{{Infobox settlement | name = Kraslice | other_name = | settlement_type = Town <!-- images --> | image_skyline = Kraslice radnice červen 2018 (2).jpg | image_caption = Town hall | image_flag = Flag of Kraslice.svg | image_shield = Kraslice_znak.svg <!-- location --> | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = {{CZE}} | subdivision_type1 = Region | subdivision_name1 = Karlovy Vary | subdivision_type2 = District | subdivision_name2 = Sokolov <!-- maps and coordinates --> | image_map = | map_caption = | pushpin_map = Czech Republic | pushpin_relief = 1 | pushpin_map_caption = Location in the Czech Republic | coordinates = {{coord|50|19|45|N|12|30|31|E|display=inline,title}} | coordinates_footnotes = <!-- government type, leaders --> | leader_title = Mayor | leader_name = Jiřina Junková <!-- established --> | established_title = First mentioned | established_date = 1272 <!-- area --> | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = 81.33 <!-- elevation --> | elevation_footnotes = | elevation_m = 514 <!-- population --> | population_as_of = 2025-01-01 | population_footnotes = <ref>{{cite web|title=Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2025|url=https://csu.gov.cz/produkty/population-of-municipalities-t4l3n8d2iw|publisher=Czech Statistical Office|date=2025-05-16}}</ref> | population_total = 6432 | population_density_km2 = auto <!-- time zone(s) --> | timezone1 = CET | utc_offset1 = +1 | timezone1_DST = CEST | utc_offset1_DST = +2 <!-- postal codes, area code --> | postal_code_type = Postal code | postal_code = 358 01 | area_code_type = | area_code = <!-- website, footnotes --> | website = {{URL|https://www.kraslice.cz/}} | footnotes = }} '''Kraslice''' ({{IPA|cs|ˈkraslɪtsɛ}}; {{langx|de|Graslitz}}) is a town in Sokolov District in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,400 inhabitants. It was a large and important town until World War II. It is known for the manufacture of musical instruments.
==Administrative division== thumb|General view of the town Kraslice consists of 15 municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census):<ref>{{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}}</ref> {{div col|colwidth=12em}} *Kraslice (5,834) *Černá (12) *Čirá (29) *Hraničná (0) *Kámen (7) *Kostelní (16) *Krásná (87) *Liboc (11) *Mlýnská (18) *Počátky (15) *Sklená (20) *Sněžná (31) *Tisová (88) *Valtéřov (3) *Zelená Hora (135) {{div col end}}
==Etymology== The roots of the name derive from the medieval German ''Graz'', meaning "trimmed conifer twigs". The name ''Graslitz'' was then a diminutive of the word Graz. The Czech name ''Kraslice'' is a transliteration of the German name and also literally means "blown easter egg".<ref>{{cite web |title=KRASLICE – část druhá|url=https://region.rozhlas.cz/kraslice-cast-druha-7287749|publisher=Czech Radio|language=cs|date=2004-04-13|access-date=2022-07-26}}</ref>
==Geography== Kraslice is located about {{convert|18|km}} north of Sokolov and {{convert|26|km|abbr=on}} northwest of Karlovy Vary. It lies on the border with Germany, adjacent to the German town of Klingenthal. It is situated in the western part of the Ore Mountains. The highest point is the mountain Počátecký vrch at {{convert|819|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level. The built-up area is situated in the valley of the Svatava River and its tributary, the stream Stříbrný potok.
Kraslice lies in an area known for swarm type seismic activity. The last strong earthquake swarm was in 1986.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Nehybka|first1=Vladimír|last2=Skácelová|first2=Zuzana|title=Results of seismological measurements by the Kraslice network in the period 1991–1998|journal=Exploration Geophysics, Remote Sensing and Environment|date=2000|volume=7|issue=1–2|pages=18–28}}</ref>
==History== thumb|Municipal slaughterhouse The area was settled by German monks from Waldsassen Abbey in the 12th and 13th centuries. In the mid-13th century, a guard castle was built here and settlements were established around it. The first written mention of Kraslice is from 1272, when King Ottokar II of Bohemia donated it to Jindřich the Elder of Plavno. During the rule of the lords of Plavno in the 14th century, tin, lead and silver mining has developed in the area, and Kraslice became a prosperous settlement. In 1370, it was promoted by Charles IV to a royal town.<ref name=history>{{cite web |title=Historie města Kraslic|url=https://www.kraslice.cz/mesto/historie-mesta/historie-mesta-kraslic-1532cs.html|publisher=Město Kraslice|language=cs|access-date=2022-03-31}}</ref>
At the beginning of the 15th century, Kraslice became the seat of the robber knights, and in 1412 the town was looted by the army, which aimed to rid the region of robbers. The town did not recover until 1527, when it was acquired by Jeroným Schlick and made it a free mining town. Ore mining in the vicinity of Kraslice has been declining since the 17th century. From 1666 to 1848, the town was owned by the Nostic family. Mining was replaced by folk crafts, the textile industry, and the manufacture of musical instruments and toys. In 1886, the railway was built.<ref name=history/>
From 1938 to 1945 it was annexed by Nazi Germany and administered as part of Reichsgau Sudetenland. In 1944 a women's subcamp of Flossenbürg concentration camp was established here. The German-speaking population was expelled in 1945 and the town was resettled with Czechs.<ref name=history/>
==Demographics== {{historical populations |align=none|cols=3 |1869|12006 |1880|14176 |1890|17147 |1900|19264 |1910|22418 |1921|20419 |1930|22310 |1950|7383 |1961|7617 |1970|7128 |1980|7371 |1991|7604 |2001|7273 |2011|6695 |2021|6306 |source=Censuses<ref>{{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}}</ref><ref>{{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}}</ref>}}
==Economy== Kraslice is known for the Amati Kraslice company, a manufacturer of musical instruments. The tradition of this manufacture dates back to 1631.<ref name=history/><ref>{{cite web |title=About Us|url=https://www.amati.cz/en/about-us|publisher=Amati Kraslice|access-date=2022-03-31}}</ref>
==Transport== Kraslice is located on the railway line Sokolov–Klingenthal. Passenger services are provided by the railway company of GW Train Regio.
==Sights== thumb|Church of Corpus Christi The main landmark of the town centre is the Church of Corpus Christi. It was built in the neo-Romanesque style in 1893–1896 and replaced a dilapidated church from 1619. It is a three-aisled basilica with a prominent tower.<ref>{{cite web |title=kostel Nejsvětější svátosti oltářní|url=https://pamatkovykatalog.cz/kostel-nejsvetejsi-svatosti-oltarni-18434134|publisher=National Heritage Institute|language=cs|access-date=2022-07-26}}</ref>
Municipal slaughterhouse is a unique complex of Art Nouveau buildings, created in 1904. It is protected as a technical and cultural monument. Today it is privately owned and gradually reconstructed.<ref>{{cite web |title=Městská jatka|url=https://www.kraslice.cz/pro-turisty/vyznamne-kulturni-pamatky/kraslice/mestska-jatka-1751cs.html|publisher=Město Kraslice|language=cs|access-date=2022-07-26}}</ref>
==Notable people== *Julius Meinl I (1824–1914), Austrian businessman, founder of Julius Meinl AG *Rudolf Dellinger (1857–1910), German Bohemian composer *Roland Bauer (1928–2017), German politician *Petr Drozda (born 1952), wrestler and stuntman *Eliška Staňková (born 1984), discus thrower *Kateřina Zohnová (born 1984), basketball player *Michael Krmenčík (born 1993), footballer
==Twin towns – sister cities== {{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in the Czech Republic}} Kraslice is twinned with:<ref>{{cite web |title=Město|url=https://www.kraslice.cz/mesto/|publisher=Město Kraslice|language=cs|access-date=2022-03-31}}</ref> *{{flagicon|GER}} Klingenthal, Germany
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{commons category|Kraslice}} {{wikisourcecat}} *{{official|https://www.kraslice.cz/}}
{{Sokolov District}}
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Category:Cities and towns in the Karlovy Vary Region Category:Populated places in Sokolov District