Lovosice
Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox settlement Lovosice (Template:IPA; Template:Langx) is a town in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,700 inhabitants. Located on the Elbe River, the town is a transport hub and is known for its chemical, engineering and food-processing industries.
Geography
Lovosice is located about Template:Convert southwest of Litoměřice and Template:Convert south of Ústí nad Labem. It lies mostly in the Lower Ohře Table. A small northwestern part of the municipal territory extends into the Central Bohemian Uplands and includes the highest point of Lovosice, which is a contour line at the foot of the Lovoš mountain at Template:Convert above sea level. The town is situated on the left bank of the Elbe River, which forms the northern municipal border.
History
The region of Lovosice was inhabited already in the Bronze Age. Some evidence indicates that the first Czechs lived right here.
The first mention of Lovosice is from 1143. Duke Vladislaus II gave this small village to the Strahov Monastery. Emperor Rudolf II promoted the village to a town in 1600.<ref name=history>Template:Cite web</ref>
Lovosice was the site of a major battle between Prussia and the Habsburg Empire in 1756, known as the Battle of Lobositz.
In 1850, the railway was built, which supported the industrialisation of the town and accelerated development.<ref name=history/>
During World War II, due to the Munich Agreement, Lovosice fell within a German occupation zone, commonly called Sudetenland. Only 600 Czechs stayed in the town at that time.<ref name=history/> After the war, the German population was expelled as a result of the Beneš decrees.
Demographics
Template:Historical populations
Economy
Lovosice is known as an industrial town with a long tradition of chemical and food-processing industries.<ref name=history/> The main industrial employees with headquarters in Lovosice are TRCZ (a manufacturer of parts for motor vehicles with more than 1,000 employees) and Lovochemie (a manufacturer of fertilisers with more than 500 employees).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Transport
Lovosice is a significant transport junction. Besides a cargo port on the Elbe River, the town has a great connection to Prague and Germany via the D8 motorway.
Lovosice is located on the railway lines Prague–Děčín and Litoměřice–Chotiměř. The town is served by three train stations.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Sights
The former town hall is one of the most valuable buildings in the town. It was built in the Art Nouveau style in 1906–1907. Today it serves as a library and tourist information office.<ref name=sights>Template:Cite web</ref>
The Renaissance castle in Lovosice was built in the second half of the 16th century. After a fire in 1809, it was modified in the Baroque style and served as an archive and office. Today the building houses a secondary vocational school.<ref name=sights/>
The Church of Saint Wenceslaus was built in the Baroque style in 1733–1748, on the site of the former wooden church. It contains valuable frescoes and a Saint Wenceslaus altarpiece.<ref name=sights/>
Notable people
- Karl von Czyhlarz (1833–1914), Czech-Austrian jurist and politician
- Alfons Dopsch (1868–1953), Austrian historian
Twin towns – sister cities
Template:See also Lovosice is twinned with:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Template:Flagicon Coswig, Germany