Planá nad Lužnicí

49°21′16″N 14°42′5″E / 49.35444°N 14.70139°E / 49.35444; 14.70139Country Czech RepublicRegionSouth BohemianDistrictTáborFirst mentioned1288Government • MayorJiří RanglArea • Total21.42 km² (8.27 sq mi)Elevation395 m (1,296 ft)Population • Total4,556 • Density210/km² (550/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+1 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)Postal codeWebsitewww.plananl.cz

Planá nad Lužnicí (German: Plan an der Lainsitz) is a town in Tábor District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 4,600 inhabitants. It is known as an industrial town, associated with the dairy industry and the production of plastics.

The town part of Strkov and the village of Lhota Samoty are administrative parts of Planá nad Lužnicí.

The word planá meant 'barren', but it also denoted a wide, open landscape.^[2]

Planá nad Lužnicí is urbanistically fused with the neighbouring town of Sezimovo Ústí in the north. It is located about 6 kilometres (4 mi) south of Tábor. It lies in the Tábor Uplands. The highest point is the flat hill Holeček at 431 m (1,414 ft) above sea level. The Lužnice River flows through the town. There are several fishponds in the municipal territory.

Planá nad Lužnicí was first mentioned in a letter of bishop Tobiáš of Bechyně from 1288 or 1289, when it was part of the Prague episcopacy. From the time Oldřich of Ústí came to power until 1547, Planá was a dependency of the newly established Hussite town of Tábor. Then the town was bought by William of Rosenberg, who had a wooden bridge over the Lužnice river built. The estate was then inherited by Peter Vok of Rosenberg. At the end of the 17th century, it was taken over by the Sternbergs and later by the House of Lobkowicz.^[3]

After 1848, Planá became an independent municipality, which developed also thanks to the construction of the railway line (1869) and timber rafting, which ran here until 1946.^[3]

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% 1869 1,142 —     1880 985 −13.7% 1890 1,052 +6.8% 1900 1,063 +1.0% 1910 1,190 +11.9%	Year Pop. ±% 1921 1,278 +7.4% 1930 1,454 +13.8% 1950 1,649 +13.4% 1961 2,123 +28.7% 1970 2,325 +9.5%	Year Pop. ±% 1980 3,078 +32.4% 1991 2,901 −5.8% 2001 3,043 +4.9% 2011 3,844 +26.3% 2021 4,234 +10.1%
Source: Censuses[4][5]

A production plant of Madeta, the largest dairy in the country, is located here since 1969. It is the biggest plant for natural cheeses in the country.^[6]

The largest employer with its headquarters in Planá nad Lužnicí is Silon. The company was originally founded as a polyamide filament yarn producer in 1950. Later it focused on silon production (improved nylon for women's stockings invented by Otto Wichterle). Today it is a producer of polyolefin based performance compounds and polyester fibres.^[7]

The D3 motorway (part of the European route E55) from Tábor to České Budějovice runs alongside the town.

Planá nad Lužnicí is located on the Prague–České Budějovice railway line.^[8]

The Church of Saint Wenceslaus was originally a Gothic building, rebuilt in 1666. Another reconstruction took place in 1796, when the tower was built. There is a sundial on the wall of the church.^[3]

Architecturally valuable is the rectory from 1784 with bossed corners and a covered mansard roof.^[3]

Strkov Castle was built in 1903. Today it is privately owned. It has a castle park on the shore of Strkovský pond.^[9]

• František Douda (1908–1990), shot putter, Olympic medalist

Planá nad Lužnicí is twinned with:^[10]

• Gorenja Vas–Poljane, Slovenia
• Hluk, Czech Republic