Prague
History
The erection of Prague Castle by Premyslid Prince Borivoj in 870 marks the first permanent settlement in Prague. Hradcany, or Prague Castle, then becomes the first seat of the Premyslid (Premyslovci) princes who rule the Kingdom of Bohemia after 894 (with the aid of the western Germans against the eastern Hungarian Maygars). During the next three centuries, the city is populated by many Germans and built up around the Vltava River, with Vysehrad Castle, the Gothic Cathedral of St. Vitus, and Judith's stone bridge. The Bohemian Premsylid dynasty ends in
Czech nobles give the throne to John of Luxembourg and his son Charles IV (1346–1378), who also becomes Holy Roman Emperor. He brings a great time of prosperity to Prague, second only to Rome, by founding Charles University, the first one in Central Europe. This "Golden Age" is followed by a period of unrest as the Hussite Revolution, started by the burning of Jan Hus, brings a reaction against domination of the Germans and the Catholic Church.
Ferdinand of Hapsburg is elected to the Crown of St. Wenceslas. As a result, the next three centuries are marked by the rule of the House of Catholic Hapsburgs, which experiences the opposition of a predominantly Protestant citizenry. There is a fire in 1541 at Prague Castle, Hradcany, and the Lesser Town, and many Bohemians lose property during anti-Hapsburg uprisings. However, this period also is known for its development of the arts under Emperor Rudolph II (1576–1612). In 1618, two Protestant churches are closed, precipitating the "Defenestration of Prague," when Protestants throw two Imperial Governors out of the windows of Prague Castle. This action, and the execution of 27 Protestant nobles, leads to the Thirty Years War (1618–48), pitting Catholics against Protestants, ending with the Peace of Westphalia and German-Catholic rule.
Industrialization brings growth to the city, and in 1784 Emperor Joseph II (1741–90) merges the four towns: Old Town, New Town, Lesser Town, and Hradcany, into the contemporary Capital City of Prague. In 1848, riots in Prague bring about a Pan-Slavic Congress, which emancipates the Czech nation from the Austrio-Hungarian Empire, under Bohemian historian Francis Palacky.
Thomas Masaryk (1850–1937) becomes the first Czechoslovakian President from 1918 to 1937, ruling Bohemia, Moravia, and Slovakia, but in 1939 Hitler occupies the Sudetenland, ending independent rule. By 1945, the Communist Party had grown considerably in the Czech nation under Russian influence, allying the government with the Soviet Union until the 1968 Prague Spring and revolution. Under President General Ludwik Svoboda (1895–1979), the country begins to liberalize, but the U.S.S.R. and the Warsaw Pact allies quell this rebellion by occupying Czechoslovakia with 650,000 troops. By 1989, the Soviet Union is ready to crumble. In what is known as the "Velvet Revolution," students gather on Wenceslas Square and demand free elections. In 1990, Vaclav Havel becomes president of Czechoslovakia and later of
