Czechs mark St. Wenceslas Day with traditional pilgrimage and mass

The traditional open-air mass commemorating the death of Czechia's patron saint, Saint Wenceslas, took place in the town of Stará Boleslav, northeast of Prague, on Thursday morning. Many believers made a pilgrimage to the town, some on foot, to attend the mass. Stará Boleslav is the place where Saint Wenceslas was murdered on September 28, 935 by a group of his opponents, among whom was his brother Boleslav.

Cardinal Dominik Duka led the mass, with the sermon being delivered by Bishop Jan Baxant of Litoměřice. President Petr Pavel, Senate President Miloš Vystrčil, and Prague Archbishop Jan Graubner were also in attendance, as well as other church leaders, politicians, army officials, and ambassadors.

Stará Boleslav is the oldest Czech pilgrimage site associated with the cult of Saint Wenceslas, which was spread throughout Europe by Charles IV. September 28 has been an official state public holiday in Czechia since 2000 and is marked in the calendar as the Day of Czech Statehood. The National St. Wenceslas Pilgrimage was restored by the Roman Catholic Church in 2003.