Emperor Charles IV elected Greatest Czech of all time
Charles IV, the 14th-century Holy Roman emperor and King of Bohemia has been making headlines lately. Just days after the news was released about the discovery of his original burial chamber at Prague Castle, Charles IV was elected the Greatest Czech of all time.
Charles IV, who was born in 1316 in Prague and died here in 1378, was the son of John of Luxembourg and Eliska, the last member of the Bohemian Premyslid dynasty that founded the medieval Kingdom of Bohemia.
The legacy of Charles IV is very tangible in this country. As the monarch's champion in the TV show, architect David Vavra, said "Wherever you look, you can see his footsteps". A pious man and skilled diplomat, Charles IV made Prague the capital of his empire and brought the Czech lands to unprecedented prosperity. During his reign Prague was greatly enlarged, churches and castles were built around Bohemia as well as a stone bridge in Prague which has survived floods and wars. A generous sponsor of learning and the arts, Charles IV founded the first University in central Europe which to this day bears his name. Prague's St. Vitus Cathedral, which dominates the city's skyline, was also founded by him and became his final resting place in 1378.
Of all the countries where the poll has taken place so far, Czechs went the furthest back in history. For example the British public voted Sir Winston Churchill the Greatest Briton of all time, Germany chose its first post-war chancellor Konrad Adenauer and French voters elected General Charles de Gaulle.
