Lipany - history

Lipany was first mentioned in 1325 in the Mediaeval land register (Desky zemské), Havel of Lipany is inscribed as the probable owner of the village. The name of the village is derived from the word lime tree.

In 1352 the St. Martin´s Church and the rectory were built in the neighbourhood of three large peasant farms. The parish also served the nearby village of  Kuří. The church and the rectory survived the Hussite Wars under the Utraquists´ rule, but was badly damaged during the Thirty

Year´s War. Swedish army stole 3 bells fro m the church. The rectory burnt down never to be restored again. As the church had never been fully renovated, it was necessary to pull it down in 1863 and a smaller Neo-Romanesque church with an apse replaced it. Two of its new bells were commandeered during the world wars.

Until mid-18th century Lipany had consisted of only 3 large peasant farms, later on their number increased to 5. The buildings surrounded an irregularly shaped village green with a pond, opening southwards towards the village Kuří. The large estate No 1 has been in possession of the Řehák family ever since 1654.  Since mid-19th century the villages Lipany and Tehovičky have been administratively united with Kolovraty.

Mother of Antonín Švehla, a peasant from Hostivař, the founder of the Agrarian Party, an important pre-WW I  politician and prime minister, was born at No 4, the Bohuslav family estate. Two local inhabitants Bohumil Řehák and Milan Rathouský hid Švehla´s memorial shortly after the February 1948 Coup and would carry on hiding it until the Velvet Revolution. The statue was kept in an old well at No 3 Rathouský family estate. Both their families were subsequently persecuted during the communist regime.