Blatná

Blatná is a town in the Strakonice District of the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic, with roughly 6,700 inhabitants. It stands on the Lomnice River in the Blatná Uplands, about 18 kilometres north of Strakonice and 48 kilometres southeast of Plzeň, and its name comes from an Old Czech word for marshes, recalling the wetlands among which it was founded. The surrounding countryside is rich in fishponds that have been built there since the Middle Ages. Its best known landmark is Blatná Castle, a water castle with a moat, an English-style landscape park and a deer park, and the well preserved historic centre is protected as an urban monument zone. The first written mention dates from 1235. The town flourished under the Lev of Rožmitál family, was promoted to a town in 1601 by Emperor Rudolf II, burned down completely in 1834 and became a district town in 1858. Today its largest employers make automotive components, household goods and car electronics.