In Porto, in between the Igreja do Carmo and Igreja dos Carmelitas, there exists a hidden, narrow three-storey house called Casa Escondida. Some claim this house inspired J.K. Rowling, but did it?
Tag: 1990-1999
On 11 September 1944, a massive, intense air battle took place over the mountains between Germany and what was then Czechoslovakia. The memory of this battle is still alive today.
Czechoslovak communists tortured Czech priest Josef Toufar in 1949 for a miracle which may or may not have happened. This article describes the story and the tragic ending of Father Toufar’s life.
Following the fall of the Iron Curtain Soviet troops started to leave Europe. Czechoslovakia, as it then still was, was happy that the ‘temporary deployment’ of Soviet troops was coming to an end.
This article looks at the intent behind the occupation, and the events leading up to the Soviet’s departure.
I don’t think there’s anyone who hasn’t heard of the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe. The recent Sky drama reanimated people’s memories of those days. Few are aware there almost was a similar disaster in Bohunice, in what was then Czechoslovakia.
We often hear of buildings being “in the way” of new developments. It’s a constant argument between conservationists and modernisers. Sometimes, ancient treasures are even lost in our quest to build our modern times. And then there are cases where people move mountains to preserve things, literally.
During World War II, Prague wasn’t as affected by bombing as many other European cities were. This was because planes didn’t have the range to reach Prague, and also because the Allies had more important targets in mind. This article describes the few Allied bombings of Prague, which happened towards the end of the war.
People who speak out against a regime ? are targeted. We think this happens in dictatorships but a democratic society can face the wrath of an angry administration. Under communist rule, Czechoslovakia targeted the resistance fighter Milada Horáková as brutally as possible.
It’s not everyday you find castles still owned by the original family. Czechia’s Český Šternberk ? towers over the town of the same name, and is one of the few in the world to make that claim ?
If a building is abandoned for a long enough time, it doesn’t take long before stories about hauntings begin to emerge. In Czechia, the Fairy TaleRead More