To those who only know Wenceslas from the popular Christmas carol, he is a kind-hearted king helping the poor. To the people of the Czech Republic, he is their patron saint and a national hero. “Good King Wenceslas looked out / On the Feast of Stephen / When the snow lay round about / Deep and crisp and even.” So begins the Christmas carol, first published in 1853 by English hymnwriter John Mason Neale, with the assistance of music editor Thomas Helmore. With a tune from the 13th century – unearthed in the Finnish song book Piae Cantiones, a collection of medieval songs published in 1582 – it tells of a king, Wenceslas, and his page who braved the winter weather to come to the aid of a poor peasant on the Feast of Stephen (better known now as Boxing Day). Was Wenceslas a king? The first thing to say about the real Wenceslas is that he was not actually a king, but Duke of Bohemia. The Holy Roman Emperor Otto I bestowed the more prestigious title on him posthumously, as well as being made patron saint of the Czech nation. But if the legends are to be believed, it can be...
137,000 new apartments worth almost 1.5 trillion CZK are currently being prepared in Prague. They could bring over 190 billion CZK to the state in VAT alone. In the long term, however, an average of only around 3,500 new apartments are permitted and built in Prague per year. The number of apartments under construction in the metropolis is continuously growing. Year-on-year, the number has increased by 8 thousand to 137 thousand. 60% of them are in Prague 9, 5, and 4. The largest number of apartments (24%) are planned for the long term in Prague 9, where there is land that is not currently in development. “Residential construction tends to be underestimated, yet its potential contribution to the economy is the largest of all segments of the construction industry. Slow permitting not only hinders the development of the entire country, but the state loses billions in taxes. He is profiting greatly from the new construction. Each new apartment in Prague brings the state an average of 1.5 million crowns in VAT alone,” points out the founder and head of Central Group Dušan Kunovský. Last year, a record number of more than 8,000 apartments in apartment buildings were approved in the Czech capital...
Winter is arriving across the Czech Republic as night temperatures are expected to plummet to -7C at night in parts of the country and sleet, frost and snow are forecast for some areas. During the upcoming weekend, the thermometers will vary from +1 to -3°C depending on the region, report the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute. According to the forecast, on Sunday, December 11, there will be snowfall all over the country with up to 20 centimeters in the eastern regions. Showers are forecast for northern and eastern parts of the country, with snow beginning to accumulate on hills in the north. The next week will be marked by the arrival of severe frosts. On Monday, December 12, the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute forecasts snowfall again across the whole country. Night temperatures will range from -3 to -7°C, while during the day the temperature will not exceed the freezing point. Over the next few days (until December 18), night temperatures will gradually fall to -15°C, while during the day temperatures will range from 0 to -5°C. “In the case of wet snow, there may be damages to trees and power lines and power outages. While traveling, it is recommended to follow traffic information...
Which habit do Europeans find the hardest to give up? With lifelong habits taking an iron will to give up, experts at ICE Headshop utilised online analytics tool SEMrush to analyse phrases for the most common habits to establish which Europeans were trying to conquer most. Furthermore, Helen Norbury, Lifecoach and wellbeing expert, offer their expertise on how to kick your bad habits to the curb. Of the 40 European countries analysed 28 find smoking to be their hardest habit to give up, with combined online searches of 850,440 each year from Europeans hoping to find tips on breaking their nicotine habit. The United Kingdom (166,440), Turkey (124,560) and Spain (122,040) were among the top searchers. Czech Republic’s hardest habit is also smoking, with 18,360 searches. Alcohol is the second hardest habit to give up and features in the top results for many European countries, but is the hardest habit to break for just seven. Combined online searches for quitting alcohol reach over 312,000 annually. Bulgaria (2,040), Italy (32,760) and Lithuania (3,120) among those who find alcohol the hardest to part with. Dan Currey, Director at ICEHeadshop.co.uk, commented on the findings: “Understanding your health and behavioural patterns is important when navigating personal habits and exploring how to...
A unique piece by Ludwig van Beethoven is finally set to be returned to the heirs of its original owners. The manuscript ended up in the archives of the Moravian Museum in Brno to protect it from being stolen by the Nazis, as the Petscheks, once the richest family in pre-World War II Czechoslovakia, fled the country to escape the Holocaust. The museum kept the autograph of the 4th movement of the string quartet in B-flat Major, op. 130 — a highly valued late quartet by the German composer — in its collections for more than 80 years. Now, a local restitution law on the property stolen by the Nazis is making the return possible. For the first time, the Moravian Museum curators have put the score on display for five days before it is set to be handed over to the Petschek family. “The item itself has a fascinating collecting story,” says curator Simona Sindlarova. “The whole story reflects the history of Central Europe in the last 200 years.” High-stakes lie to Nazis works, saves the manuscript Details about how the family, whose wealth came mainly from the mining industry and business in the banking sector, acquired the piece after...
Training of Ukrainian servicemen has begun in the Czech city of Libavá. The Armed Forces of the Czech Republic reported about this. For better interaction, Czech teachers were assigned translators. “The aim is for the Armed Forces of Ukraine to be able to independently conduct combat operations and effectively defend their territory and sovereignty. We do this for our protection as well,” the Czech military said. According to the proposal of the Czech government, five four-week training sessions must be held by the end of next year. Up to 800 Ukrainian servicemen can take part in each training. The training in Libavá was approved by Czech deputies last week. The Czech Senate also supported sending Czech military personnel to train Ukrainians in other EU countries. The Czech Republic will be able to send up to 55 military personnel to participate in the EU mission to train the Ukrainian military. The training is conducted on the basis of a bilateral agreement between the governments of the Czech Republic and Ukraine. In the future, according to the documents, they may transfer to the EU mission, which may reimburse the Czech Republic for part of the costs, estimated at 975 million Czech korunas (about $36...
UNESCO has decided to include in its representative list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity the Czech “timber rafting” tradition. The multinational application “Timber Rafting” was made by six countries – Austria, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Poland, Spain and Germany. The craft, dating back to the 14th century, involves the transport of wood by waterways from areas rich in woodland to those in which it is scarcer. Timber rafting had a long tradition in the Czech lands, ranking among highly respected and recognised, but also dangerous professions. According to most sources, the first historical mention of timber rafting on the Vltava River dates back as far as medieval times. At the time, the biggest source of timber, needed for the construction of houses, was in South and Southwest Bohemia, and the fastest way to deliver the logs to different destinations was the river. Rafting on the Vltava ended after the Second World War when a cascade system of dams was built on the river. The timber rafting tradition received a very positive assessment from experts, who said it demonstrates the close connection of man with nature and the rational use of natural resources, which is fully in line with the European course towards sustainable development....
France’s EDF, South Korea’s KHNP, and U.S.-Canadian group Westinghouse Electric have made initial bids to build a new unit at the Czech Republic’s Dukovany nuclear power plant, Czech utility CEZ said on Wednesday. The Czech Republic has been a strong backer of nuclear energy as a carbon-free power source for the future, unlike European Union neighbours Germany and Austria. Majority of state-owned CEZ, which launched the Dukovany expansion tender in March, said final bids would come in by the end of September 2023. “We expect the contracts to be finalized in 2024,” board member Tomas Pleskac said in a statement. The 1,200 megawatt-unit should be completed in 2036 and help the country replace current Soviet-designed units at Dukovany that will eventually be decommissioned. CEZ plans to build three more nuclear units – on top of the one now planned – at its Dukovany and Temelin nuclear sites, as the country diversifies away from coal. It is also planning to build smaller modular nuclear power plants. Nuclear made up 36% of Czech electricity output in 2021. Candidates from China and Russia were excluded on security grounds, in contrast to Hungary which has chosen Russia’s Rosatom for its nuclear project. Poland picked Westinghouse last month to...
Rohlik Group has promoted experienced eCommerce manager and Rohlik CZ CEO Olin Novák to the role of International CEO, with this now being his fourth position within the company. Olin Novák will now oversee the day-to-day running of the individual countries of the entire group. Founder and Rohlik Group CEO Tomáš Čupr will now focus more closely on the development of the group as a whole, including increasing efficiencies, along with specific group-wide projects. Rohlik.cz will be newly led by Martin Beháň as of today. As a first step towards making all markets more efficient, Tomáš Čupr centralised operations from all countries where Rohlik Group operates: “We have arrived at a management structure that allows me to focus on much more strategic and valuable issues for the entire Group. We are already one of the most innovative e-commerce companies in Europe, but all who know me know that I already have another milestone in mind.” On Olin Novak’s promotion, he adds: “Olin and I share the same vision of what food retailing of the future should look like, and over the past four years he has proven that he is a true leader made of the same...
The Czech Republic’s police have so far accused 49 people of accepting and supporting the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Czech police spokesman Ondrej Moravchik said. Criminal procedures are ongoing in 86 other cases. The police investigate around 300 cases related to Ukraine or Ukrainian refugees. Mr. Moravchik said that about a third of the cases are the so-called cases of approval and support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “86 cases concern the praise of aggression and other similar ways of accepting the murder of Ukrainian civilians,” Moravczik explained to the Czech public radio portal iROZHLAS.cz. The police triggered the investigation on the basis of two articles of Czech criminal law. The possibility of using the provisions to investigate cases of support for Russian aggression was proposed by Prosecutor General Igor Striz shortly after the start of the invasion of Ukraine. According to the General Prosecutor’s Office, any signs of support for Russia’s actions in the attacked country can be prosecuted under sections 365 and 405 of the Czech Republic’s Criminal Code, which sanction the approval of crime and denying, questioning, approving and justifying genocide. Under Czech law, such acts are criminalized and punishable by imprisonment of up to one to...
Czech pubs are turning to technology to reduce the cost of putting glasses of beer on the bar for thirsty locals. With Czechs among the biggest beer drinkers in the world, brewer Plzensky Prazdroj plans to install sensors which will collect data on beer flow, as well as tube and tap temperatures. This will be sent to a cloud database and analysed to make recommendations on improving a pub’s systems, said Jakub Zaoral who is leading the Asahi-owned brewery’s Smart Taproom project. Plzensky Prazdroj hopes that by making adjustments its pubs will save up to 30 per cent of the energy needed for cooling and tapping their beer, a goal made more pressing by rising energy costs. “We will ‘x-ray’ and observe 45 pubs using 1,200 sensors which gives us the exact numbers, how our tapping system consumes electric energy and we will relate this with the beer flow and its consumption in the pub,” said Zaoral. The system uses Internet of Drinks solutions by start-up firm Smart Technology, which uses ultrasound metering and provides information on the amount of beer tapped, sanitation intervals and the state of the cooling system. At Prague’s Katr pub, where the system is already...
The European Space Agency announced its new team of astronauts at the Grand Palais Éphémère in Paris on Wednesday – and among them is Czech fighter pilot Aleš Svoboda. Svoboda was the only successful candidate out of some 200 Czechs who had applied for the project. “For me, it was always a child’s dream,” Svoboda told Czech Television. “As a child, I used to go to the planetarium in Brno, always taking interest in space, aviation and space flights. For me, it is a logical continuation of what I do now.” The main team of the selected astronauts consists of two women and three men. Another 11 are in the reserve team. The training will start next year. Aleš earned a bachelor’s (in 2008) and a master’s (in 2011) degree from the University of Defence in Brno, where his studies focused on military technology. In 2010, he completed a master’s degree in the field of transport engineering from the University of Pardubice. In 2013, Aleš enrolled with the Air University of the United States Air Force in Alabama, USA, where he graduated from the International and Squadron Officer Schools. In 2011 Aleš started his doctorate with the Faculty of Military...
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