Library at Strahov Monastery

It isn't often the splendour and perfection of architecture has the opportunity to house a collection of books as rare as they are valuable. But such is the case in the Library of the magnificent building which is the Strahov Monastery. The monastery can trace a brave and resilient history all the way back to 1142 when no less a personage as King Vratislav II decided that the approach to his Castle headquarters would be well served by having a cloister along its route to add a little gravity and serenity to the area. When the - impossible to pronounce quickly - Premonstratensians settled in and made the cloister, or monastery, their own he was well pleased. Like all important buildings that adorn a city its fortunes rose and fell down the centuries alongside those of Prague in general, but today just like all those years ago the Premonstratensians are still to be found in this tranquil and astonishing place.

The Library of Strahov, of which we will speak of in detail here does not have, nor ever did have books, which go back to the very origins of the monastery. It did however contain an impressive collection accumulated during the late years of the sixteenth century and early seventeenth century the fruits of the labours of Abbot Questenberg and his successors. However the lengthy and very destructive Thirty Years War which had Swedish forces stationed in and around Prague for long periods meant that when the Swedes got around to plundering and pillaging the monastery they carted most of the collection back to Sweden, the Abbot's entreaties and his Swedish sounding name notwithstanding. New attempts were made after the Peace of Westphalia 1648 to build up a repository of sacred and non-theological books in the monastery and from 1679 onwards this was performed with exceptional care and diligence. With an eye to any further disruptive invasions many books were put in storage in basements and by and large hidden from view. But with the strengthening of the monastery's defenses not to mention the entire building's massive overhaul to resemble the Baroque masterpiece we see today the books were ready to be carefully dusted down and placed on sturdy shelves in the newly constructed Library Hall. Library rules were drawn up, strict in the extreme, books were permitted to be taken down and consulted only by the most deserving and so it was that a great aura built up around them. To be prefect of the Library was a position of no little prestige among the Premonstratensians and many a monk coveted it passionately.The acquisitions of more and more books especially in the second half of the 17th century and throughout the 18th century meant that the ever expanding library required another mighty hall (the Philosophical Hall). This was at the end of the 18th century.