Anne of Bohemia

“ They approached him reverently, and the eldest among them opened his lips, and said: “The Duchess of Bohemia has sent us hither, and bids us signify to thee the will and purpose of the gods, that thou change thy plough with the throne of this kingdom, and thy goad with its sceptre. She selects thee for her husband, to rule with her over the Bohemians.” ”

“ The Bohemian lords did not object to this, since the chief of these was Peter, the Archbishop of Mayence, who had been greatly loved and honored by Václav II. Later, when the German lords began to grow too domineering, King John was held to the agreement, and ordered to dismiss them.
When the nobles had established King John and Queen Elizabeth upon the throne of Bohemia, they imagined that they had done their country a good service, and that his reign would be an era of peace and prosperity to all the people. ”

“ However, Rudolph died before a year of sovereignty was out, leaving that poor lady Elizabeth a widow for the second time, and under even more trying conditions. Despite all Habsburg precautions towards settling the crown of Bohemia on their own house, the nobles of the country proceeded to assemble a Diet at Prague in order to elect a new King. Elizabeth had to attend that [Pg 133] function, and must have had a lurid time of it; the nobles raised no end of a storm, according to the Bohemian historian Palacky. ”

“ It sometimes happens that, as a gipsy’s child turns out to be a prince’s child, who, perforce, dwells in a palace, so the Bohemian is found in a fine house and high society. Bohemia is a fairyland on this hard earth. ”

“ Since that time the language has advanced rapidly as a vehicle of literature and science.
Johanna’s father, whose ancestors had belonged to the persecuted religious sect known as the Bohemian Brethren, was very proud of his lively, prattling, black-eyed little girl, and, being a true Bohemian, he often walked with her through the streets of Old Prague, telling her of deeds that were done there in the glorious days of old when Bohemia was free, and instilling into her young heart that undying love for her native land which has been her leading motive in her life’s work. ”

“ The only offense of the Bohemian king is that he is Slav, but that, with the jealousy of his power, the democratic institutions, and the wealth of his country, which contains the richest mines of silver in Europe, is sufficient. Great armies, German and Hungarian, are raised against him; finally he is treacherously slain in battle, his kingdom torn apart, and Bohemia is ravished and reduced almost to a "possession" or a fief of the Empire.
Yet the wound is not mortal, the nation is too strong ”

“ The fateful period for Bohemia comes in the sixteenth century. The people are weakened by wars, by internal religious strifes. A fearful new danger threatens central Europe—the Turks. In 1526 the Bohemian king, Ludvik, is killed in a battle with the Turks, assisting Hungary; and as there is no male descendant, the elective diet at Prague is influenced to offer the crown of Bohemia, under strict guarantees of all its rights, to the husband of Ludvik's daughter, Ferdinand of Habsburg, archduke of Austria. ”

“ The best answer to this—quite apart from the triumphs of Russian musical, literary, and dramatic genius which are no longer unfamiliar to us to-day—is to point to the existence, in the very heart of Europe, surrounded by hostile influences, of a highly cultured, democratic, progressive, Slavonic nation, the Czechs of Bohemia. It is right to remember on the anniversary of Hus, that the Slavs, as well as the Latin and Germanic races, contributed to the Reformation movement which was to transform Europe and the world, both from a religious and from a national point of view. ”

“ King Albert left two daughters, but no son, and thus Bohemia was again reduced to the necessity of choosing a ruler. Although Queen Elizabeth was a woman of much strength of character and energy of will, neither the Hungarians nor the Bohemians seemed disposed to be satisfied with her government; for in those stormy times it seemed that nothing but the strong hand of a man could be intrusted to guide the helm of the ship of state. The Hungarians elected Vladislav, the King of Poland, to be their ruler, on condition that he marry Queen Elizabeth. ”

“ As a people, none possess a more fascinating history than the Bohemians, for the story of the ups and the downs of the Bohemian nation has the grip and thrill of a fairy legend. One can not read, for instance, the legendary tale of the founding of the now beautiful city of Prague by the mythical Princess Libusa without catching the charm of Bohemia. The history of Prague is largely the history of Bohemia. Visit Bohemia and one can feel that the indomitable spirit of Prince Rupert of the Rhine, that dashing cavalry leader of ancient days, still lingers here and there among the Bohemians. ”

“ A closer study of the life of the queen of Bohemia fails to leave the impression that she was a woman of unusual refinement or of unusual depth of character, but in other respects accounts for much of the charm exercised over so many of her contemporaries. ”

“ She joined the order of the Sisters of Clara; but, being a highly gifted woman, and having been educated with a view to public life, she could not rest content with spending all her time in devotional exercises. Although out of the world, she kept herself informed of its doings. Being greatly beloved by her brother Václav, she became his best friend and counselor. She was also held in high regard by the Pope, who often consulted her in matters of Church and State relating to Bohemia. Agnes had great influence in regard to the organization of benevolent institutions in Prague. ”

“ Suffice it to say that during most of the time Bohemians were forced to fight on two fronts—Vienna on one front and their fellow-countrymen with Pan-German leanings on the other. The main quarrel between Vienna and Prague during all these years has been over Home Rule. Shall Bohemians living in the countries comprising the Bohemian Crown (Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia) be the arbiters of their own destiny, and shall they govern themselves from Prague by laws made and enacted by their home parliament? Home Rule is and has been the main issue; all else is subordinate to it. ”

“ Then he was dragged into Italian wars with which he had little sympathy, and [131] where men seemed to fight as much with poison as with swords; a witness of his father’s dissolute life, and surrounded by evil companions; and, to crown all his difficulties, when he had attained to full manhood, but had not yet become king of Bohemia, he had been suddenly raised to the highest dignity in Europe. ”

“ The return of peace enabled the Empress Maria Theresa to carry out the plans she had previously formed of reorganizing the vast Habsburg dominions. Even during the reign of Charles VI, the Empress's father, these various racially and historically distinct countries were, to a great extent, governed according to their ancient laws and traditions. Beside the high officials of Prague, no longer indeed elected by the Estates, but appointed by the Austrian Government, Bohemia was administered by the "Bohemian secret court chancellery" (Böheimische Geheime Hof Kanzlei) . ”

“ It is inhabited by the Czech branch of the great Slavonic race, and for fifteen hundred years has contributed largely to European culture. The fact that the Bohemians have not succumbed to strenuous efforts on the part of the Austrians to Germanise them speaks well for their individuality. That they have preserved their nationality and evolved their own civilisation augurs well for the brilliant future which lies before them.
Bohemia is situated in the centre of the continent of Europe, and is divided by chains of mountains from the German countries—Prussia, Saxony, Bavaria, and Austria. ”

“ We Englishmen can hardly understand the magic of this joyous phrase, vingt ans; through French prose and poetry it sounds again and again like a tinkling silver bell calling those who have lived and loved in youth to hark back for a moment in passionate regret, in an ecstasy of remembrance. To think of Bohemia without that silver tinkle in one's ears is to do it a grave injustice, for Bohemia throbbed with it then as with a tocsin, as with a summoning bell to a joyous refectory in some transcendant Abbaye de Thélème. ”

“ June 7, 1421, the fortress of Prague surrendered to the city, and by this the power of the Hussites was so firmly established in Bohemia, that they determined to carry the war into Moravia, to gain possession of the cities that had remained loyal to the emperor. They were met on the borders by some Moravian lords, and it was agreed to hold a General Diet of all the States belonging to the Kingdom of Bohemia, where they were to discuss matters of faith, but chiefly provide for some regular form of government for the whole kingdom. ”

“ Men, hardly recovered from years of starvation and plague, seemed at once convinced that at last a better time was coming; and on June 9, 1283, barons, knights, clergy, citizens, and peasants flocked out to meet the young king, Bishop Tobias leading the motley throng, and all singing the hymn of St. Adalbert, the opening words of which had served Ottakar as a war-cry at the fatal battle of the Marchfeld.
But the troubles of Bohemia were not yet at an end. The boy followed his most natural instinct in appealing to his mother to join him in Prague. ”

“ It was further declared that no Bohemian, at the penalty of being deprived of honor, goods, and life, could separate his interests from those of his nation, but must retain his natural love for his country and help it in this hour of need. This proclamation was sent to all parts of the country, and proved so effective that one lord after another sent letters to the camp of Sigmund severing his allegiance from the crown. Indeed, the disaffection toward the emperor was so great that secret messengers were sent to the King of Poland offering him the crown of Bohemia. ”

“ This fact alone proves what a gigantic work was done by the patriots who awakened the Czech nation to a new life. And yet the citizens of Prague were in a sense patriotic Bohemians, for all of them, Czechs and Germans, looked upon Bohemia as their fatherland and were proud of its noble history. ”

“ The period during which the new Luxemburg dynasty linked Bohemia to the Empire and the French West coincided with a Czech literary revival which repudiated the influx of unwonted luxury and refinement, and was brought home to the masses of the nation by able preachers. The University of Prague, founded by Charles IV. in 1349, became the centre of culture for Bohemia and her neighbours. John Hus and his noble friend, Jerome of Prague, became the great torchbearers of the Reformation. Their death inflamed the whole Bohemian nation against Rome and the treacherous Emperor Sigismund. ”

“ Bohemia was thus delivered from the enemy, and the government of Charles of Bavaria came to an end. In the spring of 1743, Maria Theresa came to Prague, and was solemnly crowned Queen of Bohemia. The ceremony was performed by the Bishop of Olmutz, the Archbishop of Prague being in disfavor on account of his adherence to Charles of Bavaria. Many of the lords who had sworn allegiance to the usurper had also much to fear. But Maria Theresa, unlike her ancestor Ferdinand, finally granted pardon to all, so that not a single execution marred the beginning of her prosperous reign. ”

“ Fear of the Teutonic peril has always harried the soul of the nation. Every historian, every poet, every patriot has admonished the people to be on their guard. One of the oldest chorals extant contains the pathetic invocation to the patron saint of the country. “St. Václav, Duke of the Bohemian Land, do not let us perish nor our descendants.”
In course of time many Germans and denationalized Bohemians were Bohemianized, so that it is hazardous to guess whether in Bohemia and Moravia more Germans adopted the Bohemian language than Bohemians the German. ”

“ The estates of Bohemia, at a meeting that took place at Prague on the 16th of October 1720, sanctioned the female succession to the Bohemian throne and recognized the so-called Pragmatic Sanction which proclaimed the indivisibility of the Habsburg realm. The archduchess Maria Theresa, in whose favour these enactments were made, none the less met with great opposition on the death of her father the emperor Charles VI. Charles, elector of Bavaria, raised claims to the Bohemian throne and invaded the country with a large army of Bavarian, French and Saxon troops. ”

“ In spite of the extraordinary development of wealth, and the growth of education which put them on a level with the most progressive nations of Europe, they were weighed down by the consciousness that Bohemia was being buried alive. Her enemies were growing in strength and closing in on her. By the Dualist Settlement of 1867 the separation between the Czechs and the Slovaks was made absolute and the Slovaks were handed over to the mercies of the Magyars. ”

“ The nobility of Bohemia was foreign nobility, German, Walloon, Spanish, Italian; their ancestors were military adventurers to whom Emperor Ferdinand granted confiscated estates of the Czech rebels. The men who owned the soil of Bohemia in the first part of the eighteenth century were eager to satisfy their vanity and impress with their lordly magnificence their peasant subjects. The Catholic Church was closely allied to the feudal nobles. The influence of the Church was wielded principally by the Jesuits, and barocco was commonly known as the “Jesuit style”. ”