Prague's Little Quarter

While there are many relics of the medieval ages that have been destroyed over time, some still remain.  One of the most well-preserved corners of the medieval world is the city of Prague in the Czech Republic.  Because there is so much that can be looked at in the city regarding the medieval, we'll focus specifically on one section of the city: The Little Quarter, also known as Malá Strana or Lesser Town.

The Little Quarter was built in the eight hundreds, and officially established as the Little Quarter in the mid twelfth century.  It sits right on the bank of the Vltava river, nestled between Prague's famous castle and the Charles Bridge.  Unfortunately, the quarter was devastated by two fires, one in the early fifteen hundreds, and the second in the early sixteen hundreds.  For this reason, the quarter was rebuilt, and has a more dominant Baroque style despite being founded in the medieval era.

In regards to the housing itself, the buildings do show the style of medieval homes that are built close together on cobblestone streets that don't run in straight lines.  One of the features that disappeared from the majority of homes after the fires was the sight of upper stories that loomed over the streets.  There are a few homes that still jut out over the street slightly, but not many.  There is still the ditch down the center of the street that acted as a drain for sewage in the Middle Ages, though it's wider today, most likely as a result of the renovations after the fires.

Despite the redone architecture, the layout and some remaining structures still echo of the Medieval Ages.  The quarter itself was made for the class of merchants and traders, which kept the class that handled much of the money close to the castle and nobility.  The Little Quarter even boasts its own square, which would have been the main hub of economic exchanges in the city when merchants from other parts of the world came to do business.  The bridge that the Little Quarter stands at the end of, the Charles Bridge, also dates back to Medieval times.  The first version of the bridge was destroyed by flooding in the mid fourteenth century, but it was rebuilt much taller in order protect against flooding.  Along the bridge there are statues of saints, and on either end of the bridge are also grand watchtowers that would have acted as a form of defense.  Another defensive structure that still remains is the Hunger Wall, built in the mid fourteenth century and undergoing a series of renovations over the next several centuries.  These stone structures, the watchtowers, the wall, and the bridge, are the best preserved of medieval Prague's Little Quarter, with the quarter itself retaining more of the layout of a medieval city than the style thanks to the des
tructive fires that ravaged the quarter.

References

"Little Quarter Walking Tour" Big Boy Travel  https://www.bigboytravel.com/czechrepublic/prague/little-quarter-walking-tour/

"Lesser Town Sights Prague Sightseeing" Prague Stay https://www.prague-stay.com/lifestyle/category/57-sights-in-prague/62-lesser-town-sights-prague-sightseeing

Prague Experience https://www.pragueexperience.com

"Malá Strana" Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malá_Strana