The Czech Republic

1) Capital, geography, history, economy, industry, government, religion
2) Stereotypes about Czechs, famous people, national habits (foods, sports, celebrations)
3) Interesting parts
4) International meaning of CZ for the world


The Czech Republic is an inland state, which is situated in the Central Europe. Our republic has four neighbours. In the north it borders on Poland and in the south on Austria, in the east on Slovakia and the longest on Germany in the west. Our country has three parts: Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia.
    Our country’s borders are natural. They are formed by Mountain ranges. The border is lined by the Šumava Mountains in the South-west, the Ore in the north-west, the Luž Mountains, the Jizera Mountains, the Giant Mountains and the Eagle Mountains /orlické hory/ in the North and the Hrubý Jeseník and the Moravian-Silesian Beskids in the North-East. The highest mountain is Sněžka in Giant mountains, which is 1 602 meters high.
    The longest rivers are the Vltava, the Elbe and the Morava. Our largest pond /rybník/ is Rožmberk and is situated in the South Bohemia. Bohemia and Moravia are quite rich in mineral springs and spas - Karlovy Vary, Mariánské Lázně, Františkovy Lázně, Poděbrady, Jeseník, etc.
The Czech Republic has a population of about 10.4 million. The major nationalities living here are the Czechs and the Moravians, but there are minority groups such as the Silesians, the Slovaks, the Vietnamese, the Poles, the Germans and the Russians. The capital city is Prague with population about 1.2 million people. Prague is the largest city and a commercial and cultural centre of the Czech Republic. Prague is the seat of our government and President. The present President is Václav Klaus. President is elected for a five-year term, and may not serve more than two successive terms. The Czech republic parliament consists of two chambers: the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
The Czech Republic excels in the production of black coal, especially from regions of Ostrava, Karviná and Kladno, and brown coal from region of Sokolov. Uranium deposits and smaller deposits of mercury /rtuť/, antimony and tin /cín/ are located in the Ore Mountains. There are also small amounts of lead and zinc ore in central Bohemia, and iron ore near Prague.
The most important part of our economy is engineering /strojírenství/ like machines, motorcars, locomotives, tractors, trams and so one. The metallurgical and chemical industries are also very important and the textile and glass industries have got a long tradition here. The main trading partners are Germany, Slovakia, Russia, Austria, Poland, Italy or France.
The currency valid here is 1 crown, which has 100 hellers.
The main agricultural products are wheat /pšenice/, maize /kukuřice/, sugar-beet /cukrovka/, grapes /hr. Víno/, hops /chmel/ and fruit. The CR is also known for its cattle /dobytek/ and pig breeding /chov/ and the fish breeding, especially carp-breeding, has got a long tradition here.

    In the Czech Republic there are many interesting places. The Czech Republic has four national parks. On the north are Bohemian Switzerland and Krkonoše and in the south are Šumava and Podyjí, or you can visit some castles as Karlštejn near Prague or Hluboká, Loket and Lednice. The well-known Český Ráj is a region of sandstone rock formations. Moravská brána with the hilly landscape is rich in historical towns, castles and sights. A lot of tourists are attracted by our famous spas like Lázně Kynžvart, Františkovy Lázně,Mariánské Lázně or Karlovy Vary.

Now I would like to tell you something about our history. The country was settled by the Slavs in the 5th century. In the 9th century they founded the first state formation - the Great Moravian Empire.
    One of the best and most important rulers was Charles IV. who ruled in the 14th century. During his reign the Prague University. New Town and Charles Bridge were built.
    In the 15th century here was the Hussite movement led by the reformation teaching of Master John Huss, who was burnt to death on 6.7. 1415.
    The beginning of the 17th century was marked by the Thirty Years’ War. After the Battle of the White Mountain in 1620, the country was germanised.
    At the end of the World War I the Austrian-Hungarian Empire fell and on the 28th October 1918 the independent Czechoslovak Republic was proclaimed with T. G. Masaryk as the first president.
    From 1939 to 1945 Czechoslovakia was occupied by the Germans. On 8.5. 1945 Czechoslovakia was liberated by the Red and US Armies.
    From February 1948 after the Communist Party seized the power the socialist era began. Lots of people emigrated, were imprisoned and even executed.
    In November 1989 the people threw out the communists. Now the country is trying to follow democratic principles, which is not always easy. The country still suffers from a lack /nedostatek/ of political and moral culture.
    On January the 1st, 1993, Czechoslovakia split into two countries - the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.