Church of Saint Martin

The Church of Saint Martin stands in Chrašice, a part of the town of Chrast in the Chrudim district of the Pardubice Region, less than a kilometer from Chrast's main square. This small cemetery church combines medieval origins with an early 18th-century reconstruction signed by one of Bohemian Baroque architecture's most distinctive names.

How old is the church's history?

The earliest documented mention of a church on the cemetery grounds in Chrašice dates back to 1349, proving that a sacred building already stood on this site well before its later transformation. For centuries it served as a cemetery chapel for the surrounding community before undergoing a major Baroque reconstruction in the early 18th century.

Who designed the church's current form?

The 1721 reconstruction was commissioned by Adam Vratislav of Mitrovice, the Bishop of Hradec Králové, and carried out by Jan Blažej Santini-Aichel, an architect celebrated for blending Gothic elements with Baroque forms in a style now known as Baroque Gothic or the Santini style. The rebuilt church was consecrated on August 3, 1721. Around the same period, Santini was also involved in other ecclesiastical commissions in the area, including the reconstruction of the Holy Trinity church on Chrast's town square and the construction of a bishop's residence.

What makes the building's architecture distinctive?

The church has a single-nave interior set within a star-shaped, six-sided floor plan, a layout characteristic of Santini's late work, where the geometry of the structure carries as much weight as its decoration. Sharp angles and a crystalline arrangement of smooth exterior walls give the building a striking presence from the outside, while the interior remains comparatively modest: the nave is covered by a flat ceiling, and the presbytery retains an older barrel vault with lunettes surviving from the building's medieval phase.

Who is buried in the surrounding cemetery?

The cemetery around the church holds the graves of several notable figures connected to the region, including physician MUDr. Karel Schmoeger, Jan Nepomuk Filcík, František Reinitz, and bishops Jan Leopold Hay and Mořic Pícha. The presence of so many public figures among the burials reflects the standing the church and its cemetery held within the local community over the centuries.

Can visitors go inside today?

The church is currently closed to the public, with no regular services or organized visiting hours. It nonetheless remains a notable part of Chrast's cultural landscape and an example of Santini-style architecture in the Pardubice Region, often viewed from the outside by travelers following the architect's work through the region.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is the Church of Saint Martin located? In Chrašice, part of the town of Chrast, in the Chrudim district, less than a kilometer from Chrast's town center.

Who designed the church's reconstruction? Jan Blažej Santini-Aichel, commissioned by Bishop Adam Vratislav of Mitrovice; the rebuilt church was consecrated on August 3, 1721.

How old is the original building? Records confirm a church stood on this site as early as 1349, long before the Baroque reconstruction.

Is it possible to enter the church? No, the building is currently inaccessible to visitors, though it can be viewed from the outside.

What is architecturally distinctive about the church? Its star-shaped, six-sided floor plan and crystalline wall arrangement typical of Santini's style, paired with a comparatively modest interior that preserves an older vaulted presbytery.