Prague Castle, St. George's Basilica

Founded around 920, St. George’s Basilica at Prague Castle gives classical concerts the austere, monumental setting of Prague’s second-oldest church.

Behind its terracotta Early Baroque façade, the basilica preserves a Romanesque interior shaped largely by the rebuilding that followed the fire of 1142. Its deep nave, massive pillars and twin white towers make it one of the defining medieval buildings within the Prague Castle complex.

From a Přemyslid church to a Romanesque basilica

St. George’s was founded around 920 by Prince Vratislav I as the second church at Prague Castle. The remains of St Ludmila, grandmother of St Wenceslas and the first Czech martyr, were placed here in 925. When the neighbouring Benedictine convent was founded in 973, the church was enlarged into a three-aisled basilica.

After a devastating fire in 1142, Abbess Berta led the reconstruction that gave the church much of its present Romanesque form, including the main apse and two white towers. The Chapel of St Ludmila and a western portico were added in the first half of the thirteenth century.

Royal burials and Baroque layers

For generations, the basilica served as the burial church of the Přemyslid dynasty. Tombs in the main nave include that of its founder, Prince Vratislav I, while St Ludmila’s grave lies in the chapel dedicated to her.

The current façade dates from the Early Baroque period. Between 1718 and 1722, František Maxmilián Kaňka added the Chapel of St John of Nepomuk, with sculpture by Ferdinand Maxmilián Brokoff and paintings by Václav Vavřinec Reiner. A restoration carried out from 1887 to 1908 under František Mach sought to recover the church’s Romanesque character. Today, the basilica also serves as a concert hall, allowing music to be heard within one of Prague Castle’s oldest interiors.