Rudník (Trutnov District)

Rudník (until 1952 Heřmanovy Sejfy; German: Hermannseifen) is a municipality and village in Trutnov District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,000 inhabitants.

Rudník
Municipality
View towards the church and former brewery
Flag Coat of arms
Rudník Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 50°35′29″N 15°44′0″E
Country	Czech Republic
Region	Hradec Králové
District	Trutnov
First mentioned	1354
Area
• Total	42.67 km2 (16.47 sq mi)
Elevation	411 m (1,348 ft)
Population  (2025-01-01)[1]
• Total	1,989
• Density	47/km2 (120/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	543 72
Website	www.rudnik.cz

Administrative division

Rudník consists of three municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census):^[2]

• Rudník (1,597)
• Arnultovice (288)
• Javorník (126)

Geography

Rudník is located about 12 kilometres (7 mi) west of Trutnov and 41 km (25 mi) north of Hradec Králové. It lies in the Giant Mountains Foothills. The highest point is the hill Smrčina at 687 m (2,254 ft) above sea level. The village is situated at the confluence of the streams Luční potok and Bolkovský potok.

History

The first written mention of Rudník is from 1354. It was founded during the colonization of the Giant Mountains in the 13th century by German immigrants who mined ore here. The most notable owners of the village were the Waldstein family, who held it from 1521 to 1706. They further developed the mining and processing of ores, and contributed to the building development of the village.^[3]

The next owners were a branch of the House of Schwarzenberg, who merged it with the Vlčice estate. In 1790, the estate was bought by the Barons Theers of Silberstein, who had the castle and stone school building built in the village. They sold the village to the Klug family in 1880. The Klugs established here a bleaching plant, a dyeing plant and a mechanical weaving plant.^[3]

Demographics

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% 1869 4,418 —     1880 4,540 +2.8% 1890 4,488 −1.1% 1900 4,367 −2.7% 1910 4,253 −2.6%	Year Pop. ±% 1921 3,820 −10.2% 1930 4,159 +8.9% 1950 2,904 −30.2% 1961 2,868 −1.2% 1970 2,714 −5.4%	Year Pop. ±% 1980 2,438 −10.2% 1991 2,164 −11.2% 2001 2,187 +1.1% 2011 2,141 −2.1% 2021 2,011 −6.1%
Source: Censuses[4][5]

Transport

The I/14 road (the section from Liberec to Trutnov) passes through the municipality.

Sights

Rudník Castle

The most valuable historical building of Rudník is the Church of Saint Wenceslaus. It was built in the Gothic style in the mid-14th century. In 1598–1602, it was rebuilt in the Renaissance style, but the late Gothic tower has been preserved.^[6]

The Rudník Castle, also called Silbersteins' Castle, was built for Josef Karel Theer of Silberstein in the 1830s. In 1858, it was rebuilt in the neo-Gothic style. Today it serves as a hotel.^[7]

The Church of Saint Martin is located in Javorník. It is a rural Baroque church. It was built in 1707–1708 on the site of an older church from the 14th century.^[8]