Prague history

Prague's history goes back to the distant days of the Celtic tribes, as early as 400BC. The city's real golden age commenced when Charles IV of Bohemia was elected Holy Roman Emperor in the mid-14th century. The ambitious gothic building programme, including St Vitus Cathedral, Charles Bridge, the University and the New Town, centred on Wenceslas Square and transformed the city into one of the greatest and most powerful in Europe.

The 20th century brought massive trauma for Czechoslovakia and Prague as the country was occupied by the Nazis during WWII and then spent the best part of five decades subjugated under Soviet communist rule, with all attempts to win greater democracy in 1968's ‘Prague Spring' brutally crushed under the weight of Russian tanks.

The Czech spirit remained undaunted, and in 1989, as the Berlin Wall tumbled, the Czechs finally broke free of communism during the ‘Velvet Revolution', which was quickly followed by the ‘Velvet Divorce' as the Slovak portion of the old Czechoslovakia chose to go its own way.

With poet and president Vaclav Havel at the helm, Prague became the hub of the post-communist eastern European revival with expats flocking to the city in the 1990s, quickly developing a buzz that brought comparisons with 1920s Paris.

This post-Velvet Revolution buzz has faded to some extent, and these days, there are as many foreign as Czech voices on the streets, with the city massively popular as a tourist destination and as a business hub. In 2004, the Czech Republic joined the European Union, further cementing the city's importance and popularity.