St. Vitus Cathedral

Officially named St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas, St Adalbert Cathedral, this church, which dominates the skyline of Prague, is the seat of the Archbishop of the city and has long been the site of the coronations of centuries of Czech kings and queens.

The first structure that appeared at the location of the current-day cathedral was built in 925. This Romanesque-style rotunda was commissioned by Prince Wenceslas I and consecrated to the same saint…Vitus. By 1060, when the bishopric of Prague was founded, the rotunda was converted to a triple-naved basilica with two steeples. In the intervening years, pagans and Christians – many converted by “good king” Wenceslas – resided peacefully together within the walls of the Prague Castle.

As the Christian population continued to increase, a need for yet more space to accommodate the faithful became necessary.
Construction on the present-day St. Vitus Cathedral began in 1344 with the hopes that this mighty Gothic structure would be a coronation church, a crypt for the royal family, a final resting place for Wenceslas, and a treasury for the Czech Republic’s finest crown jewels.

The first architect on the project was Mathieu d'Arras, who left most of the work undone when he died suddenly. He was succeeded by Peter Parler, a trained sculptor and woodcarver, who completed the construction of Mathieu’s designs and then added his own artistic hand to the project. The result was cutting-edge Gothic, so to speak, with touches that were decidedly different from other Gothic masterpieces.

When Parler passed away, his sons assumed control of the project, but it was halted again at the start of the Hussite War and then largely destroyed in the great fire of 1541. The cathedral was left unfinished – for more than 3 centuries - until a society of concerned individuals was formed in 1844 in hopes of finally completing the structure, which now needed extensive repairs as well.

Finally, St. Vitus Cathedral was complete in 1929, using many of the plans of Peter Parler, considered to be the finest architect and artisan involved with the construction of the church through the centuries.

Though it took centuries to complete the cathedral, its role was always as a tribute to the patron saint of the Czech Republic, St. Wenceslas. The chapel named for him, located in the center of the cathedral, is one of the most magnificent parts of the church. Constructed in the 14th century over his tomb (he died in the 10th century), this chapel is decorated with more than 1,300 semi-precious stones of many varieties.

The chancel, built by Parler, is incredibly beautiful as are the stained glass windows, which are newer and of an art nouveau design. Visitors can climb 297 steps to the top of the soaring tower and view the largest church bell in Eastern Europe.

Incidentally, only 2% of Czechs practice their religion, so this amazing structure remains basically unused for religious services. It is, however, one of the city’s top tourist attractions.