Having been a regional centre for seven centuries, Ceska Lipa is a lively, modern, fast developing town. Also, it is the best base for those who want to see the region around, still largely undiscovered by the Czech public at large. Directing the eyes towards the horizon, one can often see a
romantic hilly landscape with lots of green, spectacular sandstone formations and a few ponds now a then. The notoriously well-known lake of Machovo jezero is certainly not the only pond here, there are more around Holany and in other places, too. Many beautiful houses have been renewed in Ceska Lipa, showing fresh colours and original facades in the styles of Art-Nouveau, Empire and others. Most visitors to the square of Ceska Lipa admit that there is something special about sitting down here and just watching. Eg the Red House or the Richter's Yard where reconstruction of the water castle are going on. The former Augustinian Monastery was founded by the warrior Wallenstein and most of it is now a museum. Obviously neglected until recently, the little lanes bustle with shops, pubs, pizzerias and cafes once again.
The present town Ceska Lipa came into being around a mighty water-castle in the 12
th and 13
th centuries. At the time the town made the best of his position in the north of Bohemia on the crossing of important trade roads. The town was surrounded by a double wall; a rest of the old town ditch can be found in the northern part of the town centre now. To the south of the river Ploucnice ceramics, especially pot making, had been developed for hundreds of years, which was one of the most
important industries in Bohemia till the 18
th century. Many skilled carftsmen lived in the town, especially cloth- and tinmakers. At the beginning of the 17
th century
Albrecht z Valdstejna founded a monastery, a Latin school and printing works (today a very intersting museum is here). Ceska Lipa belonged to those towns where the first manufactures had been founded, and a large industrial production- mostly textile wares - had been introduced since the beginning of the 19
th century. Ceska Lipa took the 6
th place among the largest Bohemian cities in the middle of the 19
th century. Ceska Lipa became a very important railway crossing in 1860. Some big fires and other causes brought a stagnation to the town for many years. In 1970's the output of uranium ore was opened. It brought also an abrupt rising of the population up to 40,000 and so a lot of problems for the town. The town has been arounded by a barrier of concret suburbs unpleasant to look at, many interesing buildings have been demolished and the necessivities of life have increased enormously.
In spite of big fires and many reconstructions Ceska Lipa is able to boats of a very intersting centre of the town depending on the histo- rical ground-plan and on the historical evolution in the course of centuries. Some of its narrow lanes have been repaired and alived during last months. There are many intersting old houses round the T.G. Masaryk Square in the historical centre of the town. The Red House (1583) is a beautiful
monastery and the baroque St. Mary's Church are really imposing. The small St. Magdalena's Church was built in Gothic style. In the same style the St. Cross Chapel was built (with its extraordinary tent-roof). The Town Hall built in 1823 is in-teresting too. There are other valuable stylish houses in the town.
Guide 
