Church of Our Lady Under the Chain

The Church of Our Lady Under the Chain is the oldest church in Mala Strana (the Lesser Quarter), giving it a certain quiet charm lacking in some of the more touristy churches around town. Founded in the 12th century by the Knights of Malta as a stoic, hewed-stone, medieval Romanesque basilica, much like the reconstructed St. George’s Basilica, it was destroyed in a fire in 1420 during the Hussite Wars, which broke out between the Hussite sect, followers of Czech church reformer Jan Hus, and the Catholic Church. It was ruined yet again in 1503, eventually taking on its present mixed Baroque-Gothic appearance with renovations in the 17th century, which cut down its Gothic steeples to 32 meters high, a shadow of its former self. The name is a bit of a mystery, with one theory saying that it was named after an old statue of the Virgin Mary, another saying that it was named after an actual chain stretched across the Vltava River to prevent ships from passing through without paying a toll; it’s quite possible that both are true. The entrance leads to a quaint, enchanting courtyard, which in turn leads to the grand and almost gaudy Baroque interior, well worth a visit if you happen to be visiting Lennon wall nearby.