Smiřický Palace

Malá Strana


On 22 May 1618 Czech nobles gathered at the Smiřický Palace to plot a rebellion against their Habsburg rulers. The next day they flung two Habsburg councillors out of a window at Prague Castle – the famous Second Defenestration of Prague that kicked off the Thirty Years' War.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Malá Strana attractions

1. Malostranské Náměstí

0.03 MILES

Malostranské náměstí, Malá Strana’s main square, is divided into an upper and lower part by St Nicholas Church, the district’s most distinctive landmark…

2. St Nicholas Church Bell Tower

0.06 MILES

During the communist era, the bell tower of St Nicholas Church was used to spy on the nearby American embassy – on the way up you can still see a small,…

3. St Nicholas Church

0.06 MILES

Malá Strana is dominated by the huge green cupola of St Nicholas Church, one of Central Europe’s finest baroque buildings. (Don’t confuse it with the…

4. House at the Three Fiddles

0.1 MILES

This Gothic building reconstructed in Renaissance style during the 17th century once belonged to a family of violin makers.

5. St John of Nepomuk House

0.12 MILES

Built in 1566, the St John of Nepomuk house is adorned with the image of one of Bohemia’s patron saints.

6. Vrtbov Garden

0.12 MILES

This ‘secret garden’, hidden along an alley at the corner of Tržiště and Karmelitská, was built in 1720 for the Earl of Vrtba, the senior chancellor of…

7. South Gardens

0.13 MILES

This terrace garden offers superb views across the rooftops of Malá Strana and permits a peek into the back garden of the British embassy. There are…

8. Museum Montanelli

0.13 MILES

Tourists, drawn in by an attractive cafe and bookshop, rub shoulders with connoisseurs of the Czech art world in this private gallery. Having rapidly…