Prague Castle 10/08/2019

We just concluded our last touring day in Prague. We took a walking tour of the Prague Castle. Before I forget to mention it, we logged 21,700 steps in this effort. Our tour guide for today's tour was a young college student from Dallas, Texas. She has been over here for 18 months attending the University and earning extra income conducting English speaking tours around Prague. Her name is Julia and she is good at her job. She is entertaining and knowledgeable about the history of Prague and the Castle.
Prague Castle is the largest ancient castle in the world. It occupies and area of 750,000 square feet. It is 1870' in length and 430' wide. It is among the most visited tourist attraction in Prague. The first wall of the castle was erected in the year 870. There were many changes and improvements made over the next 600 years. Churches were built, fortifications were strengthened, the royal palace was built and rebuilt. During the Hussite wars and several decades afterwards, the castle was uninhabited.
I don't have the time or space to recount the entire history of the Prague Castle in this blog entry. Suffice to say, the events that occurred through the centuries would fill many diaries.
One story is told about the wife of King Wencecslas IV, son of King Charles. There was a priest in residence at the castle, John of Nepomuk. One of Brother John's duties was to hear the confessions of members of the royal court. It seems that the Queen was a frequent visitor to the Priest's private quarters. It is told she went there on many occasions to confess her sins. This regular attendance came to the attention of the King. He was suspicious. He did not think his wife was a sinful woman and suspected something else. When questioned by the King about his wife's confessions, Priest John refused to answer the King. The King was displeased. He had John executed by being thrown into the river from the Charles Bridge where he drowned. History has no records of her confessions. If ever you are on the Charles Bridge, there is a statue of John of Nepomuk, now known as Saint John Nepomuk. It is the 8th statue on the right, going from the Old Town toward the castle. It is marked by a shiny brass plaque. If you miss the statue, St John is entombed outside the church near the rear. The tomb is attached to the church wall.
Like I said, much has happened here. Adolf Hitler spent the night in 1939 when he was in Prague after the Nazis took over. It was used as the headquarters of Reinhard Heydrich, the Reich protector of Bohemia and Prague. After the Germans left, it housed the Soviet officials, until they left town. Since then it has housed the government of the Czech Republic.
I am going to close this for now. There won't be another entry regarding our activities on this trip, However I will post an epilogue after we get home and discuss what needs to be in it.
Gate 1 has a motto "more of the world for less". If you are thinking about traveling abroad,,,look at Gate 1.
Ciao...Linda and Jerry Hatfield, Amanda and Harry Kearley