Prague is a most prominent tourist attraction in Czech Republic, as there are very few places in the world, where you would find complete medieval areas as in this city in central Europe.
The metropolis of the Czech Republic reveals to interested visitors a great deal about our contemporary and historical life. Prague is situated in the center of Bohemia on an area of about 496 km2 and is divided by the river Vltava. It has around 1,2 million inhabitants. Prague has many historical landmarks. According to an old saying, Prague is a city of “hundred-spires”. However, reality proves how modest this old saying was. The historical core of Prague is the most important conservation area; in 1992,866 ha, of this area was included in the UNESCO list of cultural and natural monuments. In the year 2000 Prague was, quite rightly, included among the “cultured” cities of Europe and today this appreciation of the Czech capital influences its lifestyle. Hundreds of years ago, Prague consisted of several, independent entities which were administratively linked together in the 18th century. According to the present administration there are 57 city wards, the most interesting and attractive to the visitor are those in areas of Prague 1 and Prague 2.
An Excursion Into Past History
Central Bohemia attracted human settlement as far back as the primeval stone period. As early as in the 6th century ancestor of the Czech settled in suitable areas of today’s Prague and after 870 the Prague castle was established. In 973 a bishopric was established at the rotunda of St Vitus. The 10th century saw the creation of a second castle – Vyshehrad – on the right bank of the river Vltava. From 1085 this castle became the scat of the first Czech king Vratislav I. In 1172 a stone bridge (called Judith’s) was built -the second in central Europe The 13th century saw the formation of two fully independent towns developed from the the Old Town. and the Lesser Town. When the indigenous dynasty of the Premyslids died out, the Luxembourg dynasty was established in 1310. in 1338 the Old Town Hall was built – a symbol of civic autonomy – and in 1344 the Prague bishopric was elevated to archbishopric. As a result the construction of St.Vitus cathedral was begun, in the years 1346-1378 Charles IV, Czech king and Roman emperor, ruled the country, in 1348 he founded the New Town and the first University in central Europe. He also had initiated the replacement of Judith’s bridge by an impressive Gothic one. Attempts at religious reformation connected with the priest Jan Hus culminated in a revolutionary movement from 1419 to 1437. The situation calmed down during the reign of king George when new building development took place. In 1526 the throne was taken over by the Habsburg dynasty which ruled until 1918. In the years 1583-1611 Prague was the seat of the emperor Rudolf II and became the center of social and cultural life. The defeat of the Czech Estates uprising against the Habsburgs during 1618-1620 was followed by a decline in the Czech language and national consciousness.
During the period 1784-1848 there was a revival of the Czech nation, we saw the beginnings of the industrial revolution and the establishment of Czech institutions. 1918 brought the declaration of independence of Czechoslovakia and Prague became the capital of the new state. The development of the country was disrupted in the years 1939-1945 due to occupation by Nazi Germany. In February 1948, the Communist Party came to power enforcing the Soviet model of society. The “Prague Spring”, an attempt to reform socialism in Czechoslovakia was terminated by the invasion of the Warsaw Pact armies. However the “Velvet Revolution” in 1989 signalled the end of the power of the Communist Party. It was beginning of democracy, multiparty political system and the opening of private enterprise, in 1993 the federal state was divided and a new independent Czech Republic was formed. What you should not miss in Prague. In 1999 the Czech Republic entered to NATO and in 2004 to EU.