The Beginning: From the Slavs to the Premysl Dynasty

The oldest evidence of human existence around the Prague valley dates from 600,000 BC. Around 4000 BC, Germanic and Celtic tribes were the first lasting inhabitants that lived in the area, with the Celtic tribe naming the land Boii, hence the name Bohemia. During the 6th century two different Slav tribes settled on two different sides of the Vltava; the Czechs choose to build on the Hradcany side, or the current Castle District, while the Zlicani built their fortress at Vysehrad. The early history of Prague is also closely tied with the building of Prague Castle. This significant historical and cultural site was not always known by the name it bears today; Prince Borivoj, as the head seat of the Premysl Dynasty, founded it as the Slavonic Fortress Prague in the 9th century. Three centuries later it was rebuilt as a stone Romanesque castle, with the Church of Our Lady, the rotunda of Saint Vitus, the Basilica of Saint George and the Royal Palace. The Prague Castle reached its height of splendor during the reign of Charles IV and Wenceslas IV, after which it went through several transformations.