Old Town - Through the History of the Principal Town of the Kingdom

The embryo of today's Staré Město (Old Town) was the market place close to the main Vltava ford, on the site of today's Široká Street and Staroměstské náměstí (Old Town Square). It was not used by richer customers but more by farmers and artisans selling their own wares. On top of that, it was an area which frequently flooded as the Vltava overflowed its banks, and therefore was not an ideal location. In the middle of the 12th century however, the need for a trading centre within reasonable proximity to the Castle (but not so close for it to be threatened by the frequent battles under the Castle walls) outweighed the disadvantages. Around the market, rose up the centre of the Romanesque, stone town. There have been discovered up to now the remains of more than 70 Romanesque, stone houses, largely standing detached, but sometimes in continuous rows. After 1172 the settlement was connected with Prague Castle by the stone Judith Bridge, and its importance continued to increase.

The crucial period for the founding of “Prague Town” was the reign of King Wenceslas I. This sovereign, soon after his accession to the throne, fortified the town with walls and a moat, in the years 1232-1234.

Under the threat of a Tartar invasion the construction work was speeded up, and the ruler even ordered the monks to join in. In total the whole length of the walls was 1700 metres and the area of the walled town can be estimated to be 140 hectares. The builders tried as far as possible to utilise the advantages of the terrain created by the bend of the river Vltava, and so did not hesitate to leave outside the walls some of the developed parts of the town, for instance the settlement of the German merchants by the Church of St. Peter Na Poříčí or the settlement Újezd St. Martin.

On the other hand however, a vacant area for further expansion was left inside the walls. This unoccupied area was settled during the second half of the 13th century by planned building activity, which was clearly different from the ad hoc arrangement of the streets of the previous era. That way the settlement of St. Havel - today's Havelská and Rytířská Streets sprung up. From the outset it had its own administrative laws, and until the end of the 13th century was considered to be an independent town. Within the boundaries of the Old Town walls, there also grew up the settlement V židech - the embryo of the future, partly independent Židovské Město (the Jewish Town).

In 1257 King Přemysl Otakar II confirmed the town rights of the Menší Město (the Lesser Town), later on Malá Strana (Small Quarter). Prague Town was then called called Větší Město Pražské (the Larger Prague Town) for ease of identification. At that time the idea was conceived for the future amalgamation of several closely connected, but legally independent Prague towns.

The prosperous “Larger Town” had already been striving for some time to become autonomous, but only King John of Luxembourg consented in 1338 to the building of the Town Hall. Three years later permission was granted to the town to enact its own laws. This marked the birth of the mediaeval Old Town. In the time of the Emperor Charles IV, the importance of the Town grew. It gained new privileges, among which was the right to a new stone bridge, nowadays called Charles Bridge. Of particular significance was the founding of Prague (Charles) University in 1348, which heightened the town's reputation.

In 1348 Charles IV founded Prague's Nové Město (New Town), which stretched along the whole length of the Old Town walls. At that time the “Larger Town” was first called “Staré Město Pražské” (Prague Old Town). Despite the fact that it was literally surrounded by the New Town, it kept its pre-eminence as the main political and administrative centre. It had the right to control two New Town gates and the Small Quarter fortifications. In addition, the Old Town court served as the court of appeal for all Czech towns.

During the Hussite insurrection (1419-1434) the Old Town citizens adopted a more moderate approach than their New Town neighbours. They created a strong town identity and exercised a powerful influence on the political events of the country.It was the rebellion against the Emperor Ferdinand in 1547 which signalled the end of the Old Town's supremacy. After its suppression the monarch limited the town's privileges and the power of the Old Town collapsed. This destruction of the burgess class and Czech political independence was completed after the Battle of the White Mountain in 1620. As a result of tradition however, the Prague Old Town was still considered the foremost Czech town. Therefore after the unification of the independent Prague towns into a single authority in 1784, the Old Town Town Hall became the seat of the unified town administration.

The greatest threat the town experienced was at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries. The magistrate at that time intended to pull down the old buildings and build in their place a new trade and civic centre.

According to the original plan a wide avenue was to extend from Wenceslas Square across the Old Town and the Staroměstské Square to the river. The only part of this project which was carried out was the construction of Pařížská Street, laid out on the site of the demolished Jewish Town. A part of the Old Town was pulled down and replaced by a new, architecturally not very happy development. A total lack of sensitivity for the genius loci and the historical significance of the buildings of the Old Town and the Jewish Town, is documented for instance by an entry in the records of a town hall debate, where Alderman Parňžek suggests pulling down the Church of the Holy Ghost, because “it is anyway decrepid ...and unpleasantly intrudes into the proposed block no. XXIV”.

Only at the beginning of the 20th century was a more cultured public opinion able to slow down this barbaric destruction (also going on of course in other European cities). Ultimately it was shown that increased demands for hygiene, health and civic prestige could be met by the sensitive adaptation of old houses. Thanks to this new attitude most of the Old Town was saved.

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