Přerov

The bishop of Olomouc Jindřich Zdík founded the town in the 1^st half of the 12^th century and from 1256 it became a royal town thanks to Přemysl Otakar II. In the place of the original citadel a Gothic castle was built, later it was rebuilt in the Renaissance style. Today there is a seat of Jan Amos Komenský’s Museum. The Upper Town was founded in the 2^nd half of the 15^th century. The oldest building is the main St. George’s Parish Church mentioned already in 1131. There are several preserved late Gothic and Renaissance houses on the Upper Square. For many years Přerov was in the hands of the Pernštejns and the Žerotíns dynasties. In this period the town developed well. Members of the Unity of Brethren settled here from the end of the 15^th century. Church synods took place here and the Brethren School was of a great importance. Komenský was studying and later (between the years 1614–1618) was teaching at this school. In Přerov Jan Blahoslav was born on the 20^th of February 1523. He was one of the prominent representatives of the Unity of Brethren. Sculptor František Bílek made his statue in the town.

A strong Jewish community was in Přerov, too. Today a synagogue belongs to the Orthodox church. The agony of the Thirty Years’ War affected Přerov, too. The construction of a railway junction from Vienna and from Prague and the industrial development greatly contributed to the modern history of the town.

Today Přerov is a modern town with nice parks (Michalov). It is worth visiting the Neo-Renaissance Town House, the State Natural Park Žebračka is also interesting. In a nearby Předmostí we will find a monument of our ancestors who lived here 25,000 years ago. The instructive trail leads to the Monument of mammoths hunters with archaeological finds. Since 1992 Přerov has been a Historic Town Zone. In the year 1997 the town was severely damaged by a flood.

Although Přerov was characterized by so important Czech Brethren past, after the declaration of the Toleration Patent not even one Protestant was registered here. Only in the 1880^s a small church was built for the German railway employees of the Augsburg confession. The Czech Protestants also used to go to this church. The sermons were in the German language so it created language problems. The first Czech Helvetian worship was held in the year 1887. The Czech Protestants gathered here until 1899. Later they had to think about their future especially in a situation when a preaching station was founded in Přerov. (An independent congregation was established on the 10^th of January 1922). A temporary gathering place in a former locksmith’s workshop was absolutely not suitable. Therefore it was decided to build a church. They got land for the construction in the centre of the town. On the 9^th of May 1907 a foundation stone of the church was ceremonially laid. The church was built according to the famous Berlin architect Otto Kuhlmann’s plan in a modernist style with historicist elements and with a side quadratic tower. It was interpreted as a congregation house, not only as a separate prayer room. The congregation house was built additionally in the 1930^s.

A ceremonial consecration of the church on the 25^th of March 1908 was a big event. The Protestants from Přerov were given the church by which (as we read in one of the texts in a memorial book) “the links of the presence with the Czech Brethren past of the town should be clearly indicate “. Further it is written that a “simplicity and a reduction of historical inspiration brought a high evaluation to this building as to the first example of modern church architecture in our country.“

The church was seriously damaged during the catastrophic flood in 1997. During the elimination of its consequences, new arrangements of the interior according to architect Josef Barták’s plan were done. The church in Přerov was again festively opened on the last October day of 1999.