Prachatice

Prachatice is a town in the South Bohemian Region of Czechia, with about 11,000 inhabitants. It lies in the hilly Bohemian Forest Foothills about 34 kilometres west of České Budějovice, and its German name is Prachatitz. The name comes from an old Slavic personal name, Prachata, and means the village of Prachata's people. The town grew on the Golden Trail, a salt trade route that began in Passau in Bavaria, and was first called a town in 1312. It held royal town status from 1436 and again from 1609 before losing it after the Battle of White Mountain, and was owned in turn by the Rosenberg, Eggenberg and Schwarzenberg families. After 1945 its German population was expelled. The well preserved historic centre, with many Renaissance monuments, is protected as an urban monument reservation, and the town hosts the yearly Golden Salt Path Celebrations. Its largest employers include the hospital and the firms InTiCa Systems and Reinfurt-CR.