Jachymov trip planner

Jáchymov is a spa town in north-west Bohemia in the Czech Republic belonging to the Karlovy Vary Region. It is situated at an altitude of 733m above sea level in the eponymous St. Joachim's valley in the Ore Mountains, close to the border to Germany.The silver Joachimsthaler coins minted there since the 16th century became known as Thaler for short, with the word "dollar" and similar words for monetary units in many languages deriving from it.History, mining and coinageAt the beginning of the 16th century, silver was found in the area of Joachimsthal. The exploitation of this valuable resource caused the place to grow rapidly, and made the Counts von Schlick, whose possessions included the town, one of the richest noble families in Bohemia. The Schlicks had coins minted, which were called Joachimsthalers. They gave their name to the Thaler and the dollar. The fame of Joachimsthal for its ore mining and smelting works attracted the scientific attention of the doctor Georg Bauer (better known by the Latin form of his name, Georgius Agricola) in the late 1520s, who based his pioneering metallurgical studies on his observations made here.In 1523, the Protestant Reformation began. In the Schmalkaldic War (1546–47) Joachimsthal was occupied for a time by Saxon troops. When in 1621 the Counter-reformation and re-Catholicisation took effect in the town, many Protestant citizens and people from the mountains migrated to nearby Saxony.