David Kolouch
The CzechRepublic
Introduction
TheCzechRepublic is sometimes nicknamed as the hearth of Europe.This nickname is derived from its position in the centre of Europe.
Our country has played an important role in history of Europe; it is a country with interesting history, both historical and modern towns and beautiful countryside and with unpolluted nature. I am proud to be a Czech because the CzechRepublic is my homeland and we are a nation with many famous scientists, poets, music composers, politicians and many important persons of daily life.
Geography
- As I said above, the CzechRepublic is situated in the centre of Europe.
- it is relatively small country but not the smallest in Europe,
- the CzechRepublic is of same size as Austria
- it has a population of 10 million people
- the majority of population are Czech people
- minorities living in the CzechRepublic are for example Slovaks, Romas
- it has a mild continental climate
- the country is divided into 3 parts: Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia
- it borders on Poland in the North, on Germany in the West, on Austria in the South and on Slovakia in the East
Landscape
-borders are formed by the mountain ranges
- the Ore mountains
- the Giant mountains
- the Eagle mountains
- the Beskydy
- the Šumava
- the Jeseníky
- the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands is situated in the central parts of the CzechRepublic.
- another important area is a lowland area near the river Elbe.
Rivers
- the Elbe
- the Vltava – the longest one
There are many natural beauties in the CzechRepublic, such as caves and abbeys (the deepest one is Macocha). Beautiful localities are the Czech Paradise, the Czech Switzerland, lakes and ponds in the South of Bohemia.
Natural resources
Raw materials
- we have deposits of black and brown coal; coal basins are near Ostrava and in the North of Bohemia
- there are small deposits of uranium, oil and gas, and clay
- we need to import oil and gas from Russia, food, iron ore and precious ores
Economy
Industry
- In former times we had quite good heavy industry
- Now we have textile industry, we produce jewelry in Jablonec and Liberec
- Czech glass and beer are renowned in the whole world
Agriculture
- we are producers of hop, potatoes (in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands), fruits and vegetables (in the lowland near the Elbe where is very arable soil, it is called the orchard of the CzechRepublic)
- we produce grapes in Moravia, wheat, and corn
- cattle, pigs and some sheep are bred in the CzechRepublic
- there are carps in the ponds in the South of Bohemia
Services
- tourism, especially in the cities, it is also connected with spas
Political system
- the head of country is the president Václav Klaus
- the legislative branch
- is represented by the Parliament
- 2 chambers
- House of Deputies
- the Senate
There are 2 main parties: it’s Social Democratic party and Civic Democratic party
- the executive branch
- is represented by the Cabinet
- the head of Cabinet is the Prime Minister – he is Jiří Paroubek
- the judiciary branch
- is represented by the Highest Court and subsidiary courts
- Constitutional Court
- the national anthem is “Kde domov můj” by František Škroup. This song is a part of his play Fidlovačka”
- the flag consists of 3 fields, blue (justice), white (peace), and red (blood)
- the official language is Czech
History
- Slavonic tribes came to our territory in the 5th century
- the first state was Sámo’s Empire which was founded in 623
- in the 9th century Great Moravian Empire was founded
- after it disintegrated, state activities were concentrated in the Czech Lands and Přemyslid dynasty reigned there
- Czech princes and kings played an important role in the history of Europe
- after the Premyslid dynasty died out by the sword Luxembourg dynasty ruled there
- at that time the most important king was Charles IV who became the Holy Roman Emperor and also the Czech Kingdom became the centre of the empire
- Charles IV founded many towns, he made Prague the centre of education because he founded CharlesUniversity in 1348 which was the oldest one in Central Europe.
Charles IV also founded the New Town of Prague and many castles, such as Karlštejn.
- Jan Hus was the most important and influential person of the 15th century.
- He was a rector of CharlesUniversity, he wanted to reform the Church, he was tried by the Church council in Constance and burnt at the stake as a heretic. His death caused many wars in later times
- After Hussite wars King Jiří of Poděbrady, he was a diplomat and he is known for his appeal to other kings to make a treaty securing peace,
- after him Jagellon dynasty and then in the 16th century Habsbourg dynasty reigned there.
- as to the Habsbourg dynasty, the most important king was Rudolph II who was a patron of arts. He moved his seat to Prague and at the time of his reign Prague became the centre of arts and science
- another important date is the year 1620 – the Battle on the White Mountain. Following 300 yearswere full of political oppression to eradicate Czech statehood and national life.
the most important events in the 20th century were:
- the end of World War I in 1918 and the new CzechoslovakRepublic was established
- our nation was occupied by Nazis during World War II from 1939 to 1945
- after that the CzechoslovakRepublic was reestablished but communists ruled here till 1989 when the Velvet Revolution occurred
In 1993 the CzechoslovakRepublic divided into two new states, the Czech and the SlovakRepublic.
Culture
We can be proud of many Czech music composers. The best known is probably Antonín Dvořák, who lived in the USA for many years. Other composers are Leoš Janáček who wrote The Cunning Little Vixen, or Bedřich Smetana who wrote many operas, such as The Bartered Bride, Libuše, and others. Many of them are performed in the most renowned opera houses on a regular basis.
We had also many important scientists, for example Jaroslav Heyrovský who was awarded Nobel Prize for the invention of polarography, then many sportsmen, such as Emil Zátopek, an athlete who won the Olympic Games.
Nowadays, there are many successful sportsmen, hockey and tennis players representing the CzechRepublic abroad.
1