I.

Introduction

Prague (Czech Praha), capital and largest city of the Czech Republic, located in the west central part of the country, in the region of Bohemia. Often called the City of a Hundred Spires because of its many churches and towers, Prague is the chief commercial, industrial, and cultural center of the Czech Republic. Unlike much of central Europe, the city was not seriously damaged in World War II (1939-1945) and remains one of the most beautiful cities on the continent. From 1918 to 1993 Prague was the capital of Czechoslovakia, which came under Communist control after World War II. Since the fall of Communism in 1989, Prague has become a major tourist attraction, bolstering the city’s economy.

II.

Prague and Its Metropolitan Area

Greater Prague, which covers an area of 496 sq km (192 sq mi), was formed in 1920 by the incorporation of 37 nearby towns and villages. Greater Prague also includes numerous new suburban developments dominated by high-rise apartments that date from the Communist era.

The historic center of the city developed in a broad valley on the banks and surrounding hills of the Vltava River. Many bridges link the two parts of the city. The most famous of these is the Charles Bridge, commissioned in the late 14th century by Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, completed in the early 15th century, and later embellished with statues of saints. Old Town, founded in the 13th century, and New Town, which developed in the 14th century, lie on the eastern bank of the river. Old Town contains many important architectural and artistic monuments, several of them situated on Old Town Square. A statue of John Huss (Jan Hus), the Bohemian religious reformer who instigated the Protestant Reformation in the 15th century, dominates the square. Other attractions are the 14th-century Týn Church, a center of the Hussite movement, and the astronomical clock, or Orloj, of Old Town Hall (Staroměstská Radnice), which is adorned with statues of the 12 apostles that rotate each hour. Old Town also encompasses Josephov, the city’s Jewish quarter. Dating from the 10th century, Josephov contains the Old-New Synagogue and the Old Jewish Cemetery, which is the oldest in Europe. Many of the buildings of Charles University are in Old Town, as are several concert halls and museums.

New Town, which is adjacent to Old Town on the eastern bank of the Vltava, has remained an industrial and commercial center over the centuries. Many of the area’s buildings date from the 18th century. There are also numerous examples of art nouveau architecture. The famous Wenceslas Square, or Václavské náměstí, is presided over by a statue of Saint Wenceslas, the 10th-century nobleman celebrated in the Christmas carol “Good King Wenceslas.” The National Museum, built between 1885 and 1890, lies at one end of the square. The National Theater, completed in 1881, is located on Národní třida, or National Street. Both buildings were constructed during the period of resurgent Czech culture and nationalism in the 19th century.

The Hradčany, or Castle, district is on the western side of the Vltava and dominates the city. Situated on a hill, Hradčany (Prague Castle) includes several historical buildings and is Prague’s most visible symbol. Formerly the residence of the kings of Bohemia, Hradčany now houses the offices and official residence of the president of the Czech Republic. Zlatá ulička, or Golden Street, is just inside one of the castle’s walls and includes the tiny shops and small homes of the artisans who once served the castle’s occupants. The Lesser Quarter, or Malá Strana, located in the area between the castle hill and the river, contains many of the Baroque palaces that lend distinction to Prague.

Residential and industrial areas surround the historic sections of the city. The older neighborhoods close to the center contain many fine residences built in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Industrial zones to the east and south of the city grew significantly under Communism. The greater metropolitan area includes suburbs of low-quality high-rise apartment complexes built after World War II. Agricultural areas and small villages also dot the metropolitan area.

III.

Population

The city of Prague had a population of 1,169,106 in 2003. The city’s population has declined since the end of Communism. The increased costs of raising children in a market economy and new career and travel opportunities available to young people have led to a drop in the birthrate. Government restrictions on migration into Prague were abolished after 1989. However, difficulties in finding housing and the higher cost of living have limited in-migration. Approximately 68,000 foreigners have residence permits to live in Prague.

The majority of Prague’s residents are Czech. In earlier centuries, many Germans lived in the city. The ruling Přemyslid dynasty of Prague encouraged German migration to Bohemia in medieval times. When Prague became the capital of the newly created Czechoslovak Republic in 1918, approximately 35 percent of the city’s inhabitants were German-speakers. Many of these were members of Prague’s large Jewish community, which dated to the 10th century. Nearly all of the city’s Jews perished in the Holocaust. After World War II, most other German-speakers in Prague were among the approximately 3 million Germans expelled from the country. Most Czechs are nominally Catholic. Czech culture has also been shaped by a strong Protestant influence dating from the times of Huss, the Czech religious reformer burned at the stake as a heretic in 1415.

IV.

Education and Culture

In addition to its cultural importance to the Czech Republic, Prague also made major contributions to European culture. The city served as the capital of the Holy Roman Empire under Charles IV. Prague flourished during the Czech national awakening in the l9th century and as the capital of the Czechoslovak Republic in the period between World War I and World War II. Bedřich Smetana and Antonín Dvořák are the city’s best-known composers. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart lived in Prague and wrote the opera Don Giovanni (1787) there. Franz Kafka, Jaroslav Hašek, and former Czech president Václav Havel are the city’s best-known writers.

The city has a long tradition as a center of learning. Charles University, founded by Charles IV in 1348, is one of the oldest universities in Europe. The Czech Technical University; Prague University of Economics, formerly the Higher Economic School; the Institute of Chemical Technology; Czech University of Agriculture; the Academy of Performing Arts, the Academy of Fine Arts, and the Academy of Applied Arts are also in Prague. The Czech Academy of Sciences carries on the work of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences founded in 1952.

The city has a rich musical life. The annual Prague Spring music festival held in May draws many of the world’s finest performing artists to the city. The Czech Philharmonic and Prague Symphony are world-renowned. Many other orchestras and smaller musical groups regularly perform classical music in the city’s numerous concert halls, churches, and convents. Prague also has a lively dramatic tradition. There are approximately 50 theaters in addition to the National Theater and the State Opera House.

V.

Recreation

Prague’s many parks and gardens include a large sports and entertainment center, a zoological garden, and the Strahov athletic complex. The latter holds three stadiums which were used during the Communist era for large-scale gymnastic exhibitions known as Spartakiada. Smaller parks and gardens surround many of the city’s architectural gems, such as Prague Castle and the Petřín Hills.

Since the end of Communist rule, Prague’s nightlife has increased significantly. Nightclubs, discos, and jazz clubs vie with each other to attract natives and foreign visitors. The number and variety of restaurants in the city has also grown dramatically.

VI.

Economy

Prague is the Czech Republic’s main industrial center. With the spread of the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century, the city became one of the most heavily industrialized cities in Europe. This trend continued during the interwar period, and today most people remain employed in industry. Since the fall of Communism, Prague has also developed rapidly as a commercial and financial hub. The number of people employed in the service sector has grown. The city also has turned into a major European tourist destination.

Metal products and machinery, including aircraft engines, automobiles, diesel engines, machine tools, refined oil products, and electronics are the city’s most important products. Prague also produces significant amounts of beer, chemicals, and processed foods.

Prague has a modern subway system and a well-developed network of buses and trams. The number of passenger cars has increased greatly since a market-based economy was introduced in 1989. Cars are banned from much of the center of the city, which is part of a protected urban historical zone. With three main passenger stations and three freight stations, Prague is one of the Czech Republic’s railway centers. Rapid trains now link the city to major European centers. The international airport at Ruzyně has been modernized since 1989.

Prague is also the Czech Republic’s main communications center. Approximately ten daily newspapers are published here. A free press has developed since 1989, and many daily newspapers and magazines are privately owned. While the broadcast media have been slower to privatize, there are now two private television and several private radio stations. The English-language Prague Post has become an important source of information for the city’s English-speaking community.

VII.

Government

Prague is one of the eight regions of the Czech Republic. It is governed by a mayor and a city council. Both the mayor and the city council members are popularly elected to four-year terms. The city is divided into ten districts for administrative purposes.

VIII.

Contemporary Issues

Prague faces problems similar to those of other cities in post-Communist Eastern Europe. One of the most important of these is the shortage of housing. Many apartments in the center of the city deteriorated during the Communist era, and much of the newer housing constructed on the outskirts of the city was substandard. Building of high-rise apartments has stopped.

The opening of borders and the end of tight political control since 1989 have also led to a dramatic rise in crime. This has included increased drug abuse, pornography, prostitution, and other serious social problems.

IX.

History

The banks along the Vltava River in what is now Prague were settled by Slavs in the 5th and 6th centuries. Bořivoj, an early prince of the Slavs who identified themselves as Czechs, built what became Hradčany on the Vltava River between 870 and 880, and thus Prague itself dates from the 9th century. In the 10th century, another castle, Vyšehrad, was built on the other side of the river by the leader of the Přemyslid dynasty, which soon became powerful. Under the Přemyslids, Bohemia expanded its territory and came under the protection of the German-based Holy Roman Empire.

Prague began to develop rapidly under the leadership of Charles IV, who became king of Bohemia in 1346 and Holy Roman Emperor in 1355. Charles began a massive building program in Prague to turn the city into his imperial capital. Under his leadership, the New Town developed. Charles also founded Charles University and ordered construction of the Charles Bridge. In the early 1400s Prague became the center of the religious reform movement led by John Huss, who was burned at the stake as a heretic in 1415. The Hussite movement and revolt that developed after his death damaged the city considerably.

Prague’s importance declined when Ferdinand I became king of Bohemia and the kingdom became part of the Austrian Habsburg monarchy in 1526. The city was the site of numerous attempts by the Czech nobility to resist Habsburg control. In 1583 Rudolf II, a patron of the arts, moved to Prague and the city once again began to flourish. In 1618 Czech Protestants threw two Catholic governors out of the windows of Prague Castle. This act, known as the Defenestration of Prague, helped precipitate the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648). The defeat of the Czech nobility at the Battle of White Mountain in 1620 led to the execution of 27 Czechs and the exile of much of the Czech nobility. After the victory of Habsburg forces in 1648, Czechs were forced to convert to Catholicism.

Economic life revived in the 18th century as manufacturing developed. In 1757, during the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763), Prussian forces under Frederick II briefly took Prague. Prague’s four towns were joined to form one city in 1784 during the reign of Joseph II. In 1848 Austrian forces bombarded the city after the Czechs revolted against Habsburg rule. Prague then began another period of rapid growth. It also became the center of the Czech national movement. In 1866 the Austrians surrendered to Prussian forces at Prague during the Seven Weeks’ War. The Austrian defeat helped establish Prussia as Europe’s dominant power, but the Habsburgs continued to control Prague until World War I (1914-1918).

Prague became the capital of newly created Czechoslovakia in 1918. The city was occupied by German forces during World War II. After the war, a Communist government came to power in Czechoslovakia.

Under Communism, Prague’s traditional links to other European cities were broken. The city’s inhabitants were isolated, and Czech culture suffered the negative effects of Communist Party control. In the mid-1960s, the city underwent a cultural reawakening that contributed to the political reform movement led by Alexander Dubček known as the Prague Spring. In retaliation, Soviet and other Warsaw Pact troops invaded the country in August 1968 and reform languished for two decades. In November 1989 massive nonviolent demonstrations began in Prague’s Wenceslas Square that led to the downfall of Czechoslovakia’s Communist regime. Since the end of Communism, the city has once again emerged as a major European cultural and tourist center. In January 1993 Prague became the capital of the independent Czech Republic.