H. Králové is addressing the mayor Ulrich monument issue for the third time, wanting to involve the public as well

Hradec Králové - The city hall of Hradec Králové intends to involve both professionals and the public in its third attempt to acquire a monument or memorial for the former significant mayor František Ulrich. A debate with a series of lectures on the monument is planned by the city hall for November 20 at the Gallery of Modern Art in Hradec. This is intended to precede a competition for the memorial that the city could hold in 2025. This was stated today in a press release by the deputy mayor for monument care and urban planning, Adam Záruba (Change for Hradec). Two unsuccessful attempts for the memorial took place 14 and 22 years ago.

Through expert discussion and careful preparation for the establishment of the monument, the city hall aims to avoid a third failure. According to Záruba, it is necessary to consider several aspects. "The memorial should be understandable to the general public; it must capture the essence of the legacy of the individual in question. However, it is also necessary to focus on the limits set by monument care and property relations," he stated.

An important question will be the selection of the location for the memorial. Záruba has previously stated that the monument could be placed in Ulrich Square. The city hall recently commissioned the preparation of a building-historical survey of Ulrich Square for a quarter of a million crowns. Among other things, it wants to find out what the space originally looked like and which of the original elements would be worth restoring or preserving.

The first attempt in 2002 to erect a monument in Ulrich Square failed due to objections from conservationists. The proposed monument depicted Ulrich sitting at a writing desk, with the statue to be placed on a high column, and people would observe it from a trio of telescopes. The conservationists rejected the proposal, stating that the monument would disrupt the architecturally cohesive space of the square.

In 2010, the city hall acquired a statue of Ulrich and placed it in Freedom Square. However, the statue of the sitting mayor by sculptor Stanislav Hanzík was deemed unsuccessful both artistically and in terms of quality by the public and experts. As a result, the city hall had the work removed in 2011 to a non-public area of the Technical Services at the airport.

František Ulrich led the city hall from 1895 to 1929. During his tenure, the city underwent a modern transformation following the demolition of the Hradec fortress and experienced significant development. It obtained railway and road connections and regulated the Elbe and Orlice rivers. Ulrich invited prominent architects Jan Kotěra and Josef Gočár to the city. At that time, Hradec Králové began to be referred to as the salon of the republic.