St. Procopius Basilica () is a Romanesque- Gothic Christian church in

Třebíč Třebíč (; ) is a town in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 35,000 inhabitants. The beginnings of the town's history are connected with the establishment of a Benedictines, Benedictine monastery, where the castle is loca ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. It was built on the site of the original Virgin Mary's Chapel of the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

in 1240–1280. It became a national cultural monument in 2002 as a part of the "monastery with St. Procopius church". The basilica together with the Jewish Quarter in Třebíč were inscribed as a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

in 2003, because of their exceptional testimony to the exchange of culture and values in the regions. The basilica was originally dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Saint Procopius became the

Patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of the basilica on the quincentenary his

canonization Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christianity, Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon ca ...

in 1704. Jan Karel, Count of Valdštejn established a castle chapel of St. Procopius from the presbytery of the basilica. , the renovated Třebíč castle is a museum adjacent to the Basilica.The castle: Vysočina Museum Třebíč
at

History

The history of the basilica is closely associated with the history of the former

. Before the basilica was constructed there was a chapel of St. Procopius, which was built in the year 1104 and was consecrated by Heřman, Bishop of

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. Five years later, the monastery already had its own church. This was consecrated in year 1109 by then Bishop of Prague, Jan II. In the

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

of the church Duke Litold Znojemský was buried, one of the founders of the monastery, and three years later his brother and Duke Oldřich Brněnský, the second founder of the monastery, was likewise interred. The monastery grew rich and its influence swelled. For about half of the 13th century the monastery was rebuilt and fortified. This reconstruction was started in about the year 1240 and finished in the year 1260. The reconstruction meant the disappearance of

romanesque architecture Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe that was predominant in the 11th and 12th centuries. The style eventually developed into the Gothic style with the shape of the arches providing a simple distinction: the Ro ...

in the monastery, but allowed for the new basilica to be built. The basilica is preserved in its original style to this day.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:St. Procopius Basilica in Trebic World Heritage Sites in the Czech Republic Basilica churches in the Czech Republic Gothic architecture in the Czech Republic Romanesque architecture in the Czech Republic Buildings and structures in the Vysočina Region Tourist attractions in the Vysočina Region

History

See also

References