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71-514: The town parts and villages of Březenec, Červený Hrádek, Jindřišská and Vinařice are administrative parts of Jirkov. Jirkov lies in close proximity to the city of Chomutov , with which it forms a conurbation . It is located about 44 km (27 mi) southwest of Ústí nad Labem . It lies on the border between the Most Basin and Ore Mountains . The highest point is at 590 m (1,940 ft) above sea level.The Bílina River flows through

142-407: A bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics , but failed to make the candidate city shortlist . In June 2009, as the result of financial pressures from the global recession , Prague's officials chose to cancel the city's planned bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics . On 21 December 2023, a mass shooting took place at Charles University in central Prague. In total, 15 people were killed and 25 injured. It

213-610: A corrupt Church. Having become too dangerous for the political and religious establishment, Hus was summoned to the Council of Constance , put on trial for heresy , and burned at the stake in Konstanz in 1415. Four years later Prague experienced its first defenestration , when the people rebelled under the command of the Prague priest Jan Želivský . Hus' death, coupled with Czech proto-nationalism and proto-Protestantism , had spurred

284-702: A democratic way. The other Warsaw Pact member countries, except Romania and Albania , were led by the Soviet Union to repress these reforms through the invasion of Czechoslovakia and the capital, Prague, on 21 August 1968. The invasion, chiefly by infantry and tanks, effectively suppressed any further attempts at reform. The military occupation of Czechoslovakia by the Red Army would end only in 1991. Jan Palach and Jan Zajíc committed suicide by self-immolation in January and February 1969 to protest against

355-656: A massive increase in the city's overall population caused by the influx of Czechs from the rest of Bohemia and Moravia and the increasing prestige and importance of the Czech language as part of the Czech National Revival. World War I ended with the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the creation of Czechoslovakia. Prague was chosen as its capital and Prague Castle as the seat of president Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk . At this time Prague

426-477: A month later, Frederick the Great was defeated and forced to retreat from Bohemia. The economy of Prague continued to improve during the 18th century. The population increased to 80,000 inhabitants by 1771. Many rich merchants and nobles enhanced the city with a host of palaces, churches and gardens full of art and music, creating a Baroque city renowned throughout the world to this day. In 1784, under Joseph II ,

497-553: A popular place for trips. Chomutov is twinned with: Prague Prague ( / ˈ p r ɑː ɡ / PRAHG ; Czech : Praha [ˈpraɦa] ) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia . Situated on the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.4 million people. Prague is a political, cultural, and economic hub of Central Europe , with

568-419: A population comprising about 95% ethnic Germans. A very small Jewish population (444 in 1930 – 1.3% of the total population) came under increasing pressure, and Chomutov was declared " Judenrein " on 23 September 1938 by the increasingly pro-Nazi administration. A week later, Chomutov and its surrounding districts were annexed by Nazi Germany as a result of the 1938 Munich Agreement and administered as part of

639-480: A red field sprinkled with small white fleurs-de-lis, and a silver old Town Coat-of-Arms in the center. The words "PÁN BŮH POMOC NAŠE" (The Lord is our Relief/Help) appeared above the coat-of-arms, with a Hussite chalice centered on the top. Near the swallow-tails is a crescent-shaped golden sun with rays protruding. One of these banners was captured by Swedish troops during the Battle of Prague (1648) when they captured

710-659: A rich history and Romanesque , Gothic , Renaissance and Baroque architectures. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia and residence of several Holy Roman Emperors , most notably Charles IV (r. 1346–1378) and Rudolf II (r. 1575–1611). It was an important city to the Habsburg monarchy and Austria-Hungary . The city played major roles in the Bohemian and the Protestant Reformations ,

781-459: Is derived from an old Slavic word, práh , which means " ford " or " rapid ", referring to the city's origin at a crossing point of the Vltava river. Another view to the origin of the name is also related to the Czech word práh (with the meaning of a threshold ) and a legendary etymology connects the name of the city with princess Libuše , prophetess and a wife of the mythical founder of

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852-734: Is estimated by the Prague Information Service at 500. Nicknames for Prague have also included: the Golden City, the Mother of Cities and the Heart of Europe. The local Jewish community, which belongs to one of the oldest continuously existing in the world, have described the city as עיר ואם בישראל Ir va-em be-yisrael , "The city and mother in Israel". Prague has grown from a settlement stretching from Prague Castle in

923-616: Is made up of only one administrative part and is the only such Czech city. The name is derived from the personal name Chomút/Chomout, meaning "Chomout's (court)". The word chomút , from which the personal name arise, denoted a clumsy person in Old Czech. Chomutov is located about 78 kilometres (48 mi) northwest of Prague . It lies on the Chomutovka River in the Ore Mountains Foothills . The surface

994-426: Is mostly flat with some hills in the north and southeast of the city. The highest point of the municipal territory is Hůrka 581 m (1,906 ft), a hill on the northwestern municipal border. There are several bodies of water on the outskirts of the city. Kamencové Lake and Velký Otvický Pond are used for recreational purposes. The first written mention of Chomutov is a deed of gift from 1252, when it came into

1065-526: Is served by two train station: Chomutov and Chomutov město . Transport around Chomutov is operated by buses since 1995 and also by trolleybuses . The trolleybus net connects Chomutov with neighbouring Jirkov. They jointly operate a transport company ( Dopravní podnik měst Chomutova a Jirkova ). Chomutov is home to the ice hockey club Piráti Chomutov , playing in the second tier , and association football club FC Chomutov, playing in lower amateur tiers. The city has two sport areas: Zadní Vinohrady, where

1136-574: Is situated next to the 53.7 m (176 ft) tall dominant of the city, the City Tower. The tower was renovated after the fire in 1525 and rebuilt to neo-Gothic style in 1874. Nowadays it is used as an observation tower. At the end of the south side there is the Baroque Church of Saint Ignatius with two towers on the north frontage. The church was built for Jesuits by Carlo Lurago between 1663 and 1668. The building called Špejchar from

1207-672: The Gothic Saint Vitus Cathedral , within the largest of the Prague Castle courtyards, on the site of the Romanesque rotunda there. Prague was elevated to an archbishopric in 1344, the year the cathedral was begun. The city had a mint and was a center of trade for German and Italian bankers and merchants. The social order, however, became more turbulent due to the rising power of the craftsmen 's guilds (themselves often torn by internal conflicts), and

1278-530: The Hussite Wars . Peasant rebels, led by the general Jan Žižka , along with Hussite troops from Prague, defeated Emperor Sigismund , in the Battle of Vítkov Hill in 1420. During the Hussite Wars when Prague was attacked by "Crusader" and mercenary forces, the city militia fought bravely under the Prague Banner. This swallow-tailed banner is approximately 4 by 6 ft (1.2 by 1.8 m), with

1349-704: The Marcomanni king, Maroboduus , in Závist. Around the area where present-day Prague stands, the 2nd century map drawn by Roman geographer Ptolemaios mentioned a Germanic city called Casurgis . In the late 5th century AD, during the great Migration Period following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire , the Germanic tribes living in Bohemia moved westwards and, probably in the 6th century,

1420-702: The New Town (Nové Město) adjacent to the Old Town and laid out the design himself. The Charles Bridge, replacing the Judith Bridge destroyed in the flood just prior to his reign, was erected to connect the east bank districts to the Malá Strana and castle area. In 1347, he founded Charles University , the oldest university in Central Europe. His father John of Bohemia began construction of

1491-524: The Protestant citizens and the town's new overlord. In 1594 the feudal lordship fell to the crown , and in 1605 the town purchased its freedom and was made a royal city. After the Thirty Years' War , Chomutov stagnated. Rapid development did not come until the second half of the 19th century, with advances in the mining and heavy industries. By 1938, Chomutov had over 30,000 inhabitants. It had

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1562-515: The Přemyslid dynasty . Legend says that Libuše came out on a rocky cliff high above the Vltava and prophesied: "I see a great city whose glory will touch the stars". She ordered a castle and a town called Praha to be built on the site. The region became the seat of the dukes , and later kings of Bohemia . Under Duke of Bohemia Boleslaus II the Pious the area became a bishopric in 973. Until Prague

1633-416: The Přemyslid dynasty . She is said to have ordered the city "to be built where a man hews a threshold of his house". The Czech práh might thus be understood to refer to rapids or fords in the river, the edge of which could have acted as a means of fording the river – thus providing a "threshold" to the castle. Another derivation of the name Praha is suggested from na prazě , the original term for

1704-647: The Red Army took the city almost unopposed. The majority (about 50,000 people) of the German population of Prague either fled or were expelled by the Beneš decrees in the aftermath of the war. Prague was a city in a country under the military, economic, and political control of the Soviet Union (see Iron Curtain and COMECON ). The world's largest Stalin Monument was unveiled on Letná hill in 1955 and destroyed in 1962. The 4th Czechoslovak Writers' Congress, held in

1775-551: The Reichsgau Sudetenland . After 1945, the previous population, German by a large majority, was expelled . Industrial facilities and large high-rise housing projects were then built to redevelop the area. In the late 1970s an urban settlement was built, linking Chomutov with its neighbouring Jirkov . Following the Velvet Revolution of 1989, the heavy industry significantly decreased its activity, but

1846-638: The Slavic tribes settled the Central Bohemian Region. In the following three centuries, the Czech tribes built several fortified settlements in the area, most notably in the Šárka valley , Butovice and Levý Hradec . The construction of what came to be known as Prague Castle began near the end of the 9th century, expanding a fortified settlement that had existed on the site since the year 800. The first masonry under Prague Castle dates from

1917-587: The Thirty Years' War and in 20th-century history as the capital of Czechoslovakia between the World Wars and the post-war Communist era . Prague is home to a number of cultural attractions including Prague Castle , Charles Bridge , Old Town Square with the Prague astronomical clock , the Jewish Quarter , Petřín hill and Vyšehrad . Since 1992, the historic center of Prague has been included in

1988-470: The Thirty Years' War , a particularly harsh period for Prague and Bohemia. Ferdinand II of Habsburg was deposed, and his place as King of Bohemia taken by Frederick V, Elector Palatine ; however his army was crushed in the Battle of White Mountain (1620) not far from the city. Following this in 1621 was an execution of 27 Czech Protestant leaders (involved in the uprising) in Old Town Square and

2059-521: The UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites . The city has more than ten major museums, along with numerous theatres, galleries, cinemas, and other historical exhibits. An extensive modern public transportation system connects the city. It is home to a wide range of public and private schools, including Charles University in Prague, the oldest university in Central Europe. Prague is classified as an "Alpha-" global city according to GaWC studies. In 2019,

2130-489: The US Army Air Forces . 701 people were killed, more than 1,000 people were injured and some buildings, factories and historic landmarks ( Emmaus Monastery , Faust House , Vinohrady Synagogue ) were destroyed. Many historic structures in Prague, however, escaped the destruction of the war and the damage was small compared to the total destruction of many other cities in that time. According to American pilots, it

2201-467: The shale hillside rock upon which the original castle was built. At that time, the castle was surrounded by forests, covering the nine hills of the future city – the Old Town on the opposite side of the river, as well as the Lesser Town beneath the existing castle, appeared only later. The English spelling of the city's name is borrowed from French . In the 19th and early 20th centuries it

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2272-534: The " normalization " of the country. In 1989, after riot police beat back a peaceful student demonstration, the Velvet Revolution crowded the streets of Prague, and the capital of Czechoslovakia benefited greatly from the new mood. In 1992, the Historic Centre of Prague and its monuments were inscribed as a cultural UNESCO World Heritage Site . In 1993, after the Velvet Divorce , Prague became

2343-480: The 14th-century reign (1346–1378) of Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor and the king of Bohemia of the new Luxembourg dynasty . As King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor, he transformed Prague into an imperial capital. In the 1470s, Prague had around 70,000 inhabitants and with an area of 360 ha (~1.4 square miles) it was the third-largest city in the Holy Roman Empire. Charles IV ordered the building of

2414-513: The 16th and 17th centuries. A brewery was built near the cellar in 1841; thanks to this, Long Cellar lost importance. Since 2006, the town cellars are accessible for visitors. Since 2011, the town cellars has been protected as a cultural monument. The oldest monument in Jirkov is the Church of Saint Giles. Its existence was mentioned already in 1300. It was newly built in 1568, the original parts of

2485-525: The 17th century was used by Jesuits as earlier church and it adjoins the east side of the Church of St. Ignatius. Nowadays it is used as a gallery. There is the Jesuit college south of the Church of St. Ignatius from the 16th and 17th century, which nowadays houses the city museum. The most important building from the Gothic residential houses is the late Gothic house No. 9. The Zoopark Chomutov borders with

2556-418: The 17th century, Prague's population began to grow again. Jews had been in Prague since the end of the 10th century and, by 1708, they accounted for about a quarter of Prague's population. In 1689, a great fire devastated Prague, but this spurred a renovation and a rebuilding of the city. In 1713–14, a major outbreak of plague hit Prague one last time, killing 12,000 to 13,000 people. In 1744, Frederick

2627-523: The Alum Lake on its north side. The zoo is focused mostly on breeding European and mainly domestic wild animals ( wolf , european bison , etc.). The zoo is the largest in the country by area, with an area of 112 hectares (280 acres). Bezručovo Valley is a deep, 13 km (8 mi) long woody valley of the Chomutovka River, beginning in the northern part of the territory of Chomutov. It is

2698-560: The Great of Prussia invaded Bohemia. He took Prague after a severe and prolonged siege in the course of which a large part of the town was destroyed. Empress Maria Theresa expelled the Jews from Prague in 1745; though she rescinded the expulsion in 1748, the proportion of Jewish residents in the city never recovered. In 1757 the Prussian bombardment destroyed more than one-quarter of the city and heavily damaged St. Vitus Cathedral. However,

2769-576: The Holy Trinity by Ambrož Laurentis from 1697 is banked by seven statues of saints built between 1725 and 1732. The city hall is situated in the northwest side and it used to be a commendam until 1607. The city hall is situated next to the Church of St. Catherine built in early Gothic style and finished in 1281. On the opposite side there is the Church of Assumption of the Virgin Mary, built in late Gothic style between 1518 and 1542. The church

2840-591: The Prague clergy announced that Jews had desecrated the host (Eucharistic wafer) and the clergy encouraged mobs to pillage, ransack and burn the Jewish quarter. Nearly the entire Jewish population of Prague (ca 750 people) was murdered. Jan Hus , a theologian and rector at Charles University, preached in Prague. In 1402, he began giving sermons in the Bethlehem Chapel . Inspired by John Wycliffe , these sermons focused on what were seen as radical reforms of

2911-612: The area, later establishing settlements, including the largest Celtic oppidum in Bohemia , Závist, in a present-day south suburb Zbraslav in Prague, and naming the region of Bohemia, which means "home of the Boii people". In the last century BC, the Celts were slowly driven away by Germanic tribes ( Marcomanni , Quadi , Lombards and possibly the Suebi ), leading some to place the seat of

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2982-455: The building have been preserved. Jirkov is twinned with: Chomutov Chomutov ( Czech pronunciation: [ˈxomutof] ; German : Komotau ) is a city in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic . It has about 47,000 inhabitants. There are almost 80,000 inhabitants in the city's wider metropolitan area. The historic city centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone . Chomutov

3053-540: The capital city of the new Czech Republic. From 1995, high-rise buildings began to be built in Prague in large quantities. In the late 1990s, Prague again became an important cultural center of Europe and was notably influenced by globalisation . In 2000, the IMF and World Bank summits took place in Prague and anti-globalization riots took place here. In 2002, Prague suffered from widespread floods that damaged buildings and its underground transport system. Prague launched

3124-762: The castle were the Hohenlohe-Langenburgs . Max Egon Hohenlohe, the last owner, tried to prevent the occupation of Czechoslovakia by Nazi Germany through diplomatic negotiations when he allowed the meeting of the British mediator in the dispute between Germany and Czechoslovakia over the Sudetenland , Lord Runciman , with the leader of the Sudeten German Party , Konrad Henlein , at the castle in August 1938. After World War II, Prince Max Egon

3195-622: The city in June 1967, took a strong position against the regime. On 31 October 1967 students demonstrated at Strahov . This spurred the new secretary of the Czechoslovak Communist Party , Alexander Dubček , to proclaim a new deal in his city's and country's life, starting the short-lived season of the " socialism with a human face ". It was the Prague Spring , which aimed at the renovation of political institutions in

3266-781: The city is Parker Hannifin Industrial , a manufacturer of hydraulic and pneumatic systems. The D7 motorway from Prague to the Czech-german border in Hora Svatého Šebestiána runs through the western part of Chomutov. In Chomutov it crosses with the I/13 road (part of the European route E442 ) from Karlovy Vary to Liberec . Chomutov is located at the crossroads of several important railway lines: Prague – Cheb , Plzeň – Most , Děčín – Kadaň and Rakovník – Jirkov . The city

3337-511: The city was ranked as 69th most livable city in the world by Mercer. In the same year, the PICSA Index ranked the city as 13th most livable city in the world. Its rich history makes it a popular tourist destination and as of 2017, the city receives more than 8.5 million international visitors annually. In 2017, Prague was listed as the fifth most visited European city after London , Paris , Rome , and Istanbul . The Czech name Praha

3408-664: The country was occupied by Nazi Germany , Hitler took over Prague Castle. During the Second World War , most Jews were deported and killed by the Germans. In 1942, Prague was witness to the assassination of one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany — Reinhard Heydrich —during Operation Anthropoid , accomplished by Czechoslovak national heroes Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš . Hitler ordered bloody reprisals. In February 1945, Prague suffered several bombing raids by

3479-446: The environment in and around the town has been visibly improved. The leisure facilities of the area were emphasised, notably Alum Lake , the Zoopark Chomutov and the Bezručovo Valley recreational area. Since 1 July 2006, Chomutov has been a statutory city . The largest employer with headquarters in Chomutov is Severočeské doly , a lignite mining company with more than 2,500 employees. Among other large industrial companies based in

3550-407: The exiling of many others. Prague was forcibly converted back to Roman Catholicism followed by the rest of Czech lands. The city suffered subsequently during the war under an attack by Electorate of Saxony (1631) and during the Battle of Prague (1648) . Prague began a steady decline which reduced the population from the 60,000 it had had in the years before the war to 20,000. In the second half of

3621-421: The four municipalities of Malá Strana, Nové Město, Staré Město, and Hradčany were merged into a single entity. The Jewish district, called Josefov , was included only in 1850. The Industrial Revolution produced great changes and developments in Prague, as new factories could take advantage of the coal mines and ironworks of the nearby regions. The first suburb, Karlín , was created in 1817, and twenty years later

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3692-458: The increasing number of poor. The Hunger Wall, a substantial fortification wall south of Malá Strana and the castle area was built during a famine in the 1360s. The work is reputed to have been ordered by Charles IV as a means of providing employment and food to the workers and their families. Charles IV died in 1378. During the reign of his son, King Wenceslaus IV (1378–1419), a period of intense turmoil ensued. During Easter 1389, members of

3763-405: The north to the fort of Vyšehrad in the south, to become the capital of a modern European country. The region was settled as early as the Paleolithic age. Jewish chronicler David Solomon Ganz , citing Cyriacus Spangenberg , claimed that the city was founded as Boihaem in c.  1306 BC by an ancient king, Boyya. Around the fifth and fourth century BC, a Celtic tribe appeared in

3834-417: The population exceeded 100,000. The revolutions in Europe in 1848 also touched Prague, but they were fiercely suppressed. In the following years, the Czech National Revival began its rise, until it gained the majority in the town council in 1861. Prague had a large number of German speakers in 1848, but by 1880 the number of German speakers had decreased to 14% (42,000), and by 1910 to 6.7% (37,000), due to

3905-483: The possession of the Teutonic Order . The Gothic church of St. Catherine built during that era still stands to this day. In 1396 Chomutov received a town charter, and in 1416 the knights sold both the town and the lordship to Wenceslaus IV . On 16 March 1421, the town was stormed, sacked and burned by the Taborites . After several upheavals and changes of ownership, Chomutov was taken by Popel of Lobkowitz in 1588, who established Jesuit rule, leading to trouble between

3976-422: The site of the ford in the Vltava river, King Vladislaus I had the first bridge built in 1170, the Judith Bridge (Juditin most), named in honor of his wife Judith of Thuringia . This bridge was destroyed by a flood in 1342, but some of the original foundation stones of that bridge remain in the river. It was rebuilt and named the Charles Bridge. In 1257, under King Ottokar II , Malá Strana ("Lesser Quarter")

4047-512: The town's hitherto inhabitants were expelled , and new Czech settlers found a new home in the depopulated town. Jirkov is the terminus and starting point of the railway line from/to Lužná via Chomutov. Jirkov and neighbouring Chomutov together operate a transport company. In addition to buses, public transport is provided also by trolleybuses . Every year the town organizes the Jirkov Crossmarathon and Half marathon . The tradition began in 2001. Červený Hrádek Castle (formerly Borek Castle)

4118-434: The town. Jirkov was established as a colonization village on the Czech- Saxon border in the second half of the 13th century. The first written mention of Jirkov is from 1321 under the name Borek, the name Jirkov (that time written Jurkov ) began to be used soon after. From 1938 to 1945, Jirkov was annexed by Nazi Germany and administered as part of the Reichsgau Sudetenland . After the surrender of Germany, nearly all of

4189-470: The water park, football and athletics stadium are located, and Domovinka in the area of the former motorcycle speedway stadium, with two multifunctional courts for tennis, basketball and volleyball and artificially constructed hills for sledding and bobsledding. Since 1992, the historical city centre has been urban monument zone . The historical centre is in the shape of an oblong, and is surrounded by arcades . The 1. máje Square with its Baroque Column of

4260-425: The western bank of the Vltava river and were repulsed from the eastern bank, they placed it in the Royal Military Museum in Stockholm ; although this flag still exists, it is in very poor condition. They also took the Codex Gigas and the Codex Argenteus . The earliest evidence indicates that a gonfalon with a municipal charge painted on it was used for the Old Town as early as 1419. Since this city militia flag

4331-449: The year 885 at the latest. The other prominent Prague fort, the Přemyslid fort Vyšehrad , was founded in the 10th century, some 70 years later than Prague Castle. Prague Castle is dominated by the cathedral , which began construction in 1344, but was not completed until the 20th century. The legendary origins of Prague attribute its foundation to the 8th-century Czech duchess and prophetess Libuše and her husband, Přemysl , founder of

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4402-419: Was a true European capital with highly developed industry. By 1930, the population had risen to 850,000. Hitler ordered the German Army to enter Prague on 15 March 1939, and from Prague Castle proclaimed Bohemia and Moravia a German protectorate . For most of its history, Prague had been a multi-ethnic city with important Czech, German and (mostly native German-speaking) Jewish populations. From 1939, when

4473-403: Was an art lover as well, and Prague became the capital of European culture. This was a prosperous period for the city: famous people living there in that age include the astronomers Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler , the painter Arcimboldo , the alchemists Edward Kelley and John Dee , the poet Elizabeth Jane Weston , and others. In 1618, the famous second defenestration of Prague provoked

4544-410: Was elevated to archbishopric in 1344, it was under the jurisdiction of the Archbishopric of Mainz . Prague was an important seat for trading where merchants from across Europe settled, including many Jews, as recalled in 965 by the Hispano-Jewish merchant and traveler Abraham ben Jacob . The Old New Synagogue of 1270 still stands in the city. Prague was also once home to a slave market. At

4615-440: Was expropriated by the communist government. Accessible areas of the castle include the castle's chapel, the hall of mirrors, the gallery and the study of Max Egon Hohenlohe. Long Cellar, also called Sand Cellar, was built in 1555. It was built for 40 years and it had 150 counters. Long Cellar served to the brewery and to a beer storage. Thanks to this, the beer was better. Beer was brewed in Jirkov from 1443. People brewed beer in

4686-438: Was founded by the Kraa family prior to 1415. The castle was sacked by the Hussites in 1421 and, after renovation later in the 15th century, the façade was painted red – hence the name Červený Hrádek (or Red Castle). In 1687 and 1688, the baroque sculptor Jan Brokoff carved statues, fountains and other works at the castle. His son Ferdinand Maxmilian Brokoff , also a sculptor, was born there. The last aristocratic family to own

4757-430: Was founded in Prague on the site of an older village in what would become the Hradčany (Prague Castle) area. This was the district of the German people, who had the right to administer the law autonomously, pursuant to Magdeburg rights . The new district was on the bank opposite of the Staré Město ("Old Town"), which had borough status and was bordered by a line of walls and fortifications. Prague flourished during

4828-799: Was in use before 1477 and during the Hussite Wars, it is the oldest still preserved municipal flag of Bohemia. In the following two centuries, Prague strengthened its role as a merchant city. Many noteworthy Gothic buildings were erected and Vladislav Hall of the Prague Castle was added. In 1526, the Bohemian estates elected Ferdinand I of the House of Habsburg . The fervent Catholicism of its members brought them into conflict in Bohemia, and then in Prague, where Protestant ideas were gaining popularity. These problems were not preeminent under Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II , elected King of Bohemia in 1576, who chose Prague as his home. He lived in Prague Castle, where his court welcomed not only astrologers and magicians but also scientists, musicians, and artists. Rudolf

4899-463: Was pronounced in English to rhyme with "vague": it was so pronounced by Lady Diana Cooper (born 1892) on Desert Island Discs in 1969, and it is written to rhyme with "vague" in a verse of The Beleaguered City by Longfellow (1839) and also in the limerick There was an Old Lady of Prague by Edward Lear (1846). Prague is also called the "City of a Hundred Spires " , based on a count by 19th century mathematician Bernard Bolzano ; today's count

4970-419: Was the deadliest mass murder in the history of the Czech Republic. Prague is situated on the Vltava river. The Berounka flows into the Vltava in the suburbs of Lahovice . There are 99 watercourses in Prague with a total length of 340 km (210 mi). The longest streams are Rokytka and Botič. There are 3 reservoirs, 37 ponds, and 34 retention reservoirs and dry polders in the city. The largest pond

5041-399: Was the result of a navigational mistake. In March, a deliberate raid targeted military factories in Prague, killing about 370 people. On 5 May 1945, two days before Germany capitulated, an uprising against Germany occurred. Several thousand Czechs were killed in four days of bloody street fighting, with many atrocities committed by both sides. At daybreak on 9 May, the 3rd Shock Army of

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