Prague 3 is the third Prague city district, lying east of the city centre. It consists of the Žižkov quarter and part of Královské Vinohrady.[1]
History of the area
The present-day territory of Žižkov formerly lay outside the boundaries of Prague and was only sparsely settled. A change came with the decision of Charles IV in 1358 to plant the slopes within a radius of three miles around Prague with vineyards. The owner of a plot had to establish a vineyard or allow others to establish one. The inhabitants of the so-called vineyard hills were subject to a special vineyard law. The vineyards were devastated several times by armies on the march, and their owners therefore preferred to turn them into fields and gardens.[1]
The surviving unified whole received the name Vinohrady in June 1849, and in 1867 Franz Joseph I permitted the use of the name Královské Vinohrady. A register from 1837 lists 66 houses and farmsteads in the village, in which 169 inhabitants lived. Most of the farmsteads disappeared and are recalled by the local names Hrabovka, Ohrada, Parukářka and Pražačka.[1]
Builders in the vicinity of the walls of Prague's fortress were discouraged by the military administration. In case of a wartime threat it insisted that buildings close to the walls be demolished. The defeat in the war with Prussia in 1866 led to Prague being declared an open city, and after negotiations the Prague municipality bought out the walls and began demolishing them in 1874. Most of the land along the walls was acquired by the railway, which prevented a continuous link between Prague and Žižkov.[1]
Žižkov as a town
On 16 July 1875 the Provincial Committee divided Královské Vinohrady into two parts, against the wishes of the municipal council; one of them is today's Žižkov and the other today's Královské Vinohrady. The authorities permitted the name Žižkov in August 1877, because the loyalist name Rudolfov, intended to honour the Austrian crown prince, had not caught on. Karel Hartig, the first mayor of Žižkov, saw to it that streets, squares and houses were given the names of famous Czechs, from Hus to Comenius. Franz Joseph I raised Žižkov to the status of a town on 15 May 1881; it was joined to Prague on 1 January 1922.[1]
Coat of arms and offer for the public
The author of the district's coat of arms and flag is the heraldist Milan Buben.[1] According to its website, the district offers an educational trail that presents selected localities on twenty information panels, along with their history, urban planning, changes in building development and notable figures. The key periods are the 19th and 20th centuries.[1]
The permanent exhibition Žižkov 1881–1922 was opened for the 140th anniversary of Žižkov becoming a town. It maps the area's history in that period and is translated into five languages. According to the district's website, it is open from Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Havlíčkovo náměstí 700/9, Prague 3.[1]