Crusader Square ( Czech Křižovnické náměstí ) is a square in Prague located on the Old Town (right) bank of the Vltava River , not far from Charles Bridge on the Royal Route . One of the smallest squares in Prague, while it is one of the most visited attractions of the Czech capital. In the Middle Ages, the Vltava sleeve flowed here, separating the Crusader Island, from which in the 19th century a vaulted arch was transferred to the Old Town shore, which expanded the area near the bridge tower . The island, like the square, was named after the monastery of the Order of the Crusaders with a red star on the north side of the square, which also occupies part of the island.
| Crusader Square | |
|---|---|
 Church of St. Salvator in the Crusader Square | |
| general information | |
| A country | Czech |
| City | Prague |
| County | Prague 1 |
| Historical district | Stare Mesto |
| Name in honor | |
| Postcode | |
Content
- 1 History
- 2 Description
- 3 notes
- 4 Literature
History
In 1231, Saint Agnes of the Czech Republic founded a hospital near the Church of St. Gastal , which provided shelter for the homeless and provided care for the elderly and sick people. A few years later, Agnes appealed to Pope Gregory IX with a request to assign the status of an independent spiritual order to this hospital. Pope granted the request of Agnes, and soon the Czech Order of Hospitallers, the Order of the Crusaders with a red star, grew out of the hospital fraternity. To the red cross, symbolizing charity, a six-pointed star of the same color was added.
The square acquired its modern look in 1848 , when it was expanded due to the fact that the arches of the Juditin Bridge were walled up and a monument to King Charles IV was unveiled.
Description
The square is a completed ensemble in which, thanks to the high artistic value of each component, Baroque and Gothic styles are harmoniously combined. On the north side of the square stands the Church of St. Francis of Assisi . The corner risalite of the neighboring Crusader monastery includes the laying of the bridge tower of the former Juditin Bridge . The narrow part of the square along the monastery of the building has a lowered level, because it is located on the Arch of Juditin Bridge.
The eastern side forms the facade of the church of St. Salvator, which is part of Prague's Clementinum . Along the eastern side is an important transport route - a tram line along the promenade - and a heavily loaded road.
Other attractions of the square include the Old Town Bridge Tower and the neo-Gothic monument to Charles IV , created according to the model of the Dresden sculptor Ernst Henel .
The monument was cast by the Nuremberg caster Jacob Daniel Burgshmit and was to be unveiled in 1848 on the 500th anniversary of the founding of Charles University . But due to student unrest during the Slavic Congress, the discovery was delayed until January 1851 [1] .
On the axis of the gate of the bridge tower stood in the past Vinogradarsky (or Wine Pillar), decorated with a vine, with a statue of St. Vaclav , who, according to legend, looked after the vineyards of his grandfather Borzhivoy , the first patron saint of the vine in the Czech Republic, and made wine for the Mass with his own hands. The baroque pillar, created by Jan Jiri Bendlam in 1676, was moved to the northeast side of the square in 1847 , to the corner of the crusader church, across the road from Clementinum.
At the entrance to the bridge there was a two-story guardhouse for the guards of the bridge, a former part of the city fortifications. He is depicted in one of Ditzler's engravings dedicated to the coronation procession of Maria Theresa .
Notes
- ↑ * VLČEK, Pavel, a kol. Umělecké památky Prahy. Staré město, Josefov. Praha: Academia, 1996. 640 s. ISBN 80-200-0563-3 . S. 544.
Literature
- Antonín Ederer: Náměstí, trhy a plácky staré Prahy. Praha: Milpo, 2002, ISBN 80-86098-24-9 .