A Dowry Town?
"Upon arriving my first thought was, 'Why had I never been to Hradec Králové before?'” |
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Actually, I had driven through it many times in the 1990s when I was working on a financing project at a steel mill in the city of Ostrava, which lies beyond Hradec Králové to the east. But I had never stopped. And I suppose I drove through the outskirts at such an angle that the gem of a historical town center that lay just beyond the main thoroughfares I was traversing was blocked from my view. Soon after arriving at the train station, however, I found out what I had missed. (The train station itself is a nice early modern specimen.)
X Marks the Spot
A Stairway to Heaven
The architecture on the eastern end of the square covered many centuries and styles, from Baroque to Art Nouveau and a bit of Art Deco, too. And there’s so much of it all.
Charming Side Streets
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Making my way down the square, I was drawn to the row houses lining the northern side of its western end as I approached the conglomeration of Gothic and Baroque spires that were the main attraction.
Indeed it was – just a couple of blocks away, and I had just enough time to pick up a few brochures. It then became clear that Hradec Králové is not only historic, but following the industrialization of the late 19th century, it went through an early 20th-century rebuilding that became a showcase for that Central European modern architecture I mentioned earlier and included the works I had noticed earlier. And the works were by some of my favorite Czech architects from that period that you can find in Prague also.
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I was sad to leave but my time in Hradec Králové had run out. I headed back to the bus stop and made my way to the train station, noticing some quite impressive 21st-century buildings on that ride also. It seems that Hradec Králové is a city that is going through another rebuilding and revival of sorts, and I definitely plan to come back and spend more time.
I’m also thinking of adding it to my tour offerings, so if you’re interested in an off-the-beaten-path adventure,let me know!