Malá Strana, one of the most historic neighbourhoods in Prague
Malá Strana (Czech for "Little Side (of the River)" is a district of the city of Prague, Czech Republic, and one of its most historic neighbourhoods.
In the Middle Ages, it was a dominant center of the ethnic German (and since 16th century also Italian) citizens of Prague. It also housed many noble palaces while the right-bank towns were comparatively more bourgeois and more Bohemian Czech.
Malá Strana was founded by the King Ottokar II of Bohemia in 1257.As a royal town (a town founded by the king) it got many privileges. It was created by amalgamating a number of settlements beneath the Prague Castle into a single administrative unit. The original residents were expelled and mostly German craftsmen and merchants were invited by the king. Even though the city was royal, the king did not master the city as a whole.
In 1419-1420 the Lesser Town was burnt down by Hussites. In 1541 the town was strongly damaged again by a fire which killed fifty people. After this fire the town was rebuilt in the Renaissance style and many palaces of nobility were built there.
Baroque architecture predominates in Malá Strana, but the history of the district dates back to far before the Baroque era. Baroque architecture eventually dominated when the style was implanted on Malá Strana after the destructive fires in 1541.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mal%C3%A1_Strana
Malá Strana, one of the most historic neighbourhoods in Prague
Malá Strana (Czech for "Little Side (of the River)" is a district of the city of Prague, Czech Republic, and one of its most historic neighbourhoods.
In the Middle Ages, it was a dominant center of the ethnic German (and since 16th century also Italian) citizens of Prague. It also housed many noble palaces while the right-bank towns were comparatively more bourgeois and more Bohemian Czech.
Malá Strana was founded by the King Ottokar II of Bohemia in 1257.As a royal town (a town founded by the king) it got many privileges. It was created by amalgamating a number of settlements beneath the Prague Castle into a single administrative unit. The original residents were expelled and mostly German craftsmen and merchants were invited by the king. Even though the city was royal, the king did not master the city as a whole.
In 1419-1420 the Lesser Town was burnt down by Hussites. In 1541 the town was strongly damaged again by a fire which killed fifty people. After this fire the town was rebuilt in the Renaissance style and many palaces of nobility were built there.
Baroque architecture predominates in Malá Strana, but the history of the district dates back to far before the Baroque era. Baroque architecture eventually dominated when the style was implanted on Malá Strana after the destructive fires in 1541.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mal%C3%A1_Strana