Portal:Czech Republic

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Welcome to the Czech Portal!
Vítejte na Českém portálu!

The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The Czech Republic has a hilly landscape that covers an area of 78,871 square kilometers (30,452 sq mi) with a mostly temperate continental and oceanic climate. The capital and largest city is Prague; other major cities and urban areas include Brno, Ostrava, Plzeň and Liberec.

The Duchy of Bohemia was founded in the late 9th century under Great Moravia. It was formally recognized as an Imperial Estate of the Holy Roman Empire in 1002 and became a kingdom in 1198. Following the Battle of Mohács in 1526, all of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown were gradually integrated into the Habsburg monarchy. Nearly a hundred years later, the Protestant Bohemian Revolt led to the Thirty Years' War. After the Battle of White Mountain, the Habsburgs consolidated their rule. With the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the Crown lands became part of the Austrian Empire.

In the 19th century, the Czech lands became more industrialized; further, in 1918, most of the country became part of the First Czechoslovak Republic following the collapse of Austria-Hungary after World War I. Czechoslovakia was the only country in Central and Eastern Europe to remain a parliamentary democracy during the entirety of the interwar period. After the Munich Agreement in 1938, Nazi Germany systematically took control over the Czech lands. Czechoslovakia was restored in 1945 and three years later became an Eastern Bloc communist state following a coup d'état in 1948. Attempts to liberalize the government and economy were suppressed by a Soviet-led invasion of the country during the Prague Spring in 1968. In November 1989, the Velvet Revolution ended communist rule in the country and restored democracy. On 31 December 1992, Czechoslovakia was peacefully dissolved, with its constituent states becoming the independent states of the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

The Czech Republic is a unitary parliamentary republic and developed country with an advanced, high-income social market economy. It is a welfare state with a European social model, universal health care and free-tuition university education. It ranks 32nd in the Human Development Index. The Czech Republic is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the European Union, the OECD, the OSCE, the Council of Europe and the Visegrád Group. (Full article...)

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Czechoslovakia (/ˌtʃɛkoʊsloʊˈvæki.ə, ˈtʃɛkə-, -slə-, -ˈvɑː-/ ^ⓘ CHEK-oh-sloh-VAK-ee-ə, CHEK-ə-, -⁠slə-, -⁠VAH-; Czech and Slovak: Československo, Česko-Slovensko) was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland became part of Nazi Germany, while the country lost further territories to Hungary and Poland (the territories of southern Slovakia with a predominantly Hungarian population to Hungary and Zaolzie with a predominantly Polish population to Poland). Between 1939 and 1945, the state ceased to exist, as Slovakia proclaimed its independence and Carpathian Ruthenia became part of Hungary, while the German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was proclaimed in the remainder of the Czech Lands. In 1939, after the outbreak of World War II, former Czechoslovak President Edvard Beneš formed a government-in-exile and sought recognition from the Allies.

After World War II, Czechoslovakia was reestablished under its pre-1938 borders, with the exception of Carpathian Ruthenia, which became part of the Ukrainian SSR (a republic of the Soviet Union). The Communist Party seized power in a coup in 1948. From 1948 to 1989, Czechoslovakia was part of the Eastern Bloc with a planned economy. Its economic status was formalized in membership of Comecon from 1949 and its defense status in the Warsaw Pact of 1955. A period of political liberalization in 1968, the Prague Spring, ended when the Soviet Union, assisted by other Warsaw Pact countries, invaded Czechoslovakia. In 1989, as Marxist–Leninist governments and communism were ending all over Central and Eastern Europe, Czechoslovaks peacefully deposed their communist government during the Velvet Revolution, which began on 17 November 1989 and ended 11 days later on 28 November when all of the top Communist leaders and Communist party itself resigned. On 31 December 1992, Czechoslovakia peacefully split into the two sovereign states of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. (Full article...)

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Panoramic view of Prague Castle

Photographer: Stefan Bauer; License: Creative Commons CC-BY-SA

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In this month

2 March 1978 – Vladimír Remek becomes the first man in space from a country other than the United States and USSR
6 March 1645 – One of the bloodiest battles of the Thirty Years' War, the Battle of Jankau takes place 50km from Prague
16 March 1939 – The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia is established following the end of the Second Czechoslovak Republic
29 March 1896 – The first Prague derby is played between Sparta and Slavia. The match ends 0–0
30 March 1968 – Ludvík Svoboda (pictured) is elected President of Czechoslovakia

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Janáček in 1914

Leoš Janáček (Czech: [ˈlɛoʃ ˈjanaːtʃɛk] ^ⓘ, 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, music theorist, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic music, including Eastern European folk music, to create an original, modern musical style.

Born in Hukvaldy, Janáček demonstrated musical talent at an early age and was educated in Brno, Prague, Leipzig, and Vienna. He then returned to live in Brno, where he married his pupil Zdenka Schulzová and devoted himself mainly to folkloristic research. His earlier musical output was influenced by contemporaries such as Antonín Dvořák, but around the turn of the century he began to incorporate his earlier studies of national folk music, as well as his transcriptions of "speech melodies" of spoken language, to create a modern, highly original synthesis. The death of his daughter Olga in 1903 had a profound effect on his musical output; these notable transformations were first evident in the opera Jenůfa (often called the "Moravian national opera"), which premiered in 1904 in Brno. (Full article...)

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John Amos Comenius Petr Čech Dominik Hašek Jaromír Jágr Pavel Nedvěd Gregor Mendel Tomáš Rosický Franz Kafka Bedřich Smetana Emanuel Moravec Gustav Mahler Fredy Hirsch Antonín Kinský Vlastimil Koubek Petra Kvitová Martin Miller (actor) Vratislav Lokvenc Vladimír Remek Libor Michálek Vojtěch Jarník Markéta Vondroušová Zdeňka Wiedermannová-Motyčková

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Did you know?

...that in 1990, Czech and Slovak politicians "fought" the Hyphen War, a political battle over whether "Czechoslovakia" should be spelled with a hyphen?
... that the Cross of Merit of the Minister of Defence of the Czech Republic is the highest award presented by the Czech Minister of Defence?
... that Jan Maroši scored directly from a corner for Sigma Olomouc in a 1992–93 UEFA Cup match against Juventus?
... that Czech Karel Robětín was not only an Olympian and national tennis champion but also an international paper industry tycoon?

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General images

The following are images from various Czech Republic-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Frgál, a type of koláč baked in Moravian Wallachia (from Czech cuisine)
Image 2Russian occupation in 1968 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 3Christmas cookies (vánoční cukroví) (from Czech cuisine)
Image 4Writer Božena Němcová (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 5Europe after the Congress of Vienna in 1815 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 6Kačina Castle in Chotkov (from Czech architecture)
Image 7Duchy of Bohemia, around 1029 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 8Territories ruled by Ottokar II of Bohemia in 1273 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 9Bronze sword, Urnfield culture, c. 1200 BC (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 10Great Moravia during the reign of Svatopluk I (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 11The coat of arms of the Kingdom of Bohemia (from Bohemia)
Image 12Lands of the Bohemian Crown (until 1635), map by Josef Pekař, 1921 (from Bohemia)
Image 13Emperor and King Charles IV. Luxembourg (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 14Beheading of 27 Bohemian nobles at the Old Town Square in Prague, 1621 (contemporary illustration) (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 15The coat of arms of the Přemyslid dynasty (until 1253–1262) (from Bohemia)
Image 16Václav Havel, playwright, dissident and president from 1989 to 2003 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 17House of the Black Madonna (from Czech architecture)
Image 18Iconic brutalist Transgas building, demolished in 2019 (from Czech architecture)
Image 19Grand Café Orient in Prague (from Czech architecture)
Image 20An 1892 map showing Bohemia proper outlined in pink, Moravia in yellow, and Austrian Silesia in orange (from Bohemia)
Image 21Fried cheese, served with tartar sauce and side salad (from Czech cuisine)
Image 22The National Theater from 1881 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 23A panorama of Zittau (from Bohemia)
Image 24Zelňačka (from Czech cuisine)
Image 25Apple strudel with raisins (from Czech cuisine)
Image 26Svíčková na smetaně served with dumplings, whipped cream and cranberries (from Czech cuisine)
Image 27The extent of the Protestant Reformation (1545–1620) (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 28Dacian Influence over Bohemia (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 29Tomas Garrigue Masaryk, philosopher, Czechoslovak president in the years 1918-1935 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 30Obložené chlebíčky, a type of snack or appetizer (from Czech cuisine)
Image 31Library of Clementinum, a former Jesuit College, built in 1722 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 32Cubist lamp by Emil Králíček, Jungmannovo náměstí, next to the Gothic Church of Our Lady of the Snows (Prague) (from Czech architecture)
Image 33The First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 34Copper engraving of the Second Defenestration of Prague from Theatrum Europaeum by Matthäus Merian. (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 35Bohemia (westernmost area) in Czechoslovakia 1918–1938 (from Bohemia)
Image 36Bohemian city Karlovy Vary (from Bohemia)
Image 37Monument to Master Jan Hus, a religious reformer and philosopher in Prague (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 38Bohemia as the heart of Europa regina; Sebastian Münster, Basel, 1570 (from Bohemia)
Image 39Emperor Francis Joseph I. (reigned 1848–1916) (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 40St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague Castle, John of Luxembourg laid the foundation stone in 1344 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 41Nakládaný hermelín (marinated cheese) (from Czech cuisine)
Image 42Svíčková na smetaně (Marinated tenderloin), served here with dumplings and cream (from Czech cuisine)
Image 43Adria Palace (Prague) (from Czech architecture)
Image 44A "traditional Bohemian platter" at a restaurant in central Prague, consisting of roast duck, roast pork, beer sausage, smoked meat, red and white cabbage, bread, bacon and potato dumplings (from Czech cuisine)
Image 45Stone sculpture of a Celtic man, found in Mšecké Žehrovice (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 46A panorama of Kłodzko, the capital city of Kłodzko Land, which is referred to as "Little Prague" (from Bohemia)
Image 47Detailed map of Bohemia, 1742 (from Bohemia)
Image 48Rotunda of St. George from the beginning of the 12th century on Mount Říp (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 49Territory under the control of the Přemyslids, c. 1301 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 50Semi-detached villa in Brno by Otto Eisler, according to MoMA's Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, is a defining building of the International style. (from Czech architecture)
Image 51Cubist architecture in Prague (from Czech architecture)
Image 52Entrance to Moravian Karst PLA (from Protected areas of the Czech Republic)
Image 53Vladislaus Hall at the Prague Castle, built from 1490 to 1502 by Benedikt Rejt (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 54Saint Wenceslas, Czech prince (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 55Linguistic map of interwar Czechoslovakia (c. 1930) (from Bohemia)
Image 56John Amos Comenius (1592-1670), Czech philosopher and school reformer (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 57The Kingdom of Bohemia in 1618 with other Bohemian Crown lands within the Holy Roman Empire (1618). (from Bohemia)
Image 58Venus of Dolní Věstonice, the oldest ceramic article in the world (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 59Baroque St. Nicholas Church in Malá Strana, built between 1704 and 1755 (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 60The radical Hussites became known as Taborites, after the town of Tábor that became their center (from Bohemia)
Image 61Czech kings Ottokar II, Wenceslas II and Wenceslas III from the Přemyslid dynasty (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 62King George of Podebrady, one of the first promoters of united Europe (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 63Fried bramboráky (potato pancakes) (from Czech cuisine)
Image 64Vepřo-knedlo-zelo (Roast pork with dumplings and sauerkraut) (from Czech cuisine)
Image 65Monument to the village of Lidice murdered by the Nazis (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 66Church of Saint Agnes of Bohemia (Spořilov) (from Czech architecture)
Image 67Hroby Nature Monument in Radenín (from Protected areas of the Czech Republic)
Image 68Prague-style beef goulash (from Czech cuisine)
Image 69Řežabinec a Řežabinecké tůně National Nature Reserve (from Protected areas of the Czech Republic)
Image 70Buděticko Nature Park with Rabí Castle (from Protected areas of the Czech Republic)
Image 71Empress Maria Theresa (reignet 1740–1780) (from History of the Czech lands)
Image 72Korozluky Castle (from Czech architecture)
Image 73Map of protected areas of the Czech Republic: national parks (grey) and protected landscape areas (green) (from Protected areas of the Czech Republic)
Image 74Pilsner Urquell in a branded mug (from Czech cuisine)

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Topics

Czech lands: Bohemia • Moravia • Czech Silesia

History: Únětice culture • Boii • Marcomanni • Samo • Great Moravia • Přemyslid dynasty • Lands of the Bohemian Crown • Czech lands (1526–1648) • 1648–1867 • 1867–1918) • Czechoslovakia • Czech Republic

Geography: Lakes • Protected areas • Regions • Rivers

Law: Judiciary • Law enforcement • Supreme Court of the Czech Republic

Politics: Administrative divisions • Government • Constitution • Elections • Foreign relations • Army • Parliament • Political parties • President • Prime Minister

Economy: Banks • Czech koruna • Energy • Oil and gas deposits • Stock Exchange • Tourism • Transport

Culture: Architecture • Art • Cinema • Cuisine • Demographics • Education • Language • Literature • Media • Music • Philosophy • Prostitution • Public holidays • Religion • Sport • Television • Video games

Symbols: Flag • Coat of arms • National anthem (Kde domov můj)

Lists: Outline of the Czech Republic • List of Czech Republic–related topics

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WikiProject Czech Republic

WikiProject Europe

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Featured and good content

	Featured articles		Dominik Hašek • Earth-grazing meteoroid of 13 October 1990 • Franz Kafka • Gustav Mahler • Bedřich Smetana • The Bartered Bride
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