Great

AM making my annual visit to Olomouc, which was an important settlement - possibly the capital - of the Greater Moravian Empire in the late 800s and early 900s.

Its walls defied Mongols and Hungarians, but proved less successful at stopping Swedes and Prussians.

Much of the defences still exist, partly because the town's predominantly German-speaking population kept the walls to ensure the city's population did not become dominated by Slavs.

The following photos are all from a short section of the walls near Olomouc's botanical garden.