Úpice

Town in Hradec Králové, Czech Republic

Flag

Coat of arms

50°30′45″N 16°0′55″E / 50.51250°N 16.01528°E / 50.51250; 16.01528Country

Czech RepublicRegion Hradec Králové DistrictTrutnovFirst mentioned1358Government

• MayorPetr HronArea

• Total15.31 km² (5.91 sq mi)Elevation

352 m (1,155 ft)Population

(2023-01-01)^[1]

• Total5,498 • Density360/km² (930/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+1 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)Postal code

542 32

Websitewww.upice.cz

Úpice (German: Eipel) is a town in Trutnov District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,500 inhabitants.

Administrative parts

The village of Radeč is an administrative part of Úpice.

Geography

Úpice is located about 9 kilometres (6 mi) southeast of Trutnov and 35 km (22 mi) northeast of Hradec Králové. It lies in the Giant Mountains Foothills. The highest point is at 508 m (1,667 ft) above sea level. It is situated on the Úpa river, which gave the town its name.

History

It is proven that Úpice existed already in the 11th century, however the first written mention is from 1358. It was a small town until the second half of the 19th century, when the textile and machinery industries developed.^[2]

In 1975, the village of Radeč was joined to Úpice.^[2]

Demographics

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1869	2,957	—
1880	3,222	+9.0%
1890	4,156	+29.0%
1900	5,627	+35.4%
1910	7,672	+36.3%

Year	Pop.	±%
1921	6,757	−11.9%
1930	7,909	+17.0%
1950	6,277	−20.6%
1961	6,540	+4.2%
1970	6,749	+3.2%

Year	Pop.	±%
1980	6,990	+3.6%
1991	6,141	−12.1%
2001	5,932	−3.4%
2011	5,713	−3.7%
2021	5,338	−6.6%

Source: Censuses^[3]^[4]

Economy

The largest employer based in the town is Kasper Kovo, a metal processor.^[5]

Sights

The Church of the Saint James the Great was built in 1698–1705, after the old wooden church from the 14th century was burned down in 1625. The altar from 1730 includes an image of Saint James the Great painted by Petr Brandl.^[6]

The most valuable monument is Dřevěnka Inn. It is an excellently preserved half-timbered house from the beginning of the 17th century. It is a former homestead, which served as an inn from 1739 to 1990. Since 2018, it has been a museum. The house is protected as a national cultural monument.^[7]

A notable building is the Old Town Hall. It is an early Baroque house, built in 1677–1678. The tower was added in 1752. Since the 1960s, it has been used as the town museum and gallery. The gallery is named after a local native, painter Julie Winterová Mezerová, whose paintings are exhibited here.^[8]^[9]

Notable people

Josef Čapek (1887–1945), artist and writer; lived here
Karel Čapek (1890–1938), writer; lived there
Richard Sacher (1942–2014), politician

Twin towns – sister cities

Úpice is twinned with:^[10]

Piechowice, Poland

References

^ "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2023". Czech Statistical Office. 2023-05-23.
^ ^a ^b "Strategický plán města Úpice pro období 2016–2025" (in Czech). Město Úpice. p. 10. Retrieved 2020-09-03.
^ "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011 – Okres Trutnov" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2015-12-21. pp. 15–16.
^ "Population Census 2021: Population by sex". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. 2021-03-27.
^ "About us". Kasper Kovo s.r.o. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
^ "Kostel sv. Jakuba Staršího v Úpici" (in Czech). CzechTourism. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
^ "Hospoda Dřevěnka" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
^ "Radnice" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-06-14.
^ "Muzeum (ve staré radnici)" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-06-14.
^ "Partnerské město Piechowice" (in Czech). Město Úpice. Retrieved 2020-09-03.