BRNO
- CZECH REPUBLIC |
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Brno (population 390,000) is the second-largest city of the Czech Republic, located in the southeast of the country, at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers.
Brno was founded in 1243. It was used as a stronghold until the 19th century. The city is a political and a cultural hub of the South Moravian Region (population 1,124,493). Brno is a university town.
Soon after the industrial revolution, the
city became one of the industrial centres of Austria. Since the end of the
First World War, Brno has belonged to Czechoslovakia and then to the
independent Czech Republic. Sometimes it is called the Czech Manchester,
because even nowadays there are several world-wide known factories.
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Villa Tugendhat, built by Mies van der Rohe in the 1920s close to the centre
of the city, is known as a monument of modern architecture, and was
designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2002.
Spilberk, the castle of Brno, was founded in the middle of the 13th century
by Premysl Otakar II, the Czech king. The castle became a seat of Moravian
margraves. During centuries, Spilberk turned into a huge fortress, known as
"dungeon of the nations". Today, Spilberk houses the Brno City Museum.
The famous Masaryk Circuit is located in the northwest of the town.
The unique dialect spoken in Brno is called Hantec.
Famous people associated with Brno
Kurt Gödel - mathematician
Leos Janacek - composer
Milan Kundera - writer
Ernst Mach - physicist
Gregor Mendel - founder of genetics |
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