Lime tree of Liberty
Species:
large-leaved lime (Tilia Platyphyllos)
Age:
100 years
Region:
Velké Opatovice, South Moravian Region, the Czech Republic
Lime at the Crossroads of History
When Czechoslovakia was founded in 1918, people in Velké Opatovice planted 16 Lime trees of Liberty: symbols of independence, democracy and the end of WWI. One of them was the Lime tree in Zádvoří. It was planted by a local patriot and pacifist Jan Pospíšil after he had come back home from the First World War. Only his tree has survived until today in the middle of the crossroad of five streets. Both the German and Red Army marched around the lime at the end of WWII, and the lime became a symbol of Czech freedom and resilience.