Prague Troja – Made for Luxurious Living
At Troja, you can soak into a reassuring atmosphere of the beautiful botanical garden or the Prague ZOO. Alternatively, you can also visit the beautiful Baroque chateau from the 17th century. You can also experience a breathtaking view of the Prague panorama from the top of the big hillside above the botanical garden.
Troja was originally a village, which had not become a part of Prague until the 18th century. This luxurious quarter, full of greenery and quiet streets is located on the right bank of the Vltava River and the adjacent hill – Bohnice Plateau. A part of it belongs under Prague 8, with its southern part belonging under the Prague 7 municipal district. You can walk from Troja, cross the pedestrian bridge and reach the Císařský Island and the Stromovka Park.
History and the Troja Chateau
Troja was inhabited already during the early Stone Age, which has been demonstrated by numerous local findings. The name “Troja” was originally only the name of the chateau, which was built here between in 1683-1692 by Václav Vojtěch Šternberk. The motif for this name came from an ancient sculpture that can be seen on the staircase leading to the garden. The village adopted the name in the 18th century.
The Troja Chateau belongs among the most beautiful Baroque chateaus in Bohemia from the 17th century. It has an impressive fresco decoration, which shows the victory of the Habsburgs over the Turks at Vienna. The above mentioned stairway, decorated with sculptures and leading to a French-style park, is also fascinating. In the park, you can relax by the fountain or get lost in the garden maze for a while. The surroundings are famous for its vineyards, which were mostly founded after 1358.
Botanical garden and the ZOO
The Prague botanical garden in Troja was opened in 1992. It also includes a Japanese garden, peony meadow and the tropical Fata Morgana greenhouse. The Prague ZOO has been here since 1931. It spreads out over the diverse terrain of the Troja Basin. The ZOO houses more than 500 kinds of animals.
Architecture and important residents
Despite the fact that Troja is full of interesting as well as modern architectural buildings, it can also offer countryside scenery. Artists and wealthy people, who were looking for peaceful environment, beautiful views and inspiration from luxurious surroundings, began to move here towards the end of the 19th century.
Svatopluk Čech, for example, used to live in one of the Neo-Renaissance villas at the hillside. The Zátopek’s had built their own villa at Nad Kazankou Street. On the same street, you can find a functionalist villa built by architects Mühlstein and Firth. In the past, the villa was also used by Gustáv Husák. Věra Chytilová used to live at Pod Havránkou Street and Michal Kocáb has his villa (built in 1932) in Troja as well. A pearl of the modern architecture is the untraditional villa designed by Eva Jiřičná for important developer Luděk Sekera.
The Diplomatic Complex, visible from far away, is also very interesting. Originally, the complex was supposed to be used for accommodation of important diplomats. Instead, you can now find luxury apartment in the “sugar cubicles” of the complex.
