Zbiroh () is a town in Rokycany District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,500 inhabitants.
Administrative division Zbiroh consists of five municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census):
Zbiroh (2,301) Chotětín (15) Jablečno (29) Přísednice (43) Třebnuška (32)
Etymology The initial name of the town was Zbirov. The name was derived either from the Czech verb zbíti ('beat up') or zbýti ('remain') and probably originated as a mocking nickname. From the 14th century, the names Zbirov and Zbiroh were used alternately, and it was only in 1913 that the name settled into its current form.
Geography Zbiroh is located about northeast of Rokycany and northeast of Plzeň. It lies in the Křivoklát Highlands. The highest point is the hill Kohoutov at above sea level. The stream Zbirožský potok flows through the town.
Climate Zbiroh's climate is classified as humid continental climate (Köppen: Dfb; Trewartha: Dcbo). Among them, the annual average temperature is , the hottest month in July is , and the coldest month is in January. The annual precipitation is , of which June is the wettest with , while February is the driest with only . The extreme temperature throughout the year ranged from on 22 December 1969 to on 27 July 1983.
History The first written mention of Zbiroh is from 1230. It was a market village which was promoted to a market town in 1369. During the rule of the Rosenberg family, Zbiroh developed and acquired various rights. In 1897, Zbiroh was promoted to a town by Franz Joseph I.
The first kill house in Czechoslovakia was built in 1947 in a police school in Zbiroh by World War II veterans of the Czechoslovak Army that had been trained in Great Britain.
Demographics
Transport There are no railways or major roads passing through the municipality. The D5 motorway from Prague to Plzeň runs south of the town just outside the municipal territory.
Sights
The most important monument is the Zbiroh Castle. The original Romanesque-Gothic castle was built at the end of the 12th century or in the early 13th century, and belongs to the oldest aristocratic residences in the country. At the end of the 16th century, it was rebuilt into its current appearance of a large Renaissance castle. The main landmark of the original castle part is the oldest detached watch tower in the Czech Republic. The well located in Zbiroh Castle, deep, is one of the deepest castle wells in Europe.
The Church of Saint Nicholas was originally a Gothic building, rebuilt in the Baroque style in 1719–1720.
Notable people Josef Václav Sládek (1845–1912), poet
References
External links