Zprávy památkové péče 2016, 76(3):265-275

Most, the modern housing estate of North Bohemian miners, part I: Creation of the new city during wartime and the post-war period

Jana Zajoncová

The article attempts to outline the complexity of the entire process of seeking out the appearance of the new Most between 1940 and 1989. It focuses on the city's urban development from the end of World War II, when new residential districts tied to the old city were still forming. It covers the discussions about the necessity of demolishing historic Most in order to exploit the coal deposits beneath the city which resulted in the final decision in 1964 to destroy it. It ends with the final demolition of the most important buildings in the city center in the 1980's.
Over the period of several decades, the city of Most found itself at the heart of an extensive basin area. Intensive mining developments changed its character and national status in a short time. The most striking indicator of these changes could be seen in its architecture. The construction of the new city of Most became a model manifestation of the socialist regime in which it could demonstrate its power and progressiveness. From the outset, Most became a sampling ground for new ideas in the field of urbanism. The city contains almost all the available manifestations of urban concepts for the period from the 1940's up to the 1980's.
The article addresses the urban context of the city construction as well as focusing on the formation of fundamental areas of the city center. Demanding architectural competitions became an important part of the construction of Most; the text discusses in particular the competition of 1959, which was to resolve the new city center.

Keywords: city of Most; wartime urbanism; postwar urbanism; creating a new city

Published: September 1, 2016  Show citation