Page 681 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Europe

PR A GUE  679

His victories in the Thirty Years’
War made him vital to Emperor
Ferdinand II. Already showered
with titles, Wallenstein started
to covet the crown of Bohemia.
He began to negotiate
independently with the
enemy, and in 1634 was
killed on the Emperor’s
orders by mercenaries.
Wallenstein’s intention was
to overshadow even Prague
Castle with his vast palace,
built between 1624 and 1630.
The magnificent main hall
has a ceiling fresco of the
commander portrayed as Mars,
riding in a triumphal chariot.
The palace is now used by the
Czech Senate, but the State
Rooms are open to the public.
Dotted with bronze statues
and fountains, the gardens are
laid out as they were when
Wallenstein resided here. The
Grotesquery is an unusual
feature – an imitation of the
walls of a cave, covered in
stalactites. There is also a
fine frescoed pavilion. The old
Riding School is today used for
National Gallery exhibitions. Charles Bridge and the Little Quarter Bridge Tower
it took four carriages abreast. under torture and his body
q Charles Bridge The bridge was commissioned was thrown from the bridge.
q Staroměstská (for Old Town side). by Charles IV in 1357 after the A number of finely worked
v 12, 20, 22 to Malostranské náměstí Judith Bridge was destroyed reliefs depict the martyrdom of
(for Little Quarter side); 17, 18 to by floods. this saint, who was revered by
Staroměstská (for Old Town side). Little The bridge’s original decor- the Jesuits as a rival to Jan Hus.
Quarter Bridge Tower: Open daily. & ation consisted of a simple Between 1683 and the latter
Old Town Bridge Tower: Open daily. & wooden cross. In 1683, a statue half of the 19th century, several
of St. John Nepomuk – the first more statues were erected.
One of the most familiar sights of the many Baroque statues Sculpted by Matthias Braun at
in Prague, the Charles Bridge that today line the bridge – was the age of 26, the statue of St.
(Karlův Most) connects the added. The vicar general Jan Luitgard is regarded as one of
Old Town with the Little Nepomucký was arrested in the most artistically remarkable.
Quarter. Although it is now 1393 by Wenceslas IV for having Another splendid piece of
pedestrianized, at one time displeased the king. He died decoration, the 17th-century
Crucifixion bears the Hebrew
inscription “Holy, Holy, Holy
Lord,” paid for by a Jew as
punishment for blasphemy.
At the Little Quarter end
of the bridge stand two bridge
towers. The shorter of these
is the remains of the Judith
Bridge and dates from the
early 12th century. The taller
pinnacled tower was built
in 1464. It offers a magnificent
view of the city, as does
the late 14th-century
Gothic tower at the Old
The vast 17th-century Wallenstein Palace and its gardens Town end.

678-679_EW_Europe.indd 679 14/07/16 10:20 am