Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The plan to assassinate Heydrich had been formulated in the early months of 1942 by
the Czechoslovak
government-in-exile
in London, without consultation with the Czech
CommunistleadershipinMoscow,anddespitefierceoppositionfromtheresistance within
Czechoslovakia. Since it was clear that the reprisals would be horrific (thousands were
executed in the aftermath), the only logical explanation for the plan is that this was pre-
cisely the aim of the government-in-exile's operation - to forge a solid wedge of resent-
ment between the Germans and Czechs. In this respect, if in no other, the operation was
ultimately successful.
The embankment
Grandly confident turn-of-the-twentieth-century apartment blocks line the Vltava's right
bank, almost without interruption, for some 2km from the Charles Bridge south to the
rocky outcrop of Vyšehrad. It's a long walk, even just along the length of
Masarykovo
and
Rašínovo nábřeží
, but tramlines run the entire stretch. Bridges link the embankment to
some of the Vltava's islands such as Střelecký ostrov and Slovanský ostrov (better known as
Žofín), oases of leafy calm in Prague's hectic cityscape.
Hlahol
Masarykovo nábřeží 16 • 224 934 547,
hlahol.cz
• Tram #6, #9, #17, #18 or #22 to Národní divadlo
Most of the ornate buildings along the waterfront itself are private residential tenements, and
therefore inaccessible. One exception is the Art Nouveau concert hall,
Hlahol
, built for the
Hlahol men's choir in 1903-06, and designed by the architect of the main train station, Josef
Fanta, with a pediment mural by Mucha and statues by Šaloun - check the website or the
posters outside the hall for details of upcoming concerts.
Střelecký ostrov
Floating in the middle of the Vltava and accessible from Most Legií (Bridge of the Legions),
Střelecký ostrov
, or Shooters' Island, is so named because it's where the army held their
shootingpractice,onandoff,fromthefifteenthuntilthenineteenthcentury.Closertotheleft
bank, it became a favourite spot for a Sunday promenade, and is still popular, especially in
summer. The first
Sokol festival
took place here in 1882, and the first May Day demonstra-
tions in 1890.
Slovanský ostrov
Tram #6, #9, #17, #18 or #22 to Národní divadlo
Quiet
Slovanský ostrov
came about as a result of the natural silting of the river in the eight-
eenth century. It's commonly known as
Žofín
, after the island's very yellow cultural centre,
built in 1835 and named in honour of Sophie, the mother of Emperor Franz-Joseph I. By the
