Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapel of All Saints
At the eastern end of
Vladislav Hall, a doorway leads to
a balcony above the Chapel of All
Saints. Peter Parler modelled it
on the Gothic Sainte-Chapelle in
Paris. After fire destroyed it in
1541, it was redesigned in
Baroque style. Of particular
artistic note is Hans von
Aachen's
Triptych of the Angels
.
Gothic and
Romanesque Cellars
These rooms became buried as a
result of subsequent construc-
tion overhead. A replica of the
crown jewels is on display; the
real thing was kept here during
World War II.
Busts from
Peter Parlé∫'s Workshop
These impressive portraits were
created in the late 14th century
and include the grandfather-
father-grandson set of John of
Luxembourg, Charles IV and
Wenceslas IV.
Sob
∂
slav Residence
Prince Sob∂slav literally laid
the foundations for Prague
Castle, building the first stone
palace here in the 11th century.
Prague's Third
Defenestration
Top 10 Rulers of
Prague
1 Wenceslas (birthdate
unknown-935)
2 Otakar II (1233-78)
3 Charles IV (1316-78)
4 Wenceslas IV
(1361-1419)
5 Rudolph II (1552-1612)
6 Tomá√ Garrigue
Masaryk (1850-1937)
7 Edvard Bene√
(1884-1948)
8 Klement Gottwald
(1896-1953)
9 Alexander Dub≤ek
(1921-92)
0 Václav Havel (b.1936)
Prague's first recorded instance of execution by
hurling the condemned from a window occurred at
the outset of the Hussite Wars in 1419. Vladislav II's
officials met a similar fate in 1483. Perhaps as a
tribute to their forebears, more than 100 Protestant
nobles stormed the Old Royal Palace in 1618 and
cast two hated Catholic governors and their secretary
out of the window. The men's fall was broken by a
dung heap swept from the Vladislav Hall after a
recent tournament (although Catholics at the time
claim they were saved by angels). The incident is
often cited as the spark that began the Thirty Years'
War. Following the Protestants' defeat at Bílá Hora in
1620, the nobles got their day in court and at the
gallows, in front of the Old Town Hall
(see pp16-17)
.
Prague's
Defenestration
This 1889 work by
Václav von Bro≈ik
captures the
moment of the
Protestants' attack
on the Catholic
governors. Painted
250 years later, it
illustrates how the
event has remained
in the Czech
consciousness.
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