Founded in 1348, Charles University is the oldest university in Central Europe. As the first university in the region, Charles University was able to draw prominent thinkers from around the Holy Roman Empire. There have been several familiar names that have walked the halls of Charles University through its long history. Jan Hus (often anglicized John Huss) was the dean and rector of the university in the 15th century. Albert Einstein was a professor at Charles University before going to Berlin and ultimately emigrating to the United States. Writer Franz Kafka and physicist Nikola Tesla are famous alumni.
Throughout its history the university’s fortunes have been closely linked to the welfare of the Czech nation. In the twentieth century the school suffered under Nazi and communist occupation. Academic freedom vanished, and many Charles University students and faculty were imprisoned and executed. Students were involved in some of the most visible protests against the totalitarian regimes, including Jan Palach’s famous suicide by immolation in Wenceslas Square in 1969.
Charles IV issued the following proclamation upon founding the eponymous school:
We will take pride in inviting students from other lands to share with each other their own delightful opportunities. In order that a beginning so laudably conceived may conclude worthily, we have resolved after ripe recollection to create and establish a university . . . in our very pleasant capital city of Prague. –April 7, 1348
Today, some 650 years later, Charles University still hosts many international students. In a sense even I am a beneficiary of Charles IV’s vision for sharing his “very pleasant capital city” with foreign students.
Architecture classroom buildings near my dorm.
The Catholic Theological Faculty adjacent to my dorm.