Hradčany Square and the Castle Gates

You are at the gates of Prague Castle, the largest ancient castle complex in the world according to Guinness World Records: some 70,000 square metres of palaces, churches, courtyards and gardens. The Přemyslid princes founded it in the late 9th century, and it has been the seat of Czech power ever since: dukes, kings, emperors and, from 1918, presidents of the republic.

1A square for the nobility

Anyone who wanted to be close to the king built a palace here. The most eye-catching is the 16th-century Schwarzenberg Palace, covered in sgraffito that imitates cut stone blocks. Facing the castle stands the Archbishop's Palace, with its white and gold Rococo facade, home of the archbishops of Prague since the 16th century.

2Giants at the gate

The entrance gate is guarded by the Battling Giants, 18th-century sculptures by Ignác František Platzer; those you see today are copies. At the back of the first courtyard rises the Matthias Gate of 1614, one of Prague's earliest Baroque works. The Castle Guard changes in front of this gate, and their blue uniform was designed in 1990 by Theodor Pištěk, the costume designer who won an Oscar for «Amadeus».

The Thirty Years' War also started up here: on 23 May 1618, Protestant rebels threw two imperial governors and their secretary out of a window of the Royal Palace. All three survived the fall.

3What to look for

• The giants stabbing and clubbing their foes atop the gate pillars.
• The sgraffito on the Schwarzenberg Palace, which looks three-dimensional but is flat.
• The viewpoint at the corner of the square, with Malá Strana's red roofs at your feet.