Skuteč

Skuteč (Skutsch) is a town in Chrudim District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,100 inhabitants.

Administrative parts
The villages of Borek, Hněvětice, Lažany, Lešany, Lhota u Skutče, Nová Ves, Radčice, Skutíčko, Štěpánov, Zbožnov, Zhoř and the town part of Žďárec u Skutče are administrative parts of Skuteč. Lešany forms an exclave of the municipal territory.

Geography
Skuteč is located about 18 km southeast of Chrudim and 26 km southeast of Pardubice. It lies mostly the undulating and hilly landscape of the Iron Mountains, the northern part of the municipal territory extends into the Svitavy Uplands. A part of the Anenské Valley Nature Reserve around the Anenský Brook is located in the territory.

History
The first written mention of Skuteč is from 1289. The settlement was located on a side trade route. Skuteč was promoted to a town probably in the first half of the 14th century. It was one of the larger towns in the region. Its development was slowed down by the Thirty Years' War. In 1862 and 1867, the town was severely damaged by large fires.

Economy
Skuteč is significantly associated with shoemaking, represented by the company Botas, and for granite mining. While mining is still active, shoe production in Skuteč ended in 2022, and it is being considered to move the brand's production elsewhere.

Transport
Skuteč is located on the railway line Pardubice–Svitavy.

Education
The town has two primary schools and Vítězslav Novák Art School. Since 2000, there is the Gymnasium of the Sovereign Maltese Knights Order.

Culture
Since 2003, the town hosts Tomášek's and Novák's Musical Skuteč, an annual festival of classical music and choir singing.

Sights
The most notable buildings are the churches. The main landmark of the town centre is the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. It was originally built in the late Gothic style, then it was rebuilt in the Renaissance style and modified in the Baroque style. However, many late Gothic elements have been preserved.

The Church of the Corpus Christi was built in the Gothic style in 1391–1392. It was reconstructed in 1812. In 1865–1866, after it was damaged by the 1862 fire, it was reconstructed again and its Gothic appearance was restored.

The Church of Saint Wenceslaus is a rural church located in Lažany. It dates from the third quarter of the 14th century. The originally Gothic building was reconstructed and modified several times in the 16th–18th centuries.

The Church of Saint Matthias is located in Štěpánov. It was founded in 1349. It is also a rural church with a complicated construction history. Its present form is mainly a result of the Renaissance and late Baroque reconstructions.

The birthplace of the most famous native, composer Václav Tomášek, is a folk architecture house from the 18th century with a small exhibition of his life and work.

Notable people

 * Václav Tomášek (1774–1850), composer and music teacher
 * Vítězslav Novák (1870–1949), composer; lived and died here
 * Jaromír Funke (1896–1945), photographer
 * Jiří Zástěra (1913–1983), football player and manager
 * Jan Tesař (born 1933), historian
 * Tomáš Malinský (born 1991), footballer