006-057 THE PRAGUE CASTLE V 

Already for a thousand years the Prague Castle has been dominating the left bank of the river Vltava, towering monumentally above the city of Prague - the seat of Kings and Presidents, the symbol of our emancipation. Archaeology and art history have disclosed secular and church buildings erected during the reigns of Břetislav 1st (1034-1055), Spytihněv 2nd (1055-1061) and Soběslav 1st (1125-1140), the works of mediaeval artists as well as simple people. Above the pre-Romanesque buildings a Gothic Royal Palace was built during the reigns of the last rulers of the Přemysl Dynasty and the Kings of the Luxemburg Dynasty, as well as a magnificent, unfinished cathedral and various noblemen's palaces. During the reign of the Kings of the Jagellon Dynasty and the first Habsburgs, the Renaissance style penetrated into the architecture of the Prague Castle. Developments were cruelly impaired by the great fire at the castle in the year 1541, but building activities were resumed during the reigns of Ferdinand 1st, Maxmilian 2nd, Rudolph 2nd, as well as Matthias and all the Kings after him right up to Maria Theresia, during whose reign the architectural history of the castle was united into the continuous coulisse built round the castle courtyards. The last buildings of the 19th century were the St. Vitus Cathedral which was finished at this time in the neo-Gothic style, and the houses on George Square. The 20th century brought new architectural reconstructions to the Prague Castle. After the year 1948 the castle became the symbol of the rule of the Czechoslowak people and lately it has received the greatest possible care in the form of extensive restorations of the earlier buildings and the works of art and cultural monuments. The Prague Castle has become our most valuable National Cultural Monument. 

Text to the photographs (Photographs by Petr Delev): 

1. The Spanish Hall was built during the reign of Rudolph II, in the years 1589-96. It was greatly damaged during the Prussian siege in 1757 and the present-day likeness comes from the years 1858-68 and is the work of Architect Ferdinand Kirschner and the sculptor Paul de Vigne. 

2. The Vladislav Hall, the largest interior of mediaeval Prague, was built during the rule of Vladislav of Jagellon by Architect Benedict Rejt from Pístov, during the years 1486-1502. 

3. The Old Chamber of Parliament was built during the years 1559-63 according to the designs of Architect Boniface Wohlmuth, who also designed the gallery for the Head Scribe of the Kingdom of Bohemia. 

4. The interior of Charles's Palace was reconstructed in the years 1954-55 by Architect Pavel Janák, on the ground floor of the so-called Old Palace. Originally this hall was built after the year 1336 and vaulted in during the reign of Wenceslas IV. 

5. The Horsemen's Stairs were built round about 1500 by Benedict Rejt into the north-eastern wing of the Old Palace, in order to enable the knights on horseback to ride to the tournaments held in the Vladislav Hall. 

6. The interior of the Basilica of St. George. A Romanesque building dating from the first half of the 12th century, with the remains of the original church which had stood there in the 10th and 11th centuries. It was restored at the turn of the 20th century, for the last time in the years 1958-62. The mural paintings in the choir date from the 13th century. In front of the crypt there are two tombs with the remains of Bohemian Princes. 

7. The Basilica of St. George. The Baroque facade of this Romanesque basilica comes from the year 1680. Adjoining is the Chapel of St. John Nepomucký, built in the years 1718-22 according to the designs of František Kaňka.