Pardubice (ˈpardubɪtsɛ; ) is the capital city of the
Pardubice RegionPardubice Region is an administrative unit of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. It is named after its capital Pardubice. "There are a total of 452 municipalities in the region...
and lies on the river
ElbeThe Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Krkonoše Mountains of the northwestern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia , then Germany and flowing into the North Sea at Cuxhaven, 110 km northwest of Hamburg...
, 65 miles east of
PraguePrague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. Pardubice has an antique centre square and old town, with many restaurants that stay open until late in the evening. There is an old Tower and a recently renovated Castle. Factories include the Synthesia chemical factory (manufacturer of
SemtexSemtex is a general-purpose plastic explosive containing RDX and PETN. It is used in commercial blasting, demolition, and in certain military applications. Semtex became notoriously popular with terrorists because it was, until recently, extremely difficult to detect, as in the case of Pan Am...
, a plastic explosive), an oil refinery Paramo, a heavy machinery factory and an electronic equipment plant.
The Czech Open
Chess TournamentA chess tournament is a series of chess games played competitively to determine a winning individual or team. Since the first international chess tournament in London, 1851, chess tournaments have become the standard form of chess competition among serious players.Today, the most recognized chess...
is the biggest in Europe, with roughly 1200 players from all over the world competing in the main groups, and many side-events such as a team championship, a Rubik's cube competition and a Go-tournament. Pardubice is home to one of the top
hockeyIce hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
teams in the
Czech ExtraligaThe Czech Extraliga is the highest-level ice hockey league in the Czech Republic. As of 2009, it is ranked by the IIHF as the third strongest league in Europe....
,
HC PardubiceHC ČSOB Pojišťovna Pardubice is a professional ice hockey club that plays in the Czech Extraliga. It is located in Pardubice, home venue is ČEZ Arena. The club previously was named HC Eaton Pardubice, but since the 2011–12 season the club is named HC ČSOB Pojišťovna Pardubice.-History:Ice hockey is...
(former Tesla). The local hockey club has bred international stars such as
Vladimír MartinecVladimir Martinec was a Czech ice hockey right wing in the 1970s. He won the Golden Hockey Stick award as top player in Czechoslovakia four times, in 1973, 1975, 1976, and 1979....
,
Dominik HašekDominik Hašek is a Czech ice hockey goaltender who is currently with HC Spartak Moscow of the KHL.In his 16-season National Hockey League career, he played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, and the Ottawa Senators. During his years in Buffalo, he became one of the...
,
Otakar JaneckýOtakar Janecký is a retired Czech ice hockey forward.In his homeland Janecký represented HC Pardubice, his birthcity team for his entire Czechoslovak Extraliga and Czech Extraliga career....
,
Aleš HemskýAleš Hemský is a Czech professional ice hockey forward and alternate captain currently playing for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League .-HC Pardubice:...
,
Jan BulisJan Bulis is a Czech professional hockey winger who is currently playing for Traktor Chelyabinsk of the Kontinental Hockey League.-Playing career:...
(all natives of Pardubice) and
Milan HejdukMilan Hejduk is a Czech professional ice hockey forward and the captain for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League .- Playing career :...
. Ex-
NBAThe National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
player
Jiří WelschJiří Welsch is a Czech professional basketball player with Spirou Basket of the Basketball League Belgium. Welsch has played in the National Basketball Association league in the United States, having been drafted in 2002 by the Philadelphia 76ers.-Early years:Welsch began his professional career...
is also a native of the city.
History
The area had a
monasteryMonastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
beginning in the early 13th century, and the city was founded .
Arnošt of PardubiceArnošt z Pardubic was the first Archbishop of Prague. He was also an advisor and diplomat to Emperor Charles IV....
, the first archbishop of Prague, was born in Pardubice in 1297. Since 1874, the Great Pardubice Steeplechase (
Velká Pardubická) horse race has taken place every autumn (second Sunday in October).
The
Fanto Werke refinery at Pardubice was repeatedly bombed during the
Oil Campaign of World War IIThe Oil Campaign chronology of World War II lists bombing missions and related events regarding the petroleum/oil/lubrication facilities that supplied Nazi Germany.-Legend:...
, and forced labor was provided by a concentration camp. The
TeslaTESLA was a large, state-owned electrotechnical conglomerate in the former Czechoslovakia....
electronics manufacturer operated from 1921–1989, and the
FoxconnThe Foxconn Technology Group is a multinational business group anchored by the Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. , a Taiwan-registered corporation headquartered in Tucheng, Taiwan...
factory was established in June 2000.
Notable people
- Edita Adlerová
Edita Adlerová is a Czech classical mezzo-soprano who has been active in operas, concerts, and recitals since the early 1990s. She is the recipient of the Czech Music Fund Award.-Biography:...
, classical mezzo-sopranoA mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
- Dominik Hašek
Dominik Hašek is a Czech ice hockey goaltender who is currently with HC Spartak Moscow of the KHL.In his 16-season National Hockey League career, he played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, and the Ottawa Senators. During his years in Buffalo, he became one of the...
, former NHL goaltender for the Detroit Red WingsThe Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
, Ottawa SenatorsThe Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, Buffalo SabresThe Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
and Chicago BlackhawksThe Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
.
- Aleš Hemský
Aleš Hemský is a Czech professional ice hockey forward and alternate captain currently playing for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League .-HC Pardubice:...
, NHL hockey player for the Edmonton OilersThe Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....
- Jiří Welsch
Jiří Welsch is a Czech professional basketball player with Spirou Basket of the Basketball League Belgium. Welsch has played in the National Basketball Association league in the United States, having been drafted in 2002 by the Philadelphia 76ers.-Early years:Welsch began his professional career...
, NBA player for the Golden State WarriorsThe Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
, Dallas MavericksThe Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
, Boston CelticsThe Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
, Cleveland CavaliersThe Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
, and the Milwaukee BucksThe Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....
- Jaroslav Stark, Mathematician who worked mostly in the fields of Chaos Theory
Chaos theory is a field of study in mathematics, with applications in several disciplines including physics, economics, biology, and philosophy. Chaos theory studies the behavior of dynamical systems that are highly sensitive to initial conditions, an effect which is popularly referred to as the...
and Systems BiologySystems biology is a term used to describe a number of trends in bioscience research, and a movement which draws on those trends. Proponents describe systems biology as a biology-based inter-disciplinary study field that focuses on complex interactions in biological systems, claiming that it uses...
.
- Iva Kramperová
Iva Kramperová is a Czech violinist.Iva Kramperová studied at the Music Faculty of Academy of Performing Artsin Prague , she has participated in several master classes in the Czech Republic and abroad .She is the concert master and soloist of Barocco sempre giovane...
, classical violinist
Twin towns – Sister cities
Pardubice is
twinnedTwin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
DoetinchemDoetinchem is a city and municipality in the east of the Netherlands. It is situated along the Oude IJssel river in a part of the province of Gelderland called the Achterhoek . The municipality has 56,700 inhabitants and has an area of 79.66 km²...
, Netherlands Merano, Italy
PernikPernik is a city in western Bulgaria with a population of 81,052 . It is the main city of Pernik Province and lies on both banks of the Struma River in the Pernik Valley between the Viskyar, Vitosha and Golo Bardo mountains.Originally the site of a Thracian fortress founded in the 4th century BC,...
, Bulgaria
Rosignano MarittimoRosignano Marittimo is a comune in the Province of Livorno in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 80 km southwest of Florence and about 20 km southeast of Livorno....
, Italy
SchönebeckSchönebeck is a town in the district of Salzlandkreis, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Elbe, approx. 14 km southeast of Magdeburg.-International relations:Schönebeck is twinned with:...
, Germany
SelbSelb is a town in the district of Wunsiedel, in Upper Franconia, Bavaria, Germany. It is situated in the Fichtelgebirge, on the border with the Czech Republic, 20 km northwest of Cheb and 23 km southeast of Hof.-Notable people:...
, Germany
SežanaSežana is a town and a municipality in the Slovenian Littoral region of Slovenia, near the border with Italy. According to the census of 2008, it has a population of 12,470, of which around 5,332 live in the town of Sežana and the rest in the neighbouring rural areas.Sežana is located about on the...
, Slovenia
Skellefteå-Industry:*Boliden AB, a big mining and smelting company*Alimak*Natural User Interface Technologies AB - NUITEQ, a promising emerging technology start-up company-Sports:*Skellefteå AIK, an ice hockey team in the highest Swedish league, Elitserien....
, Sweden
Vysoké TatryVysoké Tatry , informally Mesto Vysoké Tatry , is a town at the feet of the Slovak part of High Tatras in Slovakia including all the major resorts in that region...
, Slovakia
WaregemWaregem is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality lies in the valley of the Leie River, between Kortrijk and Ghent. It is part of the arrondissement of Kortrijk and comprises the towns of Beveren, Desselgem, Sint-Eloois-Vijve and Waregem proper. On...
, Belgium
External links