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Old Town Square ( cs, Staroměstské náměstí or colloquially ) is a historic square in the
The square features buildings belonging to various architectural styles, including the
At Christmas and Easter, markets are held on the square; they resemble medieval markets. A tall decorated tree and a musical stage are set up.
The Christmas Markets in Old Town Square are the largest Christmas markets in the Czech Republic and are visited by hundreds of thousands of visitors from the Czech Republic and abroad, primarily Germans, Russians, Italians and Britons. In 2016, CNN ranked Prague's Christmas Markets among the 10 best ones worldwide.
Photos of Old Town Square and Background Information
Old Town Square Live WebCam
{{Authority control Execution sites National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic Squares in Prague
Old Town Square ( cs, Staroměstské náměstí or colloquially ) is a historic square in the Old Town
In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
quarter of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic. It is located between Wenceslas Square and Charles Bridge.
Buildings
The square features buildings belonging to various architectural styles, including the Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
Church of Our Lady before Týn, which has been the main church of this part of the city since the 14th century. Its characteristic towers are 80 m high. The Baroque St. Nicholas Church is another church located in the square.
Prague Orloj is a medieval astronomical clock mounted on the Old Town Hall. The clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest one still in operation. The tower of the Old Town Hall is open to the public and offers panoramic views of the Old Town.
An art museum of the Czech National Gallery is located in the Kinský Palace.
Statues and memorials
The square's centre is home to a statue of religious reformer Jan Hus, who was burned at the stake in Konstanz for his beliefs. This led to theHussite Wars
The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, European monarchs loyal to the Cat ...
. The statue known as the Jan Hus Memorial was erected on 6 July 1915 to mark the 500th anniversary of his death.
In front of the Old Town Hall, there is also a memorial to the "martyrs" (including Jan Jesenius and Maxmilián Hošťálek) beheaded on that spot during the Old Town Square execution by Habsburgs
The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
, after the Battle of White Mountain. Twenty-seven crosses mark the pavement in their honour. The crosses were installed during the repairs of the Old Town Hall after the Second World War, while a nearby plaque which lists the names of all 27 victims dates from 1911. Orthodox Czechs do not trample these crosses out of respect.
On 3 November 1918, a Marian Column that had been erected in the square shortly after the Thirty Years' War was demolished in celebration of independence from the Habsburg empire. The column was re-erected in 2020.
Markets
At Christmas and Easter, markets are held on the square; they resemble medieval markets. A tall decorated tree and a musical stage are set up.
The Christmas Markets in Old Town Square are the largest Christmas markets in the Czech Republic and are visited by hundreds of thousands of visitors from the Czech Republic and abroad, primarily Germans, Russians, Italians and Britons. In 2016, CNN ranked Prague's Christmas Markets among the 10 best ones worldwide.
See also
* Old Town Square executionReferences
External links
Photos of Old Town Square and Background Information
Old Town Square Live WebCam
{{Authority control Execution sites National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic Squares in Prague