Brno

Brno (formerly Brünn; pop. 388,300), city in the eastern part of the Czech Republic, chief city of Moravia. It was founded in the 9th century, flourishing as a free city within the kingdom of Bohemia in the 13th-14th centuries. In the 18th-19th centuries its Spielberg castle was used as a Hapsburg prison. Situated on the Svratka and Svitava rivers, Brno is a manufacturing center for cars, machinery, textiles, and other products, and is the seat of the Czech supreme court.

See also: Czech Republic.