Day 84: Brno

JUNE 26 - I have been spending a lot of time in forward planning, including most of this morning. Detailed bookings are now complete out to mid-September. I had expected us to feel a bit more of the war in Ukraine, but up until now it has only affected what we’ve seen going on, rather than affected our ability to find places to stay or transport between cities.

There is a different feeling about Brno, from the perspective of immigrants. The district where our apartment is has a significant immigrant population, but I cannot tell from where. I could not find any solid data online to tell me, only generalized figures for the country as a whole.

We go downtown and climb the hill to Špilberk Castle, the most notable landmark in the city. This castle has a bit of a checkered history. It was constructed in the mid-13th Century by King Přemsyl Otakar II to be a symbol of Moravian power and home to the royalty. However, by the mid 15th Century, it converted to use as a fortress, and withstood conflict both during wars between Moravia and Hungary, and also assaults by the Hussites.

This was followed by a period of neglect, when the castle went into debt and fell into disrepair. This turned around quickly during the Thirty Years’ War, when it was quickly brought back into service as a defensive structure, and successfully resisted attacks by the Swedes (unlike Olomouc, see Day 83).

It was in the 18th Century that the castle began gradually to become a prison, first for criminals, then political prisoners. It became notorious for this and was called ‘The Dungeon of the Nations’.

Eventually prisoners were removed and the castle ceased to function as a residence, fortress, or prison.

Down to Freedom Square for lunch. While we are there, a group passes through with Ukrainian flags, singing. It appears to be a march for peace.

Next go to the Capuchin Crypt. This was meant to be a simple place of burial under the Capuchin Monastery, starting from the mid-17th Century, for the friars when they passed away. However, over the years it became apparent that the bodies placed in the crypt were not rotting away as expected, but undergoing a process of natural mumification.

The Capuchin Order was very strict on renouncing worldly goods, to the point where coffins were considered a luxury. The dead, therefore, were merely placed on the ground with simple clothing. A friar with more than 50 years service received a wooden cross. Other people, including some well known personages, also chose to be ‘interred’ this way, undoubtedly to show their humility in the final hour.