Vamberk

Vamberk consists of three municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census):{{cite web |title=Public Census 2021 – basic data|url=https://vdb.czso.cz/vdbvo2/faces/en/index.jsf?page=vystup-objekt-parametry&z=T&f=TABULKA&sp=A&skupId=4690&katalog=33475&pvo=SLD21043-CO|work=Public Database|publisher=Czech Statistical Office|language=cs|date=2022}}

• Vamberk (3,825)
• Merklovice (291)
• Peklo (364)

The local small castle and then the settlement were initially called Waldemberg, which was then shortened to Walmberg, and later to Wamberg, or in Czech Vamberk.{{cite web |title=Historie Města Vamberk|url=http://vamberk.cz/mesto-a-samosprava/informace-o-meste/historie-mesta-vamberk/|publisher=Město Vamberk|language=cs|access-date=2024-06-13}} It is not certain whether the origin of the name is Czech or German, because at the time of the establishment it was fashionable among the Czech nobles to give German names to castles. If the name is of Czech origin, it probably meant "Valda's hill", which was translated into German as Waldemberg. If of German origin, the name was probably derived from waldberg ("wooded hill").{{cite book |last=Profous|first=Antonín|title=Místní jména v Čechách IV: S–Ž|url=https://mjc.ujc.cas.cz/search.php|page=475|year=1957|language=cs}}

Vamberk is located about {{convert|5|km|0}} south of Rychnov nad Kněžnou and {{convert|33|km|abbr=on}} southeast of Hradec Králové. The western part of the municipal territory lies in the Orlice Table. The eastern part lies in the Orlické Foothills and includes the highest point of Vamberk at {{convert|475|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level. The Zdobnice River flows through the town.

File:Náměstí ve Vamberku crop.jpg

The first written mention of Vamberk is from 1341. In 1616, Vamberk gained town privileges. The town lived for centuries from lacemaking, weaving and the timber trade. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the textile, stove and meat industries developed, and Vamberk became the industrial centre of the region.

{{historical populations

|align=none|cols=3

|1869|4049

|1880|4009

|1890|4146

|1900|4353

|1910|5159

|1921|4562

|1930|4586

|1950|4057

|1961|4382

|1970|4744

|1980|5183

|1991|4995

|2001|4815

|2011|4550

|2021|4480

|source=Censuses{{cite web |title=Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011|url=https://csu.gov.cz/produkty/historicky-lexikon-obci-1869-az-2015|publisher=Czech Statistical Office|language=cs|date=2015-12-21}}{{cite web |title=Population Census 2021: Population by sex|url=https://vdb.czso.cz/vdbvo2/faces/en/index.jsf?page=vystup-objekt-parametry&z=T&f=TABULKA&sp=A&skupId=4429&katalog=33515&pvo=SLD21001-OB-OK|work=Public Database|publisher=Czech Statistical Office|date=2021-03-27}}}}

Vamberk is known for the lace production. The first mention of the production in Vamberk is from 1642, but the tradition is probably older. In the mid-17th century, Magdalena of Gramb, a Belgian owner of the Vamberk estate, introduced Belgian lace patterns and a new technique of bobbin lace making using a lace cushion or pillow. Vamberk became a European centre of lace-making. The tradition continues to this day.{{cite web |title=O nás|url=https://www.vkrajka.cz/o-nas/|publisher=Vamberecká krajka|language=cs|access-date=2021-09-19}}

The largest employer based in the town is ESAB CZ, the world's leading manufacturer of welding and cutting equipment and welding consumables.{{cite web |title=Kdo jsme a co děláme|url=https://www.esab.cz/cz/cz/about/whatwedo/index.cfm|publisher=ESAB CZ, s.r.o.|language=cs|access-date=2021-09-19}}

The town is situated at the crossroads of two main roads: I/11 from Hradec Králové to Šumperk and I/14 from Náchod to Ústí nad Orlicí.

Vamberk is located on the short railway line of local importance heading from Rokytnice v Orlických horách to Doudleby nad Orlicí.{{cite web |title=Detail stanice Vamberk|url=https://www.cd.cz/stanice/vamberk/5454160|publisher=České dráhy|language=cs|access-date=2023-07-14}}

File:Vamberk, kostel svatèho Prokopa Dm315156-2449 IMG 6692 2018-08-05 12.07.jpg

The main landmark of the town is the Church of Saint Procopius. It was built in the early Baroque style in 1707–1714.{{cite web |title=Kostel sv. Prokopa|url=https://pamatkovykatalog.cz/kostel-sv-prokopa-12274767|publisher=National Heritage Institute|language=cs|access-date=2023-07-14}}

The Church of Saint Barbara was also built in the early Baroque style, in 1696–1697. It is a cemetery church. The family tomb of the Lützow family is located there.{{cite web |title=Kostel sv. Barbory s hrobkou a ohrazením hřbitova|url=https://pamatkovykatalog.cz/kostel-sv-barbory-s-hrobkou-a-ohrazenim-hrbitova-782283|publisher=National Heritage Institute|language=cs|access-date=2023-07-14}}

The tradition of lace making is documented in the Lace Museum Vamberk.{{cite web |title=Muzeum krajky Vamberk|url=https://www.moh.cz/muzeum-krajky|publisher=Lace Museum Vamberk|language=cs|access-date=2022-09-01}} The museum is located in an architecturally valuable house from 1916, decorated with Art Deco elements.{{cite web |title=Městský dům - Muzeum krajky|url=https://pamatkovykatalog.cz/mestsky-dum-muzeum-krajky-12275369|publisher=National Heritage Institute|language=cs|access-date=2023-07-14}}

• Jan Václav Voříšek (1791–1825), composer
• Josef Richard Vilímek (1835–1911), publisher
• Josef Kalousek (1838–1915), historian

{{reflist}}

{{commons category|Vamberk}}

• {{official|http://www.vamberk.cz/}}

{{Rychnov nad Kněžnou District}}

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Category:Cities and towns in the Czech Republic

Category:Populated places in Rychnov nad Kněžnou District