In the middle of the 19th century there were a lot of political changes in Europe. Prague had been part of the Austrian Empire. The official language was German. Bohemia (which included Prague) and Moravia now form the area of the Czech Republic. In the 19th century the Czechs in these areas wanted to be able to put on plays and operas in the Czech language. The National Theatre was built at a time when this was starting to become possible.