| Zbiroh | |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Plzeň |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Rokycany |
| Pushpin Map: | Czech Republic |
| Pushpin Relief: | 1 |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in the Czech Republic |
| Coordinates: | 49.8603°N 13.7728°W |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Josef Štícha |
| Established Title: | First mentioned |
| Established Date: | 1230 |
| Area Total Km2: | 31.94 |
| Elevation M: | 414 |
| Population As Of: | 2024-01-01 |
| Population Footnotes: | [1] |
| Population Total: | 2527 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Timezone1: | CET |
| Utc Offset1: | +1 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | CEST |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | +2 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Postal Code: | 338 08 |
Zbiroh (in Czech pronounced as /ˈzbɪrox/) is a town in Rokycany District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,500 inhabitants.
The villages of Chotětín, Jablečno, Přísednice and Třebnuška are administrative parts of Zbiroh.
Zbiroh is located about northeast of Rokycany and 30km (20miles) northeast of Plzeň. It lies in the Křivoklát Highlands. The highest point is the Kohoutov hill at 596m (1,955feet) above sea level. The stream Zbirožský potok flows through the town.
The first written mention of Zbiroh is from 1230. It was a market village which was promoted to a market town in 1369. During the rule of the Rosenberg family, Zbiroh developed and acquired various rights. In 1897, Zbiroh was promoted to a town by Franz Joseph I.[2]
The first kill house in Czechoslovakia was built in 1947 in a police school in Zbiroh by World War II veterans of the Czechoslovak Army that had been trained in Great Britain.[3]
There are no railways or major roads passing through the municipality. The D5 motorway from Prague to Plzeň runs south of the town just outside the municipal territory.
The most important monument is the Zbiroh Castle. The original Romanesque-Gothic castle was built at the end of the 12th century[4] or in the early 13th century,[2] and belongs to the oldest aristocratic residences in the country. At the end of the 16th century, it was rebuilt into its current appearance of a large Renaissance castle. The landmark of the original castle part is the oldest detached watch tower in the Czech Republic.[4] The well located in Zbiroh Castle, 163m (535feet) deep, is one of the deepest castle wells in Europe.[5]
The Church of Saint Nicholas was originally a Gothic building, rebuilt in the Baroque style in 1719–1720.[6]