Loket

Loket
Loket
Town
	Skyline of Loket
	Flag Coat of arms
	Loket Location in the Czech Republic
	Coordinates: 50°11′10″N 12°45′15″E / 50.18611°N 12.75417°E
Country	Czech Republic
Region	Karlovy Vary
District	Sokolov
First mentioned	1234
Government
• Mayor	Zdeněk Bednář
Area
• Total	26.73 km2 (10.32 sq mi)
Elevation	427 m (1,401 ft)
Population (2026-01-01)
• Total	2,990
• Density	112/km2 (290/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	357 33
Website	www.loket.cz

Loket (Czech pronunciation: [ˈlokɛt]; German: Elbogen) is a town in Sokolov District in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,000 inhabitants. The town proper is located on the Ohře River in the Slavkov Forest highland.

Loket was founded in the first third of the 13th century at the latest. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument reservation. The most important monument is the Loket Castle, a 12th-century Gothic castle.

Administrative division

Loket consists of four municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census):^[2]

Loket (2,755)
Dvory (21)
Nadlesí (68)
Údolí (92)

Etymology

Both Loket and Elbogen mean 'elbow' in Czech and German, respectively. The town got its name due to the town centre being surrounded on three sides by the Ohře River, and the shape the river takes is similar to that of an elbow.^[3]

Geography

Loket is located about 6 kilometres (4 mi) east of Sokolov and 8 km (5 mi) southwest of Karlovy Vary. It lies mostly in the Slavkov Forest highland, only the northwestern part of the town extends into the Sokolov Basin. The highest point is the hill Zelenáč at 707 m (2,320 ft) above sea level. The Ohře River flows through the town.

History

In the second half of the 12th century, a royal castle Loket was built on a landmark promontory within the Ohře River bend.^[3] It used to be called the "Key to the Kingdom of Bohemia". Soon after, a small town, first mentioned in 1234, arose below the castle.^[3]

Most of the town fortifications were built in the 14th century. In the 17th century it was expanded with Baroque bastions.^[4]

In 1815, a porcelain factory was founded in Loket, and the town subsequently became famous for its porcelain production. At the end of the 19th century, two more porcelain factories were built. Job opportunities brought an influx of residents and development of the city. Porcelain production was discontinued in 2006.^[5]

From 1938 to 1945, Loket was occupied by Nazi Germany and administered as part of the Reichsgau Sudetenland. In 1945, the German-speaking population was expelled according to the Beneš decrees.

Demographics

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1869	4,179	—
1880	4,120	−1.4%
1890	4,663	+13.2%
1900	5,538	+18.8%
1910	5,104	−7.8%

Year	Pop.	±%
1921	4,716	−7.6%
1930	5,083	+7.8%
1950	2,664	−47.6%
1961	2,595	−2.6%
1970	2,037	−21.5%

Year	Pop.	±%
1980	1,833	−10.0%
1991	2,989	+63.1%
2001	3,202	+7.1%
2011	2,978	−7.0%
2021	2,936	−1.4%

Source: Censuses^[6]^[7]

Transport

Loket is the starting point of the railway line to Chomutov.^[8]

Culture

Loket hosts an annual opera festival, which takes place in an open-air amphitheatre with the castle as a backdrop. The festival, called Loketské kulturní léto ('Loket Cultural Summer'), was established in 2000.^[9] The amphitheatre has a capacity of 1,800 seated spectators.^[10]

Sport

Loket hosts the annual Czech Motocross Grand Prix.^[11]

Sights

The most visited historical monument in the town is Romanesque Loket Castle. In the days of the House of Luxembourg, the castle served as a temporary residence of members of the royal family. During the Thirty Years' War it was conquered and plundered by Swedish troops. The abandoned castle burned down in 1725, and was rebuilt into a regional jail in 1822.^[12]

The Church of Saint Wenceslaus was built in the Baroque style in 1701–1734. It replaced an older Gothic church.^[13]

Several fragments of the town's medieval fortifications have been preserved.^[4]

In popular culture

Loket was used, in conjunction with Karlovy Vary, to portray a Montenegrin town in the 2006 James Bond film Casino Royale.^[14]

Loket fielded an assignment at Loket Castle and Svatoš rocks during the finale of the 21st season of the Dutch reality television series Wie is de Mol?.^[15]

Notable people

Ferdinand Pfohl (1862–1949), German music critic and composer
Wolfgang von Schwind (1879–1949), Austrian actor and opera singer

Twin towns – sister cities

Loket is twinned with:^[16]

Illertissen, Germany

References

↑ "Population in municipalities as at 1. 1". DataStat. Czech Statistical Office. 18 May 2026.
↑ "Public Census 2021 – basic data". Public Database (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2022.
1 2 3 "Vítejte ve městě plném historie, kultury a cestovního ruchu" (in Czech). Město Loket. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
1 2 "Městské opevnění" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 3 September 2026.
↑ "Tradice výroby 200 let, loketský porcelán si zasloužil obdiv lidí". Deník.cz (in Czech). 15 September 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2026.
↑ "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 21 December 2015.
↑ "Population Census 2021: Population by sex". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. 27 March 2021.
↑ "Station details Loket". České dráhy. Retrieved 3 September 2026.
↑ "Úvodem". Loketské kulturní léto (in Czech). Retrieved 23 February 2023.
↑ "Amfiteátr Loket – akce" (in Czech). Město Loket. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
↑ "Grand Prix České republiky" (in Czech). AMK Loket. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
↑ "Z historie hradu Loket" (in Czech). Loket Castle. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
↑ "Kostel sv. Václava" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
↑ Zając, Piotr (13 February 2018). "'Casino Royale' in Loket, Czech Republic". bondlocations.com. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
↑ Andriga, Frank (30 January 2021). "In de voetsporen van Wie is de Mol 2021: Tsjechië". oosteuropavakanties.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 January 2022.
↑ "Zahraniční vztahy" (in Czech). Město Loket. Retrieved 3 September 2026.

External links

[1] "Population in municipalities as at 1. 1". DataStat. Czech Statistical Office. 18 May 2026.

[2] "Public Census 2021 – basic data". Public Database (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2022.

[history-3] 1 2 3 "Vítejte ve městě plném historie, kultury a cestovního ruchu" (in Czech). Město Loket. Retrieved 11 December 2020.

[nhi-4] 1 2 "Městské opevnění" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 3 September 2026.

[5] "Tradice výroby 200 let, loketský porcelán si zasloužil obdiv lidí". Deník.cz (in Czech). 15 September 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2026.

[6] "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 21 December 2015.

[7] "Population Census 2021: Population by sex". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. 27 March 2021.

[8] "Station details Loket". České dráhy. Retrieved 3 September 2026.

[9] "Úvodem". Loketské kulturní léto (in Czech). Retrieved 23 February 2023.

[10] "Amfiteátr Loket – akce" (in Czech). Město Loket. Retrieved 23 February 2023.

[11] "Grand Prix České republiky" (in Czech). AMK Loket. Retrieved 23 February 2023.

[12] "Z historie hradu Loket" (in Czech). Loket Castle. Retrieved 4 June 2021.

[13] "Kostel sv. Václava" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 24 August 2023.

[14] Zając, Piotr (13 February 2018). "'Casino Royale' in Loket, Czech Republic". bondlocations.com. Retrieved 6 January 2022.

[15] Andriga, Frank (30 January 2021). "In de voetsporen van Wie is de Mol 2021: Tsjechië". oosteuropavakanties.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 January 2022.

[16] "Zahraniční vztahy" (in Czech). Město Loket. Retrieved 3 September 2026.

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Authority control databases
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National	United States Czech Republic Israel

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