CROSSING A MELANCHOLIC, ANCIENT REGION
Starting point: Znojmo
Steeped in history, the former royal town of Znojmo, permeated with a southern-style atmosphere, owes its fame primarily to Benedictine monks from the once grand Baroque Louka monastery, who grew cucumbers and produced delicious wine here. A stone rotunda, one of the oldest Romanesque relics to be found in Central Europe, is the only surviving remnant of a castle which once overlooked the town. It is graced with rare murals on religious themes, which also present a unique family tree of the Poemyslids, the first ruling dynasty of the Czech Lands. The high Gothic Church of St Nicholas, the dominant feature of this town located on the steep bank of the River Dyje, boasts a magnificent Baroque interior. The adjacent Chapel of St Wenceslas, the patron saint of the Czech Lands, now serves as a house of prayer for the Russian Orthodox Church.

Tišnov
This 13th-century convent, the only female Cistercian monastery in the country, used to be referred to as the Poerta Coeli (Heavenly Gate). This is the impression produced by the fascinating stone portal of the monastic Church of the Assumption, a splendid example of an artistic style which emerged at a time when the Romanesque style was giving way to the Gothic. The former monastery, now home to a regional museum, is open to the general public.

Želiv
In the Baroque period, architect Giovanni Santini added a magnificent pilgrimage church, dedicated to the Birth of the Virgin Mary, to the local ancient Premonstratensian monastery. A host of marked tourist routes run towards this place, crossing the rather melancholic landscape of the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands, a region ideal for hiking and cycling.

Třebíč
The town of Toebíe developed in the early Middle Ages from a small settlement located below a 13th-century Benedictine monastery with a monumental stone basilica consecrated to St Procopius, a masterpiece of the Romanesque style of importance for Europe. Also in the early Middle Ages, a Jewish ghetto, one of the largest in Bohemia and Moravia, was located next to the Catholic monastery. It contained a large Jewish cemetery which has survived to this day.

TIP: Kralice - the Memorial of the Bible of Kralice In the 16th and the 17th centuries, this inconspicuous Moravian settlement provided shelter for a clandestine printing workshop of the Union of Brethren, a reform-oriented Christian community supporting the development of education and Czech literature. Its most valuable product, the Kralice Bible, was translated into Czech from the original languages of the Old and New Testaments. Kept in secret by families during the period of counter-reformation, the bible passed on from one generation to another, providing a basis for the development of the modern Czech language. The museum is open to the general public all year round, except for Monday. .

TOURING SOUTHERN BOHEMIA
Starting point: Český Krumlov
This medieval town nestling in picturesque meanders of the River Vltava below the Šumava mountains, owes its unique atmosphere to the symbiosis of a compact Gothic cum Renaissance town and a magnificent huge chateau complex perched on the rocks above it. The triple-nave Church of St Vitus forms a dignified counterpart to the chateau. Dating from the second half of the 14th century, it contains valuable reticulated vaults. Adjacent to the church’s outer stairs stands a Gothic house, the residence of the curate, whose front facade is one of the oldest Renaissance relics to be found outside Prague.

Vyšší Brod
Founded in the 13th century by a powerful nobleman, Vok of Rožmberk, this Cistercian monastery served as the focal point for the colonization of Southern Bohemia. The estate comprises the monastery proper, outbuildings, an abbey and a church. The core of the estate is a Gothic church, whose chapter hall has preserved authentic portals, windows and vaults. The Baroque period contributed, among other things, a huge monastic library and fine artistic collections to the monastery. Part of the monastery is home to a postal museum.

Zlatá Koruna
In the 13th century, when the region was undergoing colonization, this fortified Cistercian monastery was used by the monarch as a bulwark against the expansionism of the Rožmberk noble family. The monastery received a thorn from the crown of Jesus Christ (Zlatá Koruna translates into English as Golden Crown) as a gift from the King of France. The picturesque complex of the former monastery is a treasury of architectural gems, including the early Gothic vaults of the chapter hall and the Chapel of Guardian Angels.


Římov
This village boasts a Loreto chapel with cloisters and the Church of the Holy Ghost linked to a six kilometre-long Baroque pilgrimage circuit. Known as the Oímov Passions, it is lined with chapels and Stations of the Cross graced with wooden and stone statues.

Sv. Kámen (Holy Stone)
Located in a military zone on the border, this lovely small church consecrated to Our Lady of Snow is an example of a pilgrimage site which, although abandoned in 1949 to its fate, has been restored to its former glory thanks to a joint effort on the part of Czech and Austrian Catholics.

Klokoty
In this place a chapel was built in the vicinity of a well, near to which the Virgin Mary reputedly revealed herself before a group of small shepherds. Later on, a Baroque pilgrimage complex originated here and was connected to the neighbouring historical town of Tábor by a sweet-smelling alley of century-old linden trees, the Way of the Cross. The ten towers of the local church, with their ten lovely ringing bells, resemble the hands of the Virgin Mary clasped in prayer. This lively pilgrimage site is a much sought-after focus of the religious community. The main celebration takes place here on the Sunday nearest to August 15, on the Day of the Assumption.

TIP: The Aleš Gallery of Southern Bohemia in the Hluboká Chateau
The riding school of the attractive romantic Hluboká Chateau is home to a fine collection of Gothic statues and panel paintings brought here from churches located throughout Southern Bohemia and the Šumava (Bohemian Forest) Region. Created in the period from the second half of the 13th century to the early 16th century, these artefacts include, among others, masterpieces of the so-called beautiful style - statues of the Madonna distinguished by their lyrical charm and the perfect execution of their robes.

MONUMENTS OF THE CATHOLIC FAITH
Starting point: Plzeň
The capital city of Western Bohemia is dominated by the one hundred metre-high tower of the archdecanal Church of St Bartholomew located in the middle of a large square. Visible from far away, it is the highest tower to be found in Bohemia. It is mainly thanks to its late Gothic vaulting and medieval decoration that St Bartholomew’s Church ranks among the most valuable national monuments.


Kladruby
This former Benedictine monastery was founded in 1115 as an important political and colonization centre of royal power in the region. In the early 18th century, the original Romanesque monastic church was remodelled in the totally unique Baroque-Gothic style according to a grand design by the architect Santini. Guided tours of the historical interiors are conducted during the summer season.


Teplá
In recent years, this ancient monastery returned to the care of the Premonstratensian order. Sorely used over the course of centuries, the monastery has nevertheless survived the hardships of wars, plundering, looting, fires and plague epidemics, as well as years of restrictions and devastation under the communist regime, as documented by an exhibition dedicated to the plight of the clergy in Czechoslovak prisons and internment camps in the years 1948-89. The monastery is being renovated in stages, and its splendid Baroque interiors (the convent, the church, the valuable library and artistic collections) are open for guided tours. Visitors can also take advantage of the local hotel and golf course.

Plasy
In the Baroque period a grand Cistercian monastic complex was built in the swampy valley near the River Teplá, on a site once occupied by an old monastery. The architect Santini daringly based part of the complex on oak piles with grates, using an ingenious system of conservation based on the maintainance of a constant surface of free groundwater. The former monastery, with its magnificent Baroque church, chapel, library hall, hospital and outbuildings is open for guided tours during the summer season.

Mariánská Týnice
In the Baroque period, Mariánská Týnice, the property of the Cistercian monks from Plasy from 1230 onwards, was converted into a grand complex with a pilgrimage church and an administrative building, which at the same time served as a shelter for aged members of the monastic community. The former monastery is now home to a regional museum of national history and geography and an art gallery which is open throughout the year. A Marian celebration is held here at the beginning of September, on the Day of the Virgin Mary.

TIP: Rožmitál pod Třemšínem: The J. J. Ryba Memorial
Czech Christmas would be unimaginable without a midnight visit to a church and a lovely musical mass, the lyrics of which catch on quickly among the people. The composer, Jan Jakub Ryba, was employed as a schoolmaster in the local school from 1788 onwards. While visiting the lovely local rural church, you can listen to the sound of the organ on which Ryba used to perform. A memorial hall dedicated to the composer can be found in the small town museum, and a simple monument in the nearby forest marks the place where this self-sacrificing patriot passed his time away.

HEADING TO THE NORTH
Starting point: Litoměřice
This urban monument reserve, the seat of the Litomioice diocese, boasts a wealth of ecclesiastical monuments provided from the 13th century onwards by diverse religious orders and Catholic bishops. The most notable of them, the Baroque Cathedral of St Stephen, features splendid painted and sculptural decorations .

Louny
The panoramic view of this historical town, partly enclosed by medieval walls, is governed by the three late Gothic tent-shaped roofs of St Nicolas’s Church, a masterpiece of Benedict Ried, an architect in the service of Vladislav Jagiello at his court in Prague Castle.

Osek
Construction work on this huge Cistercian abbey commenced in the 12th century, at a time when the hitherto desolate area along the Czech-German border was undergoing colonization, and continued up to the Baroque period, during the abbey‘s heyday. It was also in the Baroque period that the abbey acquired a prospering farm and a complex of gardens graced with a sophisticated water system, pavilions and sculptural decoration. The chapter hall of the old Gothic convent has preserved a rare reading stand fashioned from stone. Tours of the monastery are conducted during the summer season.

Bohosudov
Serving as a barracks for Soviet troops between 1968 and 1990, this Jesuit pilgrimage complex has returned to the control of the church and restoration work is currently underway to return it to its original high Baroque beauty. Legend has it that a miraclous statuette of the Virgin Mary, made from clay, was left here by a group of nuns on the run. Situated on the main altar of the local church, the statuette shines like a sun casting seven rays symbolizing the seven sorrows of the Virgin Mary. The monumental church, encircled by seven chapels and a closed cloister, has room for up to 5,000 people. Believers come here mainly in mid-September to take part in the chief celebration of the year.

Hejnice
This border pilgrimage site, distinguished by its magnificent location in the landscape, can be approached from Liberec by a medieval pilgrimage road. The main attraction of this place, frequently referred to as ”the Czech Mariazell”, is a lovely statuette of the Virgin Mary known as the Mater formosa (Lovely Mother). The side altar of the Hejnice Baroque church contains a stump of a memorable linden tree, the hollow trunk of which reportedly hid the statuette of the Virgin Mary in the past. Every year, on May 8, pilgrims from the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland arrive in Hejnice to take part in a Marian celebration.

TIP: The relocated Gothic church in the town of Most
In 1975 this Gothic church featuring unique vaults with double-curved ribs had to give way to an open-cast coal mine. An extraordinarily sophisticated technical operation was devised to transport the 9,600 tonne structure to a new, safer place. In the space of 28 days, the church covered a distance of 841.6 metres, moving along a specially adjusted route at a speed of 3 centimetres per hour.