National Memorial on Vítkov Hill — Attraction in Prague

The memorial complex in Vítkov was built in 1929-38 in honor of Czechoslovak legionaries. The modernist classicizing building was designed by Jan Zázvorka. During the occupation of 1939-1945, it served as a warehouse for military material. After 1945, it was misused to promote the regime (Gottwald's mausoleum), today you will find a museum of modern history with a multimedia exhibition called Crossroads of Czech and Czechoslovak Statehood. The equestrian statue of Jan Žižka is the work of Bohumil Kafka and was ceremoniously unveiled on July 14, 1950. The sculptural group of assembled bronze parts, cast separately in the foundry of V. Mašek in Karlín, is one of the largest equestrian statues in the world. It reaches over 9 meters in height, is about 5 meters wide and less than 10 meters long. The total weight is 16.2 tons. The hollow interior is accessible in the back of the horse through a mounting hole.

Areál památníku na Vítkově byl vystavěn v letech 1929-38 k poctě československých legionářů. Modernistickou klasicizující budovu navrhl Jan Zázvorka. V letech okupace 1939-1945 sloužila jako skladiště vojenského materiálu. Po roce 1945 byla zneužita k propagaci režimu (Gottwaldovo mauzoleum), dnes tu najdete muzeum moderních dějin s multimediální expozicí pojmenovanou Křižovatky české a československé státnosti. Jezdecká socha Jana Žižky je dílem Bohumila Kafky a byla slavnostně odhalena 14. července 1950. Sousoší ze smontovaných bronzových dílů, odlévaných zvlášť v karlínské slévárně V. Maška se řadí k největším jezdeckým sochám světa. Dosahuje přes 9 metrů výšky, je zhruba 5 metrů široké a necelých 10 metrů dlouhé. Celková hmotnost je 16,2 tun. Dutý vnitřek je dostupný v zadní části koně...

A tall hill with many paths surmounted by a great statue of the one eyed Hussite general Jan Zizka. The statue is in celebration of the Battle of Vitkov Hill, one of the Hussite victories against the forces of the Empire during the Hussite Wars. It is the third largest equestrian statue in the world. Behind the statue is a large monument that includes the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and a military museum.

The monument can be access on the south-eastern side of the large building behind the equestrian statue of Jan Zizka on Vitkov Hill. The interior is a mass of dark marble with museum exhibits, the tombs of the Unknown Soldier, chapels for the dead of WWI, and an underground section that was at one point being prepared to hold the body of the dictator Gottwald (this ultimately didn’t happen). The upper stories contain a large ceremonial hall and from here, a lift can be taken to go onto the roof and gaze out over the...

Vítkov hill is one of the best places to have an unlimited view of Prague. On the top there is the National Monument that is one of the most important buildings related to the development of Czechoslovak. The bronze equestrian statue is the third largest in the world, and represent Jan Žižka, who defeated catholic forces led by King Sigismund in 1420 in the Battle of Vítkov Hill. It was commissioned in 1931 from sculptor Bohumil Kafka, a professor at Prague's Academy of Visual Arts and it It took like ten years of work for its completions. Kafka made a plaster model of Žižka's statue in November 1941 and died shortly afterwards. The sculpture was cast at the end of World War II. It was unveiled on 14 July 1950, to mark the anniversary of the Battle of Vítkov. The sculpture is 9 metres high, 9.6 metres long, and weighs...