New Town. The growth of New Town was very rapid; for Charles not only granted special privileges to those who builded there, but put up many fine residences at his own expense, renting them upon very easy terms. Among the other structures that were put up by Charles was the cathedral at Hradschin, which was enlarged and partly built in this reign, the fortress of Carlstein, numerous churches and monasteries, and the stone bridge across the Moldau. The fortress of Carlstein was intended to be impregnable to all the munitions of war used in those days, and was to be the safe for the crown jewels and other valuables of the kingdom
Among the many good qualities of this king, that which especially won him the hearts of the people was the respect he showed for their native language.Bohemian Language. A number of rulers before him had shown a strong preference for the German tongue; and this is by no means surprising, since so many of the rulers, as well as the noblemen, had gone to Germany to get their wives. In regard to foreign wives, Charles was not the exception; but he early appreciated the importance of the cultivation of the vernacular as the means of information among the masses, and so he set the example of using the language himself. After his ten years’ stay in Paris, he had entirely forgotten the language of his noble mother; but he set to work, and soon was able to read and write as readily in Bohemian as in any of the other four languages[1] that he was master of.
Under his patronage, many books were translated
- ↑ Latin, Italian, French, German.
