National Theatre In Prag, Czech Republic Stock Photo

The cornerstone of the National Theatre was laid on 16 May 1868, but the idea of building a theatre dates back to the autumn of 1844 at the gatherings of patriots in Prague. An application was submitted by František Palacký to the Provincial Committee of the Bohemian Assembly on 29 January 1845, requesting `the privilege of constructing, furnishing, maintaining and managing` of an independent Czech theatre. The application was granted in April 1845, but it was not until six years later – in April 1851 – that the founding Society for the Establishment of a Czech National Theatre in Prague made the first public appeal to start a collection. A year later the proceeds went toward the purchase of land belonging to a former salt works covering an area of not quite 28 acres 11 ha which determined the magnificent site of the theatre on the banks of the river Vltava facing the panorama of Prague Castle, but at the same time the cramped area and trapezium shape posed challenging problems for the designers of the building.[1]