PORTALS OF CHEB
OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF CITY CHEB
TOURIST INFOCENTRE
HISTORICAL CHEB FOUNDATION
CULTURAL CENTER SVOBODA
WEST CZECH THEATER CHEB
CITY LIBRARY IN CHEB
SIGHTS
HUMANITARIAN FACILITIES
HOSPITALS, ALMSHOUSES, POORHOUSES AND ORPHANAGES
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Hospitals, Almshouses, Poorhouses and Orphanages
Written records of houses caring for variously handicapped individuals date back as far as 1256. A deed drawn up at a local monastery in that year mentions the first institution of this kind, namely the Hospital of the Blessed Virgin, which was founded and administered by the Teutonic Knights. In the 1270s, a hospital was built next to a bridge over the Ohře River, the administration of which was later assumed by the Order of the Knights of the Cross with the Red Star. In 1467, a home for elderly men was founded under the German name Bruderhaus St. Jakob (Brethren Home of St. Jacob). A Jewish hospital (German: seelhof) is named in a deed of King Charles IV from 1364. In 1525, records speak of “an infirmary in Školní Street, which is known as ‘selhaus’ and where sick people are placed”. A poorhouse was founded by the Church of Saint Jodocus in the mid 16th century and an infirmary for infectious diseases in the early 17th century.
Houses for people suffering from leprosy and other infectious diseases were founded further from the town. The first almshouse for lepers (German: Siechenhaus) at the Holy Cross is mentioned in the late 13th century and a second one on the site of present-day Myslivna (Gamekeeper’s Lodge) is recorded in the mid 15th century.
First written records of childcare date back to the end of the 14th century and the 16th century. An orphanage for 12 children was founded in the early 18th century. Another orphanage was also in operation for some time in a house by Mlýnská brána (Mill Gate). A modern orphanage was opened in 1904.
A burgher hospital was built in present-day Komenský Park in 1839. A new army hospital was put into operation in 1841, however, it did not belong among municipal facilities. In the course of the 19th century, the burgher hospital could no longer meet the requirements of the growing town and thus, a new modern general hospital with an infection pavilion was opened in 1910.
(RS)
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