Brezhnev Monastery in Prague: dedicated to all fans of antiquity and beer.
This year it happened that in September we were again in Prague for a few days. I can not call myself a crazy fan of this city, but in general I love Prague and admire it endlessly, in its streets and squares I am comfortable and, despite the usual whirlpool of tourists, calm, and Prague (Czech) beer speaks for itself and in does not require a separate presentation. : )
Due to the fact that visiting Prague was not the first and the main tourist minimum - Old Town Square, Orloj, Church of the Virgin Mary in front of Tyn, Wenceslas on horseback and Wenceslas under horseback, St. Vitus Cathedral, Royal Palace, Charles Bridge, etc. . performed and overfulfilled more than once, then on this trip it was planned to pay tribute to the slow movement and even slower gastronomic pleasure (read - beer)! ; ))
BUT! I did not want to lead a sybarite life (not in our character), the soul still asked for some innovations and discoveries.
And here I saw (for the first time in all my visits to Prague) information about the Brzevniwski Monastery! That's about the Strahov Monastery, I think, only the lazy do not know, and Brzhevnovsky somehow not yet covered by mass tourists (as for me, so it is for the better). When I learned that there was a brewery there, the doubts disappeared and we put the monastery in our Prague plans in almost one of the first places.
Thus, the Brzevnov Monastery (B? Evnovsk? Kl ? ? ter), which today is one of the most prominent architectural ensembles in Prague (for all its architectural splendor), was founded in 993 (! ). Its founders are considered to be the Czech Prince Boleslav II together with Bishop Vojtech (Adalbert of Prague).
According to legend, they "negotiated" the creation of the first Benedictine monastery in the Czech Republic during their chance meeting on the bridge over the cranberry creek, which then flowed through the territory of the current monastery. And the bridge consisted of one log, from which ("b? Evno" - a piece of wood) came the name Brzhevnivsky Monastery.
Initially, the monastery was a wooden church in the Doroman style, inhabited by only 12 Italian monks. In 1040, on the initiative of Prince Brzetislav I, the monastery was completely rebuilt in stone in the Romanesque style. Probably many (especially those who have visited the Czech Republic before and were interested in its history) remember the so-called Battle of White Mountain, associated with the Hussite wars. Vague, of course, but the very phrase White Mountain somehow stuck in my memory.
However, few people know that it was from this White Mountain that the material was taken - the backbone in order to build in those distant times the first male monastery in the Czech lands of the Benedictine Order.
The center of the complex was a three-nave church, built like a basilica. In 1045 it was consecrated in honor of St. Vojtech. At the behest of the same Brzetislav I, a school was built on the territory of the monastery. A scriptorium was opened - a writing workshop, in which the Visegrad Code was created in 1085.
From the beginning of the XIII century the abbey was built in the early Gothic style. After reconstruction, the monastery was again destroyed twice: during the Hussite uprising and during the Thirty Years' War. Today we see the monastery almost as it was after the reconstruction of the XVIII century (1708-1745), carried out according to the plan of architects Kilian Ignace and his father, Christoph Dinzenhofer.
During the Seven Years' War, the monastery church became a hospital.
During the reform of Joseph II, the monastery in Brzeznow was not closed due to the great contribution of its abbot Františ ek Stefan Rauntenstrauch to the reform of higher education, theology and law.
After World War II in 1947, the then abbot of the monastery was arrested and imprisoned, the monks were deported, and the monastery was closed in 1951, causing the monastery's buildings to gradually decline. But in 1990, the monastery was returned to the Benedictine Order, which quickly rebuilt it with state support and foreign sponsors - mostly from Germany.
Since 1991, the Brzevnivsky Monastery has been declared a cultural monument of the Czech Republic, and in 1997 (to the millennium since the death of one of the founders of the monastery - St. Vojtech) the monastery was personally visited by Pope John Paul II, who awarded Brzeznov Abbey an honorary title.
The World Organization of UNESCO considers the complex of the Brzewna Monastery among other historical monuments for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Getting to the Brzevniwski Monastery today is not difficult, although it is located at some distance from the center (Prague 6, Mark? Tsk? 1/28). We did it on the famous Prague tram of the 22nd route, which, in my opinion, passes by all the famous sights of Prague. ; ) Leaving the bus stop of the same name, you will immediately see near the monastery building. Today the complex consists of the prelatory building and the Basilica of St. Margaret, a three-storey convent complex with outbuildings near the church, a terrace garden with a well, St. Joseph's Chapel and outbuildings. We should not forget about the Klusterny Shenk (Kl? Tern? Enk): ).
For organized visits, the monastery offers 2 sightseeing tours on weekends (Saturday and Sunday): in the Basilica of St. Market and in the prelature with the Theresian Hall (cost, in my opinion, 80 crowns). On other days, this can be done only by prior reservation (contacts can be found on the website of the monastery http:// www. Brevnov. Cz /). But you can walk through the monastery park, look at the Cathedral of St. Market and taste the monastery beer any day and absolutely free (except beer, of course : )).
So, after walking literally 200 meters from the stop, we approach the entrance (by the way, on the way you will see an open wooden gate, but it is not the main, so to speak, entrance, and passage to the farmyard, although through it you also enter the monastery get: )). The central entrance to the monastery is a gate decorated with a sculptural image of St. Benedict among the angels by KI Hiernl, built in 1740.
The angels hold the coat of arms of the Brezhnev Monastery, which is based on two symbols: a roughly hewn piece of wood - a log and a rose with five petals. As you remember, the monastery appeared on the site of a log across the river, which is engraved in the coat of arms, and the rose is usually considered to be a symbol of the Slavnikovich family, from which the main founder of the monastery - St. Wojciech.
Then we had an incident - we planned to first wander the monastery and get acquainted with its cultural monuments, and then indulge in the sin of gluttony. But the Lord made adjustments to our plans by pouring rain, as a result of which we first found ourselves in the Cluster Schoon, which is now in the building of the former stables. Probably due to this, the hall is very spacious, there are many tables, there is a certain spirit of antiquity.
But I must say that almost all the tables had signs with the reservation, but it started somewhere from 18.00, so during the day you can stay in the pub without any problems, but in the evening the reservation is desirable.
According to history, the brewery appeared here at about the same time as the monastery, but the first written mention of it dates back to the thirteenth century. During the Hussite wars, the brewery, like other farm buildings, was destroyed, and the construction of a new one, according to monastery chronicles, took place in 1720.
To date, the brewery offers about 5 beers: classic light camp, dark, B? evnovsk? Benedict and something else - I do not remember, although I tried everything. Maybe that's why I don't remember? ; ) Beer prices are slightly inflated, but generally acceptable. But be careful with the portions - we, as always, made a traditional mistake for Czech beer: instead of the planned portion of fried ribs for two (declared weight of about 800 grams).
), for some reason we also ordered stewed rabbit and bramboraki (potato pancakes in our way). And as a compliment from the institution they brought us a large loaf of fresh bread with several types of "spreads". In general, as my husband said at the end of the meal: "I have never admired any cultural object in my life for so long…", referring to the Cathedral of St. Market, which we could contemplate throughout our long meal. : ))
But finally, the meal is over and the central alley we go to the church of St. Marketa (Margarita). This basilica was consecrated in honor of St. Margaret of Antioch, because some of its relics are kept in the monastery from the thirteenth century, or rather, from 1262, when they were donated to the abbey by King Przemysl Otakar II. This was the beginning of the cult of this holy martyr, patroness of agriculture and pregnant women in the Czech Republic.
And the monastery has since been called the Benedictine Archdiocese of St. Wojciech and St. Margaret (Benediktinsk? Arciopatstv? St. Vojt? Cha and St. Mark? Ty).
Due to this, the Holy Market has become extremely popular in the Czech lands, despite the fact that it has lived so long and long ago. The fact is that on the day of this saint in the Czech Republic from ancient times began harvesting. An old folk sign says that the Holy Market threw a sickle into the wheat, so it has long been considered the patron saint of agriculture and a rich harvest. Since before the existence of almost everyone depended on a good harvest, when it became known that the relics of the Holy Market rest here, crowds of pilgrims came here. Today it is hard to imagine, but at that time every year up to 10.000 pilgrims came here.
Today's appearance of the basilica dates back to 1708-35. It is a classic example of radical baroque.
The main altar was created in 1718 by the carver Joseph Dobner, the altar sculptures were created by MV Yakel. He created statues for side altars. The altar painting was made by artist Peter Brandl. (Feel the last names ?! ). In the southern part of the church is the tomb of St. Gü nther. The choir is decorated with statues by Richard Prachner; inlaid benches were made by Jan Sichmü ller in the 18th century. Under the choir is a three-sided crypt of the Romanesque era.
In 1948, Pope Pius XII awarded the Cathedral of St. Market the honorary title of "Basilica Minor", which emphasizes the uniqueness of the church.
The temple has an ancient organ. It was created in 1725 by the famous master Tobias Meissner. And although photography is forbidden in the temple, and I usually listen to such prohibitions, I could not stay here! I was impressed by the organ gallery, framed by white angels.
The picture was taken on the phone, so as not to click in this blessed silence with the camera shutter, so immediately sorry for the quality.
And another "curiosity": in addition to the relics of St. Margaret since 1993 in the cathedral is a fragment of the relics of St. Wojciech, which was brought here from the Cathedral of St. Vitus on the occasion of the millennium since the founding of Brzeznow Monastery.
Behind the cathedral is the building of the abbey prelature. Its most interesting room is the hall named after Maria Theresa of Theresa. Behind him is a room with a painting by A. Tuvora and a Chinese salon with exotic landscapes by the same author. The convent building also has a chapter hall with a fresco of Christ on the ceiling. We could not see this beauty with our own eyes, because we visited the monastery on weekdays, but for an organized weekend tour, as I said, all this is available.
Next is a large garden with a summer palace with the amusing name Vojt ? ? ka (Vojt ? ? ka) and a well of the same name. According to the information board, Wojciech was erected at the meeting place of Boleslaw II and St. Wojciech. The garden consists of cherry, sour cherry and apple trees. I imagine how chic it is there in the spring during flowering! Also good, I think, in June, when you can eat cherries and sour cherries. In September, we saw a fairly large size of apples, which are freely available to visitors to the garden, which (visitors) we could also see those who sit on benches and enjoy chewing the gifts of the monastery. : )
It was amusing that the monks did not leave the garden with their worries and supported it by planting young trees. And each tree is carefully wrapped around the trunk with something like straw litter. The man suggested that the trees protect against hares.
I thought - well, what hares, he can see high-rise buildings three hundred meters away, and the tram is nearby. How wrong I was! What she was able to see exactly a second after "thinking up" this idea and seeing the brazenly huge gray hare, jumping intently along the walls of the monastery. I rushed after him shouting: "Hare, wait-and-and-and! ! ! ! ! ». But the hare flatly refused to pose for me, so I can't provide the public with documentary evidence of the meeting! : )
There is also a small greenhouse along the wall, as well as a nice fountain. For relaxed contemplation - that's it! If you walk along the wall to the end, you can go outside the monastery to the city park, where the same attraction reigns (perhaps due to its proximity to the monastery): a pond, weeping willows leaning over it, leisurely ducks ...Idyll!
But ...other sights of Prague are waiting for us!
And now I can safely recommend the Brzevn Monastery to visit, because, as it was said in one of the Czech radio programs, “It is not only a wonderful monument of antiquity, but also a place where the eye and the soul rejoice. Well, who is not very receptive in the field of these senses, he certainly has a chance to understand the taste buds - this is where the oldest tradition of brewing in the Czech Republic! " : )
