The Bohemian Chancellery

The Chancellery is located on the first floor of the Ludvík Wing of the Old Royal Palace and for two centuries was the office of the Royal Governors of Bohemia.

The Chancellery comprises a large chamber with Gothic vaulting and a smaller assembly room. A partition wall, featuring a Renaissance doorway, and a monogram of Ludvík Jagiello, separate the two rooms.

On May 23 1618 a famous historic event took place at the Bohemian Chancellery: Prague’s second defenestration. Governors Jaroslav Bořita of Martinice and Vilém Slavata of Chlum (and their secretary) were thrown out of the chancellery window. They survived, landing in a dung heap below. The incident is said to have been the cause of the Thirty Years‘ War.