Jan Palach Square is a town square

Town square

A town square is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town used for community gatherings. Other names for town square are civic center, city square, urban square, market square, public square, and town green.Most town squares are hardscapes suitable for open markets,...

 in the Old Town

Old Town, Prague

Old Town is a medieval settlement of Prague, Czech Republic. It was separated from the outside by a semi-circular moat and wall, connected to the Vltava at both of its ends. The moat is now covered up by the streets Revolučni, na Příkopě, and Národni—which remain the official boundary of the...

 of Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

. It is located on right bank of the Vltava River

Vltava

The Vltava is the longest river in the Czech Republic, running north from its source in Šumava through Český Krumlov, České Budějovice, and Prague, merging with the Elbe at Mělník...

 next to the former Jewish Quarter

Josefov (Prague)

Josefov is a town quarter and the smallest cadastral area of Prague, today Czech Republic, formerly the Jewish ghetto of the town. It is completely surrounded by Old Town...

. Unlike other squares in the Old Town, Jan Palach Square was created at the end of 19th century, making it one of the newest ones.

Buildings and structures

The western side of the square is adjacent to the Vltava River. The Mánes Bridge (1911–1916) connects Jan Palach Square to Malá Strana

Malá Strana

Malá Strana is a district of the city of Prague, Czech Republic, and one of its most historic regions.The name translated into English literally means "Little Side", though it is frequently referred to as "Lesser Town", "Lesser Quarter", or "Lesser Side"...

 (Lesser Town) on the opposite bank. This side of the square also offers a good view of Prague Castle

Prague Castle

Prague Castle is a castle in Prague where the Kings of Bohemia, Holy Roman Emperors and presidents of Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic have had their offices. The Czech Crown Jewels are kept here...

, Petřín Hill

Petrín

Petřín is a hill in the center of Prague, Czech Republic. It rises some 130 m above the left bank of the Vltava River. The hill, almost entirely covered with parks, is a favorite recreational area for the inhabitants of Prague...

 and Charles Bridge

Charles Bridge

The Charles Bridge is a famous historic bridge that crosses the Vltava river in Prague, Czech Republic. Its construction started in 1357 under the auspices of King Charles IV, and finished in the beginning of the 15th century...

. On the north there is the Neo-Renaissance

Neo-Renaissance

Renaissance Revival is an all-encompassing designation that covers many 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Grecian nor Gothic but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range of classicizing Italian modes...

 Rudolfinum Concert Hall

Rudolfinum

The Rudolfinum is a music auditorium in Prague, Czech Republic. It is designed in the neo-renaissance style and is situated on Jan Palach Square on the bank of the river Vltava.-Overview:...

 (1876–1884). The building on the eastern side (1924–1930) houses the Faculty of Arts (Czech: Filozofická fakulta) of Charles University

Charles University in Prague

Charles University in Prague is the oldest and largest university in the Czech Republic. Founded in 1348, it was the first university in Central Europe and is also considered the earliest German university...

, and the building on the southern side (1885) belongs to the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design

Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague

The Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague is a public university located in Prague, Czech Republic....

 (Czech: Vysoká škola umělecko-průmyslová).

There is a large underground parking garage

Multi-storey car park

A multi-storey car-park is a building designed specifically to be for car parking and where there are a number of floors or levels on which parking takes place...

 under the square, with surface structures of this facility slightly disturbing the overall impression of the square. Monuments to two personalities of Czech culture are situated here—a statue of composer Antonín Dvořák

Antonín Dvorák

Antonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...

 in front of Rudolfinum and a statue of painter Josef Mánes

Josef Mánes

Josef Mánes was a Czech painter.He was taught by his father, Antonín Mánes , who was a landscape painter and the professor of arts; in addition, he was the nephew of Václav Mánes, and brother of Quido Mánes and Amalie Mánesová, all of whom were also painters...

 closer to the river.

Name of the square

The previous name of the square, used through the communist era, was the Square of Red Army

Red Army

The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...

 Soldier

Soldier

A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...

s (Náměstí Krasnoarmějců) commemorating Soviet

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 soldiers killed during their liberation of Prague

Prague uprising

The Prague uprising was an attempt by the Czech resistance to liberate the city of Prague from German occupation during World War II. Events began on May 5, 1945, in the last moments of the war in Europe...

 in May 1945. The current name was introduced briefly in 1969–1970 and was made permanent on 20 December 1989 after the Velvet Revolution

Velvet Revolution

The Velvet Revolution or Gentle Revolution was a non-violent revolution in Czechoslovakia that took place from November 17 – December 29, 1989...

. It commemorates Jan Palach

Jan Palach

Jan Palach was a Czech student who committed suicide by self-immolation as a political protest.- Death :...

, a student who immolated himself

Self-immolation

Self-immolation refers to setting oneself on fire, often as a form of protest or for the purposes of martyrdom or suicide. It has centuries-long traditions in some cultures, while in modern times it has become a type of radical political protest...

 on 16 January 1969 to protest against the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...

.

Transport

Jan Palach Square is accessible by trams

Prague Tram System

The Prague tram system is the largest tram system in the Czech Republic, consisting of 140 kilometres of track, over 900 tram cars, and 33 lines with a total route length of 540 km. It is operated by Dopravní podnik hlavního města Prahy a.s., a company owned by the City of Prague. The system...

 Nos. 17 and 18 or by the A Line

Line A (Prague Metro)

Line A is a line of the Prague Metro, serving the Czech Republic capital. Chronologically the second line in the system, it was first opened in 1978 and has expanded mostly during the 1980s...

 of Prague Metro

Prague Metro

The Prague Metro is a subway, underground public transportation network in Prague, Czech Republic. It is the fastest means of transportation around the city and serves about one and a half million passengers a day, which makes it the seventh busiest metro system in Europe and the most-used in the...

. The exit of Staroměstská metro station

Staromestská

Staroměstská is a Prague Metro station on Line A, completed in 1978.The station is located under Kaprova street in the Old Town . There is currently one entrance through an escalator tunnel from the corner of Kaprova and Valentinská streets...

 is located next to the southeast corner of the square, and across the nearby bridge is Malostranská metro station

Malostranská

Malostranská is a Prague Metro station on Line A.-History:The station was opened on August 12, 1978 as the entire «Dejvicka » — «Namesti Miru» Line.-Exits:...

.