Prague — Capital of the Czech Republic

Prague (population 1.3 million) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic (Czechia), and one of Europe's best-preserved medieval cities. Located on the Vltava river, Prague served as the capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia and, in the 14th century under Emperor Charles IV, as the capital of the Holy Roman Empire — making it one of the most important cities in medieval Europe. Charles IV founded Charles University in 1348, the oldest university in Central Europe, and commissioned the Charles Bridge and St Vitus Cathedral.

Prague's Old Town Square contains the famous Astronomical Clock (Orloj), installed in 1410 and one of the oldest functioning astronomical clocks in the world. The city's Jewish Quarter (Josefov) contains six historic synagogues and the Old Jewish Cemetery — one of the oldest and most densely layered Jewish burial grounds in Europe.

Unlike Warsaw or Dresden, Prague was not heavily bombed during WWII, preserving its historic centre. The city experienced the Prague Spring of 1968 — Alexander Dubček's liberalisation experiment, crushed by Soviet tanks — and the Velvet Revolution of 1989, the peaceful transition from communist rule led by playwright and dissident Václav Havel, who became Czechoslovakia's last federal president and then the Czech Republic's first president. Prague Castle, overlooking the city, is the largest ancient castle complex in the world by area.