Minister Klempíř promised assistance for the repair of the monastery brewery in Vyšší Brod

Vyšší Brod – Minister of Culture Oto Klempíř (Motorists) today promised assistance to the Vyšší Brod monastery for the repair of the brewery. He said this at today's symposium on Závišův Cross in Vyšší Brod. The 13th-century building on the premises is at risk of collapse due to its emergency condition. Hundreds of millions of crowns are needed for the repair. The monastery would need billions of crowns for the reconstruction of other buildings in the vast complex, said Věra Adámková, chairwoman of the Friends of the Monastery Association in Vyšší Brod, today to ČTK.

"The ministry can guarantee that it will help," said Klempíř when asked by journalists whether the ministry plans to assist in the restoration of the complex. According to the minister, the monastery is one of the pillars of not only Czech but also European history.

"The loss would be incalculable, so in the first phase, what is very necessary is the repair of the brewery, which is a building that is in a deplorable state," stated Adámková. According to a study by the Faculty of Civil Engineering of the Czech Technical University (ČVUT), the building is repairable. According to the chairwoman of the association, a museum and a small local brewery with seating and a café could be created in the building.

"It is the oldest brewery in South Bohemia. But we got it back in such a devastated condition. Beer was brewed here even during Hitler's time when we (the monastery, note from the editor) were dissolved, but unfortunately, the communists allowed it to be closed," said the prior of the monastery, Justin Berka. Other economic buildings in the monastery complex also need restoration.

According to Adámková, the repair of the brewery building would cost hundreds of millions of crowns. "Some buildings are really life-threatening to enter, so in my opinion, we are talking about several billion, but that is not within the power of one human, short life, but it is a long-term journey," added Adámková. Students from the Prague ČVUT are helping with the restoration of the complex, and they will be able to complete the practical part of their studies on projects at the Vyšší Brod monastery.

The Vyšší Brod monastery is the only functioning male Cistercian monastery in the Czech Republic and a national cultural monument. The abbey was founded in 1259 by Vok from Rosenberg. After the creation of Czechoslovakia, the monastery lost most of its property due to land reform. During the Nazi regime, the buildings were occupied by the Gestapo. Members of the order were displaced or interned, and the Nazis confiscated their property. Between 1945 and 1948, there were two attempts at confiscation by the Czechoslovak state, but neither was successful. After 1948, two more confiscation administrative acts were issued according to the Beneš decrees. The communists dissolved the monastery in 1950, it has been renewed since 1990, and since then the Cistercians have been working on its restoration.