Velká Bystřice

Town in Olomouc, Czech Republic

Flag

Coat of arms

49°35′39″N 17°21′50″E / 49.59417°N 17.36389°E / 49.59417; 17.36389Country

Czech RepublicRegionOlomoucDistrictOlomoucFirst mentioned1275Government

• MayorMarek PazderaArea

• Total9.22 km² (3.56 sq mi)Elevation

290 m (950 ft)Population

(2023-01-01)^[1]

• Total3,625 • Density390/km² (1,000/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+1 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)Postal code

783 53

Websitewww.velkabystrice.cz

Velká Bystřice (German: Groß Wisternitz) is a town in Olomouc District in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,600 inhabitants.

Geography

Velká Bystřice is located about 6 kilometres (4 mi) east of Olomouc. It lies on the border between the Upper Morava Valley and Nízký Jeseník range. The highest point is at 315 m (1,033 ft) above sea level. The town is situated on both banks of the Bystřice River.

History

The first written mention of Velká Bystřice is from 1275. A fortress in Velká Bystřice was first documented in 1381. Around 1500, the village was promoted to a market town. From 1589 until the establishment of a sovereign municipality in 1848, Velká Bystřice was owned by Archdiocese of Olomouc. Velká Bystřice became a town in 1998.^[2]

Demographics

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1869	1,908	—
1880	2,027	+6.2%
1890	2,270	+12.0%
1900	2,545	+12.1%
1910	2,794	+9.8%

Year	Pop.	±%
1921	2,758	−1.3%
1930	2,892	+4.9%
1950	2,590	−10.4%
1961	2,701	+4.3%
1970	2,577	−4.6%

Year	Pop.	±%
1980	2,783	+8.0%
1991	2,870	+3.1%
2001	2,868	−0.1%
2011	3,053	+6.5%
2021	3,470	+13.7%

Source: Censuses^[3]^[4]

Transport

A section of the D35 motorway (part of the European routes E442 and E462) which connects Olomouc with the D1 motorway, passes through the southern part of the municipal territory.

Velká Bystřice is located on a railway line from Olomouc to Moravský Beroun.^[5]

Sights

The most important monument is the Church of the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist. It is a Baroque church from 1742, but it has a Gothic core.^[6]

Velká Bystřice Castle was originally a Renaissance castle from the 1570s, created by the reconstruction of the old fortress from the first half of the 14th century. After a fire 1835, the castle was rebuilt and served as a brewery. Since 2014, it has been a hotel.^[7]

Notable people

František Moravec (born 1939), parasitologist

References

^ "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2023". Czech Statistical Office. 2023-05-23.
^ "Historie" (in Czech). Město Velká Bystřice. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
^ "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011 – Okres Olomouc" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2015-12-21. pp. 19–20.
^ "Population Census 2021: Population by sex". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. 2021-03-27.
^ "Detail stanice Velká Bystřice" (in Czech). České dráhy. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
^ "Kostel Stětí sv. Jana Křtitele" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
^ "Zámek s bývalým pivovarem" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2023-05-30.