Dvůr Králové nad Labem (German: Königinhof an der Elbe) is a town of the Czech Republic in Hradec Králové Region, in the Labe (Elbe) river valley.

Dvůr Králové was first mentioned in 1270. It was a dowry town, owned by the King's wife and responsible for her expenses once she becomes widow. Nowadays, it is a center of textile and machinery industry.

The city has a famous Zoo (290 animal species, one of the biggest in Europe) and African Safari Museum. Outside the city, visitors can view an old residence of the Jesuits in Žireč and a castle in Kuks, both with many Baroque statues.

Manuscript Affair

On September 16, 1817, Václav Hanka allegedly discovered manuscript appearing to be from the 13th century in the tower of local church. The Manuscript of Dvur Kralove [1] (Rukopis Královédvorský in Czech), probably created by himself, was intended to help Czech patriots in cultural struggle with Germans. It was proven as a forgery at the end of the 19th century by Professor Masaryk and by later date examinations [2]. Minority of historians still consider it genuine.

External links

• Municipal authority of Dvůr Králové (in Czech only)
• Dvůr Králové on a map
• Zoo garden in Dvůr Králové