Gothic chapel in Plasy Monastery, Gothic chapel at Plasy Monastery, Czech Republic

The Royal Chapel of Plasy Monastery is an early Gothic two-storey chapel from the second half of the 13th century, dedicated to St Wenceslas and St Mary Magdalene. Its walls are built of precisely cut sandstone blocks, up to one metre thick on the lower floor, and the chapel is now largely enclosed by a Baroque granary, so only part of the five-sided presbytery is visible outside.

The early Gothic chapel was consecrated around 1265, during the reign of Přemysl Otakar II, under Abbot Gerard (1265–1286). A 1744 monastery chronicle records that it was linked to a royal residence, the residentia regia. In the 17th century it was walled into the monastery granary, and the epithet "royal" lost its meaning.

The chapel shows how religious devotion shaped the way medieval builders designed sacred spaces in Bohemia. You can see this in the careful stonework and the way the interior is arranged for prayer and worship.

Visitors should try to see the chapel during daylight hours to fully appreciate the stone details and window work. The monastery offers guided visits on many days, though you can also explore at your own pace.

The chapel holds medieval stone carvings that survived both the Hussite conflicts and later changes when the monastery was transformed under the Metternich family. These carvings offer a rare window into the original craftsmanship of the period.