Karel IV. a Praha
Charles IV and Prague
How a 14th-century king who spoke five languages turned Prague into one of Europe's great cities: the New Town, Charles Bridge, the first university in Central Europe, and Karlštejn.
You will practice: Past-tense narration with aspect pairs (studoval, vrátil se, rozhodl se), the causative nechal postavit (had something built), and relative clauses with který across cases.
Words to know
Skim these before you read — they carry the story. Tap the star to add one to your saved words.
- postavafigure, character
- vlasthomeland
- králking
- císařemperor
- vládareign, government
- rozkvětflowering, boom
- vzdělanýeducated
- panovníkruler, monarch
- stavbaconstruction, building
- zvětšitto enlarge
- povodeňflood
- založenífounding, establishment
- pokladtreasure
- odkazlegacy; link
- náměstísquare
Did you get it?
4 quick questions — no grades, just a comprehension check.
1. What is Charles IV often called in Czechia?
2. Which bridge did Charles Bridge replace?
3. What happened in 1348?
4. What was Karlštejn Castle built for?
Too hard? Pick an easier text in the Czech reading library. Understanding most of a text without translations is the goal — struggling through is not.