Established by Prince Vladislav I in 1115, the Benedictine monastery at Kladruby was set into a sparsely settled landscape inhabited by Slavonic population. It was provided with vast estates; in particular, in a triangle formed by the Mže River, the Úhlavka River and the frontier forest. The first Czech monks were soon joined by missionaries from the nearby town of Zwiefalten. Close relation with Zwiefalten were being kept even later, when the Czechs recovered their numerical superiority in the monastery. Several times, the monastery became a venue of discreet diplomatic negotiations. For example, against the background of the culminating conflict between the Czech church and the temporal lords, Přemysl I met here representatives of the curia. After having been Gothicized, the original Romanesque church was consecrated in King Wenceslas I’s presence in 1233. Sometime around 1233, under Abbot Reiner, the village of (Old) Kladruby was established in the vicinity of the monastery; namely, next to the current churchyard. By virtue of the astute Abbot Reiner’s purposive acquisition activities, the monastery considerably expanded its estates around Kladruby. During the second half of the 14th century, the power and significance of the monastery constantly grew thanks to new privileges and progressive economic method. Another important feature was the development of the nearby locality of Kladruby, which was elevated to the township at that time. The monastery then possessed 128 villages administered by three provosts based at Kladruby, Touškov and Přeštice. Kladruby Monastery several times feasted Emperor Charles IV. Soon afterwards, however, Kladruby became a point of intersection where interests of the country’s top dignitaries incessantly clashed, thereby endangering the position of the monastery per se. Wenceslas IV decided to undermine the position of one of his most adamant adversaries, The Prague Archbishop John of Jenštejn, by establishing a new bishopric conceived to take over the estates owned by the monastery at Kladruby. Upon the death of Kladruby monastery’s Abbot Racek in 1393, however, the opponents managed to thwart the King’s intentions by promptly electing a new abbot, with the election immediately approved by the Archbishop’s Vicar, John of Pomuk. The resulting fierce conflict brought the archbishop into exile. After having been tortured, the half-dead John of Pomuk was thrown by the King’s adherents from the Prague Charles’ Bridge down to the Vltava River. Originally, the Hussite revolutionary movement only meant material damage to Kladruby, since the monastery had to provide financial aid to Emperor Sigismund. In 1421, however, the partially fortified monastery was conquered by John Žižka of Trocnov, with the monks having fled in time to Regensburg with their most precious possessions. Afterwards, the Benedictines intermittently returned and fled, but they eventually failed to prevent the neighbouring Utraquist and Catholic aristocrats from annexing the monastic lands. In 1467, the monastery was devastated due to the fights of the baronial league and the Crusaders against King George of Poděbrady. Until the late 15th century, consequently, the monastery frequently had to pawn and sell its property. The economic situation improved only slowly, with new mining and fish-pond-cultivating activities modestly contributing to the rehabilitation of the monastic domain. Simultaneously, the nearby townships of Touškov and Kladruby started to flourish again. Featured by the demanding reconstruction of Our Lady’s church (re-consecrated in 1504) and increasing diplomatic activities, the resurgence of the monastery did not last for long. With the position of the monastery perpetually unstable, even the fairly competent abbots failed to successfully face a host of unfavourable events at that time. Several misfortunes, including the extensive fire, which devastated the monastic buildings in 1590, along with prematurely abdicating abbots and incessant internal quarrels, only testify that the development of the monastery during the 16th century was not favourable. The Thirty Year’s War resulted in conquering and plundering the monastery and the nearby township by both the warring parties. Nevertheless, the monastery managed to take advantage of the Catholic Church’s post-war boom to retrieve the worst losses in a short time (as late as the mid-17th century, Kladruby Monastery possessed two townships and 28 villages). For that reason, the monastery could afford to carry out a challenging repair of Our Lady’s church as early as 1653. At that time, the grave of the monastery’s founder, Prince Vladislav I was uncovered, with the princely remains transferred to the altar situated in the nave. Within the framework of the 1728 remodelling, the remains were transferred to the high altar. The comprehensive reconstruction of the convent was completed in 1670, with the prelate’s old residence erected between 1664 and 1670. Notably, the monastery became a place of pilgrimage in 1658. the late 17th century and the first half of the 18th century witnessed the genuine heyday of Kladruby, with the monastery irreversibly securing its position in the surrounding landscape and going down in the history of Czech architecture. At that time, the monastery entered its final stage, marked by the activities of the so-called great abbots and builders; namely, Maurus Fintzgut, Josef Sieber and Amandus Streer. By regaining its farmstead at Přeštice in 1705 and buying some minor estates, the monastery virtually completed the rehabilitation of its property, thereby creating a material base for its subsequent activities. Consequently, in 1712 the monastery commenced the far-reaching remodelling of its dome. Supervised by the distinguished Baroque master-builder, Johann Blasius Santini – Aichel, the remodelling was completed in 1726, bringing about the culmination of the Czech Baroque Gothic style, primarily represented by Santini. One of the largest ecclesiastical structures throughout Bohemia, Our Lady’s church at Kladruby was completed and consecrated in 1726. After that, the works continued by erecting the new convent and the prelate’s new residence. The design was allegedly made by Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer. By 1739, north and south wings had been completed, with the monks being ushered into the new convent. The construction works, as a whole, were completed before 1770. The above mentioned abbots managed to stabilise the monastic estates, accelerate their economic development, strengthen the order and discipline within the monastery, and considerably enhance the monastic library. Moreover, they bolstered the monastery’s prestige by buying sacred remains and various works of art, as well as by gaining new privileges. Orientated towards the enlightened system of government, the state authorities, however, tended to increasingly interfere with the monastic jurisdiction, with the threat of dissolving the Benedictine order and closing the monastery still looming. Like many other monasteries, the Benedictine convent at Kladruby was eventually dissolved by Emperor Joseph II in 1785, two years after the death of Amand Streer who had no successor. The monastery’s movables were sold up by auction and the monks dispersed. Consisting of 38 villages, 15 farmsteads and 9 mills, the domain was then administered by a religious fund. In 1798, the monastic structures were utilised as a military hospital, temporarily housing Trappist monks from France before they left for Russia. Between 1800 and 1818, the monastery served as barracks, hospital and disabled soldiers’ home. In 1825, Kladruby Monastery (along with the surrounding lands and 23 villages) was bought by Field Marshal Prince Alfred Windischgrätz at 275 500 guldens. Nevertheless, he only paid one half of that amount, with the rest remitted thanks to his loyal support of the Austrian monarchy. Windischgrätz principally proved his loyalty by uncompromisingly intervening against insurgents in Prague, Vienna and Hungary in 1848. Having their ancestral residence nearby at Tachov, the lords of Windischgrätz paid little attention to Kladruby. In 1864 they established a brewery inside the original convent, with Our Lady’s church left to its fate. The situation did not change until 1918, when the Windischgrätz family lost its Tachov domain due to the land reform. Moreover, the main family line died out and the estates had to be divided. The new owner, Aladar Windischgrätz moved to Kladruby along with his great library and family archives. The Windischgrätz family possessed the Kladruby domain until the 1945 confiscation executed in compliance with the presidential decree. Administered by the Czech Ministry of Agriculture and the National Land Office, the lands were cultivated by Czechoslovak State Farms and Czechoslovak State Forests. Negotiations on allocating the monastic property to the Benedictine Order were held in 1946, with a pertaining allocation decree already issued, but the Benedictines did not take over the property. Accordingly, the property was conveyed to the Prague-based National Cultural Commission. After 1960 the condition of the monastery deteriorated due to housing headquarters of a state farm. After having been taken over by the Pilsen-based Regional Conservation Office in 1967, the monastery at Kladruby was opened to the public. Comprehensive reconstruction works have been conducted here since early 1970s, with the most substantial progress achieved after 1989 thanks to crucial financial contributions by the state authorities or other sources, including the Phare Programme of the European Union.
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