Tábor, city (1991 pop. 36,342), S central Czech Republic, in Bohemia. The city's economy relies on agricultural trade, tobacco, textiles, and the mining of kaolin. The city was founded in 1420 by John Zizka on a hill near the castle where John Huss had retired in 1412. Named after Mt. Tabor in Palestine, it became the stronghold of the Taborites, the extreme wing of the Hussites. Tábor retains the round tower of a 13th-century castle, many old houses, and a 16th-century town hall with a large collection of Hussite relics.

This is an article on the city of Tábor in the Czech Republic. For other uses see: Tabor (disambiguation)

Tábor (ˈtaːbor) is a city of the Czech Republic, in the South Bohemian Region. It is named after Mount Tabor, which is believed by many to be the place of the Transfiguration of Christ; however, the name became popular and nowadays translates to "camp" or "encampment" in the Czech language.

The town was founded in the spring of 1420 by Petr Hromádka of Jistebnice and Jan Bydlínský of Bydlín from the most radical wing of the Hussites, who soon became known as the Taborites. The town is iconic for the years in which it flourished as an egalitarian peasant commune. This spirit is celebrated in Smetana's "Song of Freedom", made famous in the English-speaking world by Paul Robeson's recording in Czech and English.

The historical part of the town is situated on the summit of an isolated hill separated from the surrounding country by the Lužnice river and by an extensive lake, to which the Hussites gave the biblical name of Jordan. This lake, founded 1492, is the oldest reservoir of its kind in Central Europe. The historical importance of the city of Tábor only ceased when it was captured by King George of Poděbrady in 1452.

The Jordan is 53 hectares in size and is used for swimming in the summer.

Though a large part of the ancient fortifications has been demolished, Tábor (or Hradiště Hory Tábor, the castle of the Tábor Hill, as it was called in the Hussite period) still preserves many memorials of its past fame. In the centre of the city is Žižka Square. Only very narrow streets lead to it, to render the approach to it more difficult in time of war. First-time visitors may not even suspect that there is an ingenious labyrinth of tunnels under the houses and streets here. The townspeople dug cellars under their houses and these were subsequently interconnected; an approximately 1 km-long section of the tunnel system is open to the public.

In the centre of the square is the statue of Jan Žižka, the greatest of the Hussite leaders. Here also is the Dean Church of Lord's Conversion on Mount Tabor, built in 1516 in the style of the Bohemian Renaissance, and the town hall, in connection with which a museum has been founded, which contains interesting memorials of the Hussite period, such as farm carts which doubled as battle wagons. Major parts of the ancient fortifications and the ancient Kotnov tower and gate of Bechyně near the tower still exist.

The Districts of Tábor

Čekanice, Čelkovice, Hlinice, Horky, Klokoty, Měšice, Náchod, Smyslov, Stoklasná Lhota, Sojčak, Větrovy, Všechov, Zahrádka, Záluží, Zárybničná Lhota.

Twin towns

• Konstanz, Germany
• Dole, France
• Orinda, United States of America
• Wels, Austria
• Škofja Loka, Slovenia

Resources

• Augusta, Pavel / Klínková, Hana: TÁBOR , ISBN 80-86098-18-4 (Tábor 2001).

References

External links

• Official website of the city
• A website about the city
• Historical photographs of the city
• The tunnels, with photo