Discover Blšany

Blšany: Baroque Architecture and Regional History

Blšany combines visible Baroque architecture with sites of remembrance and traces of a much older history. This creates a destination whose special features are not concentrated in a single building, but instead lie in several specific locations in the town and the wider surrounding region. Road I/27 runs through Blšany and forms part of the geographical orientation when exploring the town.

St. Michael and the Baroque Townscape

The focal point is the single-nave Baroque Church of St. Michael the Archangel. It was built from 1716 to 1717. A tower was added to its southern wall in 1762. A comprehensive reconstruction in 1825 gave the church its present appearance. To the east stands the two-storey Baroque vicarage, built in 1734. In front of the vicarage on the village square, a Baroque sculpture from 1735 commemorates St. John of Nepomuk; he is depicted with two angels.

Chapels, Saints’ Figures, and Quiet Discoveries

Remarkable small religious monuments can also be found away from the church. On a hill north of Blšany, a remnant of the Chapel of St. Wenceslas from the 17th century has been preserved. At the eastern edge of the town, a niche chapel was built into the gable wall of the single-storey house no. 113 on the road to Soběchleby. Its niche contains a figure of St. Anthony of Padua holding the infant Jesus.

Another brick niche chapel dedicated to St. Wenceslas stands at the intersection of the Blšany–Žatec and Liběšice–Letov roads. Its shallow niche contains a figurative relief of St. Wenceslas on horseback. Such small structures are interesting details for you when you want to get to know a place not only through its main church, but also through its regionally characteristic features.

The St. Wenceslas Site in the Wider Surrounding Area

The history of Blšany extends beyond the present-day townscape. The site of the vanished Church of St. Wenceslas lies in the wider surrounding region at a crossroads between Letov, Blšany, and Liběšovice. The St. Wenceslas Site has a documented pilgrimage tradition dating back to the 14th century and is considered one of the oldest pilgrimage sites associated with St. Wenceslas. The medieval village of Nevechovice was also located in the area; its beginnings in the 9th to 10th centuries have been archaeologically documented.

Commemoration and Local Life

The war memorial in Blšany was erected in 1947 primarily to commemorate the victims of the Second World War, including three local residents. At the same time, it commemorates residents who did not return from the battlefields of the First World War. Because of its very poor technical condition, the memorial was completely dismantled, including its foundations; the original inscription plaque was to be preserved during the renovation.

Present-day local life also includes the sports centre with a hall, gymnasium, and table tennis facilities. The rooms can be reserved for a fee by prior telephone arrangement with the municipal office. Zámeček Blšany offers rooms for weddings, celebrations, and other private events.

Further Places Around Your Research

If you would like to continue your travel planning beyond Blšany, here are the other places in the same regional selection: Chlumčany U Loun, Chožov, Kryry, Bitozeves, Žerotín U Panenského Týnce, Hříškov, Kozly and Domoušice.

To the overarching travel overview: Okres Louny.