Czech Republic
We just arrived in the Czech Republic; once part of the Holy Roman Empire and then the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, Czechoslovakia (as it was then known) became an independent nation at the end of World War I.
The Czech republic is located North of Hungary, South of Poland, East of Germany, and West of the Ukraine and Russia. The capital of the Czech republic is Prague. The Czech Republic’s exact position is - longitude, - latitude. Prague’s coordinates are longitude by latitude.
We arrived in the Czech Republic on and left for on .
While in the Czech Republic we visited many unique sights. One of the most impressive was Prague Castle. It is the most popular and most visited sight in the Czech Republic, so it was a must see attraction for us. We also went to The Castle St. Vitus, the Cathedral, (which is a gothic landmark), three courtyards, and many huge & beautiful gardens. We visited another church, St. Nicholas, it had a large green cupola. We wanted to get a feel for the people of the country, so we went to Old Town. Old Town is the working heart of Prague, as it has been since the 10th Century.
Many of the buildings we went in had gothic insides and Roman basements. One day we had a picnic on a three hundred and eighteen-meter high hill called Petrin Hill. On top there is actually a network of eight parks. While we were there we stopped at the observatory Petrin Tower. Petrin Tower looks like a small Eiffel Tower and was built in 1891. We climbed the 299 steps for only 25 kc, (which is Czech money).
Next we went to Wencelas Square. This square is the center of cultural, financial and everyday life. There are a lot of theaters, shops, store and banks around to use. After our adventure in the square we went to see Josefov, the Old Jewish Quarters. Pragues’ former Jewish ghetto was located in Old Town within the streets of Kaprova, Plouha and Ankozi. During World War II the Nazis’ under the control of Hitler wiped out this community.
To escape being caught by the German police who took part in the actions, they built large bunkers to hide from their captors. After several of these actions, the Buczacz ghetto had been emptied by more than half. At this point, the time came to move to a new ghetto. Alicia had been in this new ghetto only a short time when another action occurred. This time, Alicia was captured and brought to a mass grave with a multitude of other Jews.
Heda Margolius Kovály’s memoir, “Under a Cruel Star: A Life in Prague, 1941-1968” recounts her experience of the Holocaust and the Communist Regime in Czechoslovakia, during the 20th century. In 1945, after the holocaust and after World War II, Czechoslovakia was in a period of distress, which made people seek for communism as a solution. Communism, a totalitarian regime, was a form of government in which nobody was allowed to own any private property and the government controlled all economic activity. This government structure was not only corrupt, but it also caused more economic crisis in Czechoslovakia. Despite the rough situation that Czechoslovakia was going through, none of its
The term ghetto, originally derived from Venetian dialect in Italy during the sixteenth century, has multiple variations of meaning. The primary perception of the word is “synonymous with segregation” (Bassi). The first defining moment of the ghetto as a Jewish neighborhood was in sixteenth century Italy; however, the term directly correlates with the beginning of the horror that the Jewish population faced during Adolph Hitler’s reign. “No ancient ghetto knew the terror and suffering of the ghettos under Hitler” (Weisel, After the Darkness 20). Under Hitler’s terror, there were multiple ghettos throughout several cities in numerous countries ranging in size and population. Ghettos also differed in purpose; some were temporary housing until deportation to the final solution while others formed for forced labor. Although life in the ghetto was far better than a concentration camp, it shared the commonality of torment, fear, and death.
When they deem it safe to return, they are shocked to find that their precious animals have been killed by the bombings and the zoo is torn apart. Antonina cannot keep Ryszard safe at the zoo, so she takes him to a series of secret places throughout the city that are safe and unknown to the Germans. Antonina is surprised at the number of generous people she finds that are willing to provide shelter and the only food they have to help keep her and her son alive. Jan is now more than ever determined to join and help the Underground Polish Resistance. The Underground Polish Resistance is a group whose main goal is to hide and help keep alive, not only Jews but any group of people the Germans do not see fit to live anymore. The Żabiński’s receive some unusual help from Lutz Heck, a German zookeeper who is interested in keeping the main bloodlines of Poland’s animals alive. He suggests the Żabiński’s send over any of their unique Poland animals to his zoo, to keep them safe until the end of the war. Although the Żabiński’s do not trust Heck they both agree that loaning their animals to him until the end of the war is the safest option for the animals and will allow them to keep more people safe in their
The story "Under A Cruel Star" by Heda Margolius Kovaly takes place in Prague, Czech Republic from 1941-1968. Kovaly describes her life, everything the Jewish people went through during the Holocaust, and it also depicts how communism was a growing interest during that time period throughout the storyline of the book. Most thought this because of the consequences of communism and mass destruction it can cause within a country. Kovaly says "Rudolf could decide on the basis of statistics- mostly falsified, or course- that under communism people lived a better and happy life. I saw from close-up and with my own eyes that this was not true.
At the start of Adolf Hitler’s reign of terror, no one would have been able to foresee what eventually led to the genocide of approximately six million Jews. However, steps can be traced to see how the Holocaust occurred. One of those steps would be the implementation of the ghetto system in Poland. This system allowed for Jews to be placed in overcrowded areas while Nazi officials figured out what to do with them permanently. The ghettos started out as a temporary solution that eventually became a dehumanizing method that allowed mass relocation into overcrowded areas where starvation and privation thrived. Also, Nazi officials allowed for corrupt Jewish governments that created an atmosphere of mistrust within its walls. Together, this allowed
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The Warsaw Ghetto was a Jewish-populated ghetto in the largest city of Poland, Warsaw. A ghetto can be defined as a part of a city in which large quantities of members of a minority group live, especially because of social, legal, or economic pressure. Ghettos were commonly attributed to a location where there was a large Jewish population. In fact, the word Ghetto originated from the name of the Jewish quarter in Venice, Italy, in 16th century.The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest Ghetto, as a part of the Holocaust, and as an early stage of it, played a very significant role. Today, in our museum exhibit, we have several artifacts, including primary evidence relating to the Warsaw ghetto. We will be discussing how and why it was created, the lifestyle
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