Alternate names: České Budějovice [Cz], Budweis [Ger], Budejovice, Böhmisch Budweis in English at 48°58′29″N 14°28′29″E, 76 miles S of Praha (Prague), is the largest city in the South Bohemian Region and the political and commercial capital of the region and Roman Catholic Diocese of České Budějovice and of the University of South Bohemia and the Academy of Sciences. This is NOT Moravské Budějovice in Moravia. town history on Wikipedia. 1900 Jewish population: 1,673. [September 2011]
REFERENCES:
Encyclopedia of Jewish Life (2001), p. 239: "Ceske Budejovice".
R. Huyer, Zur Geschichte der ersten Judengemeinde in Budweis (1911); H. Gold (ed.), Die Juden und Judengemeinden Boehmens… (1934), 44–48; A. Charim, Die toten Gemeinden (1966), 23–27; N. Fryd, Pan biskup a vzorek bez ceny (1967); idem, Hedvábné starosti (1968).
J. Fiedler, Jewish Sights of Bohemia and Moravia (1991), 55–56.
[Oskar K. Rabinowicz / Yeshayahu Jellinek (2nd ed.)]
website in Czech with photo: "The [landmarked] cemetery located 1.5 km NE of the Square, Pekárenské ulici was established in 1866. About 100 tombstones preserved since the establishment of the cemetery and dozens of bases and curbing are visible. In the mortuary building is a permanent exhibition dedicated to the history of Jews in the city. In the southern part of the cemetery is a 1950 Holocaust memorial. Part of the tombstones were removed during the Nazi occupation. The ceremonial hall demolished in 1975. The 1980s planned liquidation of the cemetery did not occur. In the early 1990s, the cemetery was cleared of dense vegetation and bushes, which was almost impenetrable. The ceremonial hall, now used as a small museum, and part of wall were restored. The rest of the wall was repaired in 2004. Currently, the cemetery is cleaned and needs only continuous maintenance of the property." [September 2011]photos [February 2009]
České Budějovice was founded in 1265 on the confluence of the Vltava and Malše rivers by King Přemysl Otakar II. The city has a chessboard layout. In 1341 two Jews were granted remission of taxes for ten years. By 1390 the Jews lived in a separate quarter of the city. Anti-Jewish riots in 1505 occurred when nine local Jews accused of ritual murder were burned alive and thirteen drowned. In 1506, 23 Jewish children were forcibly baptized. The rest of the Jews were expelled from the city. Jews were permitted to settle again after 1848. A new congregation established in 1856. In 1859, a cemetery consecrated in 1866.A neo-Gothicsynagogue was built in 1868. Remains of the old synagogue were discovered in 1908. (The Germans blew up the 1868 synagogue on June 5, 1942.) 1,263 Jews lived in 19 close localities in 1902. Rabbis of Ceske Budejovice included Emil Krakauer (officiated 1905–06) and Karl Thieberger (1906–30). 1930 Jewish population was 1,138 (2.6% of the total population). The area settled by ethnic Germans (Sudeten Deutsche) saw the Jews persecuted by the authorities and the local population after annexation. In June 1939 the offices of the congregation were closed. Jewish shops were attacked on July 21. On August 16, 1940, Jews were concentrated in an ancient building under horrid living conditions. 386 who had left the area were deported during the war. 909 were deported to death camps on April 18, 1942. After World War II, the congregation reconstituted, but ceased in 1970 due to lack of members. České Budějovice is the seat of the South Bohemian regional administration and a university. [February 2009]
This most populace South Bohemian townis situated in the hollow of the Ceskobudejovicka Panev (Ceske Budejovice Basin) on the confluence of the Vltava and Malse rivers with about 100,000. The town is the administrative, cultural, educational and traffic centre of South Bohemia. The South Bohemian University, the South Bohemian Museum, the South Bohemian Theatre, the branch of the Academy of Sciences and branch of the State Scientific Library are there. The center of the town with the largest square in Bohemia has been landmarked since 1980. Czech King Premysl Ottakar II established the troyal own in 1265 as a royal town as a buttress for the Czech kings in the region. The historical town center was planned and protected on two sides by the Vltava and Malse rivers with a geometric web of streets around the square and he Dominican monastery, which was founded together with the town. Originally named Budejovice, the town was the trade and crafts center of South Bohemia In the 14th century. Kings Wenceslas II and Charles IV gave many privileges to the town and helped the town to develop quickly. Loyal to the rulers during the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) and during the revolt against Emperor Ferdinand I (1546-1547) for which many privileges were rewarded. Silver mines on the NE outskirts near the village Rudolfov had a 1569 - 1611 mint was here. The new name of the town, Ceske Budejovice, comes from this time. The Thirty Years' War and ba ig fire in 1641 interrupted the growth of the town. The restoration was very slow and the new development started in the 18th century. In 1751 Ceske Budejovice became a centre of the district the town. Until the 19th century, Ceske Budejovice with less then 10,000 peoplewas enclosed inside town walls. Construction of the horse-drawn railway (about 1830) from Ceske Budejovice to the northern Austrian town Linz industrialized the town. This was the first European continental railroad (the first one in Europe being in England). During the 19th century, the town walls were pulled down. Most of all historical and cultural sights are in the Square of King Premysl Ottakar II and around it in the town centre. Samsonova Kasna (Samson's Fountain) dominates the square, with its archway of citizens' houses from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The Baroque town hall stands in the SW corner. The former monastery with the Church of the Offering of the Virgin Mary lies near the square in the oldest part. The church was a part of the fortification torn down in the 19th century. Only the remains of the town walls are preserved with Zelezna Panna (Iron Virgin) tower (on the bank of the Malse river) , Otakarka bastion (on the bank of the Malse river) and Rabenstejnska Vez (Rabenstejn Tower). The 72 m high Cerna Vez (Black Tower) was built in the NE corner of the square in the 16th century. Churches date back to the 13th century. The Napoleonic era building of the South Bohemian Theatre dates from 1819. The South Bohemian Museum and the observatory and the planetarium stand above the confluence of the Vltava and Malse rivers. [February 2009]
photos and map: "The town České Budějovice is the biggest South Bohemian town. It is situated in the hollow of the Českobudějovická Pánev (České Budějovice Basin) on the confluence of the Vltava and Malše rivers. About 100,000 people live here. The town is the administrative, cultural, educational and traffic centre of South Bohemia. There are many high schools, the conservatoire, the South Bohemian University, the South Bohemian Museum, the South Bohemian Theatre, the branch of the Academy of Sciences and branch of the State Scientific Library there. The centre of the town (with the largest regular square in Bohemia -
Most of all historical and cultural sights are in the Square of King Premysl Ottakar II and around it in the historical centre. The Samsonova Kašna (Samson's Fountain), the typical symbol of the square with archway of citizens' houses from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, towers above the square. The Baroque town hall stands in the south-western corner. The former monastery with the Church of the Offering of the Virgin Mary, one of the oldest parts of the town, lies near the square. The church was a part of the fortification, which was torn down in the 19th century. Only the remains of the town walls have been preserved, together with the tower called Železná Panna (Iron Virgin), Otakarka bastion (both on the bank of the Malše river) and Rabenštejnská Věž (Rabenštejn Tower). The most known building is the 72 m high Černá Věž (Black Tower). It was built in the north-eastern corner of the square in the 16th century. The Cathedral of St. Nicholas stands near. In the "Old Town" there is the Church of Sts. John the Baptist and Procopius, which dates back to the 13th century as a parish church. Its present look is from the reconstruction in the 15th and 16th centuries. A lot of cultural institutions are located in the historical centre - the Napoleonic building of the South Bohemian Theatre from 1819, the South Bohemian Museum, the observatory and the planetarium, which stand above the confluence of the Vltava and Malše rivers. ...
Not far from České Budějovice, near the road Rudolfov - Lišov, one of seven basic points of the altitude mensuration in the former Austro-Hungarian Empire is situated. It is a stone pyramid called Locus Perennis, which is sometimes wrongly considered to be a centre of Europe. [February 2009] Nearby:Vrbenské Rybníky (Vrbné Ponds) with the nature trail.
ruins of the castle Karlův Hrádek
village Dobrá Voda
small town Lišov
small town Zliv
castle town Hluboká
protected area Blanský Les
US Commission No. CZCE000030:
Alternate name: Budwies in German. Ceske Budejovice is located in Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice. Cemetery: 1500 m E of Main Square in U Krizku Street at 48°59' N, 14°28' E , 76 miles S of Praha (Prague). Present town population is 25,000-100,000 with than 10 Jews.
- Town: Mestsky Urad, Lidicka 2, 370 92 Ceske Budejovice; tel. 038/222-51, /222-61 or 813 and Mayor: Engineer Jaromir Talir, home: F. Ondricka 10, 370 11 Cekse Budejovice; tel. 038/400-88, office tel. 038/380-17.
- Local: Mestsky Urad, odbor kultury, (head: PhDr. Jaromir Prochazka), Lidicka 2, 370 92 Ceske Budejovice; tel. 038/340-73. Regional: Okresni Urad, Referat Kultury, (head: Ivan Bartos) Kneszka 19, 370 01 Ceske Budejovice; tel. 038/374-60 and Pamatkovy ustav jiznich Cech (Director: Engineer arch. Nadezda Palkova) namesti Premysla Otakara 34, 370 21 Ceske Budejovice; tel. 038/237-92 and Zidovska Nabozenska Obec v Praze, Maislova 18, 110 01 Praha 1; tel. 02/231-69-25.
- Interested: Jihoceske Muzeum, (head: Pavel Safr) Dukelska 1, 370 01 Ceske Budejovice; tel. 038/374-61 or 381-13 and Statni Zidovske Muzeum, Jachymova 3, 110 01 Praha 1; tel. 02/231-06-34 or 231-07-85; and Ph.Dr. Jan Podlesak, Bezdrevska 1021/8, 370 11 Ceske Budejovice; tel. office: 038/371-41 and Ph.Dr. Hana Houskova, Otakarova 53, 370 01 Ceske Budejovice.
- (before 1867) used Hluboka Nad Vltavou
- Caretaker: MVDr. Jaroslav Sereda, Budivojova 16, 370 01 Ceske Budejovice; tel. 038/368-90 also has the key.
- Earliest known Jewish community was second half of 14th century. 1900 Jewish population was 1,673. 1930 Jewish population was 1,138. Nine Jews burned alive and 13 Jews drowned in 1505 after accusation of ritual murder; all Jewish community banished in 1506. New Jewish population began since mid 19th-century; scanty postwar congregation disbanded and prayer-hall closed in 1970. Noteworthy individual(s) who lived here: MU Dr. Karel Fleischmann (1897-1944) poet, writer, painter and graphic artist; and MU Dr. Emil Flusser (1888-1942) prominent author and Rudolf Kende (1910-1958) composer (native home), and Norbert Fryd (1913-1976) famous writer (native home), and Univ. Prof. Henry O. Hart (1922-1992 in California) was born here. The Jewish cemetery originated in 1866 (first burial in 1867). Buried in the landmarked cemetery are rabbis; parents of K. Fleischmann and N. Fryd; composer R. Kende with last known Progressive/Reform Jewish burial was in 1962: urn of Professor Hart put here in 1976. Inscriptions in Hebrew or Jewish symbols on gate or wall, but no sign, mark the flat, isolated suburban site. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open with permission via continuous masonry wall and locking gate. The pre- and post-WWII size of cemetery is 0.6453 ha. 100-500, most in original location, date from 1868-20th century. The marble, granite, limestone, rough stones or boulders (one), flat shaped stones, finely smoothed and inscribed stones, flat stones with carved relief decoration, sculpted monuments, multi-stone monuments or horizontally set stones have Hebrew, German and Czech inscriptions. The cemetery contains special memorial monuments to Holocaust victims and unmarked mass graves (1945-1959 grave of Soviet soldiers, exhumed in 1959). Within the limits of the site are gravedigger's house and a wall. Praha Jewish community owns the site now used only for Jewish cemetery. Adjacent properties are commercial or industrial. The boundaries are smaller than 1939 because of several trees. Frequently, organized Jewish group or individual tours or pilgrimage groups, private visitors and local residents stop. Vandalism occurred during World War II, occasionally 1945-1991. Local non-Jewish residents, individuals or groups of non-Jewish origin, local/municipal authorities, regional/national authorities, Jewish individuals abroad and Jewish groups within country did restoration after liberation 1945-46; general restoration 1990-1992. Now, there is a regular unpaid caretaker. Slight threat: uncontrolled access, pollution, vandalism and existing nearby development.
- PhDr. J. Podlesak (see above) and Jiri Fiedler, z"l, Brdickova 1916, 155 00 Praha 5; tel. 02/55-33-40 completed survey on 9 Aug. 1992. Documentation: Die Juden und Judengemeinden Boehmens (1934); archives of PhDr. J. Podlesak (above); archives of Statni Zidovske Muzeum Praha and list of graves (1867-1936); Reinhold Huyer: "Zur Geschichte der ersten Judengemeinde in Budweis" (in: Mitteilungen des Vereines der Deutschen in Boehmen, year 49, book 2 and 3, 1911); and Milena Borska-Urbankova: "Zide a Zidovska ulice v Ceskych Budejovicich.." (in Jihocesky sbornik historicky, 1986). The site was not visited. Interviewed was Ph.Dr. Hana Houskova (see above), interviews 1985-1992.