The Friends of Czech Heritage: keeping you informed about our activities
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Gardens of the Czech Republic - The Birkbeck Garden History Group, in association with the Friends of Czech Heritage, is holding a Study Day to explore the history and development of some of the Czech Republic’s distinctive gardens, from Baroque to modern. Venue: at the Institute of Education, University College London (UCL), Room 642,20 Bedford Wa...

A talk by Richard Bassett on Tuesday 28th March 2023 at 6.30pm in the Embassy of the Czech Republic, 26-30 Kensington Palace Gardens, London W8 4QY. Richard Bassett, former Times correspondent in Eastern Europe and author of the widely acclaimed Last Days in Old Europe reflects on more than forty years of association with the Czech lands. First tra...

An introduction to avant-garde design in architecture, engineering, furniture and interiors, its international influence and how it affected the development of modern architecture in Britain. A talk by Ivan Margolius on Tuesday 7th February 2023 at 6.30pm in the Embassy of the Czech Republic, 26-30 Kensington Palace Gardens, London W8 4QY. Ivan Mar...
REVIEW Lecture by Milan Svoboda for The Friends of Czech Heritage, September 2022 'How the Czech Aristocracy Lost Their castles in the 20th Century;A Guide to the development of ownership of ownership of historic houses in the Czech Lands since 1918' One of the great pleasures of a visit to the Czech Republic is a tour of the castles and great coun...

A guide to the development of the ownership of historic houses in Czech lands since 1918. A Lecture by Milan Svoboda on Tuesday 20th September 2022 at 6.30pm in the Czech Embassy, London. From the formation of Czechoslovakia, when the first president T.G. Masaryk abolished aristocratic titles, and his land reform deprived many estates of their main...

Rousham is 12 miles north of Oxford, and Chastleton is four miles from Moreton-in-Marsh. Both are exceptional houses set in celebrated gardens, both have remained in the ownership of the same families for nearly 400 years. Chastleton was acquired by the National Trust in 1991. ROUSHAMThe landscape garden at Rousham should be a place of pilgrimage f...

The Friends' tour to the Bata Museum and former company town at East Tilbury was a great success despite transport problems due to the current strike. In gloriously sunny weather we were guided around the town by the enthusiastic volunteers from the museum. There was time for lunch and a visit to Coalhouse Fort overlooking the Thames before our ret...

Sir John Tusa - ‘MY LIFE WITH BATA’ John Tusa came to Britain in 1939 with his family at the age of three from Zlín in Moravia where his father had worked since the age of sixteen in the famous Bata shoe factory – a Bata baby. By the 1930s Bata of Czechoslovakia were the world’s leading manufacturer of footwear and factories were increasingly estab...

Louis XIV was a life-long enemy of the Holy Roman Emperors and Kings of Bohemia, Leopold I and Charles VI. The armies of his successor Louis XV occupied Prague in 1741. Thereafter, however, the Bourbons became allies of the House of Austria. During the French Revolution the resort of Teplitz/Teplice in Bohemia became a residence of many emigrés, in...
Červený Dvůr is a historic estate that was once the summer residence of the Schwarzenberg family and is now a sanatorium. In 2022, participants will be helping to complete work on the two gatehouses, working on the facade, the plaster and the final coat. During the week there will be the opportunity to visit some of the region’s houses and castles....