Havel brings Prague on to streets again

A procession of mourners crosses the Charles Bridge in Prague (AP)

Thousands of Czechs lined the cobblestone streets of Prague yesterday as soldiers carried the coffin of former President Vaclav Havel on his last public journey – to Prague Castle – where his body will lie in state until his funeral tomorrow.

His widow, Dagmar Havlova, led thousands of mourners following the playwright-president's body. She was joined by leading figures from the Czech Republic who paid tribute to the man who led 1989's "Velvet Revolution" when Havel inspired the country to end Communist rule. He died on Sunday aged 75.