Visiting Prague

Statue of St. Wenceslas was designed by Karel Böhm based on Josef Kamil Führing design and erected in 1858. The statue was commissioned by the Institute of blind at Klárov, Prague. St. Wenceslas is the most important patron the national hero who was the king of Bohemia in the 10th century (907-929) as it says on the front of monument in Latin. He took the throne at the age of 18 and was loved for his generosity but hated by the pagan nobility for encouraging Christianity. He got name “Good King Wencelsas” but eventually was brutally murdered by his brother, the appropriately named Boleslav the Cruel. Later Vaclav was canonized as the patron saint of Bohemia and also remembered in the famous Christmas carol.

Many legends and stories tell us about St. Wenceslaus. One of them says that when the Czech Republic is in its darkest times or in danger close to ruin, statue of King Wenceslaus in Wenceclaus Square will come to life, raise the army sleeping in Blaník – the mountain in Czech Republic, directs to the Charles Bridge over a stone that will reveal the legendary sword of Bruncvík. With this sword, King Wenceslaus will destroy all the enemies and save the Czech Republic by bringing peace and prosperity to the land. St. Wenceslas’s feast day is celebrated on September 28 and since the year 2000 it became a public holiday in the Czech Republic, celebrated as Czech Statehood Day.

Trackback URI |