Vítkovice (Ostrava)
Encyclopedia
Vítkovice is an administrative district of the city of Ostrava
, capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region
in the Czech Republic
. Situated on the left bank of the Ostravice River
in the Moravia
n part of the city, Vítkovice was a town
in its own right until its incorporation in 1924.
was first mentioned in a 1357 deed by the Lords of Paskov
, probably named after the nobleman Witek von Wigstein, who was enfeoffed by the Bishops of Olomouc
with nearby Šostýn (Schauenstein) Castle in 1369. In 1435 it was given in pawn with the Lordship of Hukvaldy
by Emperor Sigismund
to the former Hussite
leader Nikolaus Sokol of Lamberg
.
Vítkovice, initially agricultural village, witnessed heavy industrialization
after 1828, when the Olomouc archbishop Archduke Rudolf of Austria at the instigation of geologist Franz Xaver Riepl
had an iron and steel mill (Rudolfshütte) built, the first in the Austrian Empire
to use the puddling
technique. Since then the village became an important industrial center of the region.
The iron works were continuously enlarged and finally purchased by the Viennese
banker Salomon Mayer von Rothschild
in 1843. He also financed the extension of the Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway from Vienna to Ostrava with a branch-off to his steel mill, which was completed in 1855. His Rothschild
heirs in 1873 founded the Witkowitzer Bergbau- und Hüttengewerkschaft, the largest iron and steel works in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy
. After the German occupation of Czechoslovakia
in 1939, their possessions were "aryanized
" and taken over by the Reichswerke Hermann Göring
conglomerate. After World War II
they were socialised as the Vítkovické železárny Klement Gottwald
n.p. (VŽKG) by the Czechoslovak
state.
Vítkovice from 1850 was an independent municipality. In 1908 it was granted town rights by Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria
, in 1924 it became a part of Greater Ostrava.
The FC Vítkovice
football club is based in this part of the city. The ice hockey club HC Vítkovice
is located nearby but is based in the neighbouring district of Ostrava-Jih, despite its name.
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
, capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region
Moravian-Silesian Region
Moravian-Silesian Region , or Moravo-Silesian Region, is one of 14 administrative Regions of the Czech Republic, until May 2001 it was formerly called the Ostrava Region . The region is located in the north-eastern part of its historical region of Moravia and in most of the Czech part of the...
in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
. Situated on the left bank of the Ostravice River
Ostravice River
Ostravice is a river in Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic. It originates in the Moravian-Silesian Beskids and then flows through Ostravice, Frýdlant nad Ostravicí, Frýdek-Místek and Paskov to Ostrava where it enters the Oder as its right tributary...
in the Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
n part of the city, Vítkovice was a town
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in its own right until its incorporation in 1924.
History
The settlement of Witchendorff in the March of MoraviaMarch of Moravia
The March or Margraviate of Moravia, was a marcher state, sometimes de facto independent and varyingly within the power of the Duchy, later Kingdom of Bohemia...
was first mentioned in a 1357 deed by the Lords of Paskov
Paskov
Paskov is a city in the Czech Republic with 3,841 people as of 2006. The settlement dates to 1267. The city is situated between Ostrava and Frýdek-Místek.- External links :...
, probably named after the nobleman Witek von Wigstein, who was enfeoffed by the Bishops of Olomouc
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Olomouc
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Olomouc is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in the Czech Republic. Not much is known about the beginnings of the Diocese of Olomouc...
with nearby Šostýn (Schauenstein) Castle in 1369. In 1435 it was given in pawn with the Lordship of Hukvaldy
Hukvaldy
Hukvaldy is a village in the Czech Republic, in the Moravian-Silesian Region. Population: 1,900. It lies 150m below the ruins of the third largest castle in the Czech Republic, Hukvaldy Castle , and is the birthplace of the composer Leoš Janáček and palaeontologist Ferdinand Stoliczka.The castle...
by Emperor Sigismund
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...
to the former Hussite
Hussite Wars
The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars involved the military actions against and amongst the followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia in the period 1419 to circa 1434. The Hussite Wars were notable for the extensive use of early hand-held gunpowder weapons such as hand cannons...
leader Nikolaus Sokol of Lamberg
Steyr
Steyr is a town, located in the Austrian federal state of Upper Austria. The town is situated at the confluence of the rivers Steyr and Enns. Steyr is Austria's 12th most populated town and simultaneously the 3rd largest town in Upper Austria....
.
Vítkovice, initially agricultural village, witnessed heavy industrialization
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
after 1828, when the Olomouc archbishop Archduke Rudolf of Austria at the instigation of geologist Franz Xaver Riepl
Franz Xaver Riepl
Franz Xaver Riepl was an important Austrian geologist, railway and metallurgical specialist.Riepl was born in Graz, Austria, on 20 November 1790. Between 1820 and 1835 he worked as a professor at the Vienna Technical University. It was from him that the initiative came to quarry the Styrian Ore...
had an iron and steel mill (Rudolfshütte) built, the first in the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
to use the puddling
Puddling (metallurgy)
Puddling was an Industrial Revolution means of making iron and steel. In the original puddling technique, molten iron in a reverberatory furnace was stirred with rods, which were consumed in the process...
technique. Since then the village became an important industrial center of the region.
The iron works were continuously enlarged and finally purchased by the Viennese
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
banker Salomon Mayer von Rothschild
Salomon Mayer von Rothschild
Salomon Mayer von Rothschild was a German-born banker in the Austrian Empire and the founder of the Viennese branch of the prominent Mayer Amschel Rothschild family....
in 1843. He also financed the extension of the Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway from Vienna to Ostrava with a branch-off to his steel mill, which was completed in 1855. His Rothschild
Rothschild banking family of Austria
The Rothschild banking family of Austria was founded by Salomon Mayer von Rothschild in 1820 in Vienna in what was then the Austrian Empire.-History:...
heirs in 1873 founded the Witkowitzer Bergbau- und Hüttengewerkschaft, the largest iron and steel works in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
. After the German occupation of Czechoslovakia
German occupation of Czechoslovakia
German occupation of Czechoslovakia began with the Nazi annexation of Czechoslovakia's northern and western border regions, known collectively as the Sudetenland, under terms outlined by the Munich Agreement. Nazi leader Adolf Hitler's pretext for this effort was the alleged privations suffered by...
in 1939, their possessions were "aryanized
Aryanization
Aryanization is a term coined during Nazism referring to the forced expulsion of so-called "non-Aryans", mainly Jews, from business life in Nazi Germany and the territories it controlled....
" and taken over by the Reichswerke Hermann Göring
Reichswerke Hermann Göring
Reichswerke Hermann Göring was an industrial conglomerate of Nazi Germany. It was established in July 1937 to extract and process domestic iron ores from Salzgitter that were deemed uneconomical by the privately held steel mills...
conglomerate. After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
they were socialised as the Vítkovické železárny Klement Gottwald
Klement Gottwald
Klement Gottwald was a Czechoslovakian Communist politician, longtime leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia , prime minister and president of Czechoslovakia.-Early life:...
n.p. (VŽKG) by the Czechoslovak
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
state.
Vítkovice from 1850 was an independent municipality. In 1908 it was granted town rights by Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
, in 1924 it became a part of Greater Ostrava.
Sights
Most important landmarks of Vítkovice are Neo-Gothic Saint Paul Church built in 1880-1886, the Rothschild Palace from 1846/47 and Vítkovice Town Hall from 1901/02. Part of the Vítkovice Iron and Steel Works since 2002 is designated a National Cultural Landmark.The FC Vítkovice
FC Vítkovice
FC Vítkovice is a football club from Vítkovice, Ostrava, Czech Republic. It was founded in 1919 and announced bankruptcy in 2011. The club won the Czechoslovak First League in the 1985–86 season....
football club is based in this part of the city. The ice hockey club HC Vítkovice
HC Vítkovice
HC Vítkovice Steel is an ice hockey club based in Ostrava in the Czech Republic, competing in the Czech Extraliga. It plays in the newly reconstructed ČEZ Aréna ....
is located nearby but is based in the neighbouring district of Ostrava-Jih, despite its name.
Notable people
- Ilse WeberIlse WeberIlse Weber née Herlinger, was born in Witkowitz near Mährisch-Ostrau. A Jewish poet, she wrote songs and theater pieces for Jewish children...
(1903 - 1944), writer, murdered in AuschwitzAuschwitz concentration campConcentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
.