Modern History of the Czech Lands Walking Tour with Private Guide - S7

Modern history reflected in the capital...

During this tour you will become familiar with the turbulent history of this country in the 20th century. We are going to visit those places in Prague that witnessed the crucial events of Czech modern history, such as the occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1938, the assassination of R. Heydrich in 1942 (the crypt where the brave men who assassinated him laid down their lives), the communist coup in 1948, the Prague spring in 1968 (five months later two students burnt themselves alive as a protest against the Russian invasion and the apathy of Czech people, which followed this shocking experience) and finally the Velvet Revolution in 1989, which brought freedom back to our country. The most important figure of the Velvet Revolution was certainly Václav Havel, future President of Czechoslovakia. The guide will share with you his / her personal experience of the twists and turns of Czech modern history and will do so not only when walking the streets of Prague with you, but also over a cup of good tea or coffee. This break is definitely part of the tour and the guide´s own account of historical events might help you to understand better specific details of Czech history and different ways of looking at it.

 THE CRYPT OF SS. CYRIL AND METHODIUS CATHEDRAL

In June, 1942 this crypt became the last hideaway for the members of resistance who assassinated Nazi leader Reinhard Heydrich. We will share their entire touching story that began during the war in London and the result of which was the most successful assassination of a representative of the Third Reich during WWII. The story ended in the crypt of this church, surrounded by the gestapo. In 2016, the event became the subject of a successful American movie Anthropoid, with Cillian Murphy and Jamie Dornan in leading roles.

NATIONAL MEMORIAL AT VÍTKOV

... is a Functionalist building from 1920-30. The biggest equestrian statue in the world is situated in front of the monument. Inspired by the Lenin mausoleum in Moscow, communist leaders turned the monument into the mausoleum of  Klement Gottwald, the first communist party leader and prime minister. Technical equipment of the mausoleum – the cooling box, the coffin elevator – has been preserved and illustrates the bizarre and absurd character of the communist era. However, the Memorial is nowadays part of the National Museum and houses a permanent exhibition displaying the turning points of our modern history. Some of the exhibited objects have great emotional appeal – e.g. the personal belongings of Jan Palach. During this tour we will also climb up the vista, popular point of Prague photographers, so you could enjoy unusual views of the city.

3-4 ½ hours according to your choice of sights

The listed rate is a price per HOUR OF GUIDE SERVICE FOR THE GIVEN NUMBER OF PERSONS. Yours will be a private tour, so these would only be the number of people you travel with and for whom you order. We most often structure Prague tours into ½ day blocks (3-4 hours each). To get your expected total tour price, multiply the hourly rate by the number of hours. You will then pay for the actual number of hours guided during your tour.

In the following form, we will be also asking you about:

• Which of the above sights highlighted with a mark would you like to visit inside, beyond the scope of the basic walking tour? You will be asked to pay for entries to the sights directly on spot to their respective box offices.
• Which length of tour would you prefer from the above mentioned scope.