( ) St. Adalbert of Prague Svatý Vojtěch Swiety Wojciech

2nd Bishop of Prague. A patron saint of Bohemia, Poland and Prussia

He studied in Magdeburg, Germany 982- became the Bishop of Prague 987-disgusted by the situation in his country he left Prague for Rome

He arrived back, but in 994 his brothers and their families were murdered by the then ruling Přemyslids Adalbert left the country again. He went to Hungary to baptize the Hungarian princes and establish church there. Also he travelled to Poland to find asylum

Boleslav II the Brave of Poland bought the relics of Adalbert from the Prussians and placed them in the Gniezno church. In 1039 the Czech prince Břetislav Ist raided Gniezno and took the relics to Prague. It is not clear if the relics were real... Poles think they are in Gniezno and Czechs believe they are in Prague

Relics in Prague Relics in Gniezno

A famous pair of bronze doors in Gniezno cathedral, decorated by 18 reliefs from Adalbert´s life.

It was built in 1938 – 1939, designed by a Prague architect Jaroslav Č ermák in the modern style called functionalism

Gothic triumphal arch divides the whole space into the presbytery and the nave Vertical structural lines connect the bottom with the top Square coffered ceiling

Front wall of the presbytery is dominated by a huge wooden cross and a statue of St. Adalbert and Prussian warriors

The interior combines modern straight lines of functionalism with the traditional religious shape of a triangle

In 1939 two bells were made, 600 kg Antonín and 900 kg Vojt ě ch (Adalbert) In 1942, they were removed for war purposes No bells for 50 years In 1993 Perner‘s workshop in Passau, Germany made two new bells: Holy Trinity and St. Adalbert