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4 Most Famous Women in Czech History

As you probably know, Czech Republic is quite a new concept, dated to the 1993 when on January 1, the Czech and Slovak nations peacefully separated. Until today, there are mixed feelings about this and when we, Czechs, think about history of our independent country, our minds automatically slip more than a hundred years back into 1918, when Czechoslovakia was established, gaining the independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

When you come to Prague, you will probably head to the most known sites, such as the Old Town with its Old Town Square, Prague Castle or Charles Bridge.

You will quickly understand that even though the modern history might go back to the 1918 only, the Czech history dates way back. The proven history of the Czech formal nation starts in the 10th century, when the Czech Principality was established.

However, Czech people love stories and so, we cannot forget all the legends and myths that were supposed to happen even before that. And women? I can tell you that they were creating our history and forming the country we know today from its very beginning.

This article talks about 4 of these women only. The first woman is Princess Libushe who foretold the establishment of our capital, Prague.

Second woman, Sharka, became immortal after we named a section of Prague after her. She fought bravely for something we would call an equality of women and men today.

Third woman, Ema Destinnova, is one of many successful artists Czech nation can be proud of.

And the last one, Milada Horakova, was another fighter. The fighter for social justice and democratic institutions. What happened to them? Were their predictions and fights successful? Let鈥檚 see鈥�

Libu拧e (Libushe) the Prophetess

Sketch of Libushe by Mikolas Ales, image sourced from Bohemian Magic

Princess Libushe was one of the first Slavic nobility who settled in the central Bohemia. According to the legend, she was one of three sisters with one being known for her ability to heal, second for her ability to do magic and Libushe was known for her ability to see the future.

It is being said that when her tribe was travelling, they reached a cliff, where Libushe suddenly stopped and proclaimed one of her most famous sentences. It goes like that: 鈥淚 see a great city whose glory will touch the stars.鈥� She ordered to build a castle on that spot and to set foundations of a town. That castle is known as Prague Castle, where until today the ‘ruler’ of the country 鈥� President 鈥� lives and the town is known as Prague.

Libushe鈥檚 rule as a single woman was not easy. Even though she proved to be a good ruler, the councilmen of her tribe did not agree with her progressive ideas and opinions. From their grumpiness a very famous saying is being used until today: 鈥淟ong hair, short brain.鈥� That was a way for the councilmen to point out that Libushe 鈥� as a woman 鈥� is not a good fit for the rule.

Hence, Libushe started to feel pressured to marry. She was already in love with a ploughman, but she wanted her councilmen to find her a husband on their own. And so, she revealed a 鈥榲ision鈥�, where she predicted herself a farmer with a broken sandal for a husband. She instructed her councilmen to bring a horse to a junction, let it loose and follow it.

And so, her councilmen went and ended up running into Premysl the Ploughman. They brought him to Libushe, she was happy her plan worked and married him. Together, they started the Premysl Dynasty.

艩谩rka (Sharka)

For those of you who visit Prague for more than a couple of days; if you are tired of the monuments and city crowds, and seek a little bit of a quiet and nature, let me bring you to a part of the city named after one of the most famous female warriors of the Czech history 鈥� Sharka.

You might have already discovered it and if not, Sharka in one of the largest spots with an open air swimming pool (beware the water there is sourced from a river, so it鈥檚 rather cold, but refreshing!) and a cliff that you could easily hike to. The area is called Sharka or Wild Sharka (Divok谩 艩谩rka in Czech). It鈥檚 a terminal station of several tram lines, so you can鈥檛 miss it!

Sharka hiking terrain, image sourced from Alazing Czechia

And those of you who happen to know about this place, have you ever wondered where it got its name from? Well, I can tell you, it鈥檚 legendary鈥� quite literally.

This part of the history was not proven to be true and it was only recorded in the Chronicles of Cosmas of Prague in the 12th century and by the Dalimil鈥檚 Chronicle in the 14th century. Czech novelist, Alois Jirasek based one of his tales in the book of Old Czech Legends on this event. The story is known as the Maidens’ War and it truly was a war. The war during which women upraised against men.

Following the dead of queen Libushe (the one you just read about above), the women felt that they were not being taken as seriously as they were during Libushe鈥檚 rule. Therefore, they decided to build a castle called Devin.

The legend says that men became jealous and build a castle called Vysehrad. Well, I will leave it on you to judge who was more successful in that, as unlike Vysehrad, Devin no longer exists. The women were led by Vlasta who gathered a group of women, the maidens. She started preparing her maidens for the fight against men.

Vysehrad Castle, mage by Stanislav Jelen sourced from Wikimedia Commons

Premysl, being still alive warned the men, however they only laughed at the concept of women fighting them. Women might not be as strong and brave in a war as men, but they equaled the fight by being smart. In one occasion, Vlasta鈥檚 maidens seduced a group of men and lured them to Devin. In this event, the men suffered a great loss.

The fights continued for some time with equal wins and losses on both sides and so one summer, Vlasta came up with a trap. One of the maidens, Sharka was bound to a tree and left in a valley under a cliff for a group of men that were passing by. She cried and told them that Vlasta鈥檚 band bounded her there. The men helped her, however Vlasta鈥檚 maidens killed them and imprisoned their leader. According to the legend, the men’s leader was later tortured and killed in Devin.

And the name? One legend says that the valley is called Wild Sharka as a reminder of the fights that took place there. Another one says that after the trap, Sharka jumped from the cliff that is above the valley. And to remember her, the valley is called Sharka until today.

Ema Destinnov谩

Have you ever held a 2,000 Czech crown bill in your hands? I personally cannot remember the last time I did, however if you happen to have one, look at the romanticized face of the woman on it. Have you ever stopped for a second and wondered who she was? Her name is Ema Destinnova and she was famous Czech operatic soprano. Her voice was described as 鈥渟oaring lyric-dramatic鈥�. Listen to it here.

Even though EmaDestinnova is now very well established in the Czech hall of fame, her career was more than rocky in her country. Czechs called her 鈥榯he fat and ugly鈥� singer and she knew more rejections than compliments.

After being rejected by the Czech National Theatre, she turned to the West and went to Berlin. She was very well welcomed there and soon enough, her name was known in Vienna, 麻豆APP, London and New York Metropolitan Opera. Eventually, she was rediscovered by the Czech audience and established her career in her homeland as well.

She was a symbol of Czech patriotism, ending every recital by national songs. Some believe that she was involved in a formation of a resistance movement in late 1930鈥檚, however that is questionable and creates mixed feelings among the Czech population.

Milada Hor谩kov谩

Mugshots of Milada, image sourced from Slavische Studies

I am confident to say that Milada Horakova is one of the greatest symbols of injustice committed by the Communist Regime in the former Czechoslovakia.

Her life was ended at the age of 48 after a series of intense interrogations by the former Czechoslovak Secret Police, the StB. She was sentenced to death by hanging for an alleged treason and espionage in favor of the Western powers against the Czechoslovak Republic.

That is very ironic because Milada Horakova spent her life fighting for social justice, protested against German occupation and voiced her anti-war opinions.

Milada Horakova worked in the Social Welfare Department of the City of Prague from 1927 to 1940. She focused on issues of social justice and an equal status of women. She became active in Czech politics in late 1920鈥檚 and after the German occupation of the Czechoslovakia in 1939 she became an active underground resistance movement member.

Shortly after that, in 1940, she was arrested by the Gestapo and sent to a concentration camp 鈥� Terezin. She was later moved to a German prison. After the World War II ended, Horakova returned to the Czechoslovakia and became a member of the re-constituted Provisional National Assembly and later a member of the National Assembly. As before, she focused on women鈥檚 rights and also on preservation of Czechoslovak democratic institutions.

Her new career didn鈥檛 last for long. In 1948, the Communist Party took over and Milada Horakova resigned in protest. She was arrested in 1949, accused of being the leader of a plot to overthrow the Communist Regime and in a show trial sentenced to death. Even though the trial was annulled in 1968 during the Prague Spring, her reputation was not fully rehabilitated until the Communist Regime fell in 1989.

In 2017, a movie called Milada was based on her story, you can watch the trailer here…

I will finish this article by a quote that Milada Horakova made right before she was hanged in the Pankrac Prison in Prague:

鈥淚 fall, I fall. I have lost this fight, I leave with honor. I love this country, I love this nation, strive for their well-being. I depart without rancor towards you. I wish you, I wish you…”