Strážek

Strážek (German: Straschkau) is a market town in Žďár nad Sázavou District in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 800 inhabitants.

Strážek
Market town
Church of Saints Simon and Jude above Strážek
Flag Coat of arms
Strážek Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 49°26′27″N 16°11′36″E
Country	Czech Republic
Region	Vysočina
District	Žďár nad Sázavou
First mentioned	1358
Area
• Total	23.00 km2 (8.88 sq mi)
Elevation	461 m (1,512 ft)
Population  (2025-01-01)[1]
• Total	846
• Density	36.8/km2 (95.3/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	592 53
Website	www.mestysstrazek.cz

Administrative division

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

• Strážek (486)
• Jemnice (73)
• Krčma (2)
• Meziboří (138)
• Mitrov (139)
• Moravecké Janovice (37)

Geography

Strážek is located about 22 kilometres (14 mi) southeast of Žďár nad Sázavou and 38 km (24 mi) northwest of Brno. It lies in the Křižanov Highlands. The highest point is the Strážnice hill at 550 m (1,800 ft) above sea level. The Bobrůvka River flows through the market town proper. The Libochovka Stream flows through the village of Meziboří and supplies one of the largest fishponds in the area, the Mezibořský rybník.

History

The first written mention of Strážek is from 1358. In 1375, Strážek was already a market town. Until 1560, it belonged to the Mitrov estate, then it was annexed to the Moravec estate.^[3]

Demographics

Historical population
Year Pop. ±% 1869 1,566 —     1880 1,803 +15.1% 1890 1,685 −6.5% 1900 1,605 −4.7% 1910 1,483 −7.6%	Year Pop. ±% 1921 1,517 +2.3% 1930 1,303 −14.1% 1950 1,024 −21.4% 1961 1,218 +18.9% 1970 1,068 −12.3%	Year Pop. ±% 1980 967 −9.5% 1991 973 +0.6% 2001 956 −1.7% 2011 909 −4.9% 2021 875 −3.7%
Source: Censuses[4][5]

Transport

The Bobrůvka River in Strážek

There are no railways or major roads passing through the municipality.

Sights

The main landmark of Strážek is the Church of Saints Simon and Jude. It is an architecturally valuable building, built mainly in the Renaissance style in 1616.^[3][6]

The Mitrov Castle was probably founded at the end of the 13th century. It was abandoned around 1481. The core of the castle was probably dismantled for material for newer construction in the vicinity. Today, the castle is a ruin, from which several walls have been preserved. The ruin is freely accessible.^[7]