Czech morning news roundup: Wednesday, November 3, 2021

Skeletons of 12 men believed to have fought in the Battle of Austerlitz in 1805 have been discovered in the cellars of a house in Brno. The bones were uncovered during reconstruction work. At the time of death the bodies were aged between 20 and 30 years old, and it appears they were placed together in a mass grave.

Scientific analysis revealed the sex and approximate age of the individuals, while war wounds were also uncovered including amputations and fractures resulting from gunshot. Dental analysis showed traces suggesting they may have opened gunpowder bags with their teeth, a common practice for Napoleonic-era soldiers. Radiocarbon technology dated the skeletons to the early 19th century, while DNA analysis showed they came from various parts of Europe. This combination of factors, according to scientists, suggests that the men were soldiers at the Battle of the Three Emperors on 2 December 1805.

A young man died last night in the center of Prague as the result of a hit-and-run incident at a tram stop in Ječná street. The driver fled the scene of the incident, and despite the efforts of witnesses and later emergency services, the 22-year-old victim died as a result of his injuries.

Police began a search for the driver who left the scene, but a 20-year-old male subsequently handed himself in to the police. The fatal incident also resulted in serious disruption to various tram lines; it has been claimed the incident occurred because the car which struck and killed the victim was driving on tram tracks.

Charles University’s first ever female rector, Milena Králíčková, has said one of her biggest goals as head of the university will be to achieve equal representation for women in academia.

Králíčková said that while gender equality has already been secured in some areas of academia, in others women still do not enjoy the same opportunities as men. In an interview with Czech Radio, Králíčková also said the university will strive to make its research competitive on an international level in order to attract more foreign academics.

Eurowings, a subsidiary of German aviation giant Lufthansa, will cooperate with Czech airline Smartwings for operations at Prague Airport. The airlines have made a codeshare agreement for marketing flights, meaning selected Eurowings connections will also be offered by Smartwings sales channels.

The agreement will open up a number of direct connections to and from the Czech capital to Smartwings customers, as part of the re-establishment of international flight routes following cancelations due to the Covid pandemic. Eurowings is now operating 14 new European routes from Prague, and by summer next year, it will station three Airbus A320 aircraft in the Czech capital.

A consortium including Penta Real Estate, the Kaprain Group and the Sekyra Group has bought land from the University of Chemical Technology in the western section of Prague’s Vítězné náměstí for just over CZK 1 billion. The plot totals 20,122 square meters, between Evropská and Jugoslávských partizánů streets.

The development consortium wants to build offices and shops on the land, while using some of it for apartments. The group has announced that an international competition will be held for the concept for the multifunctional buildings to be constructed on the site. The University of Chemical Technology meanwhile aims to use funds raised by the sale for the construction of a new building for staff and students.