The Czech Republic is pretty small really: it about the same size as Ireland. From east to west the country spans 490 km, and north to south only 280 km. It wouldn't take a long time to travel around it, but there is a lot to see!

The Czech Republic is made up of Bohemia in the west, Moravia in the east and part of Silesia in the north, but has not always been like this. These areas were part of what was called the Austro-Hungarian Empire from the seventeenth century through to 1918. Czechoslovakia was then formed, and was broken up during World War II, but was then created again once the war was over. There has been more recent change to the country and how is it divided: political changes occurred within Czechoslovakia in 1989, when the political party known as the Communist party which ruled the country was replaced by a Democratic party. In the 1990s, the Slovaks and Czechs had conflicts. This led to the two countries splitting up in 1992, to form the Czech Republic and Slovakia. And this is how it stands today!

The Czech Republic has lots of different landscapes, from rolling hills and snowy mountains to nature reserves and valleys where crops are grown. The capital is called Prague - but there are other cities too. The main ones are called Brno, Olomouc, Ostrava and Plzen.

The Czech people have some different ways of doing things. There are a lot of traditions that might be different from the traditions in your country. Check out what these are in Way of Life and see if you can think of a few traditions from your own country.

Famous Things looks at the things that the Czech Republic is famous for. Can you think what they might be?

And don't forget to check out our Amazing Facts on the Czech Republic.

Links:

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http://www.multimap.com
- detailed maps of Europe, including the Czech Republic

http://www.czech-travel-guide.com
- general information about the Czech Republic

http://www.hrad.cz/index_uk.html
- for information about Prague Castle

http://www.worldinfozone.com/country.php?country=CzechRepublic
- information about the Czech Republic

http://www.krnap.cz/krnap/english/natframe.html
- for facts about the countryside and national parks

http://www.czech-tradition.cz/tradition/Index_en.htm
- traditions in the Czech Republic

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