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Town History
Manetin was first historically documented in 1169, when the king Vladislav I made the local settlement over the Knights Hospitaller. They built the first church there dedicated to Saint John Baptist, the main saint patron of the order, and they also established a commendam, the seat of the commander. Its origin can be found as early as in 12th century, although first written documents come from 1325. It used to stand near the church, probably westwards, where there is a parsonage today. A small market town grew up along the main thoroughfare on the old trade route. King Wenceslas I granted it free market privilege and judicial independence in 1235. The town has used its own emblem probably since 14th century. It originated in combining the silver Knights Hospitaller’s cross in the red field (the right side) and the black eagle looking to the right in the gold field (the left side).
After the Hussite Wars Manetin belonged to the family of Svamberks who got it from the Emperor Zikmund in 1420. In 1483 Bohuslav of Svamberk made Manetin heritable and annexed it to near-by Krasikov. Volf Krajir of Krajk owned Manetin from 1544, but as he took part in the estate rebellion against the Emperor Ferdinand I, it was confiscated. Other owners of Manetin were the Slik family of Holic and then from 1560 the Hrobcic family of Hrobcice who being in an oppressive financial situation had to sell the estate to the noblemen of Roupov in 1617. But as they also took part in the estate rebellion (1620), their property was confiscated and given to Ester Mitrovska of Nemysl, born Lazanska of Bukova. She had no children and entailed the estate to her brother Ferdinand Rudolph Lazansky of Bukova. This is the beginning of the era of Lazansky counts who owned Manetin for over 300 years.
Under their rule Manetin experienced a period of unusual prosperity and economic stability. Count Vaclav Joseph Lazansky (1673 – 1715) and his wife Marie Gabriela (? – 1758), Humprecht Czernin of Chudenice’s granddaughter belonged to a group of personalities who had great merit in the town’s prosperity in economy as well as in culture. Marie Gabriela was a generous art supporter, as she tried to transform her quiet country estate into a residence of courtly culture. She invited a lot of outstanding artists - sculptors Stephen Borovec and Joseph Herscher, painters Peter Brandl, Philip Kristian Bentum and Vaclav Dvorak. Mauritius Vogt, a Cistercian from Plasy who was a cartographer, historian and also excellent organist and composer used to stay in Manetin quite often. There were also some musicians – Jaroslav Planicky and his son Antonin Joseph, the count children’s tutor, and other artists.
After the patrimonial administration was repealed Manetin became the centre of judicial district. It was a lively little town with a population of 1343 (977 were Czechs and 363 were German). Most inhabitants professed the Roman Catholicism, just 6 were Jewish.
The last of the Lazansky line who owned Manetin was Jan Karel Lazansky (1857 – 1932), an honorary Knight Hospitaller and Czech conservative politician. He and his wife Ida, the daughter of Karel III from the Orlik branch of the house of Schwarzenbergs, had three children. Their only son Karel Jan died in the beginning of WWI in Bijeljina, Bosnia as a lieutenant of the dragoon regiment no. 13. Their daughters Terezie and Vilemina married brothers Joseph and Frantisek, counts of Seilern-Aspangy. Vilemina died shortly after the wedding. Of the three siblings only Terezie (1890 – 1979), after her father’s death a lifelong occupant of the country estate Manetin – Rabstejn, had children – two sons, Frantisek Joseph and Jan Karel, and two daughters, Ilona and Ida. The youngest child, Jan Karel Seilern-Aspang (1921 – 1944) was appointed the heir to Manetin estate. Unfortunately, at the age of 23 he was killed on German front of WWII in July 1944. After the war the Seilern-Aspang’s property was confiscated according to the presidential decrees. Terezie who after her husband’s death lived in Manetin was displaced to Austria. She died on 1st January 1979 in Waidhofen upon Thaya at the age of nearly 90.
