A pilgrimage church built with robbers' money

The settlement called Chlum sv. Máří is mentioned as a pilgrimage site as early as the 14th century. Initially only a Gothic chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary stood here. According to legend it was founded by a butcher to whom the Virgin appeared in a dream. A Baroque pilgrimage church later replaced it, drawing many pilgrims from the area. A legend about a robbers' hideout is associated with the place and was dramatised in J. N. Štěpánek's play The Robbers at Chlum. A knight who had left a chessboard here while praying sent his servant to fetch it. In the chapel the messenger secretly witnessed an attack on a young noblewoman. He managed to slip away unnoticed and report the terrible deed. After the robber band was captured and the girl freed, their stolen and confiscated treasures paid for a pilgrimage church on the former chapel's site. A ‘murderers' pit’ is still shown in the Marian chapel, recalling Bibiana, a character in that play.