IMPORTANT EVENTS AND PEOPLE IN CZECH HISTORY
THROUGH THE 19TH CENTURY
Question no.3, Topic 2
First Slav state
- during the 7th century
- Samo – he was a Frankish merchant who became the first known ruler of the Slavs Samo's Empire
- although this tribal union plausibly did not survive its founder, it created favorable
conditions for formation of a Slavic aristocracy
Great Moravia - a Slavic empire existing on the territory of present-day Moravia and Slovakia
- in the late 8th century, the Moravian basin and western Slovakia, situated at the Frankish
border, flourished economically; new fortified castles were constructed throughout the
country – proof of political integration and centralization
- in 862 prince Rastislav asked Byzantine emperor Michael III to send a bishop and teachers,
who would interpret Christianity to Slavic people in their own language in order to weaken
influence of Frankish priests preaching in his realm
- two brothers, Byzantine officials and missionaries Saints Cyril and Methodius came in
863, developed the first Slavic alphabet and translated the Gospel into the Old Slavonic
language
- cca 907 – Great Moravia disintegrated due to the invasion of Magyar normandic tribes and
the quarrels between the two sons of deceased king Svatopluk
The Přemyslids
- a Czech royal dynasty which reigned in Bohemia (9th century–1306) and in Poland (1300–
1306)
- the first historical Přemyslid was Duke Bořivoj I. who started to build a unified state under
the influence of the neighboring Great Moravia in the 880s
- the 13th century was the most dynamic period of Přemyslid reign over Bohemia
- in 1212 King Přemysl Otakar I (1198-1230), bearing the title “king“ already since 1198,
extracted a Golden Bull of Sicily (a formal edict) from the emperor confirming the royal
title for Otakar and his descendants; also the imperial prerogative to ratify each Bohemian
ruler and to appoint the bishop of Prague was revoked
Charles IV
- of the House of Luxembourg (father:John of Luxemburg)
- he was a Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, Count of Luxemburg, Margrave of
Brandenburg,…
- he strengthened the power and prestige of the Bohemian Kingdom and in 1344 he elevated
the bishopric of Prague, making it an archbishopric
- Charles also made Prague into an imperial city; extensive building projects undertaken by
the king included the founding of the New Town southeast of the old city, also the royal
castle, Hradcany, was rebuilt
- he founded the Charles University of Prague in 1348
- construction of the Charles Bridge (he was superstitious – odd numbers – 1357 9/7
5:31)+eggs
Jan Hus
- a Czech religious thinker and reformer, who initiated a religious movement based on the
ideas of John Wycliffe, he is also responsible for introducing the use of diacritics
(especially the háček) into Czech spelling in order to represent each sound by a single
symbol
-
the Catholic Church considered his teachings heretical (there was a big dispute concerning
the indulgences)
he was condemned by the Council of Constance, and burned at the stake on July 6, 1415
also responsible for introducing the use of diacritics (especially the háček) into Czech
spelling
Hussite Wars
- followers of Jan Hus became known as the Hussites (1420-cca1434)
- as a religious reform movement, it represented a challenge to papal authority and an
assertion of national autonomy in ecclesiastical affairs
- as a Czech national movement, it acquired anti-imperial and anti-German implications
and thus can be considered a manifestation of a long-term Czech-German conflict
- riots broke out especially when Sigismund, a pro-papal king of Hungary, succeeded to the
Czech throne
- a Czech yeoman, Jan Zizka, was the main leader of the Hussite wars (Taborites)
- the situation calmed down after the Compact of Basel (1433)– it accepted the basic tenets
of Hussitism expressed in the Four Articles of Prague: communion under both kinds; free
preaching of the Gospels; expropriation of church land; and exposure and punishment of
public sinners
Habsburgs
- the House of Habsburg comes from present-day Switzerland
- they governed the Czech and the Hungarian lands since 1526 until 1918
- the rulers of Austria-Hungary
Battle of White Mountain
- in 1618 two Catholic imperial councilors were thrown out of a window of Prague Castle
(one of the so-called Defenestrations of Prague), signaling an open revolt by the Bohemian
estates against the Habsburgs
- the Bohemian estates decided to levy an army, decreed the expulsion of the Jesuits, and
proclaimed the Bohemian throne to be
- Bohemians and mercenaries vs. men of the combined armies of Ferdinand II, Holy Roman
Emperor and of the Czech Catholic League
- on November 8, 1620, the Czech estates were decisively defeated at the famous Battle of
White Mountain
- gradually freedom of religion in Czech lands came to an end (period of oppression)
- protestants fled or were expelled from the country (Jan Amos Komenský)
- Czechs sometimes call the following period from 1620/1648 till the late 18th century the
„Dark Age“ – it’s characterized by devastation by foreign troops, Germanization, economic
and political decline
Czech Revival Movements
- proceeded in the Austrian Monarchy cca.the last third of the 18th century up to 1848
- reformers (scientists, artists, teachers,…) wanted to revive the Czech language and
motivate the Czech nation to better consciousness
- it formed a part of the process of transformation of the feudal sociality to a civil society
- rises „Slavistics“, teachings of Slavonic nations and Slavonic intercommunity
- lingual changes were begun by Josef Dobrovský and Josef Jungmann
- new theatres were established (Bouda) – a better way to talk to average citizens, besides
Czech plays could be in other theatres (Stavovské) only in unpopular times (afternoon)
- the National Theatre was built (1868-1881)