Stone Age people lived in the BL.

The first ethnic group of which we know the name is the Celts. The Celtic period can be divided into the pre-historic Celts and the historic Celts Pre-history Stone Age The Celtic peoples The Celtic tribe was called the Boii, after a word meaning cruel. They give their name to the country. The Germanic peoples coming after them call it Boiheim, home of the Boii, which the Romans later turn into Boiohaemum. The Germanic peoples Some of the Germanic tribes that settled in Bohemia were the Suebi and the Marcomanni. The Germanic period is controversial, because of the later history with Austrian Germans, Bohemian Germans and Germans. Even though it lasted for 600 years it is often skipped over. Some claim that there was a continuous Germanic culture throughout the Slavic period that connected to the later German settlers, whereas others mean that these Germanic peoples were actually Slavic. The Slavic peoples The Slavs arrived in Bohemia in several waves. The Avars The Avars were a horse riding nomadic people that conquered and ruled the Bohemian tribes. Samos realm Samo was a Frankish merchant, possibly involved in weapons smuggling, that managed to unite the Bohemian tribes in a confederation and cast off the Avar yoke. The Great Moravian Empire Samos realm does seemingly not survive its founder, however some speculate that its culture lives on in some form, because some time after, the so-called Great Moravian Empire appears, its cultural centres being pretty much the same. The empire centres on Moravia and Mikulcice but later incorporates Nitra in western Slovakia and Bohemia Proper. Its rulers invite missionaries from Rome, but when the Pope doesnt react they instead turn to the Byzantine Empire, which sends two missionaries, St Cyril and St Methodius. They create the Slavonic liturgy, a liturgy that uses a special language based on the Slavic dialects in Macedonia, the homeland of the missionaries. This language will later be called Old Church Slavonic. For this language they also create a special alphabet, the Glagolithic alphabet, which later develops into the Cyrillic alphabet used in e.g. Russian. Rastislav Svatopluk Mojmir The Bohemian Kingdom The Premyslids The Premyslids is initially one of many warring dynasties in Bohemia Proper and their initial headquarters is Levy Hradec in the north. The Premyslid princes Borivoj

After taking power in Bohemia Proper with Moravian help, Borivoj moves his seat to the hill of future Prague Castle. This is an ancient pagan cult site with a pre-historic fortress, inside which stands the Stone Throne (on todays St Georges Square), where the Prince of Princes is crowned, a sacred hillock called Zizi (in the vicinity of the same square), and a ritual hearth. Here, the Slavic sun god is worshipped, Svantevit. The palace at this time is probably pretty much a glorified log cabin and most likely also stood somewhere close to the square. Borivoj is invited to the court of Mojmir, the emperor of Great Moravia, but being a pagan he is not allowed to sit at the table and eat. He decides to be baptised, and thus becomes the first Christian ruler of Bohemia. He has to flee after an anti-Christian pagan uprising, but is reinstated with Moravian support. As a sign of gratitude he builds the Church of Our Lady, the oldest building in Prague and the second oldest church in Bohemia (the oldest is the Church of Our Lady in Levy Hradec). The remains of this no longer extant church can be seen in passage between the 2nd and the 4th Court Yard (The Garden on the Bastion). He marries Ludmila, later to become the first patron saint of Bohemia, and grandmother of St Wenceslas, the most important patron saint. Vratislav I Son of Borivoj. Marries Drahomira, a militant pagan who orders the murder of Ludmila at Tetin castle by Viking warriors. According to the legend swallowed up in her chariot by hellfire close to todays Czernin Palace. Vratislav builds St Georges Basilica, the oldest extant building in Prague, and hes depicted on its facade. (St) Vaclav Grows up with his grandmother, Ludmila, who gives him a Christian upbringing. According to the legends, a pious man, according to many history books, a weak ruler. When Henry, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, draws forth with an army, he gives up with a battle. Vaclav later becomes an important ally. Founds the rotunda of St Vitus on the highest point of Prague Castle after receiving the shoulder blade of this saint. After being killed by his brother, he is buried in the rotunda. Although the church is to be completely demolished and reconstructed, the plan of his tomb is still held intact. It also has astronomical significance. Boleslav I Brother of Vaclav. According to the legends, pagan that due to anti-Christian sentiments commits fratricide in Stara Boleslav. Some versions have him do it by his own hand, others, his servants. According to some history books the reason was rather that he was dissatisfied with Vaclavs weak politics. By some seen as the founder of the Bohemian state, he initiates an expansion that leads to the incorporation of Moravia, Silesia and southern

Poland. Beatifies his brother and starts the cult of St Vaclav. Makes efforts to make Bohemia ecclesiastically independent, ie the founding of a bishopric, although to no avail. Boleslav II Boleslav III Vratislav II (I) After helping the Holy Roman Emperor he receives the honorary title of king, and is thus the first king of Bohemia. However, the title is not hereditary. After a conflict with the bishop at Prague Castle, he moves his seat to Vysehrad, where he founds a new chapter, directly reporting to the Pope, as a way of undermining episcopal power. Sobeslav II Stays at Vysehrad, however builds the first Romanesque fortifications and royal palace of stone at Prague Castle. Vladislav II (I) After helping the Holy Roman Emperor in northern Italy, he receives the honorary title of king, but yet again, it is not hereditary. In an attempt to try to make it so, he abdicates in favour of his son, however, this fails. The Premyslid kings Premysl I Otakar Receives the Golden Bull of Sicily, which gives Bohemia the status of kingdom, and thus makes the title hereditary. Vaclav I Brother of St Agnes Premyslovna, founder of the convent of the Poor Claires in Prague, the female equivalent to the Minorites (Franciscans). This is the oldest remaining Gothic building in Prague. She also founds the Crusader Order of the Red Star, the only Bohemian crusader order, and the only crusader order in the world to be founded by a woman. Premysl II Otakar Conquers a vast territory in Central Europe, anticipating the Austrian Habsburg empire. He acquires the crowns of Poland and Hungary, and is close to be chosen as Holy Roman Emperor. But the princes of the empire are frightened by his growing power, and in a battle pitted against his nemesis, Duke Rudolf of Habsburg, he dies in 1278 at Moravskovo Pole. The Bohemian throne is taken over by Rudolf. Vaclav II All is not lost, and through marriages the conflict between the Premyslids, the Empire and the Habsburgs is solved. Vaclav II regains the Bohemian crown, and also keeps the Hungarian. Vaclav III

Vaclav III dies mysteriously in 1306, perhaps poisoned, and with him, the male lineage of the Premyslids dies out. His sister Eliska marries John of Luxembourg. The Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Central European state, comprising Germany, eastern France, Belgium, the Netherlands, western Poland, Switzerland, Austria, Bohemia and northern Italy. It has been said about it, that it was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an Empire. The empire traces its roots from the last division of the Frankish Empire, into a western and eastern part, and in particular from when the Carolingian dynasty lost control and Emperor Otto took control. It called itself holy because its emperors saw themselves as the main secular protectors of Christianity and it called itself Roman and imperial, because its rulers saw themselves as carrying on the heritage from the ancient Roman Empire. The power of the emperors waxed and waned during the empires existence, often as a result of their personalities, but there was a general stagnation throughout history, and during many periods the empire was more to consider as a confederation between more or less independent political entities of varying status (dukedoms, kingdoms, prince-archbishoprics etc). Its exact extension and borders, and the status of membership in the empire was vague, but for Bohemia it officially started in the 12th century, when the ruler of Bohemia started accepting his realm as a fief from the Emperor, largely a symbolic ritual part of the coronation ceremonies. The Emperor had to be chosen by the foremost princes of the Empire and these were called Electors. The ruler of Bohemia was one of these Electors, another one was the ruler of the Palatinate. You can perhaps argue that another step in the integration of Bohemia into the Empire comes with the ascension of the Luxembourgs, a non-native dynasty, to the Bohemian throne, and the next, of course, when Charles IV chooses Prague as the capital of the Empire. The next big change in the relation between Bohemia and the Empire comes with the defeat of the Bohemian Revolt at the Battle of White Mountain and the New Constitution issued by Ferdinand II, which in practice takes away the status of Bohemia as an independent kingdom and makes it a heritable Habsburg domain. Of course, Bohemia is still officially part of the Empire, but its status as a Habsburg domain is of much bigger importance for its politics. The Habsburg rise to power through further consolidation and centralisation of their lands, and their later monopolisation of the Emperorship also has consequences for the Empire as a whole. The Luxembourgs John the Blind Also known as The Diplomat King. He was more interested in foreign policy than the internal affairs of Bohemia. Had a tumultuous relationship to his wife Eliska Premyslovna, and his son, Vaclav/Charles IV, that often fought against him politically. Allowed the citizens of the Old Town to acquire their own town hall in 1338. They first bought the Wolflin House, which belonged to one of two of Pragues richest patrician families, the Wolflins. Soon after, the clock tower was built. The Old Town had however already been granted official city status in the 1230s. When

John first arrived in Prague, the Castle was devastated from a fire, so the royal family probably lived in the House at the Stone Bell on Old Town Square. Some historians believe this is also where Charles IV was born. John died at the Battle of Crecy fighting with the French against the English in the Hundred Years War. Charles IV (Vaclav) Also known as Father of the Country. It is during Charles IVs reign that Prague reaches its biggest importance in Europe, and Charles is indeed not only one of Bohemias most noteworthy rulers, but ranks among the most notable European princes. He is also known as The Last Premyslid. Undoubtedly this nickname has been influenced by later nationalist rhetoric, but it also true that he put an unusual emphasis on the Premyslid traditions of his mother, and sometimes sided with her against his father. The most obvious example is of course that he moved his seat to Prague, all the new buildings (Vysehrad, notably), and the commission of the Bohemian Crown Jewels. He also supported and reinforced the cult of St Wenceslas. However, he was also an internationalist, he grew up at the French court and changed his original Bohemian name, Vaclav, to Charles, after his personal patron saint, Charlemagne. He definitely settles down in Prague after wars in northern Italy in 1333. He moves in at the Castle, which is in a bad state and starts rebuilding it. He builds the Gothic Charles Hall and commissions Matthias of Arras, later Peter Parler, to start work on the St Vitus Cathedral in 1344. He founds the university of Prague in 1348, the same year as the New Town. He founds a monastery, Na Slovanech, and a number of churches: Our Lady of the Snows, St Catherine, St Charlemagne, St Stephen. In 1357 he starts building the famous Charles Bridge. He starts rebuilding the Church of Our Lady before Tyn. He dies in 1378 Vaclav IV Vaclav is not as strong a ruler as his father, and is prone to alcoholism. He keeps the royal court in Prague, but moves from the Castle to the Old Royal Court at Namesti Republiky in the late 14th century. He still builds the Wenceslas Hall at the Castle. Hes chosen as the King of the Romans, but never get crowned as Holy Roman Emperor by the Pope, and in 1400 his title is taken away from his. Some time after this his reign sees the construction of one of Pragues main sights - the Astronomical Clock. He gets into a conflict with the archbishop and as a result John of Nepomuk, a clerk is tortured and killed. This will later give rise to the cult of St John of Nepomuk, Bohemias most famous Catholic saint. It is also during his time that the Bohemian Reformation starts gaining momentum. Vaclav wavers between the two sides, apparently both because of political and personal reasons. The conflicts conflict comes to a head with the dispute at Charles University, and the resulting exodus of Bohemian Germans. In the end, Vaclav sides with the Catholic Church, and Jan Hus is burned at the stake in 1415 in Konstanz. A year later, Huss ally Jeronym of Prague meets the same fate. In 1419 the First Defenestration

ignites the Hussite Wars, that last for fifteen years, ending in 1434. Involved in this event are both Jan Zelezny and Jan Zizka, both of whom will play big parts in the conflict. Vaclav, fond of hunting, dies shortly after the First Defenestration, apparently from a heart attack during hunting. Sigmund Sigmund, who is crowned as king of Hungary, tries to take over after Vaclav IV, and is the main antagonist of the Hussites during the war. The Pope declares Bohemia to be a heretic nation and orders him to launch a crusade. Despite launching five crusades with the support not only of the Pople, but large parts of Catholic Europe, hes unable to defeat the Hussites. It isnt until the moderate wing of the Hussites, the Utraquists, who are weary of the war, decide to ally with a Catholic army against the radical Hussites, the Taborites, that conflicts finally ends after fifteen years, and Sigmund can be crowned king of Bohemia. The Bohemian Reformation and the Hussite Revolution The reasons for the Bohemian Reformation are complex. At the end of the 14th and the beginning of the 15th century there is a very pious climate, a culture of personal and spontaneous religiosity, that for large parts takes place outside of the established institutions of the Church. Related to this, there is a growing criticism of the Catholic Church, for example the selling of forgiveness or the fact that only priests can share in the wine during communion. A lot of this criticism is inspired by the English philosopher Wycliffe. On top of this there is an economic slump following the death of Charles IV, that many people attribute to the godlessness of the country. One example of this informal spirituality is Jan Milic of Kromeriz, a simple priest that rebuilds a church to New Jerusalem, a home intended to reform fallen women. The more intellectual aspect of the reformation takes its beginnings in the Church of Our Lady before Tyn where reformers start preaching, critisising the Church. Their main successor is Jan Hus, who starts preaching in the Bethlehem Chapel some years after. Jan Hus isnt just a priest but also a master at Charles University, and here his opinions and ideas lead to heated arguments. Although it would be too simplified to identify religious persuasions with nationality and ethnicity, it is true that most reform-minded people are Bohemian Czechs. After various back-and-forths, the reformers finally win a decisive victory with the help of the king, Vaclav IV, when the Bohemian Czech university nation is accorded three votes against one vote for the non-Czechs. This results in a massive exodus of non-Czech students and teachers, that found their own university in Munich. Throughout the following decades, the Charles University stays a Hussite stronghold, and this is a major factor in the culture conservatism of Bohemia during the same time, which leads to the relatively limited acceptance of the Renaissance in the lands. However, the battle is not over, and there is an increasingly heated rhetoric, where for example Jan Hus calls the Pope The Anti-Christ. In 1415, Hus is invited to a council of in Konstanz in Germany, where he is supposed to explain his views to the Church. He expecting to convince them, but is imprisoned and burned at the stake. This evokes strong indignation in Bohemia, and a written protest is signed and sent by many noblemen. A year later, Huss intellectual ally, Jeronym of Prague, born in

Reznicka in the New Town, meets the same fate. In 1419, theres a protest march lead by the militant reform priest Jan Zelezny, heading for the New Town Hall with demands to release people imprisoned on religious grounds. But their requests are met with provocations by the councillors, and a stone is thrown at Zelezny. The crowd goes mad, storms the town hall and throw out thirteen of the councillors from the window on the second floor. Downstairs, people are waiting with pikes, and swords and spears. In the crowd you have Jan Zizka, a young nobleman and adventurer, that will become one the greatest military geniuses Europe has seen. The king, Vaclav IV, dies shortly afterwards from a heart attack. The Hussite Revolution has begun. The Pope declares Bohemia to be a heretic country and asks Sigmund, the brother of Vaclav IV, already king of Hungary and next in line for the throne of Bohemia, to launch a crusade against the country. The first momentuous battle takes place on a hill, Vitkov, just outside of Prague in 1420. The Hussites are far outnumbered by the Emperors knights, but the peasant army bites back under the firm command of Jan Zizka and the imperial forces are soundly defeated. This sets the tone for the rest of the war. Five crusades are launched against Bohemia, but the Hussites beat them all off. As one of their main points is the sharing of wine in communion, which of course symbolises the blood of Christ, they choose the chalice as their symbol, and are also know as kalixtines from kalix which means chalice in Latin. The Hussite movement soon breaks up into various factions, the two most important being the moderate Utraquists based in Prague, and the radical Taborites based in Tabor, lead by the one-eyed Zizka. The Hussites arent satisfied with just defending their homeland, they want to spread the revolution to all of Europe, and undertake various anti-Crusades, military expeditions known as beautiful journeys to different parts of Europe, on one occasion even reaching the Baltic Sea. Despite in-fighting, the wars dont stop until the moderate Utraquists, weary of war, decide to ally with a Catholic army, and finally defeat the radicals. Thus, it is said that only the Hussites could defeat the Hussites. In 1434, the army of the Old Town (traditionally more moderate) storm out from the old fortifications still surrounding it, and take over the town hall of the New Town (traditionally more radical). The war is over, but the revolution can be said to continue for a few years after. Once the din has died down, Prague emerges as almost an independent city republic from the dusts, that eventually chooses its own, native Hussite King, George of Podebrady and Kunstat in the Old Town Hall. George does his best to govern the country of two peoples (Hussites and Catholics), and travels extensively around Europe to improve international relations and trying to construct a leage of peace among the rulers of the continent, by many considered to be a forerunner to both the UN and the EU, but he is shunned as a heretic and a non-royal, and his attempts dont meet with success. According to his wishes, Ladislaus II Jagiellon of Poland take over throne upon Georges death. He asks that his heart be buried at the Church of Our Lady before Tyn, thus continuing the Hussite tradition of this church. Following his death, there is also a big statue of him erected on the facade of the church plus a silver chalice. Of course, religious conflicts continue both in Bohemia and the rest of Europe, with important events like Martin Luthers Reformation in 1517, the initiation of

the Catholic Counter-Reformation at the Council of Trent a couple of decades after, and the ascent of the Habsburgs to the throne in the late 16th century, but the land stays a Hussite-Protestant stronghold. It isnt until the Bohemian Revolt of 1618 and its defeat in 1620 that things will change dramatically. Konrad Waldhauser Jan Hus Jeronym of Prague Jan Zelezny Henry the Corinthian George of Podebrady He was crowned in the Old Town Hall. He was the last native king. He came from lower aristocracy. Before he was king, he was governor of Bohemia, and he then lived in a palace in Anenska in the Old Town. Today this is one of the citys most valuable and well-preserved Romanesque palaces. He continued residing at the Old Royal Court, rather than the Castle. The Jagiellons Vladislav II Also known as King Alright due to his proclivity to respond to any request with Bene, bene, which in Latin means something like alright or ok. In Bohemia considered to be a politically weak king, which naturally helped the Estates become more powerful, and probably contributed to the continued gains of the Hussite Revolution. He initially resided at the Old Royal Court, like Vaclav IV and George of Kunstat and Podebrady before him, and built the Powder Tower in 1475, on the spot of an old very dilapidated defensive tower known as Threadbare. This new tower is an example of Late Gothic and was never intended as a fortification, but as a decorative tower. The architect was Matthias Rejsek. However, he later moved back to the Castle and constructed the Ladislaus Hall at the Old Royal Palace, which at the time was the largest secular space in the city, i.e. the largest room that wasnt a church. Reputedly this was to enable indoor jousting tournaments. There are also specially constructed stair cases for horses. The Ladislaus Hall is also architecturally unique in that it is essentially Late Gothic, but has Renaissance windows, the first Renaissance architecture at the Castle. Coronation ceremonies were also undertaken here, and during the later reign of Rudolf II it served as an indoor market for exotic goods. Today, they swear in the President here. It also has one out of only two sets of replicas of the Bohemian crown jewels. For this work, Ladislaus II used the architect Benedikt Ried. Louis Lous is mostly famous for having the Louis Wing named after him, a part of the Old Royal palace built by Benedikt Ried, and from whose windows Vilem Slavata of Chlum, Jaroslav Borita of Martinic and their Italian secretary Fabrizio later would be thrown during the Second Defenestration. He died when fleeing a battle against the Turks, when his horse fell in a river and drowned him.

The Habsburgs The Habsburgs were originally from Switzerland, but early moved their seat to Austria, where they first ruled as dukes. Before Ferdinand I was chosen by the Estates, they had already made two appearances in Bohemian history. The first one was when Rudolf of Austria fought and defeated Premysl II Otakar at Moravske Pole in 1278. The second was in the fighting between George of Kunstat and Podebrady and Albert II and his son Ladislaus the Posthumous. The Habsburgs were famed not so much for their warlikeness, but their cunning dynastical prowess. This is reflected in their motto: May other nations make war, but you, dear Austria, marry! One consequence of this strategy was extreme inbreeding, eventually leading to infertility as well as both physical and mental handicaps. The most well-known of their physical peculiarities was the Habsburg lip, a severe underbite, that virtually everyone in the family suffered from. The most tragic example was probably Charles II of Spain who had such a heavy underbite that he was unable to chew, and could hardly speak. He also suffered from other serious physical and mental handicaps. For large parts of their history they had an ongoing rivalry with the Bourbons. There were two main branches, the Austrian Habsburgs and the Spanish Habsburgs. The Spanish Habsburgs were eventually replaced by the Bourbons. Technically, the Austrian Habsburgs died out with Maria Tereza as she married Charles of Lorrain, thus turning the dynasty into the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty. The last Habsburg-Lorraine on the Bohemian throne was Charles V (I) that abdicated in 1918 at the end of WWI, although not giving up his claims to the throne. This line still exists today and the current head of Habsburg-Lorraine is active in Austrian politics. Except for dynastical skills, the Habsburgs are notable for their managment of interior politics, that enabled them to unify their separate dominions into a modern centralised state. Because of this, the Habsburgs normally get a bad rap in Czech historiography, and the reign of the Habsburgs starting from the defeat at White Mountain is sometimes known as The Dark Times. Another reason is that many Czechs think that they tried to germanise them. While it is true that Austrian-German culture was promoted, and that the Czech language and culture during periods was oppressed, this happened for a variety of reasons, some of them not intentionally malevolent. The Habsburgs moved their seat to Vienna, but Prague continued to be an important city in their lands, and even in times of political and economical decline, it was often a well-liked residence personally among the rulers, e.g. Ferdinand III. The Habsburgs were also for the most part staunch Catholics, which of course brought them on a collision course with Hussite-Protestant Bohemia. The Austrian Habsburgs Whereas the Habsburgs as whole have a bad reputation in Czech historiography, in general the first Habsburgs, the Austrian Habsburgs, are seen as less bad. Ferdinand I To some historians it is a bit of a mystery why the Estates chose Ferdinand I, a Habsburg, to succeed the extinct Jagiellons. Surely, the reputation of their centralising policies must have preceded

them. Nevertheless, that is what happened, and Ferdinand did start centralising, which inevitable got him into conflict with the Estates. To summarise you can say that Ferdinands attempt at limiting the power of the Estates were successful, but religiously he remained relatively tolerant. He was also important for Prague, in that the most beautiful Renaissance buildings were built under his reign; the Royal Summer Palace (Queen Annes Summer Palace) and the Ball Game Hall, both by the Italian architect Aostalli. These represent some of the earliest and finest examples of Renaissance architecture north of the Alps. His second oldest son, Ferdinand of Tyrol, secretly married Philippine Welser, a morganatic marriage and was appointed governor of Bohemia, a position that he kept when his older brother Maximilian II took over the throne. Ferdinand of Tyrol built Hvezda, another Renaissance building, primarily said to be used for hunting, but also mysteriously imbued with Hermeticist philosophy. Maximilian II Maximilian II is by many believed to be a closet Protestant, and this is probably why he continued the policy of relative religious tolerance. One year before his death in 1576, the Bohemian Confession is formulated in the town hall of the Lesser Town, granting equal rights to Calvinists, Lutherans, Utraquists and Catholics. Maximilian doesnt confirm it in writing, which makes it non-binding. Rudolf II Rudolf II is in Czech historiography the most well-liked of the Habsburgs, and he is probably the king of Bohemia that has attracted most interest from foreigners. Much has been written about him, but the legends prevail. As the oldest son of Maximilian II, he is sent away to court of the Spanish Habsburgs in Madrid to get a proper education. When he comes back, he moves his seat from Vienna to Prague, apparently due to family conflicts and intrigues, thus making the city yet again, the capital of the Holy Roman Empire. Rudolf is not a politically strong ruler, especially not when it comes to foreign policy, and he never sees battle although the Habsburg empire is busy fighting the Turks in the south-east. He is however a lover of art, culture and science, and during his reign Prague definitely becomes the cultural capital of Europe with many many talented artists and scientists gathering in the city. He is also an obsessive collector, not only of paintings, sculptures and other art, but also of exotic miscellanea, and creates one of Europes finest and most legendary cabinet of curiosites. At this time there is no sharp border between science and magic, and Rudolf also holds a great interest in the occult, such as the Kabbalah, astrology, and above all alchemy. This of course leads to a lot charlatans coming to Prague. Rudolf is

forced by the Estates to sign the Letter of Majesty a written confirmation of equal rights of Lutherans, Utraquists and Catholics in 1609. Matthias II Matthias the second takes power with a coup detat in two stages. First he takes over all the Habsburg lands except Bohemia. Then he takes Bohemia as well, but lets Rudolf keep the title of Holy Roman Empire and lets him stay at the Castle. The Thirty Years War The Bohemian Phase The Thirty Years War, the biggest and most important religious war in Europe, and the seventh most devastating military conflict the continent has seen, starts of in Prague, the capital of Bohemia, in 1618. A Protestant church is torn down by the Catholics, who claim that its standing on land belonging the Church, whereas the Protestants say its owned by the king. An angry group of Protestants meet at the Carolinum in the Old Town, and decide to go the Castle next day and speak to the representatives of the king, who is now residing in Vienna. Some of the participants are more radical, and not satisfied with the conclusion of the meeting. They later hold another, secret, meeting at the Smiricky Palace at Lesser Town Square, just next to the town hall where the Bohemian Confession was formulated in 1575. They decide to deal with the representatives of the king in the old-fashioned Bohemian way, i.e. defenestration, and to follow up with a coup detat. Lord Smiricky is to become king of Bohemia. The next day, the whole group from the Carolinum walks up to the Castle, most of them unawares of what the radicals have in mind. After a short discussion with the representatives, Jaroslav Borita of Martinic and Vilem Slavata of Chlum, the radicals break out from the group, grab hold of them and throw them out of the window. Both of them miraculously survive the fall from the second floor, the reason being unknown to this day. The Catholics claim that angels catch them just before they hit the ground, whereas the Protestants insist they end up in a pile of horse manure or rubbish, depending on different versions. However, some historians say theres no evidence of this part of the castle being used either as a deposit for horse manure or as a rubbish dump, and instead explain it through with a theory that the slope below the window was much steeper, and that Vilem and Jaroslav thus bounced down it, diminishing the impact. In any case, Jaroslav escapes with just a few scratches, the Protestants shooting at him from the window, he manages to get across the river and escape to Munich in Germany. Vilem desperately clings on to the window ledge, but the Protestants bang his fingers till he looses his grip. He falls straight down and

gets a bad wound to his head. He gets up, but is unable to run as fast as Jaroslav and thus decides to take refuge in the Small Lobkowicz Palace just around the corner, in the actual court yard. The Lobkowiczes are the most powerful noble family of the Bohemia, staunch Catholics and adamant supporters of the likewise Catholic Emperor. The matriarch of the Lobkowiczes at this time is Polyxena of Lobkowicz, a fearsome lady of enormeous proportions. In this period the fashion is huge underskirts, so she hides the dung-covered, concussioned Vilem there. In the smaller Lobkowicz Palace today they have a family collection with amongst other things lots of painting, and one of them depicts the scene when the Protestants come chasing after Vilem into the Palace, but Polyxena stands in their way, refusing them entry. As all of this is going on, theres a third person in the room, the Italian secretary Fabrizio, who very inconspicuously tries to leave. Unfortunately for him, the Protestants spot him just before he gets out and throw him out as well. Miraculously, he survives as well and manages to escape Prague. After his return, hes ennobled and given the title of von Hohenfall, meaning Lord Highfall, and given a house right on Old Town Square, confiscated from a Protestant noble. This event sets of the Thirty Years War and the Bohemian Uprising, the first phase. It gets off to a bad start for the Protestants as their king-to-be, Count Smiricky, dies shortly afterwards. But then they choose Fredrik of the Palatinate, son-inlaw to the English king, and leader of the League of Protestant Princes, and they have some successes and even manage to get the Turkish Sultan on their side against the Catholics. Count Thurn, one of the radical nobles, lead a siege of Vienna, the capital of the Empire, and is just about to invade the city, when his supply chains are cut off and Prague is besieged. He has to return to save Bohemia and meets the Catholic army on White Mountain in 1620, just outside of Prague. The Protestants are soundly defeated. Fredrik of the Palatinate, his wife, the daughter of the English king and their servants flee helter-skelter and she almost forgets her baby. Meanwhile, Matthias II has died in 1619 without any children. Hes replaced by Ferdinand I, a Habsburg from a different branch, the Styrian branch, who are downright fanatical Catholics. This means that the consequences of the defeat are worse than anyone would have dreamt of. A Catholic dictatorship is imposed in Bohemia, and all other religions are outlawed. Nobles are given a choice to either convert or to leave the country and have their property confiscated. A show trial is held in the Old Royal Palace, only one floor above the window where everything started two years earlier. Ferdinand I rips up the Letter of Majesty in front of the eyes of the accused and dishes out some truly gruesome punishments. One year later, they are carried out by

the infamous executioner Mydlar (the Soap-Boiler, a person that makes soap from animal carcasses) on a stage on Old Town Square. Twenty-seven notable Protestants are beheaded, and their heads and hands are hung from the Charles Bridge, where they stay for several decades. They are not only nobles, but also intellectuals and burgers. Among them is Jan Jesenius, Bohemias most brilliant physician, that just a couple of years before has carried out the first public dissection in the Carolinum, the very place where the Protestants met in 1618. Others are whipped or punished in very cruel ways. The man who let the Protestants into the Castle has his tongue nailed to a wooden post of the stage. Eventually the heads and hands are buried at the Church of the Holy Saviour. The execution stage is used to make stairs in the Church of Ss Simon and Jude. The result is a mass exodus, not only of nobles, but also of the intelligentsia. The battle is lost for now in Bohemia, but the war is spreading like wildfire throughout Europe, and many of exiled continue fighting for their country abroad, among them the indefatigable Count Thurn and the first modern pedagogian John Amos Comenius. The Palatinate Phase The fight continues in Fredriks homeland, the Palatinate. Hes dethroned by the Emperor but fights back, his armies containing many exiled Bohemians. In the end, Tilly the grand general of the Imperial Forces, prevails, and Fredrik has to give up any hope of reclaiming, not only to the Bohemian throne, but also to his homeland. He spends the rest of his life in exile, continuing to use the title of King of Bohemia. The Danish Phase Denmark, one of Europes major Protestant kingdoms, feels threatened by the Catholic successes in the Empire, and decides on a preventative strike. They invade the Empire, but are repulsed not only by the ingenious Tilly, but also the rising star of Duke Albrecht of Wallenstein, an ultra-pragmatic careerist Protestant turned Catholic. Hes amassed enormous wealth and land through expelling Bohemian Protestant nobles and confiscating their property, and is creating a state within a state in Bohemia. Although doing the Catholics bidding, hes not really too fussed about religion or anything else as long as hes making money, and people in general are better of in his lands than elsewhere in other Catholic parts of the Empire. Wallenstein not only kicks the Danes out of the Empire, but invades mainland Denmark, Jutland. However, he doesnt have a fleet to invade the Danish Islands where Copenhagen is located. The cost of building one on his own is too high, and the only city on the Baltic coast with enough resources stubbornly resists his siege. In the end hes forced to

negotiate with the Danish king and things pretty much return to the way it was before. The Swedish Phase Sweden is considered as the leader of the Protestant kingdoms and gets involved in the war for the same reasons as Denmark. The Swedish king, Gustavus Adolphus II, also known as the Lion from the North, is often classed together with such giants as Napoleon and Alexander the Great as one historys foremost military geniuses and finally the Protestants have some major military successes and cause the Catholics significant losses. However, after Wallenstein is called back again, the Swedes slowly have to start retreating again. The French Phase From being a religious war, the conflict gradually transforms into a political confrontation between the Habsburgs and the Bourbons, Europes two most powerful royal dynasties. The French Bourbons feel surrounded by the Habsburgs, who are in power of the Holy Roman Empire, the Netherlands, and Spain. Thats why France, although Catholic, decides to join the war on the side of the Protestants. Together with the English theyve already been financing the war. In light of the Swedish defeats, Richelieu starts taking a more active approach. With their Swedish allies they have great successes, and the war ends in 1648 in the same place where it started, with the Swedish invasion of Prague. The Swedes take the Castle and the left bank of the river and try to battle across the Charles Bridge. But the Oldtowners together with the students and the Jews put up fierce resistance and the Swedes never make it over. They do, however, return with a rich booty, which consists of big parts of Rudolfs remaining collection. The Styrian Habsburgs Since Matthias dies childless, another branch of the Habsburgs take over the throne, the Styrian Habsburgs. They are even more fanatically Catholic and rule Bohemia until 1848, when Francis V (I) The Goodnatured abdicates in favour of Francis Ferdinand I. Ferdinand II Ferdinand is crowned already in 1619, but his reign is interrupted by the Second Defenestration and the following Uprising of the Bohemian Estates. Fredrik of the Palatinate is chosen as king the same year by the Estates. His wife is of the English Stuart dynasty and they are Calvinists. But Fredrik rules for only one year, and is thus known as The Winter King, and Ferdinand makes a comeback in 1620. Hes to rule until 1637. (Fredrik of the Palatinate) Ferdinand II Ferdinand III

Rules between 1637-1657, thus for the eleven last years of the Thirty Years War. Hes one of the more unknown Habsburgs, but managed to finish The Empress Wing at the Castle. (Ferdinand IV) Is crowned Bohemian king at the Castle in 1646 but dies the same year. Leopold I Also builds something at the Castle. Joseph I Joseph is not so fond of the Castle and is the first of the Habsburgs not be crowned king of Bohemia, just like his later namesake. The coronation ritual is by now, after the issue of the Renewed Land Order, a mere formality, and an excuse to impress people with lavish festivities. Charles IV Charles IV does not beget a son, and thus spends his later years with diplomatic negotiations regarding the so-called Pragmatic Sanction, according to which the other rulers of Europe will accept a female heir to the Habsburg throne. With Charles, the Habsburgs died out (the Spanish Habsburgs had already died out in 1700). Maria Theresa/Francis Stephen of Lorraine Ruled 1740-1780. The female heir to Charles IV, was his daughter, Maria Theresa. Right after her accession, many countries reneged on their promises to respect the Pragmatic Sanction and declared war on the Habsburg empire, all of them eager to get a piece of the cake. Also many of the estates within the Empire rebelled, among them the Bohemians. However, after getting the support of the Hungarian Estates when displaying her newborn son to them at the meeting, she gradually managed to fight back and keep her lands relatively intact. She never forgot the treason of the Bohemian Estates and called St Wenceslas Crown a fools cap. Her arch-enemy was Fredrik of Prussia, with whom she fought three wars, the first of them the Wars of the Austrian Succession, the second the Seven Years War, also known as the real first world-war as the battle-scene extended not only to all of Europe, but also the colonies. Despite having negative feelings about Bohemia, shes mostly considered to one of the better Habsburgs, as she realised the need to modernise the hopelessly old-fashioned Austrian Empire, and the recatholicisation and germanisation held up a little. Although she did her best, she did lose most part of Silesia, the northern part of Bohemia to Fredrik. This area was economically very important because of its mineral deposits. A lot of the positive changes she effected was due to the influence of her husband, Francis Stephen of Lorraine, and above all her son, Joseph II. However, although

these two men in theory were supposed to be co-rulers with her, in practice she had the last word. One area where she was not modern was the Jews. She was a strong anti-Semite, and it during her reign that the last major expulsion of Jews take place, something that she later backtracks on, both because of her son and when she realises the practical effects of her actions. The Wars of the Austrian Succession The Seven Years War The Habsburg-Lorraines Joseph II Joseph II is a strong supporter of the idea of enlightened absolutism, the notion that the ruler should have absolute power, but also realise that he is a servant of the people and the empire, and that he should follow scientific and humanitarian principles. He continues and far exceeds the attempts at modernisation of his mother in all areas, including health care, education and armed forces. He issues the so-called Patent of Tolerance which revives the situation of old with equality between Lutherans, Calvinists, Utraquists and Catholics. He even gives equal rights to the Jews. Hes also a Freemason. In spite of all this positive reform, hes still considered a controversial ruler in Bohemia. The first reason is that he refuses to be crowned Bohemian king. In his mind, he is the head of a state consisting of provinces. The second reason is that he advocates the spread of the German language. The Habsburgs are often accused of germanisation, the intentional spreading of German/Austrian culture and language, sometimes on the expense of Bohemian/Czech culture and language of Bohemia and especially the Bohemian Czechs. While this is partially true, it also true that different rulers had different motives. Some of them might have been racist, but Joseph thought of it from a practical perspective. He wanted his state to have a common language to improve communication between the various parts. The third reason is that he was very anti-religious and abolished many monasteries and convents, closed many churches, which he, in the best case turned into either storage spaces or barracks. In the worst cases he tore them down or ruined through careless usage, and that is why some several cultural riches have been lost to us, the most prominent being the Chapel of Corpus Christi on Charles Square, Bethlehems Chapel in the Old Town, and many items from the collections of Rudolf, which were sold off at ridiculous prices. In connection with giving equal rights to the Jews he also allowed them to move out of the ghetto, and its because of this that this area today is known as Josefov. Unfortunately this innovative ruler only rules for ten years 1780-1790. Leopold II

Leopold slows down the josephine reforms a little, but its not a complete turn-around. Moreover, he is crowned Bohemian king in one of the most astounding coronation ceremonies ever held, with Mozart himself composing some of the musical arrangements and performing it at the Estates Theatre The Austrian emperors Francis I Ferdinand I Francis Joseph I Charles I The First Czechoslovak Republic T.G. Masaryk Edvard Benes The Second Czechoslovak Republic Emil Hacha The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia Emil Hacha/von Neurath/Reinhard Heydrich/K.H. Frank Post-war Czechoslovakia Edvard Benes Communist Czechoslovakia Klement Gottwald Antonin Zapotocky Antonin Novotny Ludvik Svoboda Gustav Husak The Czech and Slovak Federative Republic Vaclav Havel The Czech Republic Vaclav Havel Vaclav Klaus