Olomouc

==History==

===Middle Ages===
As early as the 7th century, a [[Gord (archaeology)|gord]] of the early [[Slavs]] developed in the present-day quarter of Povel. It was probably an administrative centre of a larger unit. Povel is considered one of the three most important [[Moravia]]n localities of the early Middle Ages. In the early 9th century, the gord was conquered and completely disappeared.<ref>{{cite web |title=Z historie olomouckých čtvrtí: Povel|url=https://www.hanackyvecernik.cz/spolecnost/zajimavosti/z-historie-olomouckych-ctvrti-povel|publisher=Hanácký večerník|language=cs|date=2020-06-27|access-date=2024-01-02}}</ref>

A new centre, where the Great Moravian governor resided, developed at the [[Gord (archaeology)|gord]] at Předhradí, a quarter of the inner city (the eastern, smaller part of the medieval centre). This settlement survived the defeat of the Great Moravia (c. 907) and gradually became the capital of the province of Moravia.

Around 981–990, the Polish Duke [[Mieszko I]] took the [[Moravian Gate]] and Olomouc as an important place at the intersection of trade routes. Olomouc probably was mentioned in the [[Dagome iudex]] document ({{circa|991}}) as ''Alemura''. All of Moravia was part of [[Kingdom of Poland (1025–1031)|Poland]] between 1003 and 1031 during the reign of [[Bolesław I the Brave]] and partly [[Mieszko II Lambert]]. The first certain mention of the city dates back to 1017. Moravia was under Bohemian rule since 1031 (according to some Czech historians, since 1019 or 1021).

The [[bishopric of Olomouc]] was founded in 1063. It was possibly re-founded because there are some unclear references to bishops of Moravia in the 10th century—if they were not only missionary bishops, but representatives of some remains of regular church organization, then it is very likely that these bishops had their seat in Olomouc. Centuries later in 1777, it was raised to the rank of an [[archbishop]]ric. The bishopric was moved from the church of St. Peter (since destroyed) to the church of [[Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia|Saint Wenceslaus]] in 1141 (the date is still disputed, other suggestions are 1131, 1134) under bishop [[Jindřich Zdík]]. The bishop's palace was built in the [[Romanesque architecture|Romanesque]] architectural style. The bishopric acquired large tracts of land, especially in northern Moravia, and was one of the richest in the area.

Olomouc became one of the most important settlements in Moravia and a seat of the [[Přemyslid]] government and one of the ''[[appanage]]'' princes. In 1306 King [[Wenceslas III]] stopped here on his way to Poland. He was going to fight [[Władysław I the Elbow-high]] to claim his rights to the Polish crown and was assassinated.<ref>{{cite EB9 |wstitle = Olmütz |volume= 17 |page= 764; see lines 4 and 5 |quote= The most prominent church is the cathedral, a Gothic building of the 14th century, containing the tomb of King Wenceslaus III., who was murdered here in 1306.}}</ref> With his death, the whole Přemyslid dynasty died out.

The city was officially founded in the mid-13th century and became one of the most important trade and power centres in the region. In the Middle Ages, it was the biggest town in Moravia and competed with [[Brno]] for the position of capital. Olomouc finally lost after the [[Swedish Empire|Swedes]] took the city and held it for eight years (1642–1650).

In 1235, the [[Mongol Empire|Mongols]] launched an [[Mongol invasion of Europe|invasion of Europe]]. After the [[Battle of Legnica]] in Poland, the Mongols carried their raids into Moravia, but were defensively defeated at the fortified town of Olomouc.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Grousset |first1=René |title=The Empire of the Steppes |date=1970 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |isbn=978-0-8135-1304-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppes00grou/page/266 266] |url=https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppes00grou|url-access=registration}}</ref> The Mongols subsequently [[First Mongol invasion of Hungary|invaded and defeated Hungary]].<ref>Jan Dugosz, Maurice Michael (1997) ''The Annals of Jan Dlugosz'', IM Publications, {{ISBN|1-901019-00-4}}</ref>

In 1454 the city expelled its Jewish population as part of a wave of anti-Semitism, also seen in Spain and [[Kingdom of Portugal|Portugal]]. The second half of the 15th century is considered the start of Olomouc's golden age. It hosted several royal meetings, and [[Matthias Corvinus]] was elected here as King of [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemia]] (in fact anti-king) by the estates in 1469. In 1479 two kings of Bohemia ([[Vladislaus II of Hungary and Bohemia|Vladislaus II]] and Matthias Corvinus) met here and concluded an agreement ([[Peace of Olomouc]] of 1479) for splitting the country.

===Modern===
[[File:Olomouc plan hradeb 1686.jpg|thumb|Olomouc fortress in 1686]]
[[File:Olomouc map 1757.jpg|thumb|Olomouc [[bastion fortress]] in 1757]]
Participating in the [[Protestant Reformation]], Moravia became mostly Protestant. During the [[Thirty Years' War]], in 1640 Olomouc was occupied by the [[Swedish Empire|Swedes]] for eight years. They left the city in ruins, and as a result it lost its predominant place in Moravia, becoming second to [[Brno]].

In 1740 the town was captured and briefly held by the [[Prussian army|Prussians]]. Olomouc was fortified by [[Maria Theresa of Austria|Maria Theresa]] during the wars with [[Frederick the Great]], who [[Siege of Olomouc|besieged the city unsuccessfully]] for seven weeks in 1758. In 1848 Olomouc was the scene of the emperor [[Ferdinand I of Austria|Ferdinand]]'s abdication.<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=y|wstitle=Olmütz|volume=20|page=91}}</ref> Two years later, Austrian and German statesmen held a conference here called the [[Punctation of Olmütz]]. At the conference, they agreed to restore the [[German Confederation]] and [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]] accepted leadership by the Austrians.

In 1746 the first [[learned society]] in the lands under control of the [[Habsburg monarchy|Austrian Habsburgs]], the ''[[Societas eruditorum incognitorum in terris Austriacis]]'', was founded in Olomouc to spread [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] ideas. Its monthly ''[[Monatliche Auszüge]]'' was the first [[scientific journal]] published in the Habsburg empire.

Largely because of its ecclesiastical links to Austria, [[Salzburg]] in particular, the city was influenced by [[Germans|German culture]] since the [[Middle Ages]]. Demographics before censuses can only be interpreted from other documents. The town's ecclesiastical constitution, the meetings of the Diet and the locally printed hymnal, were recorded in [[Czech language|Czech]] in the mid-16th and 17th centuries. The first treatise on music in Czech was published in Olomouc in the mid-16th century. The political and social changes that followed the Thirty Years' War increased the influence of courtly Habsburg and Austrian/German-language culture. The "Germanification" of the town likely resulted from the cosmopolitan nature of the city; as the cultural, administrative and religious centre of the region, it drew officials, musicians and traders from all over Europe.

Despite these influences, Czech dominated, particularly in ecclesiastical publications throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. When the Austrian-born composer and musician Philip J. Rittler accepted a post at the [[Saint Wenceslas Cathedral|Wenceslas Cathedral]] in the latter 17th century, he felt it necessary to learn Czech. With the continued dominance of the Habsburgs and migration of ethnic Germans into the area, the use of Czech declined. By the 19th century, the number of ethnic Germans in the city were recorded as three times higher than the number of Czechs.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Tichák | first = Milan | title = Vzpomínky na starou Olomouc | publisher = Votobia | year = 1997 | location = Olomouc | page = 13 | isbn = 80-7198-184-2}}</ref>

After the [[Revolutions of 1848 in the Austrian Empire|1848 revolution]], the government rescinded its Jewish expulsion order of 1454. Jews returned to the city and, in 1897, built a [[Olomouc Synagogue|synagogue]]. The Jewish population reached 1,676 in 1900.
[[File:Olomouc 3.jpg|thumb|[[Olomouc Synagogue]], 1900s]]
[[File:Olomouc 1907.jpg|thumb|1907 postcard of Olomouc]]
Olomouc retained its defensive city walls almost until the end of the 19th century. This suited the city council, because demolishing the walls would have allowed for expansion of the city and attracted more Czechs from neighbouring villages. The city council preferred Olomouc to be smaller and predominantly German. Greater expansion came after World War I and the establishment of [[Czechoslovakia]]. In 1919 Olomouc annexed two neighbouring towns and 11 surrounding villages, gaining new space for additional growth and development.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

Serious tensions arose between ethnic Czechs and Germans during both world wars. During [[World War II]], the city was under [[German occupation of Czechoslovakia|German occupation]] and most of the city's ethnic German residents sided with the [[Nazism|Nazis]]; the German-run city council renamed the main square (until then named after president [[T. G. Masaryk]]) after [[Adolf Hitler]]. World War II brought a rise in anti-semitism and attacks on the Jews that reflected what was happening in Germany. On [[Kristallnacht]] (10 November 1938), townspeople destroyed the synagogue. In March 1939, city police arrested 800 Jewish men, and had some deported to the [[Dachau concentration camp]]. During 1942–1943, ethnic Germans sent the remaining Jews to [[Theresienstadt concentration camp|Theresienstadt]] and other German concentration camps in [[Occupation of Poland (1939–1945)|occupied Poland]]. Fewer than 300 of the city's Jews survived [[the Holocaust]]. The Germans also established and operated a [[Gestapo]] prison in the city,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bundesarchiv.de/zwangsarbeit/haftstaetten/index.php?action=2.2&tab=7&id=100000220|title=Gestapogefängnis Olmütz|website=Bundesarchiv.de|access-date=7 November 2021|language=de}}</ref> and a [[Forced labour under German rule during World War II|forced labour]] camp in the Chválkovice district.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bundesarchiv.de/zwangsarbeit/haftstaetten/index.php?action=2.2&tab=7&id=100000219|title=Arbeitserziehungslager Olmütz-Chwalkowitz|website=Bundesarchiv.de|access-date=7 November 2021|language=de}}</ref>

After Olomouc was liberated, Czech residents took back the original name of the city square. When the retreating [[Wehrmacht|German army]] passed through the city in the final weeks of the war, they shot at its 15th-century astronomical clock, leaving only a few pieces intact (these are held in the local museum). The city was restored to Czechoslovakia, although with a Soviet-installed communist regime with stayed in power until the [[Fall of Communism]] in the 1980s. In the 1950s, the clock was reconstructed under the influence of Soviet government; it features a procession of [[Socialist realism|proletarians]] rather than saints. After the war, the government participated in the expulsion of ethnic Germans from the country, following the Allied leaders' [[Potsdam Agreement]], which redefined the Central European borders, although many of these people's families had lived for two centuries in the region. There were the statue of the first president T. G. Masaryk reconstructed as a symbol of come back of democracy on Masaryk street after "velvet revolution" in 1990. Its inner city is the third-largest [[Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservations|urban monument reservation]] in the country, after Prague.<ref>{{cite web |title=O městě|url=https://www.olomouc.eu/o-meste|website=olomouc.eu|publisher=Statutární město Olomouc|language=cs|access-date=2021-05-20}}</ref> <!-- This might need some further explanation, or a good reference because by the number of "legally protected objects", it's the 3rd one (Prague: 1330, Brno: 484, Olomouc: 263). -->