| Encyclopaedia Britannica 11th Edition | Public Domain via Project Gutenberg |
a town of Bohemia, Austria, 93 m. N.N.W. of Prague by rail. Pop. (1900) 21,525. It is dominated by the Schlossberg (1307 ft.), on which is situated the ruins of an old castle, demolished in 1651, and possesses a very interesting church, in late-Gothic style, built in 1517. Brüx is situated in the centre of a region very rich in lignite deposits and has, besides, important sugar, iron and hardware, distilling, brewing and milling industries. To the south of Brüx are the villages of Püllna, Seidlitz and Seidschutz with well-known saline springs. Brüx is mentioned in documents of the early 11th century. It fell to the crown under Přemysl I. or Wenceslaus II. [v.04 p.0697]and was made a royal city by Ottakar II. in the 13th century. In 1421 the Hussites were defeated here by King Sigismund and the Saxons, and in 1426 besieged the town in vain. In 1456 George of Poděbrad captured the town and castle, which had for some time been occupied by the Saxon princes.