The Royal town of Slaný ( [ˈslaniː]; German: Schlan) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic, located about 25 km northwest of Prague. The town is part of the Prague metropolitan area.
The town is situated in the Slaný Plain (the northwestern part of a geomorphologic whole called the Prague Plain). A creek called Červený potok (Red creek) flows through it from the southwest to the northeast. Its dominant feature is Slaný Hill.
The Bohemian Chronicle of Václav Hájek records Slaný as having been founded in 750, at the site of a salt spring below Slaný Hill. (slaný is Czech for "salty".) The Benedictines established a hospital and church in 1136. Wenceslas II chartered the settlement as a town either in 1295 or 1305. The town was captured by the Taborites in 1425, during the Hussite Wars, and remained in their hands until 1434. It also participated in the Bohemia revolt that opened the Thirty Years' War, and suffered greatly after the nearby battle of White Mountain.
Since the middle of the 19th century, Czech has been the dominant language there. Industrial development was delayed until around 1860. An important engineering factory was built in 1872 and more followed. A factory producing batteries was founded in 1918. The infrastructure and amenities of a modern city have been gradually added since the second half of the 19th century.
The villages of Dolín, Želevčice, Lotouš, Blahotice, Netovice, Kvíc, Kvíček, Trpoměchy and Otruby are all administrative parts of Slaný.
The town of Slaný is situated at the crossing of the Prague - Louny, Prague - Karlovy Vary roads. The Prague - Most railway also goes through the town.
Important buildings and tourist sights
the town hall, symbol of the town (house from 1378, rebuilt after 1896 and in 1840)
The Trinitarian Church, built 1581-1602, a monastery built in 1655-1662
former college of Piarists (built 1658, rebuilt 1877), today a museum
St. Gothard's Gothic Church (originally from the 13th century)
Renaissance houses
nearby ruins of Gothic Okoř Castle
outdoor museum of army in the village Smečno (shows pre-World War II fortifications)
museum of historical cars in the village Hobšovice
open-air museum about mining in the village Vinařice
Václav Beneš Třebízský (1849–1884), priest and novelist, born in Třebíz near Slaný
Karl Josef Biener from Bienenberg (1731–1798), archeologist and coin collector
František Bílek (1885–1972), founder of Czech modern livestock breeding
Ladislav Čepelák (1924–2001), painter and graphic artist
František Duras (1851–1931, photographer, director of the museum of Slaný
Jaroslav Fencl (1913 - ?), graphic artist, lived and worked in Slaný
Oskar Fischer (1876-1942), MD, studied dementia.
Josef František Frič (1804–1876) - lawyer, promoted Czech language in the legal area
Josef Holub (1870–1957), painter, born in Slaný
Eduard Hradec (1918), co-founder of Czech modern urology
Jindřich Hulinský, historian, archivist, wrote about the city and area history
Dominik Kynský (1777–1848), writer and translator
Josef Lacina (1850–1907), historian, historical writer (pen-name Kolda Malínský), maintained town archive
Jan Malypetr (1873–1947), politician, prime minister of Czechoslovakia, died there
František Karel Miltner (1797–1874), archeologist, coin collector, active in politics around 1848
Václav Moucha (1933), archeologist, born there
Josef Matěj Navrátil (1787–1869), painter, born there
Václav Nejtek (1899–1958), academic sculptor, several of his statues can be found in the town
Josef Pacák, professor of organic chemistry at Charles University
Martin Přibyl, priest, national revivalist, royal archivist in exile in Berlin
Karel Scheinpflug (1869–1948), writer, entrepreneur
Olga Scheinpflugová (1902–1968), actress and author, born there
Václav Smetáček (1906–1986), composer, conductor
Miloslav Stiebr, professor at Charles University, lawyer and juridical historian
Jaroslav Suchý (1926–1975), anthropologist
Rudolf Štech (1858–1908), architect, reconstructed town hall
Václav Štech (1859–1947) writer, dramatist, co-founder of the Museum of Slaný
Václav Vilém Štech (1885–1974), historian of arts, journalist
Jan Šultys from Felsdorf (Johann Schulz von Felsdorf), later on mayor of the town of Kutná Hora
Jiří Tlustý, hockey player, a forward with the Winnipeg Jets of the NHL
Rudolf Urbánek (1877–1962), historian, professor at the University of Brno
Ferdinand Velc (? - 1920), painter, art historian, journalist
Daniel Vepřek (1600–1657), chronicler of the town, born there
Karel Alois Vinařický (1803–1869), writer and translator
Jakub Voráček, hockey player, a forward with the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL
Petr Hanzal (1970), rebel, free spirit and notable emigrant, born there