Liberec City Hall

This Liberec town hall is actually a new town hall, which replaced the one that stood here from the 16th century for over 300 years. Unfortunately, the original one no longer met the requirements, and therefore it had to be replaced by a new building, in which you will find preserved portraits of Rederns and Gallas, important people of the time.

Behind the building is a design by the Viennese architect Franz Neumann. The town hall was completed in 1893. The building has an almost square floor plan, inside which you will find a courtyard accessible from both sides of the building. Three towers rise above the main facade of the building, which faces the square. The highest of them, the middle one, is 65 m high. Originally, this tower was decorated with a copper statue of the knight Roland, the defender of city rights, but he was replaced in 1952 by a red star. They then married it in 1989 and a year later it was replaced by a lion as a symbol of the Czech Republic. The knight did not return to the top of the tower until 2005, but it is only a copy.

Above the entrance portal with the year the construction began, there is a relief by Theodor Friedl depicting the new and old town halls. In the middle there is a female figure symbolizing the city, on the left side there are figures connected with the original town hall and on the right there are figures connected with the new town hall. Above it is a balustrade balcony, from which famous personalities such as František Josef I, Edvard Beneš or Václav Havel spoke.

On the front of the building is a bronze monument in the shape of a tank belt in memory of the 9 victims of the invasion of the Warsaw Pact armies in 1968.

The interior of the town hall is richly decorated. The most beautiful hall is a wood-paneled ceremonial hall with excellent acoustics, a 450 kg chandelier from Berlin, six stained glass windows and a ceiling painting by the Viennese painter Andreas Groll.

The town hall is open to the general public. There are even tours here. From June to September from Monday to Friday from 9 am to 3 pm and on Saturday from 9 am to 11 am. Tours always start at one o'clock. Tours also take place in the winter from October to May, but only on Thursdays from 9 am to 3 pm. The tour also includes an ascent to the tower, but only if the weather allows. The tours are divided into three sections. Circuit I concerns a tour of the courses, the ceremonial hall, the balcony and the tower.

Author: Adriana Dosedělová