| Kněževes | |
| Settlement Type: | Market town |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Central Bohemian |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Rakovník |
| Pushpin Map: | Czech Republic |
| Pushpin Relief: | 1 |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in the Czech Republic |
| Coordinates: | 50.1467°N 13.6372°W |
| Established Title: | First mentioned |
| Established Date: | 1327 |
| Area Total Km2: | 12.57 |
| Elevation M: | 364 |
| Population As Of: | 2024-01-01 |
| Population Footnotes: | [1] |
| Population Total: | 1018 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Timezone1: | CET |
| Utc Offset1: | +1 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | CEST |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | +2 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Postal Code: | 270 01 |
Kněževes is a market town in Rakovník District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,000 inhabitants.
Kněževes is located about 8km (05miles) northwest of Rakovník and 50km (30miles) west of Prague. It lies in an agricultural landscape in the Rakovník Uplands. The highest point is at 429m (1,407feet) above sea level.
The first written mention of Kněževes is from 1327, in a deed of King John of Bohemia for the Teplá Abbey. The village was located on a trade route from Prague to Cheb. In 1685, the Waldstein family purchased Kněževes from the royal chamber. After Jan Josef Waldstein died in 1733, the village was inherited by his daughter Marie Anna, who married Josef Wilhelm, Count of Fürstenberg. The Fürstenberg family then owned Kněževes until the establishment of an independent municipality in 1850.[2]
Kněževes was predominantly an agricultural village. In the second half of the 19th century, it became known as the second most important hop growing locality in the country (after Žatec). In 1897, Kněževes was promoted to a market town by Emperor Franz Joseph I.[2]
Kněževes lies in the Žatec Hop Region. The hop growing continues here to this day.[3]
The I/6 road, part of the European route E48, passes through the municipality. It replaces the unfinished section of the D6 motorway from Prague to Karlovy Vary.
The main landmark of Kněževes is the Church of Saint James the Great. The original church was first mentioned in 1318. After it was destroyed by fire in 1718, it was replaced by the current Baroque building in 1721, designed by the architect František Maxmilián Kaňka.[4]