If there is anyone who has been uniting the nations of Central Europe for over a thousand years, it is Saint Adalbert, the patron saint venerated in Czechia, Germany, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia. He is a symbol of the victory of Christianity over paganism, a theologian and composer of hymns, a friend of the emperor and one of the three saints to whom Prague’s St Vitus Cathedral is dedicated. He set out from Prague as a young man with a vision of monastic renewal. When he founded the first male monastery in Bohemia in Břevnov in 993, a brewery was also established on the site, which still brews beer once a year according to the original medieval recipe. He was born around 956 into the Slavníkov family. He studied in Magdeburg, Germany, became an assistant to Bishop Dětmar after returning home, and after the latter’s death, he accepted the episcopal crosier with a determination to change the morals of his time. He condemned polygamy, the slave trade and other evil habits of the old world. He travelled, wrote, preached and returned from Italy with a clear plan: a monastery should be a school of faith and work. However, he did not stay long in Prague. He became the spiritual advisor to the Holy Roman Emperor Otto III and was dispatched on missions to the Prussians by the Baltic Sea, felling idols and destroying sacred groves until he was captured: a blow to the head with a paddle, a spear, a beheading. According to tradition, the Polish prince Boleslav the Brave had the body of Saint Adalbert weighed in gold. He laid him to rest in Gniezno, the capital of Poland at the time. Adalbert’s martyrdom moved all of Central Europe. The first Polish archbishopric was established near his grave, and Gniezno became a spiritual metropolis. Boleslav the Brave was later crowned King of Poland. However, the Czechs did not want to lose the bodily remains of their saint. A generation later, Czech prince Bretislav I launched a military attack on Gniezno and brought Adalbert’s remains to Prague, significantly strengthening the importance of the city and the local cathedral. Yet the mystery of the three skulls hangs over the whole story. For centuries, Gniezno, Prague and Aachen have claimed to have the genuine skull of Adalbert. Polish chroniclers say that the Czechs mistakenly took away the skull of Adalbert’s half-brother Radim, while in Aachen it was believed that the real skull was brought there by Emperor Otto. Modern anthropological research has awarded authenticity to the skull in Prague. Indeed, experts have even reconstructed Adalbert’s visage based on the research. This is why Adalbert is often called the first European. His idea of an international community built on Christian foundations preceded today’s Europe by centuries, which the concept of cooperation between the countries of Central Europe, which Adalbert personifies, inspired President Václav Havel to found the Visegrad Group in 1991. And Adalbert’s story? It began in Prague and returns to Prague once more. Cathedral of St. Vitus, Wenceslas and Adalbert | Source: Prague City Tourism Where to experience the story in Prague Cathedral of St Vitus, Wenceslas and Adalbert (Prague Castle) – a place also dedicated to St Adalbert; the reliquary with the skull and the rooms of the St Vitus Treasury give the story of the martyr a tangible form. Břevnov Monastery (993) – the monastery founded by Adalbert; a brewery with a traditional annual brew based on a medieval recipe and an authentic atmosphere of the “first chapter” of Czech monasticism. Charles Bridge – a statue of St Adalbert among the Baroque patrons; a place where medieval Prague shines through the hustle and bustle of the city. Church of St Adalbert (New Town, Vojtěšská Street) – a silent reminder of the saint whose name is borne by the entire neighbourhood. Tip for a walk Start at the cathedral at Prague Castle and stop by Adalbert’s reliquary. Stroll down to Charles Bridge and find his statue – a silent reminder of the pilgrimage between countries. Finally, take the tram to Břevnov: the monastery and its gardens tell the story of how great European ideas are often born in the silence of a monastery courtyard… and sometimes toasted with a sip of good beer.