History and nearby

Is located next to the Waldstein Hotel. The most representative space of the palace, which is facing the Prague Castle with its northern facade, is the Main Hall. Historical rooms of the palace are open to public on weekends and visiting them is free of charge. One can visit former representational spaces of the Waldstein family - Knights’ Hall, Antechamber, and Audience Hall. Parallel to the Main Hall and located in the opposite wing of the palace, there are two corridors: Mythological and Astrological (located one floor above). Both are richly decorated with frescos and stuccowork. Mythological corridor used to be connected with the ground floor where used to be a spacious riding school with almost 40 horses. Each horse had its portrait above the place where it was stabled. Today, there is a Meeting Hall in place of the stable.

The palace complex was built by Albrecht Waldstein in 1623 in place of Trčkovský Palace, 26 other houses, three big gardens, and a brick kiln. Famous Italian architects, builders, and artists were involved in its construction. The palace was looted by the Swedish army in 1648 and all of the valuables including bronze statues made by Adriana de Vriese (Emperor Rudolph II’s court sculptor) were taken away.

The palace belonged to the Waldstein family until 1945. Then it became owned by state that turned it into the seat of state institutions. It has been the seat of the Senate of the Czech Republic since 1996.

The Waldstein Palace was awarded for the quality of renovation that was finished in 2003 by Europa Nostra award.

You can visit one of many prague pubs around, to try local beer and cuisine or some good prague brewery.

Visitors coming to see the Waldstein Palace should not forget to see the beautiful Waldstein Garden with its sala terrena. Sala terrena is an open building with three large pillars. With its monumental height, it had no equal at the time it was built. One can also find a stalactite wall with an aviary with two pairs of eagle owls. There is a big building of a riding school in front of which there is a pool with the statue of Hercules.

Prague Castle is one of the most important cultural and historical places not only in Prague but also in the Czech Republic. There are many sites that have witnessed the long and rich history of the Czech lands. The most famous ones are: St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas and St. Adalbert Cathedral, Old Royal Palace, St.George’s Basilica, Golden Lane, Royal Summer Palace, etc. Origins of Prague Castle go back to the ninth century when it was started to be build by Premyslid Duke Bořivoj.

St.Nicholas Church is an important baroque building with a dome, bell tower, and a richly decorated interior. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart played the pipe organ here when he visited Prague.

There are many gardens located close to Waldstein Square. Palace gardens under the Castle include – Kolowrat garden, Big and Small Palffy Gardens, Ledeburg Garden, and Small Furstenberg Garden.
Gardens under the Prague Castle are a great place for relaxing. However, they are also used for various cultural and social events such as concerts, garden festivals, fashion shows, etc. Ledeburg Palace Gallery is used for displaying art.

The Charles Bridge is the oldest bridge in Prague and it connects Old Town and Lesser Town. Its foundation stone was laid by Charles IV in 1357. The bridge is 516 meters long and 9.5 meters wide. It was built from sandstone blocks under the supervision of architect Petr Parléř. The bridge is decorated by 30 statues and statuaries, most of which were created in the period of 1706 - 1714.