Rathaus
- Town Hall Liberec
The partnership developed over many years out of the connections between the city of Augsburg and the homeland group of Reichenberg (Bohemia), the former name of Liberec. Through associations with this group of Germans, who were expelled from there after World War II and who found a new home in Augsburg, the city of Augsburg assumed sponsorship in 1955.
Then, in the 90s, after the fall of the Iron Curtain, further contacts of the homeland group with Liberec through exchange programs in various fields were made. The partnership was officially ratified on 1 May 2001 in Liberec. The city of Augsburg thus endorses the direction of Europe’s inclusion of the east.
Liberec (formerly known as Reichenberg)
- F.X. Salda Theater
is located in a valley northeast from the Iser mountains and southwest of the Jeschen Ridge, last spur of the Lusatian range. The settlement arose on an ancient trade route leading from Prague, Turnau and through Frydlant (Friedland) towards Görlitz or through Grottau towards Zittau. The significance of the city increased through its location on these important roads leading from Bohemia to Saxony, Silesia and Poland.
- Bad
Reichenberg was first mentioned in a document in 1352. It began to develop after the establishment of its own ruling family around 1500. In 1577 Kaiser Rudolf II elevated Reichenberg to the status of a city with its own coat-of-arms. Under the von Redern family, Flemish linen-weaving families began immigrating there and in the 16th century the city developed into a flourishing center of cloth production. The first stone buildings date from then, the lord’s castle, the main church and the first town hall.
- Sparkasse
Cloth production reached its high point at the end of the 18th century. In the mid-19th c. Reichenberg was the second largest city in Bohemia.
Through increasing industrialization, social discrepancies among the inhabitants became more pronounced. Tensions between the classes led to Reichenberg’s becoming the cradle of the German as well as the Czech labor movement in Bohemia.
In 1930, before national conflicts escalated, approximately 30,000 Germans and 6,500 Czechs lived in Reichenberg. The government in power after the war nationalized all industries.
The world-famous textile city was transformed into an industrial city that manufactured, besides textiles, textile machinery, auto parts and plastic products.
Several institutions of higher learning were founded and the profile of the city changed. Today, after incorporating many neighboring towns, the city has approximately 106,000 inhabitants.