Litomyšl

Litomyšl lies on the Loučná in eastern Bohemia, on an old route toward Moravia. Originally a fortified settlement of the Slavník family, it received town rights from King Ottokar II in 1259. From 1344 to 1474 it was the seat of a bishopric. Later the town became an important home of the Unity of the Brethren, whose congregation was recorded here by 1490 and established a printing press under the protection of the Kostka family.

The Brethren's prosperity did not last uninterrupted. After the Schmalkaldic War, their bishop Jan Augusta was imprisoned in 1548 and the Brethren were expelled; many went to Poland and Moravia. The Pernštejn family later built the Renaissance castle between 1568 and 1581. A Jewish community was also established in Litomyšl by the end of the sixteenth century.