František Lützow

“ Bohemia is justly proud of her history, and I think her recent historians, whether using the native or the German language, have done credit to her greatness; but to write even a sketch of Bohemian history requires a thorough knowledge not only of the Bohemian, but also of the English language. I am deeply conscious of my shortcomings on this point. I am not writing in my own language, and constant study of German and Bohemian books has left its impress on my use of English in writing. To numerous lapses from the most approved methods of English writing I must beg my readers' indulgence ”

“ While the despotism of Vienna pressed heavily on all parts of the empire, its oppression was felt more heavily in Bohemia than elsewhere; for not only were individuals deprived of all liberty, but the national language—so sacred to all Bohemians—was excluded from every school, law-court, or government office in the country. ”

“ When the Bohemian king saw that the battle was lost he plunged into the thickest ranks of the enemy, and died fighting desperately.
The reign of Přemysl Ottokar II, one of Bohemia's greatest kings, ended with complete disaster; and it is difficult to understand the complete and sudden downfall of such a powerful empire. The fact that Ottokar had, by the privileges he granted the towns, alienated many of the powerful Bohemian nobles, who therefore deserted him in the hour of peril, was undoubtedly one of the principal causes of his downfall. ”

“ I refer to the Slavic congress at Prague. The fact that Germans from all parts of their country had, though they were subjects of various rulers, met in one large assembly naturally suggested to the Slavs of Austria, and particularly of Bohemia, the idea of meeting in one great assembly. The men who undertook to organize this assembly were by no means enemies of the Habsburg dynasty. The fact that numerous members of the Bohemian nobility, which since the time of Maria Theresa has been traditionally loyal, took part in the proceedings bears sufficient witness to this. ”

“ In the year 955 we find the Bohemians as allies of the German monarch. The Magyars, or Hungarians, who ever since the battle of Presburg had almost annually ravaged Western Europe, in that year attacked Germany with greater force than before. They were, however, signally defeated in a great battle near Augsburg—one of the most sanguinary and decisive battles fought during the Middle Ages. A Bohemian contingent of a thousand men formed part of the victorious army, but Boleslav himself, with the greater part of his troops, remained to guard the frontiers of Bohemia. ”

“ Frederick the Great, who knew perhaps better than his Austrian antagonists that even after the constitutional revolution of 1627 the Estates of Bohemia still possessed a certain legislative power, demanded that the treaty of Berlin should declare that all lands belonging to Prussia, which had been held as fiefs of the Bohemian crown, should be freed from that dependence, and that the Estates of Bohemia should give their consent to the cession to Prussia of the lands that had formerly belonged to the Bohemian crown. ”

“ The attitude of the German and liberal cabinet which had taken office in Vienna in March was one of hatred and fear of the Hungarians, of hatred and contempt of the Slavs. The cabinet of Vienna was, however, entirely powerless, as several government officials and generals, of whom Prince Windischgrätz—who at this moment became commander of the Imperial forces in Bohemia—was the most important, had already planned a return to the former absolutist system of government. In spite of the dangers that threatened them, the Bohemian patriots determined to hold their congress. ”

“ In the reign of the father Bohemia's influence in European affairs remained stationary, if it did not actually decline. But Charles not only raised it to a position it had never before attained, but sought out every means of improving its internal condition. It is true that the general political condition of Europe was more favourable to Charles's policy than it had been to his father's. The German princes had never allowed Bohemia fair play; this impediment to the progress of Bohemia ceased now that Charles, King of Bohemia, himself became German Emperor. ”

“ In a country where the study of history is perhaps more general than in any other, no man underrated the indomitable courage and the iron tenacity of the German foes. The descendants of the Hussites, "men whose fathers braved the world in arms" against Bohemia, knew how dearly won and sanguinary some of the victories of their ancestors over the Germans had been. The Bohemians were now also prepared to defend their country. A short time previously gymnastic societies had been formed in most parts of Bohemia. ”

“ Several lords, seeing that the men of Prague were well entrenched, advised the king not to disturb them, as his troops might suffer severe losses, but the king said: "I must fight with these peasants to-day." The Praguers at first wavered, when Lord Hynek called out with a loud voice: "Dear brethren, do not turn back, but be to-day brave knights in Christ's battle; for it is God's, not our fight, we are fighting to-day. Be certain that the Almighty God will deliver all His and your enemies into your hands to-day." Before he had finished his speech the cry arose: "The enemy is flying." ”

“ The kings of Bohemia and Germany, with their small band, remained with the rear of the army at the beginning of the battle, not probably very confident in the result of an engagement which had been brought on against their advice. When the defeat of the French seemed certain, some of the Bohemian nobles informed King John of the unfavourable turn the battle was taking, and advised him to follow the example of the French, who were already retreating. King John then spoke the memorable words: "So will it God, it shall not be that a king of Bohemia flies from the battle-field." ”

“ The Magyars now ravaged Germany and the neighbouring Slavonic lands with impunity. About the time of this great battle—the exact date cannot be ascertained in the complete absence of contemporary evidence—the Magyars entirely conquered Moravia, which remained in their power for more than half a century; only a small western district fell to Bohemia.
"The invasion of the Magyars and their establishment in Hungary is one of the most important events in the history of Europe; it is the greatest misfortune that has befallen the Slavonic world during thousands of years. ”

“ The contemporary chronicler Laurence of Březova thus describes the mournful aspect of the battle-field: "What man, who was not more cruel than a pagan, could pass through these fields and vineyards and view the brave bodies of the dead without compassion? What Bohemian, unless he were a madman, could see these dainty and robust warriors, these men so curly-haired and so comely without deeply bewailing their fate? "The castle of the Vyšehrad surrendered to the Praguers immediately after the battle. ”

“ There is no doubt that the universal adoption of serfdom in Bohemia had entirely changed the character of the population. In the Hussite struggle large armies of peasants had freely and enthusiastically defended their country, and the democratic instinct, innate in the Slav race, had had full play. The Bohemian war of 1618 to 1620 was on both sides waged by mercenaries, and the better paid and better fed soldiers of Tilly and Bouquoi easily prevailed over the troops of Frederick, who were almost always on the verge of mutiny. ”

“ The complete failure of all efforts forcibly to subdue Bohemia made Sigismund, at least for a time, seriously meditate on the possibility of a peaceful settlement. On the other hand, the utraquist nobles, among whom Menhard, lord of Jindřichův Hradec, was now the most prominent, after the departure of Korybut, began to endeavour to reconcile King Sigismund with the Bohemian people. Menhard of Jindřichův Hradec wished to arrange a meeting between Sigismund and Prokop the Great, at that moment the most important representative of the utraquist or Hussite cause. ”

“ Every effort has been made to reduce the bulk of my narrative; only those of my friends who know the enormous mass of material in German, Latin, and Bohemian to which I have had recourse, will be able to gauge the labour involved in limiting the growth of the book. The interest to me has grown as the work has progressed, for the history of Bohemia, so little known to English readers, may be regarded as a drama, and even perhaps as a tragedy. ”

“ Orderly in financial matters, he showed exceptional talent in the art of government, though his military capacities were not great; he obtained far more by the arts of diplomacy than he ever could have done by the force of arms. John hardly disguised the fact that he had little sympathy for the land and people of Bohemia; love for them seems, on the other hand, to have been the one passion of Charles. ”

“ Thurn contented himself with the command of the army. His foreign origin and particularly his insufficient knowledge of the national language—which has already been noted—undoubtedly rendered it impossible for him to attempt to obtain a more prominent position. No movement unconnected with their national aspirations has ever carried away the whole mass of the Bohemian people. It was only by a general uprising that the new Government could hope to resist the inevitable attack of its enemies. ”

“ If we except the classical literatures, there is none to whom belong so many books the existence of which can be proved with certainty, yet of which all trace is lost, as to the older literature of Bohemia. Jesuits accompanied by soldiers—to prevent the possibility of resistance—were empowered to search for heretical books in all Bohemian dwellings from the nobleman's castle to the peasant's hut. ”

“ Bohemia, now a part of the great Habsburg Empire, has a history which is a record of much past greatness. It is situated in the centre of the European continent, and divided by high chains of mountains from the neighbouring German countries—Prussia, Saxony, Bavaria, and Austria. Only in the direction of the sister-land, Moravia, is there no such mountainous frontier. Bohemia is inhabited by a population the largest part of which, except in the earliest times, has always been of the Slavonic race ”

“ As Duke of Upper and Lower Austria, and later of Styria and Carinthia, Ottokar had become lord of vast German lands, and indeed the most powerful prince of the German Empire, over which he aspired to rule either with the title of king or by his influence over an insignificant and nominal king [6] It was therefore good policy for him to strive to hide his Slav origin, and to appear as a German prince ruling over a mainly German population. ”

“ Numerous tribes, whose partly-distorted names are recorded by the Roman historians, and among whom we find mentioned the Marcomanni and Quadi, driven southward by other—probably Slavonic—tribes, simultaneously attacked the Roman Empire. Only insufficient and contradictory accounts of this great war have reached us. The Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, having defeated the German tribes in several battles, formed the plan of incorporating the lands of the Marcomanni and Quadi (that is to say, the districts now known as Bohemia, Moravia, and Upper Hungary) entirely with the Roman Empire. ”

“ The Duke of Savoy, when he saw that England would not join the alliance against the house of Habsburg, began to fear the enmity of Austria, though he did not immediately renounce his pretensions to the Bohemian throne. A large party, especially among the German Protestants of Bohemia, wished to choose as king, John George, Elector of Saxony; there were, therefore, no less than three candidates to the throne besides Ferdinand, who (in contradistinction to his rivals) founded his claim on his previous election and coronation during the reign of King Matthew. ”

“ Ottokar, who appears at first to have expected to be attacked in Bohemia, now hurried to the aid of Vienna, which town bravely resisted the invaders, and seems almost alone to have remained faithful to the Bohemian king. Unfortunately, while the king was in Austria an insurrection against him broke out among the Bohemian nobility. This last blow induced Ottokar to seek for peace and not to risk a battle, the result of which was absolutely certain—seeing that his army, in consequence of numerous defections, consisted of only 20,000 men, while that of his enemies numbered five times that amount. ”

“ Bohemia was certainly very prosperous during his reign, and we read that the silver mines of Kutna Hora, the great source of prosperity for Bohemia in the Middle Ages, were again worked during the reign of Venceslas II. The richness and prosperity of the country at this period no doubt attracted notice in the neighbouring countries, Hungary and Poland, and inspired the people with the wish of also being under the mild rule of King Venceslas. ”

“ For reasons which it is not easy to comprehend, the king of Sweden determined to march into Southern Germany, and to leave the task of occupying Bohemia to his Saxon allies. The Saxon invasion of Bohemia was carried out in a very half-hearted fashion. The Elector, a worthy man of very limited intelligence, disliked the Swedes as being foreigners in Germany, and had reluctantly taken up arms against the Emperor, whom he considered his liege-lord, because of the Edict of Restitution and because of the depredations committed in Saxony by the Imperial troops. ”