Velvet Hradec: Celebrating 17 November in Hradec Králové

Join us on November 17, 2025, to celebrate the Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day and International Students’ Day in Hradec Králové.

A group of students from the University of Hradec Králové, Charles University, and the University of Defence, in cooperation with local cultural institutions, has prepared a rich programme culminating in a candlelight procession through the city centre.

The procession will begin symbolically at Václav Havel Square in the UHK Na Soutoku campus and continue into the city. Along the route, participants will stop for several cultural activities – first at the Museum of Eastern Bohemia, then at the Faculty of Medicine of Charles University, and finally at the Klicpera Theatre, where the event will conclude with a traditional happening.

Full programme:

2:00 p.m.–5:11 p.m. – Afternoon programme at the Na Soutoku campus, University of Hradec Králové

• Talks with witnesses, photography exhibitions, and screenings of documentaries from 1989

• Concert by the UHK Mixed Choir and Chamber Orchestra

• Educational activities for children

• Candlelight procession

5:11 p.m. – Start of the procession at Václav Havel Square in the Na Soutoku campus
Opening with the song Modlitba pro Martu ("A Prayer for Marta")

5:40 p.m.–5:45 p.m. – Philosophical Faculty, UHK (náměstí Svobody 331)
Brief stop to light candles

5:55 p.m.–6:15 p.m. – Museum of Eastern Bohemia (Eliščino nábřeží 465/7)
Projection on the museum building recalling the key moments of November 1989

6:30 p.m.–6:45 p.m. – Faculty of Medicine, Charles University (Šimkova 870)
Exhibition “1989 at the Faculty of Medicine”
Musical performance by students

7:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m. – Happening at the Klicpera Theatre (Dlouhá 99/9)
Traditional projection on the theatre building
Live concert