CZECH MARIAN CULTURE

And Its Influence On The Czech Cultural Narrative

James M. Bjacek

INTRODUCTION

The modern Czech nation is thoroughly secular in national outlook and often, as a whole,

treats religion either with outright contempt or simple disinterest. But this was not always so. For

the majority of the time since the concept of a Czech nation existed religion was a major issue,

whether it entailed Catholics, Protestant Hussites, or the Eastern Orthodox. The focus of this

paper, however will be on a Catholic element: the Marian culture that came from the rich

Catholic heritage in the Czech lands.

The Three Marian sites this paper will look at will be Svaty Hostyn, Stara Boleslav, and

the Marian Column of Prague. These three examples are the three most important Marian sites in

the Czech Republic and they have had historical significance in the cultural narrative of the

Czech peoples. The first Marian shrine this paper will look at is Svaty Hostyn on the hill called

Mount Hostyn in Moravia.

SVATY HOSTYN

The hill called Mount Hostyn is located in the Northeast part of the Moravia region,

which is the eastern half of what is now known as the Czech Republic. The paradox of Moravia

is that it has its own unique culture and history but at the same time inextricably linked to the

greater Czech culture. The reason for this is that Moravians are not of the Česky tribe that

inhabits the western half of the Czech lands (a region known as Bohemia). In fact, the Moravians

(the Moravsky) had, until 955 AD, a separate national history from the neighboring Czechs. We

hear of Cyril and Methodius bringing Christianity to the Moravian people and developing a

Slavic liturgy based upon the Greek Christian tradition and of the Great Moravian Empire that

encompassed Moravia, Hungary, Slovakia and parts of Ukraine, Poland, and Romania. But this

empire slowly crumbled in the face of nomadic horseman from the east: the Magyars, the

Mongols and the Tartars.

These tribes were pagan, they had never heard of Christianity, but they did hear of the

easy pickings in the Christian lands. One group, the Mongols subdued another group, the Tartars

and incorporated them into their massive horde. As the Mongols pressed westward, so did the

Tartars. Soon this vast horde was upon the Slavic lands known as Moravia, drastically smaller

than its glory days. The year was 1241 AD, and a wing of the hybrid army of Mongols and

Tartars was poised to strike into the fertile lands of the Czechs and Moravians. At this time, the

Moravians were incorporated into the Czech Kingdom of Bohemia which had allegiance to the

German Holy Roman Empire. But, the Holy Roman Empire, Frederick II refused to send help,

he was too busy harassing the Pope with a military campaign in Italy to lend a hand to his

subjects.

Bohemia, did however, have a King, Wenceslaus I (not to be confused the earlier St.

Wenceslaus Premysl) who took the lead:

“The King of Bohemia, Wenceslaus I, went out to meet [the Tartars] and, despite

the disproportion between his army and that of the invaders, defeated them

brilliantly at Olomouc in 1241. At the same time a band of Mongols besieged the

hill of Hostyn where the inhabitants of the region had sought refuge against the

invasions.”1

1 Nemec, Ludvik. 1981. Our Lady of Hostyn. Philadelphia: RCH Press. Pg. 3

The people at Hostyn were trapped on the hill top for the barbarians had surrounded them.

They soon were down to their last provisions and were running out of water. What were they to

do? Luckily, their ancestors had passed on to them a rich treasure: their Faith. In this faith was

nourished a strong Marian tradition, which the people turned to in their time of despair.

One of the purported miracles that preceded the great miracle in the sky was that a spring

of water came forth from the hilltop to quench a dehydrated people. Thena massive

thunderstorm came that was so frightening that the barbarians soon retreated from Hostyn back

into the steppes of Russia:

“They implored the Mother of God, who always performed miracles. Suddenly, an

enormous thunderstorm broke which brought relief to Christians, with thunder and

lightning destroying the tartar tents, forcing the Tartars to eventually withdraw

from Hostyn.”2

From thence forth the hill was referred to as “Svaty Hostyn”, meaning “Holy Hostyn”, by

the local people. The hill became a place of great pilgrimage as word had spread to all reaches of

the Czech lands. A church was built on the hill with a beautiful painting of Mary holding the

Christ-child in her arms as lightning bolts beneath her. But this painting was destroyed in 1620

by a wicked protestant landowner who owned the land surrounding the hill. As the Thirty Years

War raged on the site was devastated by warring armies and was left unused for over 100 years.

Even the Catholic Habsburgs, the rulers of the Austrian Empire to which the Czech lands

belonged, refused to restore the shrine, and it was not until the 19th Century that nostalgic

nationalists pushed for the restoration of Svaty Hostyn Shrine:

“ [The] church was destroyed several times and the entire mountain of Hostýn was

abandoned completely. By imperial decree of Joseph II in 1784 the sanctuary was

2 Nemec, Ludvik. 1981. Our Lady of Hostyn. Philadelphia: RCH Press. Pg. 4

declared superfluous and pilgrimages were prohibited. During the first half of the

19th century the faithful began a fund-raising campaign in order to restore the

church, which, as a result, was consecrated anew in 1845.”3

A great effort was made in fundraising for the site, and now at this site there is a

magnificent Marian shrine that was consecrated by Cardinal Fürstenberg of Brno. It was here

that the same Cardinal announced to the Czech people the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception

to pious crowds of pilgrims. Despite the turmoil of two world wars and the rule of a communist

government in the twentieth century the shrine survives and still attracts many visitors to this

day. Its popularity traveled with Czech immigrants to the Americas as well. In Texas, were the

majority of the Czech settlers were from the more agricultural Moravia region, there is even a

small Texas town called Hostyn. In the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington,

D.C. the Czech chapel in named in honor of our Lady of Hostyn, in honor of her unfailing

intercession.

STARA BOLESLAV

Many with a decent knowledge of Czech history would not consider the town of Stara

Boleslav a Marian site. Perhaps the town is known more famously for the tragic murder of Svaty

Vaclav (St. Wenceslaus, or “Good ‘King’ Wenceslaus”) by his wicked and pagan brother

Boleslav. But the Marian devotion derives from the medallion that St. Wenceslaus wore as Duke

of Bohemia: A Palladium featuring the Virgin Mary, a symbol of the new Christian faith in the

lands of the Česky.

The Palladium that was worn by St. Wenceslaus was passed down to him from his

grandparents Borivoj I, the first Christian ruler of the Česky tribe, and his wife St. Ludmila.

3 Anonymous . Holy Hostyn - the Pearl of Moravia. http://www.hostyn.cz/cizi/english.htm, 2011 .

Legend held that Duke Borivoj was converted to Christianity during a visit to King Svatopluk of

Moravia, who was a Christian. At a dinner feast he met the bishop St. Methodius, who was

impressed that a king was humble enough to sit on the floor, for a pagan was not seen as worthy

of sitting on chair in the presence of Christians. The bishop approached him and asked if he

would like to become a Christian.4

The Duke accepted and asked that St. Methodius baptism him and his wife, Ludmila

thereafter. It is at the baptism of Duke Borivoj and his wife Ludmila that we first hear of the

Palladium:

“Legend says that the icon, a picture or rather a metal relief of Our Lady was donated to

Princess Ludmila on her baptism by St. Methodius and she later gave it to her beloved grandson

Wenceslaus.”5

St. Ludmila was inspired to live a Christian life, so much so that Czech chroniclers of

subsequent ages seem to make her out as a Marian figure. Whether or not these learned men had

intended to make the parallel is a matter of debate, but in their histories she is referred to as “The

handmaiden of the Lord”. Had St. Ludmila modeled her virtuous life off of that of the Virgin

Mary? There seems to be strong evidence in both historical accounts and folk legends of St.

Ludmila’s charity, compassion and humility. Before her martyrdom at the hands of the men

order to kill her by her own daughter-in-law, she asked that before they strangled her that they let

her finish her prayers, that she may be pure before the Lord when she entered into his Heavenly

Kingdom.

4 Kantor, Martin. 1990. The Origins of Christianity in Bohemia. Evanston, Ill: Northwestern University Press. Pg. 248-249

5Anonymous 2009. Churches in Stara Boleslav. Last Modified 2009 "The Visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the Czech Republic". http://www.navstevapapeze.cz/places/stara-boleslav-en/churches-in-stara-boleslav[en]

By this time, however, the Marian Palladium had been passed to her grandson, the Duke

St. Wenceslaus. St. Wenceslaus was a strong promoter of the Christian faith in a land that still

had a strong remnant of paganism. Because of this, St. Wenceslaus had many enemies. Amongst

those who sympathized with the old way of worship were members of the Czech nobility,

including St. Wenceslaus’ own brother, Boleslav, who was a wicked and brutish man, looked for

an opportunity to justify removing St. Wenceslaus from power. The opportunity came when St.

Wenceslaus refused to fight an invading German army led by the Henry I of Saxony and Arnulf

of Bavarian. Instead, St. Wenceslaus made peace with them by swearing allegiance. Surely the

Bohemian people would be enraged by this! So Boleslav murdered him on his way to church on

the feast of Sts. Cosmas and Damian. As it turned out, St. Wenceslaus’ justness and charity as a

ruler had ensured him great popularity amongst the people and Boleslav, now the Duke, always

struggled to maintain order amongst his people.

Yet, Mary was on the side of Sts. Ludmila and Wenceslaus and with her intercession the

blood of these martyrs did not go in vain:

“After his martyrdom, Wenceslaus' faithful servant Podiven left the Boleslaus' grad

with the picture and dug it into ground for fear of profanation just before he was

caught and hung by the murderers. For two centuries it was buried and only in the

mid-12th century a peasant found it in the today's location of the Our Lady's church.

Canons of the Stará Boleslav chapter had a chapel built there and placed in the

picture. Attracted by some miracles, pilgrims started to come from surrounding

villages as well as from Prague and a new Marian pilgrim tradition arose from the

deepness of the St. Wenceslaus' legend.”6

6 Anonymous 2009. Churches in Stara Boleslav. Last Modified 2009 "The Visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the Czech Republic". http://www.navstevapapeze.cz/places/stara-boleslav-en/churches-in-stara-boleslav[en]

In fact the site was so popular that an enlarged version of the Palladium was cast and a new

church was ordered in 1617. Even the German Hapsburgs rulers of the Czech lands were

interested in enlarging the pilgrimage site, for they had a deep devotion to Mary and saw in St.

Wenceslaus the unity of Christian kingship and Marian devotion. Today the site is still a major

pilgrimage site and people can reflect in front of the large replica of the Palladium of Sts. Ludmila

and Wenceslaus and remember what a remarkable impact she has had on the Czech people.

THE MARIAN COLUMN OF PRAGUE

The lands of Bohemia and Moravia have always been full of strong, independent people

who would express their sentiments whether they were right or wrong. Additionally, the Czech

people have a bitter history of religious wars between Catholics and what we now called

Protestants. The “Protestant” movement originally started long before the Christian Reformation

era of the 16th Century in the land of Bohemia. They were led by a controversial priest by the

name of Jan Hus who was also a professor of Theology at the university in Prague. His teachings

were heavily based on John Wycliffe and were often borderline heretical, he also was a critic of

the corruption in the Church. Eventually a bloody civil war ensued between Hussites and

Catholics, with the Catholics winning only with the aid of German princes. This bitter memory

was passed down to generations of Czech people, especially in Bohemia, were protestant

sentiments were stronger.

However, the placement of a Marian Column in Prague had nothing to do with this sad

chapter of history, but it is important to keep in mind as the narration continues in this essay. The

baroque Marian Column was originally erected in 1650 by the German Hapsburg rulers of Austria

and Bohemia, to commemorate the Austria victory of the invading Swedish army. It was built as

gift to the Czech people for their fortitude and bravery during that terrible period of war. The

people of Prague, being mostly Catholic accepted the Marian Column in the main square.

However, by the 19th century nationalist sentiments were also on the rise and the leaders of the

nationalist movement were mainly secularists and/or atheists. They spread the falsity that the

column was really a symbol of German, Catholic and Anti-Democratic oppression by the foreign

Hapsburg family. The secularists managed to weave the tale that this innocent monument to Mary

was really a symbol of the Austrian-Catholic boot pressing down on the supposedly “Hussite”

Czechs. They demanded that a statue of Jan Hus be erected in the square and demanded that Mary

be torn down.

“Although over 90 percent of the nineteenth-century Czech population was

Roman Catholic, many nationalists began to identify politically with the revived

memory of the pre-White Mountain Bohemian heresy, led by Jan Hus in the

fifteenth century. In 1890, Prague nationalist leaders began to raise funds for a Jan

Hus memorial. The martyred Czech priest, who insisted on using the vernacular

language in Mass, appealed to Czech nationalists, who were also fighting for

language rights in the Germanized Austrian Empire. The Club for the Building of

the Jan Hus Memorial in Prague eagerly anticipated 1915, the five-hundredth

anniversary of Hus's execution by the Roman Catholic Church when it would

unveil its Hus monument. After bitter public debate and demonstrations by Prague

Catholics, the Prague City Council approved Old Town Square as the monument's

site partly to counter the symbolism of the baroque Marian Column.”7

7 Paces, Cynthia. The Fall and Rise of Prague's Marian Column. Radical History Review. John Hopkins University, 2001. http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/radical_history_review/v079/79.1paces.html.

The mayor of Prague, a moderate by sentiment, proposed that perhaps the two monuments

could co-exist in the square. But the nationalists would not have it! As soon as the Bohemia

became part of the independent state of Czechoslovakia in 1919 after the break-up of the Austro-

Hungarian Empire, the radical nationalists tore down the Marian Column. However upset the

people of Prague were, they would have to be vigilant: the new state was very unstable due to

different factions and groups. Protestants made up a substantial minority of the Bohemian-Czech,

but not so much in Moravia or Slovakia. Germans made up about a quarter of the new state’s

population, they along with the Slovaks and Moravian-Czechs were strongly Catholic. Most

Bohemian-Czech Catholics tended to be lax in their Catholic faith due to the immense influence

of Protestantism and radical nationalism.

In an unstable Europe, it did not take long for war to break out. In Germany the National

Socialists (Nazis) under Adolf Hitler eyed the Czech lands with their productive factories and

large German minority with hungry eyes. Under German occupation, the Catholic faith was

oppressed more than it had ever been, for the Nazis were neo-pagans who sought to eliminate

Christianity all together. Then the Soviet Red Army, in its massive offensive against Nazi

Germany, occupied Czechoslovakia. They had a great hatred of the Catholic faith, and put severe

penalties on the Church in the Czech and Slovak lands.

Discussion had existed amongst Moderate Catholic politicians before World War II

whether a new Marian column could be erected to symbolize the Czech Catholic heritage. In the

words of one Catholic nationalist poet, Jaroslav Durych: “The Czech nation is not Hussite and

never will be. The Czech nation is Catholic." Why then could not a new Marian Column be built

that did not arouse the political misinterpretations? Perhaps if the World War had not occurred a

New Marian column would have been erected, but 50 years of authoritarian, anti-Christian rule by

the Nazis and the Communists set religion back in the Czech lands. By the early 1990’s Churches

were empty and religious subjects were taboo, even with the new and republican government that

ensured the freedom of religion. So far efforts to gather funds to rebuild the monument have only

had modest success abroad and almost none in the Czech Republic.

CONCLUSION

These three shrines are a cross section of Czech Marian culture that helps us understand

important aspects of the Czech people. Although, Marian Culture has struggled with secularism,

communism and Protestantism, it still holds on in a people who were once strongly Catholic. The

memory of Svaty Hostyn was brought with Czech immigrants of all generations to the new lands

that they came to. Stara Boleslav is important in that it reminds the Czechs that the culture had

strong Marian ties from the beginning and that the early Christian Czech rulers adored her. The

Marian Column of Prague shows that for some Czechs the Marian heritage is a vital part of the

Czech heritage, despite the fact that it was torn down, many wanted to re-erect the Marian

monument.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anonymous. Churches in Stara Boleslav. The Visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the Czech Republic. 2009. http://www.navstevapapeze.cz/places/stara-boleslav-en/churches-in-stara-boleslav%5Ben%5D.

Anonymous. Holy Hostyn - The Pearl of Moravia. 2011. http://www.hostyn.cz/cizi/english.htm.

Kantor, Martin. 1990. The Origins of Christianity in Bohemia. Evanston, Ill: Northwestern University Press.

Nemec, Ludvik. 1981. Our lady of Hostyn. Philadelphia: RCH Press.

Paces, Cynthia. The Fall and Rise of Prague's Marian Column. Radical History Review. John Hopkins University, 2001.http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/radical_history_review/v079/79.1paces.html.