What's in a Prague street name

Kaplická was built in 1962.

Kaplice is a town in South Bohemia, 20 kilometres southeast of Český Krumlov. It’s named after the Chapel of St Mary, although that no longer exists.

The earliest written mention dates from 1257, when Pope Alexander IV gave a church in the town permission to sell indulgences.

In 1382, Kaplice obtained town rights; by the 15th century, the town was mainly German-speaking (and known as Kaplitz).

In 1918 – when Kaplice ceased to be part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and became part of the newly founded Czechoslovakia – the citizens of Kaplice objected and tried to join Upper Austria (Linz is only about 65 kilometres away).

The refusal from the local authorities was so strong that the 1st Czechoslovak Infantry Regiment, based in České Budějovice, had to be sent in.

In 1938, Kaplice would be annexed to Nazi Germany, and the Czech-speaking population was chased out. In 1945, the opposite happened – the Germans were forced out; between 1930 and 1950, the population fell by 21.5%.

However, by the mid-1980s, the population had more than doubled from its 1950 level. Nowadays, it has about 7,500 inhabitants.