Prague

Prague is the capital of the Czech Republic and the seat of the president, government and parliament. It is also the political, cultural and economic centre of the country. It is an important industrial and business centre and transport crossroad too. It lies on both banks of the river Vltava, in the middle of Bohemia and in the Central Europe. It is the biggest city in the country too. Prague has more than one million inhabitants. Prague is said to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

There is an old legend about the town – Princess Libuše prophesised the future glory of Prague which would touch the stars. Prague is the capital of Czechoslovakia since 1918. In 1939 it was occupied by German soldiers. In May 1945 it was liberated by the Russians. In 1968 Prague was occupied again – by the soldiers of several socialist countries. In 1989 the Velvet Revolution began democratic changes in our society. In 1993 Czechoslovakia was divided into two independent states – Prague became the capital of the Czech Republic and Bratislava became the capital of Slovakia.

The oldest parts are the Old Town, the Lesser Town, the New Town, Josefov, Hradčany and Vyšehrad. It is surrounded by a ring of modern housing estates which are not very nice but where thousands of people can live.

The most famous monument in Prague are Hradčany with Prague Castle. This castle was founded in the 9th century. It has been the seat of Czech kings and presidents. It is a big complex of buildings – in the centre stands the Cathedral of St. Vitus – it is the largest church in the city, the building was begun by Charles IV in 14th century and was finished in 20th century and there are burried some Czech kings. Other famous bulding are the basilica of St. George, the Old Royal Palace and the Golden Lane with its small houses. They were built in 16th century and there lived Franz Kafka, the German – speaking Jewish writer during the First World War. There are a lot of souvenir shops and galleries now. The „Royal Way“ begins at the Powder Tower, through Celetná Street, crossing the Old Town Square and Charles Bridge, along Nerudova Street up to Prague Castle.

Prague’s other castle is Vyšehrad it was built in the 11th century and it was the seat of Czech rulers. There is a church of SS Peter and Paul, and the cemetery – it is called Slavín. There are burried famous people – Dvořák, Smetana, Myslbek, Mucha, Čapek, Mácha or Neruda.

Many important buildings were built in 14th century, under the rule of Charles IV – Charles University, the New Town with the Horse Market (now it is called Wenceslas Square) and the cattle Market (now it is called Charles Square) were founded. Charles IV promoted the construction of other important buildings such as St. Vitus Cathedral and Charles Bridge.

The Lesser Town Square is the square in the Lesser Town. At the centre of the square stands church of St. Nicholas, it is the largest Baroque church in Prague.

There are 18 bridges over the river Vltava. These bridges were built in the past. The most famous, the oldest, and also the most beautiful, is Charles Bridge. It was built in 14th century. There are thirty statues from the Baroque era. There are two towers at both ends of the bridge. At the Lesser Town end there are steps to the Kampa – a small island.

Old Town Square is very famous too.There are Astronomical Clock – it is the place visited by tousands of tourists. They admire the clock with its complicated mechanism built in the Middle Ages.There is a Týn church, the Baroque church of St. Nicholas, the old Gothic house at the Stone Bell and the memorial to the Jan Hus – Czech religiosu reformer.

The Jewish Quarter is a quarter with 6 synagogues – the most famous is called Old-New Synagogue. It is one of the oldest synagogues in Europe. There was Rabbi Loew, the creator of the Golem. The Old Jewish Cemetery is there too.

Wenceslas Square is one of the city´s main shopping and entertainment centre – there is a lot of shops, restaurants, casinos and cinemas. It is about 750 metres long and 60 metres wide. At the top of the Wenceslas Square there is the National Museum and a statue of King Wenceslas on his horse. It was created by Myslbek and it is a symbol of a free and independent republic

The National Theatre was built in the 19th century. It was paid for by the Czech people themselves and the country´s most important artists were invited to decorate it with their work.

If you want to see all the town, you have to go to the Petřín – it is a hill with an observation tower. You can see the Hunger Wall there too. When Charles was king the people of Prague were poor and hungry and the city needed a wall. He had the wall built by his people in exchange for food.

People who like culture can go to the theatre or cinema. There are many theatres and musical performances in Prague, e.g. the Prague Spring International or Music Feestival in May-June. Lots of the best galleries and museums can be seen there too. Some of the best known places are the  National Gallery, the National Theatre, the Smetana Theatre, the Palace  of Culture, the Magic Lantern, the Stavovské Theatre, the  Vinohrady Theatre, the Semafor.

Many world known personalities Iived or spent some time in Prague – e.g. Mozart, Beethoven, Čajkovskij, Descartes, Paganini, Wagner, Dostojevskij, Einstein, Kafka, Liszt, Ginsberg etc. Many famous personalities have visited Prague too – George Bush, Bill Clinton, Margaret Thatcher, Prince Charles, the Queen Elizabeth II and many others.

Prague is also an important centre of sports. There are many stadiums, parks, tennis courts and swimming pools. There is also the world´s biggest stadium – Strahov.

Prague is also the centre of education – there is a lot of universities – the Charles University, the Czech Technical University etc.

Prague is also the centre of industry – especially light industry. There is a brewery, Avia in Letňany, ČKD, Orion Modřany etc.