North-western Borders of Žižkov

Up to the mid-1870’s, the Prague fortification walls formed a distinctive border between Žižkov and the townships of Prague. There was a hurdle in the way of smooth interconnection of the street networks in Prague and Žižkov even after the walls were demolished: the railway. Both main traffic veins of Žižkov (i.e. the streets originally called Husova and Karlova, nowadays Husitská–Koněvova and Seifertova–Táboritská) crossed the two “railroads” (the North Bohemian Railroad and the Connecting Line) through underpasses which facilitated traffic flow. The railway boom often resulted in the destruction of popular places, for example the ex-homestead and inn called Krenovka (Husitská Street no. 42), gradually adapted to a railway infrastructure building of the Prague Connecting Line from mid-19th century. The collection of the preserved rail tracks and buildings of the Prague Connecting Line and the Turnov-Kralupy Prague Rail Line documents the beginnings and evolution of railway transport in Prague from mid-19th century.  The natural border between Karlín and Žižkov, i.e. the distinctive form of the Vítkov Hill, was finally broken only in the 1950’s with the opening of the pedestrian tunnel (nowadays the Žižkov Tunnel).