Prague Main Station Live Cam

Historical Emergence

Opened in 1871 under the name Franz-Josephs-Bahnhof, Prague Main Station (Prague Hlavní nádraží) immediately asserted itself as the crown jewel of Austro-Hungarian railway infrastructure. Located at the eastern terminus of Wenceslas Square, the original Neo-Renaissance building was designed by architect Josef Kranner to accommodate expanding intercity traffic on the Vienna–Prague–Dresden corridor. Standard-gauge tracks were laid with wrought-iron rails and wooden sleepers atop crushed stone ballast, leveraging mid‑19th‑century expertise in railway civil engineering. From the outset, the station featured four platforms flanked by two train sheds, ensuring simultaneous handling of up to eight trains. In its earliest years, steam locomotives hauled ornate wooden carriages, drawing long-distance passengers and express mail services between Bohemia and the imperial capital.