Radnice (Volyně) Town hall

Welcome to Volyně. Right now, when you're standing in the middle of Liberty Square, you're looking at the most important and prominent building in the whole area. It's City Hall. Look at her dominating the whole space around you. Her presence here is not random; This building is the heart of this square and a silent witness to the many years of history that have taken place here. Do you feel the weight of the time that radiates from these walls? It's a building that carries a story of great transformation, a story of how a simple residential house became a sibling room of power, administration and representation of the entire city.

Let us now return together deep into the past, to a time when the world around you looked completely different. More than five centuries ago, exactly in fifteen hundred twenty-nine, an event occurred that determined the future form of this town hall and the whole place. At that time, this building was not what you see today. It was originally a late Gothic townhouse. Imagine the atmosphere of the time, the architecture that was much different, much more machined, yet full of its own power. However, something fundamental happened in the year fifteen hundred twenty-nine, which changed the direction of this place. The townspeople have decided to manage their own affairs and that they need a place to represent their common interests and their growing importance. That's why they decided to buy this house. The seller was then a purkmaster, a man named Jan Dlesk. This move was a symbol of the growing power of local people and their desire for autonomy and self-governance. After this purchase, however, the construction began to change. The townspeople didn't want to leave it in its original, older style, but they decided to rebuild it in the form that was the peak of beauty and modernity. So the Gothic house became a building in the style of the High Renaissance.

Now pay attention to the details that you can see right on the surface of the building right in front of you. Notice its overall form. It is a one-storey building, which is very firm and dignified by its compactness. Look at the front part of it, the imaginative facade, which immediately captures you with its structure. Now raise your eyes even higher. There's a tower above this whole building. This tower is a symbol of City Hall, a point that can be seen from a distance and that indicates that important things are being decided here.

When looking at the surface of the building you can also see rich decorations. If you look closely, you can see the details that have been carefully restored to preserve their beauty for future generations. In the history of this building, a very important moment is the year one thousand nine hundred twenty-seven. It was this year that the architect František Průša took care to repair and restore these details. Thanks to his work and the care of a technique called sgradito, which is the delicate method of engraving into plaster, we can now admire the shapes and lines you see here. This work gives the building the right touch of history and artistic expression you feel in it.

You may wonder how special this town hall really is. And the answer is very simple. This building is not just an ordinary historical building. It is one of the oldest town hall buildings in all of Bohemia. This is a real proof of its resilient duration and historical significance. While the world was changing around, while political regimes and people's lifestyles were changing, this town hall is still standing here reminding us of our roots. It's a rare piece of history that you can see with your own eyes at the moment.

When you look at this building, remember the character of John Dlesk. Imagine him as the leader of the city who decided to hand this house over to the townspeople. It was the moment of handing over responsibility from the individual's hands to the entire community. That's basically the essence of the town hall - it's not just a house, it's where society meets.

I hope this brief insight into the past has helped you better understand what you're seeing right now. This town hall in Volyn is not just a wall and a roof, it's a living story about growth, change and duration. Don't forget to stop and look at the tower and the rich facade while you're walking through the squares again. Every detail here tells something. I wish you a wonderful journey along Volynia and enjoy all the other secrets this city will reveal to you. Goodbye.