Malostranske Namesti (Lesser Town Square) lies at the heart of Mala Strana and has been the hub of this side of Prague since the 10th century. At the centre of the square is the magnificent St. Nicholas Church, Mala Strana’s primary landmark. All around are a mixture of restaurants, quaint old pubs, small shops and a host of international embassies housed in the wonderful old buildings.
Malostranske Namesti also serves as the main tram stop for Mala Strana. From here you can go in one direction to Wenceslas Square and in the other to Hradcany, at the back of Prague Castle. Amongst the many impressive buildings around the square is the Old Town Hall, once a place of great importance. Here in 1575, non-Catholic nobles wrote the “Ceske Konfese” (Czech Confession), a pioneering demand for religious tolerance addressed to the Habsburg emperor and eventually passed into Czech law by Rudolf II in 1609.
Another building of note is Smiricky Palace at No. 18. It was here that Czech nobles gathered on May 22, 1618. The next day they threw two Habsburg councillors out of a window in Prague Castle, setting off the Thirty Year’s War.