Český Krumlov

One of my favorite parts of my study tour in the Czech Republic was our trip to the small town of Český Krumlov, in the south of Bohemia, just 15 miles from the Austrian border. Krumlov lies inside the region of Bohemia known as the Sudetenland, which has historically been the home to many German-speaking families. The Sudetenland is essential a crescent shaped area making op the northern, western, and southern borders of Bohemia with Germany and Austria. These are generally mountainous areas, and were renown for their fine craftwork, especially glass, textiles, paper, and toys. Germans first arrived in Czech Bohemia in the 1200’s, however many more arrived once it became part of the Holy Roman Empire, and then the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In fact, after the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), Bohemia was essentially a German-speaking country. The governing elite was ethnically German, and only the rural peasants spoke Czech. After WWI, when the Austro-Hungarian Empire was dissolved, many of the Germans in these regions wanted the Sudetenland to be part of Germany or Austria. Alas, the Allied forces decided at Versailles to keep Bohemia ‘intact’ and the Sudeten Germans became a minority within the newly established Republic of Czechoslovakia. Unfortunately, the Germans in the region were treated fairly poorly within the republic, and their hardships were exacerbated when the Great Depression hit and luxuries such as glass and toys were no longer exportable. These two factors combined to make the Sudeten Germans very poor and very angry. When Hitler announced that he would be the ally of all Germans in the Sudetenland, and the rest of the Eastern Europe, he was welcomed with open arms. After the Munich Agreement of 1938, as Nazi troops marched into the Sudetenland, they were welcomed with public glee and exaltation. The Sudetenland was the most nazified region of the Third Reich, and Hitler even made a trip to Český Krumlov, where he was most welcome. After the end of the war, however, the Czech people were tired of dealing with Germans, and therefore almost all Germans were exiled from the country. Some of them were driven forcibly from their homes by their friends and neighbors. The rest had their property seized by the state, and were given deadline by which they had to leave the country. What is most incredible is that the Allied Powers who encouraged the transfer of Germans could find no objective criteria to define who is German and who is Czech, so they resorted to using Hitler’s own racial criteria and definitions.

We heard from a Czech woman who grew up in Krumlov, and the talked to us about the town’s history. She felt very conflicted about the German issue. She admitted that she personally felt an inherent aversion to Germans and the German language, but at the same time, she felt very guilty that they were driven from their homes. At the same time, she talked to us about how she was fearful that Germans would return to the Sudetenland to re-claim their homes, even though they have no legal claim to them anymore. She told us that many of the German tourists in Krumlov visit their family homes, talk about how they want them back, and about how someday the Sudetenland will be German again. At the same time, within Germany itself, most of the refugees who fled their homes felt like outsiders once they arrived. They were considered racially German, but they were not culturally the same, they were distinct Sudeten Germans. However, because of the guilt they feel for having supported the Nazis, many of them didn’t feel comfortable talking about how they were wronged. Most people don’t even know about the German transfers, for this very reason; we don’t know how we understand it. Were the Sudeten Germans really hate-filled supporters of Nazism, or were they just deceived and disillusioned with their treatment by Czechoslovakia? Did they deserve to be driven from their homes, where there families had lived for hundred of years? Is being a German really incompatible with being a citizen of the Czech Republic? How should Germans today feel about what happened over sixty year ago? Are they still responsible for what their grandparents may have done during the war? Dealing with these questions is one of the reasons I really liked Český Krumlov, and also the reason I am traveling back to German-speaking lands in a few weeks. I plan on spending 3 days in Germany, 2 days in Austria, and 3 days in Switzerland and Lichtenstein. German speaking peoples have a unique character that somehow appeals to me, so I am hoping to learn more about it while I am there.

A photograph of Hitler's visit to Krumlov. We were shocked to discover that our hotel sits 20 feet from where this photo was taken

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The town of Český Krumlov, it is an incredibly well preserved Renaissance town. As you can see in the map above, the heart of the city is essentially an island surrounded by a great bend in the Vltava River. On a cliff to one side of the river sits a huge castle, once the home to various German aristocratic families. The inner courtyards of the castle are covered in frescoes and murals, all wonderfully restored, from the Renaissance. The families of the castle were interested in alchemy and other esoteric traditions, so the walls are covered in obscure symbols and other mysterious motifs. Additionally, it is said that there is still a ghost who returns to the castle periodically to warn the residents of Krumlov of bad news or other omens. Here are some photos of the castle, outside and in, by night and day.

Another landmark of Krumlov is St. Vitus church, first built in the 14^th century. The interior is beautifully decorated with painting, statues, and other decorative features.

Finally, the rest of the town is very quaint. It only takes fifteen minutes to walk all around the old-town, but it is wonderful, and surrounded by the river on every side. I really wish we had more time in Krumlov, it had a very appealing character. The residents were friendly, and the city is saturated with museums and art. There are also several nice restaurants, as well as some great shops. As small as it is, I still feel we didn’t quite do it justice.

Art Nouveau in Prague

I have already mentioned the diversity of architectural styles in Prague. One of the most unusual styles you find, as well as one of my favorites, is Art Nouveau. As an artistic movement, Art Nouveau was born during the last decade of the 19th century, and lasted a surprisingly short time, only about twenty or so years. It is considered a reaction to the academic art of the era, when neo-classical and neo-renaissance styles were prominent. It is also strongly associated with the revival of folk art and traditions from this era. Architecturally, it looks very distinct. Art Nouveau incorporates curved, organic lines and shapes, it includes frescoes and mosaics, and it also uses wrought iron, bronze, and even stained glass. The effect is very interesting and difficult to describe in words. It is very beautiful, and it seems to speak to something deeper than the intellect, something more natural or even spiritual. It offers a wonderful contrast to the seemingly ostentatious and sterile facades of the other buildings one sees. As much as I appreciate the gothic and baroque, I have become very fond of Art Nouveau.

While in Prague, we were able to see quite a few Art Nouveau buildings. The best known of these is the Prague Municipal House, designed by Osvald Polívka and Antonín Balšánek.

The Municipal House has a concert hall where we heard a sampling of European and Czech Classical Music, the latter being the works of Antonín Dvořák, and Bedřich Smetana. The hall was also decorated in Art Nouveau Style.

Several Czech Hotels were build Art Nouveau, such as he Grand Hotel Europa, where we had goulash for lunch one day, as well as the Hotel Central.

The Moravian artist Alfons Mucha was a painter and decorative artist who was instrumental in the development of Art Nouveau style, especially in the fields of painting, drawing, and jewelry design. He designed this stained-glass window for St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague Castle.

He also created this advertisement for a production of Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet.

Here are some photos of other Art Nouveau buildings from around Prague.

First Impressions of Prague: Beautiful Buildings

Everyone I know who has visited Prague has told me that it is one of the most beautiful cities they have ever seen. But having traveled for the last six months, I know from experience that most every European city of considerable size, as well as many smaller ones, have their own fair-share of beautiful buildings. However, there is something that immediately strikes the visitor as different about Prague. It is not the simply the beauty of the buildings, nor even their quantity, which is considerable. It is their diversity. My first impressions of Prague’s main squares are ones where Gothic cathedrals, Rococo town halls and Art Nouveau cafes sit side by side, in a sort of cacophonous harmony, which somehow and unexpectedly works for the city of Prague. Because every building is so different from the next, each contrast helps to tell a story about the history of Prague, and the changes it has seen over the centuries. Thus far I have taken only a cursory walk of the city, and have seen only some of its main attractions, but the difference between Prague and the rest of Europe is fairly evident, in this respect. I have also explored the far side of the Vltava River, and seen Prague Castle. Here are some photos of my first two days in Prague, with descriptions. I will be posting more thematically and specifically in the next few days.

Prague's Art Nouveau Municipal House was built in 1911, about which I will post more later.

Charles Bridge, across the River Vltava

On Old Town Square you can see a Gothic Church, a Baroque Church, and the Rococo balcony from where Klement Gottwald declared Czechoslovakia a communist state in 1948.

This is one of my favorite buildings in Prague, though we never found out what it is

A view of the city from across the river

A view of Prague Castle

More of the castle

And finally, St. Vitus Cathedral, at Prague Castle