Royal Way
From Prague-wiki
The “Royal Way” or “Royal Route” is an established name for a route going through the historical centre of Prague. It used to be a way, connecting the former Royal Court with the Prague Castle. Czech kings went this way in a procession to their coronation in the Saint Vitus Cathedral at the Prague Castle, as well as did couriers from foreign countries.
Although we would not find the Royal Route on the map of Prague, Prague citizens as well as many visitors are well aware of this term that refers to probably the most beautiful sightseeing route in the city; for many, it represents the true symbol of old Prague.
Crowded coronation processions left from the open space in the place of today’s Republic Square, where the city residence of the monarch called Royal Court used to stand, then they proceeded through Celetná Street to Old Town and the Little Square and then through Karlova Street to Křižovnické Square and via the Charles Bridge to the other side of the river, going through Mostecká Street, Lesser Town Square, then through Nerudova Street and Úvoz up to Pohořelec, where they took a sharp turn right close to the Strahov Monastery; the road from Nerudova Street leading directly to the Castle wasn´t cut out in the stone until the 17th century. From Pohořelec the procession continued through Loretto Square through Loretánská Street and Hradčany Square to the Cathedral, where the actual coronation ceremony took place. This ceremonial ride through Prague was an expression of the relationship between the kingdom capital and the monarch and also a symbol of the importance of Prague as a natural centre of Bohemia; in return, residents of the streets and squares situated along the Royal Route paid attention to the procession and richly decorated their houses and palaces for this occasion, thus expressing their loyalty to the new king. Today the Royal Route is the most frequent route followed by tourists; usually, however, they take it from the opposite direction, that is from Pohořelec through the Castle and Charles Bridge to the Republic Square.
The whole Royal Way is lined with important historical houses and palaces, mostly originally Gothic or Romanesque and rebuilt in Renaissance and Baroque styles. Almost all of them are registered as a protected real estate. The name “Royal Way” is not historical, it was established as late as in 1955, during the reconstruction of buildings along it.
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[edit] History
Since the first coronation of a Czech king in 1086 to the last one in 1836, 26 Czech kings and 28 Czech queens were crowned and blessed with holy oil during a ceremonial mass in the Saint Vitus Cathedral. The very first coronation of a king in Prague took place on 15th June 1086, when Vratislaus I, until then known as the Czech Prince Vratislaus II, sat on the royal throne. A more continuous series of coronations of Czech kings began only in the 13th century, which is also when the origins of the Czech coronation ceremony can be found.
The coronations were attended by the clergy (most importantly the Prague bishop and later the archbishop), the presence of key members of the provincial nobility and important guests from the neighbouring countries was essential. According to a detailed protocol, which was written up by Charles IV, based on older customs, for himself and all his successors, on the eve of the coronation the future king and his entourage travelled from the Castle to Vyšehrad only to come back after prayers and attend evening service at the Saint Vitus Cathedral; the king-to-be would manage to symbolically link the imperial and Přemyslid tradition in this way and calm down the existing rivalry between the king and the nobility, which hindered the development of the country. In a beautiful procession revelling in gold and festive red, the figure of the future king stood out rather strangely: he was dressed in simple clothes to make sure that not even the poorest people would forget that the majesty of the Czech king had its origins with Přemysl the Ploughman, a prince of peasant birth. The coronation itself took place on the following day in the Church of Saint Vitus; it was followed by departure of the new king to the Prague Old Town for a rich feast. The pre-coronation journey to Vyšehrad and back was abandoned in the years to come, especially after the Hussite wars, which significantly impaired the glory of the old royal residence.
The journey of the coronation processions of Charles’ successors only started to follow the contemporary route in the middle of the 15th century; the first person to take the current Royal Route for coronation was the successor and son-in-law of Charles’ son Sigismund of Luxembourg, Albert II of Habsburg in 1438. After him, his three successors had followed, of whom the most famous one was George of Poděbrady, who in 1458 arranged to be appointed the king directly at the Old Town Hall. In the subsequent centuries, nearly all monarchs of the Czech lands rode through the Royal Route; it has not lost its symbolic meaning even after Vladislaus II of Jagiello resorted back to safety behind the walls of the Prague Castle and the rulers of Habsburg dynasty – with the exception of Rudolph II – resettled from Prague to Vienna. The Royal Route, via the New and the Old Town to Vltava River and up to the Castle, was still taken by the court during its short or long-term stays in the kingdom capital and also by foreign delegations and other important visitors who entered Prague this way.
[edit] Former Royal Court
The Royal Way starts at the Powder Tower, which was a gateway to the Old Town in the past. It wasn´t a part of the fortification, it was founded just to embellish the Royal Court, which was situated next to it.
King Wenceslas IV. founded the Royal Court at the place of the present Municipal House in the 14th century. He lived there since 1383. The Royal Court was later a residence of Emperor Sigismund, King Albert II., King Ladislas the Posthumous and King George of Podebrady. The last king living there was Vladislaus Jagiello, who moved back to the Prague Castle in 1483. The Royal Court became an archiepiscopal seminary then. It was finally demolished in 1915.
[edit] Royal Way in the Old Town
The beautiful Gothic Powder Tower leads to the Celetná Lane, one of the oldest streets in Prague. There are many splendid houses and palaces and also the important Cubist house “At the Black Madonna”.
The Royal Way continues along the left side of the Old Town Square. It is the most important historical square in Prague and there is the Old Town Hall with the famous Astronomical Clock. The kings then went through the Little Square, with its Baroque and Classicist houses, to the Karlova Lane. You can see there for example the richly decorated Colloredo–Mansfeld Palace or the House “At the Golden Well” with stucco reliefs on the facade.
[edit] Royal Way in the Lesser Town
The coronation parades continued through the Křižovnické Square and the Old Town Bridge Tower to the Charles Bridge, the oldest bridge in Prague, decorated with statues of saints. Through the Lesser Town Bridge Tower it leads to the Mostecká Lane on the other side of the river, which was the most important street in the Lesser Town since the Middle Ages. It is lined with noble buildings from the feudal era. The Royal Way goes to the Lesser Town Square with the monumental Church of Saint Nicholas and continues up the Nerudova Street.
Nerudova is probably the most beautiful street in Prague, with picturesque houses adorned with colourful house symbols. The present way from the Nerudova Street to the Prague Castle didn´t exist in the middle ages, it is from the 17th century. That is why the coronation parades continued to Pohořelec and thence along the Loretánská Street to the Prague Castle. The coronations took place in the Saint Vitus Cathedral.
