PRAGUE

PRAGUE the capital of the Czech Republic the largest city in the CR, 15th largest in the EU it is also the historical capital of Bohemia situated in the north-west of the country on the

Vltava River the city is home to about 1.24 million people the seat of the president, government,

parliament political, cultural, economical centre of the CR divided into many administrative districts (The

Old Town, The Lesser Town, The New Town, Vyšehrad, Hradčany,…)

FOUNDATION OF PRAGUE

according to legends, Prague was founded in the 8th century by the Czech duchess Libuše and her husband, Přemysl, founder of the Přemyslid dynasty

the oldest settlement goes back to the Stone Age, the Slavs came to the Prague valley in 6th century

PRAGUE CASTLE

• the castle has been a seat of power for kings of Bohemia, Holy Roman emperors, and presidents of Czechoslovakia

• the official residence and office of the president

• located in the Hradčany district of Prague

• dating back to 9th century

PRAGUE CASTLE

• the Guinness Book of Records lists Prague castle as the largest ancient castle in the world

VLADISLAV HALL, SPANISH HALL• the Bohemian Crown Jewels

are kept within a hidden room inside

ST. VITUS CATHEDRAL• Gothic style

• Roman Catholic metropolitan cathedral in Prague

• the seat of the Archbishop of Prague

• the tombs of many Bohemian kings and Holy Roman Emperors (Charles IV, Rudoph II,…)

ST. VITUS CATHEDRAL

• perhaps the most outstanding place in the cathedral is the Chapel of St. Wenceslas, where the relics of the saint are kept

• the room was built by Peter Parler between 1344 and 1364

GOLDEN LANE• part of Prague

Castle

• connected with 16th century alchemists, who had to look there, according to legends, for a reaction to produce gold

• consist of tiny colored houses

• nowadays there are many souvenir shops

• house no. 22 is connected with Franz Kafka, Czech-Jewish writer, who lived there for 2 years

DALIBORKA TOWER

• at the end of Golden Lane

• cylindrical tower built at the end of 15th century

• used to be a prison

PETŘÍN LOOKOUT TOWER

• on Petřín Hill, today the major tourist attraction

• built for the Jubilee Exhibition in 1891 as a copy of the Eiffel Tower

• used as an observation tower as well as a transmission tower

STRAHOV MONASTERY• a Premonstratensian

abbey founded in 12th century

• is located in Strahov• museum of Czech literature

THE LESSER TOWN

• a district of the city of Prague

• one of the most historic regions

• was founded in 1257

• the market place, now known as Lesser Town Square, was a center of the town

• the famous Czech novelist Jan Neruda was born, lived in and wrote about Malá Strana; Nerudova Street is named after him

ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH• the Baroque church in Lesser

Town Square

• was built between 1704-1755 on the site where formerly stood a Gothic church from the 13th century also dedicated to Saint Nicholas

• it has been described as "the most impressive example of Prague Baroque" and "without doubt the greatest Baroque church in Prague "

ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH

• Mozart's spectacular masterpiece, Mass in C, was first performed in the Church of Saint Nicholas shortly after his visit

CHARLES BRIDGE• its construction

started in 1357 under the auspices of King Charles IV

• finished in the beginning of the 15th century

• originally called the Stone Bridge or the Prague Bridge but has been the "Charles Bridge" since 1870

CHARLES BRIDGE• 621 m long and nearly 10 m wide• protected by three bridge

towers, two of them on the Lesser Quarter side and the third one on the Old Town side

• decorated by 30 statues and statuaries, most of them baroque-style by M. Braun, J. Brokoff

• originally erected around 1700 but now all replaced by replicas

OLD TOWN SQUARE

• located between Wenceslas Square and the Charles Bridge

• various architectural styles

• at the Christmas and Easter there are placed markets• the Christmas Markets on the Old Town Square are the

largest Christmas markets in the Czech Republic and are visited by hundreds of thousands of visitors from the CR and abroad

• there is annually placed tall decorated tree and a musical stage

ASTRONOMICAL CLOCK (HOROLOGUE)• a medieval astronomical clock at

the Old Town Hall

• the clock - first installed in 1410, it was the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest one still working

• show of figures of the Apostles and other moving sculptures

• first, it was believed that the it was constructed in 1490 by clockmaster Hanuš, this is now known to be a historical mistake

• made by clockmaker Mikuláš of Kadaň and Jan Šindel

OLD TOWN SQUARE – JAN HUS MEMORIAL• a statue of religious reformer Jan Hus, who for his beliefs

was burned at the stake in Constance

OLD TOWN SQUARE• the square is also home to a memorial to martyrs (e.g.: Jan

Jesenius and Maxmilián Hošťálek) beheaded on that spot during the Old Town Square execution after the Battle of White Mountain

• twenty-seven crosses mark the pavement in their honour

WENCESLAS SQUARE

• one of the main city squares and the centre of the business and cultural communities in the New Town

WENCESLAS SQUARE

• the square is named after Saint Wenceslas, the patron saint of Bohemia

• the statue of St. Wenceslas is the most famous work by J. V. Myslbek

• many historical events occurred there, and it is a traditional setting for demonstrations, celebrations, and other public gatherings

• part of the historic centre of Prague, a World Heritage Site

WENCESLAS SQUARE

• formerly known as Horse Market, for its periodic accommodation of horse markets during the Middle Ages

National Museum •prepare and exhibit natural scientific and historical collections•founded in 1818 •houses almost 14 mil. items from the area of natural history, history, arts, music and librarianship

NATIONAL THEATRE

• neo-renaissaince building on the banks of the Vltava River

• first opened in 1881 by Smetana’s Libuše, burnt down, then opened in 1883

• interior artwork was done by M. Aleš and F. Ženíšek

• architect Josef Zítek

CHARLES UNIVERSITY

Carolinum •the seat of the rector, the Academic Senate and is also the venue for official academic ceremonies such as matriculations or graduations

• founded in 1348 as the first university in Central Europe

• the historical main building from the 14th century is called Carolinum