006-058 THE PRAGUE CASTLE VI 

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 Cathedral of St. Nicholas. A view from the Prague Castle, over the Royal Gardens "Na Valech". On the left is the so-called Louis Wing of the Old Palace which dates from the years 1509-10 and was built by Benedict Rejt. 

2. The Riding-School Terrace, reconstructed according to the designs of Pavel Janák in 1955. The Riding-School stands in the background, it is the work of Architect J. B. Mathey from the late 17th century. During the years 1947-49 the Riding-School was adapted into an exhibition hall by Architect Janák. 

3. The George Alley with the Black Tower. On the right there are Renaissance and Baroque houses from the 16th - 18th centuries, on the lower right-hand side is the Czechoslovak Children's House. The Black Tower was built during the reign of Prince Soběslav, round about 1135. 

4. The Gold Alley was built in the year 1597. It tiny houses served as dwelling-places for the armed castle guards. Later the alley became the living-quarters of the castle and church servants and small craftsmen. Only legends connect it with the alchemists of the court of Rudolph Ilnd. 

5. The New Palace Steps were built in the 16th century in place of the original old path. The houses built along the right-hand side come from the 16th and 17th centuries. 

6. A view of Mala Strana (The Little Town), of the river Vltava and its bridges and the New Town with Vyšehrad in the Background. 

7. The Prague Castle and the Cathedral of St. Vitus, as seen from the Strahov Gardens. In the foreground the Úvoz, formerly the main road to Pohořelec and the Castle, with Renaissance and Baroque houses alongside.