The story
14th–16th centuries
The history of Vrchlabí started with the colonisation of the Giant Mountains. The first settlement called Wrchlab was probably founded before 1300. The first written mention is from 1359.
The most significant person in the history Vrchlabí was Kryštof Gendorf, a mining expert who developed the town into one of the most important metallurgy centres. Thanks to him, Vrchlabí was granted town rights in 1533, along with two annual fairs. Many people from German speaking lands came to work and live to the town during his rule and brought in the Lutheran reformation faith, which spread quickly in the region, supported vividly by Gendorf himself.
In 1561, the estate was acquired by Gendorf's daughter Eustachia. She had three daughters, Barbora, Kateřina and Rozina, among whom the Vrchlabí estate was divided after her death in 1568, but in the end the entire estate was acquired by Rozina and her husband Vilém Miřkovský of Stropčice. At that time, flax weaving became another important industry for Vrchlabí. The weaving guild was founded in Vrchlabí in 1590, at the time of the town's greatest growth. Especially linen cloth was highly desired and it was exported to all over the world, including Italy, Spain, North Africa and overseas.
17th–20th centuries
In 1624, Albrecht von Wallenstein bought the estate from Vilém Miřkovský of Stropčice Jr. During the Thirty Years' War, the smelters in Vrchlabí became an important supplier of weapons. After Wallenstein's death in 1634, Emperor Ferdinand II donated the estate to Rudolf of Morzin. The Counts of Morzin owned Vrchlabí until 1881.
Vrchlabí was known for manufacturing of organs in the 17th and 18th centuries, which was introduced into the town by the Tauchmann family. Textile production dominated the town's economy from the late 18th century until the 1930s and determined the industrial and craft development of Vrchlabí.
In 1867, winter sports started to develop in the region. The main promoter of skiing was Guido Rotter, a local factory owner.
The town was part of the Kingdom of Bohemia, which itself fell to the Habsburg monarchy in the 16th century, and from 1867 to 1918 was included in Austria-Hungary. Administratively it was head of the Hohenelbe District, one of the 94 Bezirkshauptmannschaften in Bohemia.
In 1918, Vrchlabí became part Czechoslovakia, when the Czechs regained independence. From 1938 to 1945 it was occupied by Germany, and was then administered as part of the Reichsgau Sudetenland. During the occupation, the Germans established and operated a Gestapo prison in the town, and a subcamp of the Gross-Rosen concentration camp for female prisoners in the Hořejší Vrchlabí town part. Nazi Germany also brought many Italian, French, English and Russian prisoners of war to work as forced laborers in the town. The town's Germans who had not fled in World War II were expelled according to the Potsdam Agreement and Beneš decrees. The town was restored to Czechoslovakia.
From Wikipedia’s article on Vrchlabí, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5