Saint Wenceslaus of Bohemia (Svatý Václav) - Podulšany, Czech Republic
Posted by: vraatja
N 50° 07.808 E 015° 44.035
33U E 552454 N 5553358
Sandstone statue of Saint Wenceslaus(Svatý Václav), Duke of Bohemia from 1890 at a crossroad in village Podulšany (East Bohemia).
Waymark Code: WM1432X
Location: Pardubický kraj, Czechia
Date Posted: 04/05/2021
Views: 12
The sandstone statue of Patron Saint of Bohemia Saint Wenceslaus (Svatý Václav) was erected, according to the inscription of the statue's pedestal, in 1890 at a crossroad near a local church at expenses of the municipality. The Patron Saint is depicted here as wearing a crown on his head, wearing a cloak draped around his shoulders. In his right hand he holds a shield with eagle and with his left hand holds a flag. At the front part of pedestal there is a plaque with engraved strophe from one of the oldest known Czech songs and Czech religious anthems (from 12th century) - Saint Wenceslas Chorale.
Biography
Wenceslas (Wenzel) (907–29), duke of Bohemia and martyr. The son of Duke Wratislaw, Wenceslas was educated mainly by his grandmother Ludmilla, a devoted Christian, and became duke in 922. He often followed the advice of the clergy and worked for the religious and educational improvement of his people. This implied greater contact with the rest of the Christian world, particularly the German Empire, whose king, Henry the Fowler, Wenceslas recognized both as the successor of Charlemagne and as his own overlord. This policy, together with a pagan reaction against a determined Christian king, led to the death of Wenceslas at the hands of his brother's followers. Boleslav, his brother, who was implicated in his murder, nevertheless had the relics of Wenceslas translated to the church of St. Vitus in Prague, where they became the centre of the cult and a place of pilgrimage. His feast was celebrated from 985; within another twenty or thirty years he became Bohemia's patron saint: his picture was engraved on the coins and the Crown of Wenceslas was regarded as a symbol of Czech nationalism and independence. Later, a series of wall paintings at the castle of Karlstein underlined his national as well as his religious importance.
His cult spread to Bavaria and Saxony, but there was no ancient cult of him in England. His feast came in with the Roman Missal. J. M. Neale's famous carol ‘Good King Wenceslas’ made him a household word, but its contents are not based on any known incident in the saint's life; by its re-use of a 13th-century spring carol ‘Tempus adest floridum’ it successfully popularized Christian and Victorian ideals of social benevolence and practical almsgiving.
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