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Prague Castle entrance at night
Prague Castle entrance at night

Prague Castle (Czech: Pražský hrad) is a castle in Prague where the Czech kings, Holy Roman Emperors and presidents of Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic have had their offices. Czech (ˈʧɛk čeština ˈʧɛʃcɪna in Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers it is the majority language in the A castle is a defensive structure seen as one of the main symbols of the Middle Ages. Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia, The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in The President of the Czech Republic is the Head of state of the Czech Republic. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia, The crown jewels of the Bohemian Kingdom are kept here. Crown jewels are jewels or artifacts of the reigning royal family of their respective country Prague Castle is one of the biggest castles in the world (according to Guinness Book of Records the biggest ancient castle [1]) at about 570 meters in length and an average of about 130 meters wide. Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records (and in previous U

Contents

History

View of Prague Castle from Rudolfinum Concert Hall
View of Prague Castle from Rudolfinum Concert Hall
Prague Castle By Night, March 2008
Prague Castle By Night, March 2008
South view of the St. Vitus Cathedral
South view of the St. Vitus Cathedral

The history of the castle stretches back to the 9th century (870). Saint Vitus's Cathedral (Katedrála svatého Víta is a Roman Catholic Cathedral in Prague, and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. The 9th century is the period from 801 to 900 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. The first walled building was the church of Our Lady. The Basilica of Saint George and the Basilica of St. Vitus were founded in the first half of the 10th century. Saint Vitus's Cathedral (Katedrála svatého Víta is a Roman Catholic Cathedral in Prague, and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. The first convent in Bohemia was founded in the castle, next to the church of St. Bohemia (Čechy; Bohemia Czechy is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands, currently the George. A Romanesque palace was erected here during the 12th century. In the 14th century, under the reign of Charles IV the royal palace was rebuilt in Gothic style and the castle fortifications were strengthened. Charles IV ( Czech: Karel IV, German: Karl IV, Hungarian: IV Károly; 14 May 1316 &ndash See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. In place of rotunda and basilica of St. Vitus began building of a vast Gothic church, that have been completed almost six centuries later. During the Hussite Wars and the following decades the Castle was not inhabited. The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars involved the military actions against and amongst the followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia in the period 1420 In 1485 King Ladislaus II Jagello begins to rebuild the castle. The massive Vladislav Hall (built by Benedikt Rejt) was added to the Royal Palace. Benedikt Rejt (also known as Benedikt Rieth Benedikt Reyd or Benedict Reijt was a renowned Medieval German Architect in Bohemia. Then were also built new defence towers on the northern side of the castle. A big fire of 1541 destroyed large parts of the castle. Under Habsburgs some new buildings in renaissance style appeared here. Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe in which there was a Ferdinand I built Belvedere, summer palace for his wife Anne. Ferdinand I Holy Roman Emperor ( Alcalá de Henares (near Madrid) Kingdom of Castile (now Spain) 10 March 1503 &ndash Anna Queen of Bohemia and Hungary, also sometimes known as Anna Jagellonica ( Buda (now Budapest) Hungary, July 23, 1503 Rudolph II used Prague Castle as his main residence. Rudolf II ( July 18, 1552, Vienna, Austria - January 20, 1612, Prague, Bohemia, now part of He founded the northern wing of the palace, with the Spanish Hall, where his precious artistic collections were exhibited. Second Prague defenestration in 1618 began the Bohemian Revolt. The Defenestrations of Prague were two incidents in the history of Bohemia. During the subsequent wars the Castle was damaged and dilapidated. Many works from the collection of Rudolph II were looted by Swedes in 1648, in the course of the Thirty Years' War. Rudolf II ( July 18, 1552, Vienna, Austria - January 20, 1612, Prague, Bohemia, now part of For the Mauritanian Thirty Years' War see Char Bouba war. For the band see The 30 Years War. The last major rebuilding of the castle was carried out by Queen Maria Theresa in the second half of the 18th century. Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia see also names in other languages; May 13, 1717 November 29 1780) was the Archduchess regnant Ferdinand V after abdication in 1848 chose Prague Castle as his home. Ferdinand ( April 19, 1793 &ndash June 29, 1875) was Emperor of Austria as Ferdinand I, King of Hungary and Croatia and Archduke

In 1918 the castle became the seat of the president of the new Czechoslovak Republic. The Czechoslovak Republic ( Československá republika) refers to the first Czechoslovak state that existed from 1918 to 1939 The New Royal Palace and the gardens were renovated by Slovenian architect Jože Plečnik. Jože Plečnik, ( January 23 1872 - January 7 1957) was a Slovene Architect who practised in Vienna, Renovations continued in 1936 under Plečnik's successor Pavel Janák. Pavel Janák ( 12 March 1881 - 1 August 1956) was a Czech modernist architect furniture designer town planner professor and theoretician

During the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia during World War II, Prague Castle became the headquarters of Reinhard Heydrich, the "Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia". Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( 7 March 1904 &ndash 4 June 1942) was an SS - Obergruppenführer, chief It is said that he placed the Bohemian crown on his head, believing himself to be a great king; old legends say that a usurper who places the crown on his head is doomed to die within a year. "Usurp" redirects here You might be also looking for WikipediaChanging username/Usurpations. [2] Less than a year after assuming power, Heydrich was assassinated.

After the liberation of Czechoslovakia, it housed the offices of the communist Czechoslovak government. During the Velvet Revolution, Alexander Dubček, the leader of Czechoslovakia during the Prague Spring, appeared on a balcony overlooking Wenceslas Square to hear throngs of protesters below shouting "Dubček to the castle!" As they pushed for him to take his seat as president of the country at Prague Castle, he embraced the crowd as a symbol of democratic freedom. The " Velvet Revolution " (sametová revoluce nežná revolúcia ( November 16 &ndash December 29 1989) refers to a non-violent Alexander Dubček (November 27 1921 – November 7 1992 was a Slovak politician and briefly leader of Czechoslovakia (1968-1969 famous for his attempt to reform The Prague Spring ( Czech: Pražské jaro, Slovak: Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during

After Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia, the castle became the seat of the Head of State of the new Czech Republic. The President of the Czech Republic is the Head of state of the Czech Republic. Similar to what Masaryk did with Plečnik, president Václav Havel commissionned Bořek Šípek to be the architect of post-communism Prague Castle's necessary improvements in particular of the facelift of the Castle's Gallery of paintings. Václav Havel, GCB, CC, ( (born October 5, 1936) is a Czech Playwright Writer and Politician Bořek Šípek (born 1949) is a prominent Czech Architect and Designer.

Architectural styles of Prague Castle

Prague Castle entrance
Prague Castle entrance

The castle buildings represent virtually every architectural style of the last millennium. The Prague Castle includes gothic St Vitus Cathedral, romanesque Basilica of St. George, a monastery and several palaces, gardens and defence towers. Saint Vitus's Cathedral (Katedrála svatého Víta is a Roman Catholic Cathedral in Prague, and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. Regional characteristics of Romanesque architecture|Romanesque art Romanesque architecture is the term that is used to describe the architecture of Middle Ages Europe which Most of the castle areas are open to tourists. Nowadays, the castle houses several museums, including the National Gallery collection of Bohemian baroque and mannerism art, exhibition dedicated to Czech history, Toy Museum and the picture gallery of Prague Castle, based on the collection of Rudolph II. Baroque art redirects here Please disambiguate such links to Baroque painting, Baroque sculpture, etc Mannerism is a period of European art which emerged from the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520. Rudolf II ( July 18, 1552, Vienna, Austria - January 20, 1612, Prague, Bohemia, now part of The Summer Shakespeare Festival regularly takes place in the courtyard of Burgrave Palace. The Summer Shakespeare Festival (Czech Letní shakespearovské slavnosti, Slovak Letné shakespearovské slávnosti) takes place in the courtyard of Burgrave Palace

The neighbourhood around the Prague Castle is called Hradčany. Hradčany ( German Hradschin) the Castle District, is the Prague district surrounding the Prague Castle.

Churches

Church and monastery of St George, Prague Castle
Church and monastery of St George, Prague Castle

Palaces

Other Buildings

Prague Castle at night.
Prague Castle at night.

Gardens

See also

External links

Notes

  1. ^ Guinness Book of Records entry on Pražský hrad
  2. ^ Mirna Solic, The gate open to the Bohemian crown jewels at Radio Prague. The Defenestrations of Prague were two incidents in the history of Bohemia.

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