The region wants to declare the Broumov churches a national cultural monument

Hradec Králové – The Hradec Králové region is striving for the declaration of a unique ensemble of ten churches in Broumov as a national cultural monument. The churches were built by architects Kryštof and Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer in the first quarter of the 18th century. The region intends to submit the request for the churches to be declared a national cultural monument to the Ministry of Culture at the beginning of next year.

"The Dientzenhofers are among the most significant representatives of High Baroque in our country. Thanks to them, unmistakable and artistically brilliant buildings could arise," said the Deputy Governor for Culture Martina Berdychová. (Eastern Bohemians). She added that in 2021 it will be 270 years since the death of Kilián Ignác and a year later, 300 years since the death of his father Kryštof Dientzenhofer.

The churches were created as a coherent set of rural parish churches connected by the period of their construction, the personalities of the commissioners, and the authors of the designs. Therefore, the region's leadership wants to declare this ensemble a national cultural monument as a whole, thereby increasing the prestige of these monuments. Individually, the churches currently hold the status of cultural monuments.

The churches were commissioned by the then abbot of the Břevnov-Broumov Benedictine monastery, Otmar Zinke. From 1719 to 1738, they gradually emerged in the villages of Vernéřovice, Ruprechtice, Heřmánkovice, Otovice, Vižňov, Bezděkov nad Metují, Broumov, Šonov, Božanov, and Hlavňov.

Each church is an original that the Baroque builders integrated into the landscape of Broumov. This, according to the regional administration, is unique and exceptional in the context of the cultural landscape in the Czech Republic and all of Europe.

The buildings also differ significantly from other churches that were typically built at that time. The builders managed to create new landmarks on gentle hills and in the centers of villages that were developing then. Additionally, the churches visually complement the natural rock formations that surround the Broumov plateau.

The Dientzenhofers also addressed the client's requirements for a simple type of rural church, which was to be an ornamental and dignified place for worshiping God, but should not be overly expensive. The expenses were covered by the individual parishes, with the abbey only lending half of the construction funds and providing furnishings from decommissioned churches. The commissioned buildings had to accommodate a relatively large population in the individual villages, which at that time had around 1,500 inhabitants.

List of Broumov churches (with construction dates and their author):

• Church of St. Michael the Archangel, village of Vernéřovice (1719-1721, Kryštof Dientzenhofer)
• Church of St. James the Greater, village of Ruprechtice (1720-1723, Kryštof Dientzenhofer)
• Church of All Saints, village of Heřmánkovice (1722-1726, Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer)
• Church of St. Barbara, village of Otovice (1725-1727, Kryštof Dientzenhofer)
• Church of St. Anne, village of Vižňov (1724-1727, Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer)
• Church of St. Procopius, village of Bezděkov nad Metují (1724-1727, K. I. Dientzenhofer)
• Church of St. Wenceslaus, village of Broumov (1728-1729, Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer)
• Church of St. Margaret, village of Šonov (1726-1730, Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer)
• Church of St. Mary Magdalene, village of Božanov (1733-1738, Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer)
• Chapel of Our Lady of Snow on Hvězda, village of Hlavňov (1732-1733, K. I. Dientzenhofer)