Město Třešť

Tha parish village Třešť was founded during the colonization of the Czech-Moravian deep forest in the course of 13th century at the crssroads of the two historical trade routes - Lovětínská and Humpolecká. The first written record about Třešť comes from 1349, when the parish church is reminded. In those days Třešť belonged to Záviš from Třešť and the next owner - Štěpán from Březnice - sold the town to Moravian Margrave Jan Jindřich in1359. In the same year, he sold it again to the family Šternberg who kept Třešť untill 1493. During 1493 - 1627 the Vencelíks were in the reign here and after them, from 1627 to 1657, the Herbersteins from Korutany. In the period 1657 - 1669 the Gayers from Edelbach and after them the Herbersteins from Austrian branch (1669 - 1844) came. From 1844 to 1945 the Austrian family Sternbach owned Třešť.

In the reign of the Vencelík family the Lutheran church was founded in the square and the citizens were converted to become the Protestants.

In the town, many handycrafts were developing and guilds were flourishing. There were 187 handycraft masters and 19 journeymen living in Třešť in 1753, one hundred of them were cloth makers. In 19th century, the cloth making factories, furniture plants (producing especially carved clock cabinets exported all around Europe) and matches industry was gradually emerging. Later also engineering and cloth industry developed.

The local Jewish industrialists played a most important role in rising industry in Třešť. Jewish community appeared quite early in Třešť; there are some references about a rabbi Jakub from Třešť even from the second half of 13th century. The Jewish population in Třešť was 621 people in 1845 but the number was falling and, in 1930, only 64 Jewish citizens remained in Třešť. They became the victims of holocaust.

The Empire Jewish synagogue which was rebuilt after the fire in 1824 and Jewish cemetery are important reminders of the Jewish community in Třešť.

In 1872 the first town school in Moravia was founded in Třešť.

There are some memorial plaques with names of the people tortured to death during the WW II (on the front of the Town Hall and at the Prison Courtyard) or shot to death during the May Uprising in 1945 (33 victims).
In 1901 was Třešť, that times the largest Moravian town, promoted to town.

The families in reign in Třešť

1358 - 1493 the Šternbergs
1493 - 1626 the Vencelíks
1626 - 1657 the Herbersteins from Korutany
1657 - 1669 the Gayers from Edelbach
1669 - 1831 the Herbersteins from Austrian branch
1831 - 1844 the demesne under the official administration
1884 - 1945 the Sternbachs
1998 Třešť has got the right to use the town flag



The legend about how Třešť was founded