Vysehrad – mystical part of Prague off the beaten paths.

Have you already seen the main sights of Prague? Do you want to escape crowds of tourists? So go to Vysehrad.

According to the legend Vysehrad was the oldest seat of Czech rulers founded in the 10th century. At the beginning a mint was established here and coins called Denars were minted here. The time of Vyšehrad’s greatest glory was in the 11th century when it became the seat of the first Czech king Vratislav I.

Among the most important buildings of the Vyšehrad fortress is the Neo-Gothic church of St. Peter and Paul, Rotunda of St. Martin and underground corridors – Casemates, where some of the original statues from Charles Bridge are stored.

One of the most interesting places is the Vysehrad cemetery and its part called Slavin where famous Czechs are buried. They were mainly artists, composers, writers, painters and scientists.

Here are some names:
Bedrich Smetana – composer – his most famous symphony is called My Country
Antonin Dvorak – composer
Karel Capek – writer who invented the word ROBOT which he used as the first one in his sci-fi novel R.U.R.
Alfons Mucha – Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist
Vlasta Burian – comedy actor – famous in the 30s and 40s of the last century

But the most wonderful is the atmosphere of Vysehrad. No place in Prague and the Czech Republic has as many legends and myths as Vyšehrad. For us Czechs the most famous legend is about Libuse.
Libuse was the first female ruler in Bohemia. She married the poor ploughman Přemysl and then named the first Czech dynasty Premyslids after him. Libuse had a precious gift – she could predict the future. She foresaw the glory of Prague in a vision. She sent Premysl to lead a group of followers to the place she described and there they founded the golden city of Prague.

In the middle of the Vysehrad complex you can come across these three granite columns. An old legend says that the priest from the church of St. Peter and Paul made a deal with the devil. He promised his soul to the devil if he managesto bring a stone pillar from the church of St. Peter in Rome before the priest finishes his Mass. It was so tempting for the devil that he accepted the bet. However he failed to win so he hit the ground with a pillar and it broke into 3 pieces.

Part of Vysehrad is also used as a theater. From mid-June to September performances for the public take place here.

And don’t forget to take some older bread with you because after visiting Vysehrad you can go down to the Vltava river and feed the swans.