Prague Castle

Noémie Collomb

On the thirteenth of February, I visited the castle of Prague. It is an emblematic place overlooking the city. 

It's a real favorite, and I'm talking to you today.

South Tower and Golden Gate.

Photo taken February 13 in the inner courtyard in front of the panoramic tower of the cathedral.

HISTORY OF PRAGUE CASTLE

The castle of Prague in czech « Pražský hrad », is the castle where the kings of Bohemia, the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, the presidents of the Czechoslovak Republic, then of the Czech Republic, sit or have sat.

The Guinness Book of Records has classified it as the largest ancient castle in the world.

The castle of Prague has different parts rising like a fortress :

• Old Royal Palace
• The story of Prague Castle
• Basilica of St.George
• Treasury of St.Vitus Cathedral
• Golden Lane
• Prague Castle Picture Gallery
• Powder Tower
• St. Vitus Cathedral : my favorite part
• Rosenberg Palace
• South Tower of S.t Vitus Catedral

Since the Velvet Revolution, Prague Castle has undergone significant and ongoing repairs and reconstructions.

COMMUNICATION

The website of the Prague Castle is very complete, with different tabs, for example, the different opening times, the prices of the various tours offered, explanations of the different historical monuments or a map of the castle.

The website is accessible to any type of person, and offers several solutions to get to the castle whether by metro, tram or on foot.

If the website we also have access to different contacts, information centers.

The site has 10 different nationalities (Czech, French, German, English, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean).

The link of website : https://www.hrad.cz/fr/bienvenue-au-chateau-de-prague

There are several types of entrance tickets in the castle : 

- 3 different circuits (A, B and C), the circuit A is the largest and included in relation to the circuit B the Powder Tower and the Rosenberg Palace

- 4 other tickets to see some exhibitions, and the Paranomic Tower of the Cathedral.

Ticket prices vary depending on the circuit, the most expensive is the A, 350 CZK without discount.

But for all tickets, there are discounts if you are a student, if you are with your family, for primary classes… 

Here is the ticket to accept to different parts of the castle. I chose to take the circuit B, to have access to the old royal palace, the basilica of St.George, the Golden Lane and the S.t Vitus Cathedral.

Behind the ticket is a plan to follow the follow up. The only negative is that it remains small to read, and home we are not necessarily given a leaflet with a plan and explanations.

When purchasing the ticket, audio guides are available in the desired language (all languages available on the site), and allow the public then, to better understand certainly details of the castle etc. 

During the visit, in all monuments, buildings and visitable rooms, explanations are available to the public. However, descriptions, or indications are only in Czech and English.

One thing is certain, visitors can not miss the castle, because of its size, its symbolism, its notoriety and there is a big security also around the castle.  From the Charles Bridge in the historic center, we can observe it. 

MY FAVORITE PART

Today, I'm going to tell you about the part that I preferred and that seems to me the most open to the field of art and history of the castle: S.t Vitus Cathedral in Czech: Katedrála svatého Víta. It is located inside the Prague Castle and is the largest church in the Czech Republic.

At first sight from the outside, the cathedral is exposed as a heavy Gothic architecture, imposing, rather cold.

Unlike some cathedrals that I could visit, it can be seen from several angles, more or less close.

One of the views of the cathedral.

The complete construction lasted nearly six centuries from 1344 to 1929. For its dimensions it is 124 (one hundred twenty four) meters in length and the highest 96.5 (ninety-six, comma five) meters.

The plan of St. Vitus Cathedral.

When we meet inside, we are immediately confronted with the immense height and the gathering atmosphere. The first impression is that little light enters the cathedral because of its size, but thanks to the different stained-glass windows, all the more colorful than the others, many openings on the outside light are possible. The color and power of the windows amazed me and are for me the asset of the cathedral. 

Closed on the sides, we discover them when we walk on the sides. Impossible not to stop in front of these wonders!

Stained glass in the cathedral.

The stained glass windows were made from the sketches of the most famous Czech painters and engravers of the moment, including for exemple Max Švabinský. When we turn around, we are confronted by a rosette illuminating the huge gray pillars of the cathedral. Many columns and vaults are present reminding the vault of the Golden Gate outside.

The South Tower has a Gothic base and a Baroque roof. It is 96 (eighty-six) meters high, where you can admire the panorama of the Castle and the city.

MY OPINION

The castle of Prague and more precisely the S.t Vitus cathedral is one of the Czech jewels, that's why I recommend to visit it. As a family, alone or in a group, and at any age, visits can be made. I really enjoyed this place full of history, despite of course the strong influence of tourists !

But the castle, remaining a historical place and therefore quite old, the visits are in "classic" ways. There is not really any interaction with the audience. We look, we do not touch and we go! For me today what pushes the public to enter a gallery or a museum is that it has an important place at the exhibition. Children, for example, like to touch, to discover more closely.

But this is complicated in a place so famous and visited and especially loaded in history to simply not destroy it.

But one thing is sure is that if you come to Prague, you have to visit the castle but especially the cathedral!