Kraslice 

The glory and history of the mining town

Kraslice is a town in the Sokolov District of the Karlovy Vary Region. It lies 29 kilometers northwest of Karlovy Vary and three kilometers from the German border, on the Svatava River, in the western part of the Ore Mountains. The town lies on the border with Germany (Saxony) and its surroundings (Bublava, Stříbrná) are an important winter sports center.

Kraslice

The Kraslice royal castle, called Neuhaus, was built as a protective point on the trade route from Loket to Germany and is first mentioned in 1272. At that time, it was acquired as a fief by the lords of Plavno and their family owned Kraslice with breaks until the 16th century. The village below the castle was elevated to a city in 1370 by Charles IV and the importance of Kraslice increased thanks to the copper mines. Mining was supported mainly during the temporary rule of the Šliks and in 1541 Kraslice gained the status of a free mining town, and the appearance of the town emblem with the silver letter G (=Graslitz) on a blue field dates back to that time. The estate with the disappearing castle remained formally royal property (the castle was still habitable in 1548).

As late as the mid-18th century, the Nostices tried unsuccessfully to revive the mining of precious metals in the vicinity of Kraslice; the population had already focused on trade and commerce by that time, while agriculture remained secondary due to the not very favorable conditions. Following the example of neighboring towns in Saxony, the production of textiles, lace and musical instruments began to gain ground in Kraslice at the end of the 18th century, first at home and later in factories.