The first statue of Maria Theresa in the Czech Republic was unveiled a year ago in Prague 6 | Prague 6 | From the region Pražská Drbna
The first domestic statue of Maria Theresa has been decorating the park at the Powder Bridge in Prague 6 for almost a year. Representatives of the city districts unveiled a monument for which Prague 6 paid its author approximately 3.6 million crowns on October 20, 2020. The city district planned to create a statue of the Austrian queen and Czech queen from 2013.
On October 20, Maria Theresa ascended the Austrian throne
The statue is in a park that the Prague City Hall named Maria Theresa Park at the request of the city district. The official performance of the statue of the only woman on the Czech throne was deliberately set for October 20. On this day in 1740, Maria Theresa ascended the Austrian throne.
The Cathedral of St. Vitus, Adalbert and Wenceslas occupies an exceptional place in our history. Since the 10th century, the St. Vitus Church has been the most important church in Prague. The temple was founded in the 14th century, but its history dates back to the century …
The shape of the monument, designed by the sculptor Kovářík together with the architect Jan Proksa, resembles a figure from the play Man, Don’t Be Angry. “A lot of people come across the fact that he doesn’t have a (statue) in any way. But we wanted to symbolically highlight the majesty of Maria Theresa, not make a realistic appearance, and raise questions. Now this statue actually has an educational character, because it forces people to take an interest in Maria Theresa. So find out who it was, what it looked like and so on“Kovářík said then. The statue of the queen is on a pedestal made of lightweight concrete. The 5.5 meter high monument weighs six tons, the foundation on which the statue is placed weighs two tons.
The census is one of the oldest statistical events ever. Its history in the Czech lands dates back to the Middle Ages. However, regular censuses in the Czech lands were established only by the patent of Empress Maria Theresa from 1753. The first modern census is then …
There are a number of reproaches around the location of the statue
The competition for the shape of the monument was announced by the city district in 2013. The results were announced at the beginning of 2014. However, due to the elections, the implementation of the project was delayed. In 2016, several hundred people began protesting against the building, especially criticizing the placement of the statue in the park, where Václav Morávek, a member of the anti-Nazi resistance, fell in 1942. Opponents of the construction of the statue made similar allegations in 2019, a year after Prague 6 signed a contract with the sculptor Kovářík. On the contrary, the intention of the town hall was supported by the monarchist party Koruna Česká.
Maria Theresa of the Habsburg dynasty, she was Archduchess of Austria, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia. She ruled in the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 to 1780. During her reign she reformed the state administration, the army and education. By the General School Regulations, issued in 1774, the queen introduced, among other things, a general educational obligation for both boys and girls. The Enlightenment reforms were later followed by the son of Queen Joseph II.