Feb. 24, 2007
Tourism has largely focused on Prague, with its great museums, galleries, concerts and other attractions. Many day trips are possible from Prague, including the great western spa town of Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázne, early settlements like Kutná Hora and castles like Karlštejn.
However, the rest of the country has much to offer the independent traveller with 11 UNESCO World Heritage Sites including Český Krumlov, Litomyšl Castle and the Pilgrimage Church of St John of Nepomuk at Zelená Hora. In addition the Czech Republic boasts an immense number of fascinating castles, churches and other architectural gems.
Czech Republic Info
The country joined the EU in May 2004, a development almost impossible to imagine just 16 years before.
Communist rule had lasted since the late 1940s. The "Prague Spring" of 1968, when Prime Minister Alexander Dubcek tried to bring in liberal reforms, was crushed by Soviet tanks.
In 1989, as the curtain was coming down on communism in the Kremlin, the dissident playwright Vaclav Havel spearheaded the country's velvet revolution and became the first president of post-communist Czechoslovakia.
An era ended in February 2003 when his presidency finished. It had been interrupted for only a few months at the time of the separation of the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Mr Havel saw the ghost of former Soviet military influence exorcised in 1999 when the republic was granted full membership of Nato. He left office having led it to the threshold of the EU. His old rival and successor as president, Vaclav Klaus, oversaw accession to the union.
Czech Republic
Geography
Area: 78,864 sq. kilometers; about the size of Virginia.
Cities: Capital--Prague (pop. 1.16 million). Other cities--Brno (376,172), Ostrava (314,744), Plzen (165,529).
Terrain: Low mountains to the north and south, hills in the west.
Climate: Temperate.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Czech(s).
Population (est.): 10.2 million.
Annual growth rate: 0.1%.
Ethnic groups: Czech (90.4% or 9.25 million); Moravian (more than 380,000); Slovak (193,000); Roma (171,000); Silesian (11,000); Polish (52,000); German (39,000); Ukrainian (22,000); and Vietnamese (18,000).
Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant.
Language: Czech.
Education: Literacy--99.8%.
Health: Life expectancy--males 72.3 yrs., females 78.5 yrs.
Work force (5.17 million): Industry, construction, and commerce--40%; government and other services--56%; agriculture--4%.
Government
Type: Parliamentary republic.
Independence: The Czech Republic was established January 1, 1993 (former Czechoslovak state established 1918).
Constitution: Signed December 16, 1992.
Branches: Executive--president (chief of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet. Legislative--Chamber of Deputies, Senate. Judicial--Supreme Court, Constitutional Court.
Political parties (June 2006 election): Civic Democratic Party (ODS), 81 seats; Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD), 74 seats; Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSCM), 26 seats; Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak Peoples Party (KDU-CSL), 13 seats; Green Party (SZ), 6 seats.
Suffrage: Universal at 18.
Administrative subdivisions: Two regions--Bohemia and Moravia; 13 administrative districts and Prague.
Economy
GDP (2006): $141.7 billion.
Per capital income: $13,710.
Natural resources: Coal, coke, timber, lignite, uranium, magnesite.
Agriculture: Products--wheat, rye, oats, corn, barley, hops, potatoes, sugar beets, hogs, cattle, horses.
Industry: Types--motor vehicles, machinery and equipment, iron, steel, cement, sheet glass, armaments, chemicals, ceramics, wood, paper products, and footwear.
Trade (2006): Exports--$94.8 billion (est.): motor vehicles, machinery, iron, steel, chemicals, raw materials, consumer goods. Imports--$92.9 billion (est.). Trading partners--Germany (32%), Slovakia, Poland, France, Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, U.K., China, United States.
