Praha Břevnov monastery from SE DSCN0284

Břevnov Monastery ( cs, Břevnovský klášter, german: Stift Breunau) is a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

archabbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conc ...

in the

Břevnov Břevnov () is a district in the west of Prague, located in Prague 6. The district is home to the Břevnov Monastery (Czech: ''Břevnovský klášter''). On the territory of Břevnov stems Brusnice brook. Břevnov was first mentioned in the 10th c ...

district of

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, Czech Republic. It was founded by Saint Adalbert, the second

Bishop of Prague The following is a list of bishops and archbishops of Prague. The bishopric of Prague was established in 973, and elevated to an archbishopric on 30 April 1344. The current Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Prague is the continual successor of the bi ...

, in 993 AD with the support of Bohemian Duke Boleslaus II. The first Benedictine male monastery in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

, it also has the oldest tradition of beer brewing in the Czech Republic. Brewing was interrupted several times in the history, but up to today, the

Břevnov Monastery Brewery The Břevnov Monastery Brewery ( cs: ''Břevnovský klášterní pivovar'', longform: ''St. Adalbert Břevnov Monastery Brewery'') follows up on the oldest documented brewery in the Czech Republic, the Břevnov Monastery including its brewery was ...

brew its beer here.Břevnovský Benedict
/ref>

History

The monastery was founded in 993 by

Adalbert of Prague Adalbert of Prague ( la, Sanctus Adalbertus, cs, svatý Vojtěch, sk, svätý Vojtech, pl, święty Wojciech, hu, Szent Adalbert (Béla); 95623 April 997), known in the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia by his birth name Vojtěch ( la, Vo ...

. Adalbert of Prague left Bohemia in 994 for having disputes with ruler. The new impulse came with the Czech Duke

Bretislav I Bretislav I ( cs, Břetislav I.; 1002/1005 – 10 January 1055), known as the "Bohemian Achilles", of the Přemyslid dynasty, was Duke of Bohemia from 1034 until his death. Youth Bretislav was the son of Duke Oldřich and his low-born concubin ...

who started construction on stone church and who managed for the monastery remains of Gunther of Bohemia, the monk from

Niederaltaich Abbey Niederaltaich Abbey (Abtei or Kloster Niederaltaich) is a house of the Benedictine Order founded in 741, situated in the village of Niederalteich on the Danube in Bavaria. Foundation and early history After its foundation in 741 by Duke Odilo o ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

. Filial monasteries were established at Broumov and

Police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

in northern Bohemia. During the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, European monarchs loyal to the Cat ...

in the 1420s, abbot and convent fled to Broumov and the entire monastery including brewery were nearly destroyed. After the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

, the construction of a

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

monastery complex has been realized under Abbot Othmar Daniel Zinke in 1708–1740 according to plans designed by

Christoph Dientzenhofer Christoph Dientzenhofer ( cs, Kryštof Dientzenhofer) (born 7 July 1655 in St. Margarethen near Brannenburg, Landkreis Rosenheim - 20 June 1722 in Prague)Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer ( cs, Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer) (1 September 1689, Prague – 18 December 1751) was a Bohemian architect of the Baroque era. He was the fifth son of the German architect Christoph Dientzenhofer and the Bohemian-Ge ...

, with altarpieces by

Petr Brandl Petr Brandl (Peter Johannes Brandl or Jan Petr Brandl) (24 October 1668 – 24 September 1735) was a Czech painter of the late Baroque in the bilingual Kingdom of Bohemia. Brandl was the sixth child in a Czech-German family. His father, Michal ...

, a ceiling fresco by

Cosmas Damian Asam Cosmas Damian Asam (29 September 1686 – 10 May 1739) was a German painter and architect during the late Baroque period. Born in Benediktbeuern, he lived in Rome from 1711 to 1713 to study at the Accademia di San Luca with Carlo Maratt ...

and stucco works by his brother

Egid Quirin Asam Egid Quirin Asam (1 September 1692 – 29 April 1750) was a German plasterer, sculptor, architect, and painter. He was active during the Late Baroque and Rococo periods. Born in Tegernsee, Bavaria, Asam worked mainly together with his brothe ...

. At the same time the annual production of beer reached up to 5,000 hl. After the

German occupation of Czechoslovakia German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

in 1938, the monastery was seized by

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

forces during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and finally expropriated by the Communist Czechoslovak government in 1950. Abbot Anastáz Opasek (1913–1999) was condemned for high treason and espionage in a

show trial A show trial is a public trial in which the judicial authorities have already determined the guilt or innocence of the defendant. The actual trial has as its only goal the presentation of both the accusation and the verdict to the public so th ...

, the monastery was dissolved and the remaining monks were deported, if they had not fled to Bavarian

Braunau in Rohr Abbey Braunau in Rohr Abbey (Kloster Braunau in Rohr) is a Benedictine monastery, formerly Rohr Abbey, a monastery of the Augustinian Canons, in Rohr in Niederbayern in the district of Kelheim in Bavaria, Germany. Rohr Abbey: First foundation The monas ...

re-established by their Broumov brothers in 1946. The complex was used until 1990 by the

StB State Security ( cs, Státní bezpečnost, sk, Štátna bezpečnosť) or StB / ŠtB, was the secret police force in communist Czechoslovakia from 1945 to its dissolution in 1990. Serving as an intelligence and counter-intelligence agency, it d ...

, after the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution ( cs, Sametová revoluce) or Gentle Revolution ( sk, Nežná revolúcia) was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations agains ...

, was thoroughly repaired from 1991 until its 1000-years-jubilee in 1993. In 1997 it was visited by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

and was elevated to the rank of an Archabbey. The monastery served as the basis for the Red Rose Mansion (2005) in

Naoki Urasawa is a Japanese manga artist and musician. He has been drawing manga since he was four years old, and for most of his professional career has created two series simultaneously. The stories to many of these were co-written in collaboration with his ...

's noted anime/manga series '' Monster''. The brewery at Břevnov Monastery re-opened after brewing hiatus of about 120 years in 2011.

(Břevnovský klášterní pivovar) brews its beer under the brand ''Břevnovský Benedict''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brevnov Monastery 993 establishments 10th-century establishments in Bohemia Christian monasteries established in the 10th century Basilica churches in the Czech Republic Churches in Prague Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer buildings Baroque architecture in Prague Baroque church buildings in the Czech Republic Baroque monasteries Catholic architecture Roman Catholic churches in the Czech Republic Benedictine monasteries in the Czech Republic Christian monasteries in Prague National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic