ft) above sea level. The built-up area is situated in the valley of the Sovinka Stream.

History

The first written mention of Horní Branná is in a document of the diocese of Prague, taken in the years 1344–1350.[2] From 1387 to 1606, Horní Branná was owned by the Waldstein family.[3]

Demographics

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% 1869 3,422 —     1880 3,220 −5.9% 1890 3,249 +0.9% 1900 3,123 −3.9% 1910 3,201 +2.5%	Year Pop. ±% 1921 2,852 −10.9% 1930 2,804 −1.7% 1950 1,890 −32.6% 1961 1,856 −1.8% 1970 1,732 −6.7%	Year Pop. ±% 1980 1,665 −3.9% 1991 1,664 −0.1% 2001 1,770 +6.4% 2011 1,801 +1.8% 2021 1,838 +2.1%
Source: Censuses[4][5]

Transport

The I/14 road (the section from Liberec to Trutnov) passes through the municipality.

Horní Branná is located on the railway line from Trutnov to Kolín.[6]

Sights

Church of Saint Nicholas

The Church of Saint Nicholas is the oldest church in the Giant Mountains Foothills area. It was built in 1557, when it replaced an old wooden church. The tower was added in 1700.[7]

The Horní Branná Castle was built as a Renaissance aristocratic residence in the second half of the 16th century. The sgraffito decoration dates from 1582. In 1627–1628, Kristina Poniatowská lived on the castle and was visited by John Amos Comenius. Today the building is used for commercial purposes.[8]

The baroque hospital was built in 1709 by Count Harrach for the count's elderly servants. In 1987, the hospital was demolished and replaced by its copy. Only the original Chapel of Saint Aloysius has been preserved.[9]

Notable people

• Jan Slavomír Tomíček (1806–1866), writer and journalist
• František Hák (1903–?), cross-country skier
• Václav Jón (1905–1966), cross-country skier
• Zdeněk Remsa (1928–2019), ski jumper
• Ilja Matouš (1931–2018), cross-country skier

References

1. "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2024". Czech Statistical Office. 2024-05-17.
2. "Od nejstarších dob" (in Czech). Obec Horní Branná. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
3. "Valdštejnové" (in Czech). Obec Horní Branná. Archived from the original on 2020-03-22. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
4. "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2015-12-21.
5. "Population Census 2021: Population by sex". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. 2021-03-27.
6. "Detail stanice Horní Branná" (in Czech). České dráhy. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
7. "Kostel sv. Mikuláše" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
8. "Zámek" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
9. "Špitál" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-09-08.

External links

• Official website