The bloody priest will not dictate to us. How Jan Želivský lost power 600 years ago
But the reality was a little different. Jan Želivský was not only a fierce, but rather a fanatical man with a tendency to dictatorship, and he was probably not particularly close to Žižek. It was Žižka who helped overthrow him 600 years ago.
To the center of events
Jan Želivský, born sometime in 1380, was originally probably a Premonstratensian priest working in the community of the Želiv Monastery.
He probably came to Prague only after the burning of Jan Hus and quickly became one of the most prominent, if not the most prominent Czech representatives of the so-called chiliasm, a religious direction awaiting the onset of God’s earthly empire lasting a thousand years. As such, he began to preach in the Church of Our Lady of the Snows, where he quickly gained the favor of the poor, partly because, like before him, Jan Hus did not preach in Latin but in Czech.
From radicalization to defenestration: First the pastor hung, then the councilors flew out the window
King Wenceslas IV. he did not want the Chiliastic and Hussite wave to spread in the capital of the Czech Kingdom, so on July 6, 1419 he had the New Town Council replaced and had the Hussite priests expel most of the churches in Prague. However, the Church of Our Lady of the Snows was one of three circumstances that passed away in this step.
The new councilors at the New Town Hall banned public rallies and had several grumbling believers, admitted under both, imprisoned in the New Town Prison. “Zelivsky’s reaction was fierce. After consulting with the rural Hussites and communicating with Jan Žižka of Trocnov, a member of the royal court, he prepared a coup in Nové Město, “says historian Petr Čornej in Dějiny Prahy.
On Sunday, July 30, 1419, armed people from Nové Město, led by Želivský, set out to liberate the “captured brothers”, taking the town hall by assault and throwing the councilors, including the mayor and mayor, out of the windows.
The Kališnice governors then (literally) took the place of the overthrown councilors, which, strangely enough, was even approved by Wenceslas IV, although the news of defenestration surprised him. However, the king did not intervene otherwise in the situation, because on August 16, 1419, he was killed by a sudden attack, probably a heart collapse or a stroke.
Radical leader
After the outbreak of the Hussite revolution, Želivský further radicalized and used his great popularity with the poor to gain as much power in Prague as possible. He managed to gain his influence at a time when the crusader army of Sigismund of Luxembourg approached Prague at the beginning of the summer of 1420, and the capital needed support from radical Hussites, including Tábor warriors led by Jan Žižka.
Thanks to Žižek’s attack, the Crusader attack was repulsed on July 14, 1420 in the Battle of Vítkov, and shortly thereafter Sigismund disbanded the entire expedition and withdrew from Prague (before that, however, he was crowned Czech king).
Battle of Vítkov: Žižek’s neck was at stake, the Crusaders finally found death after falling down the slope
This was followed by further strife between the moderate and radical Hussites, which was resolved in June 1421 by the Čáslav Land Assembly. It was to administer the Czech kingdom until the election of a new king on September 28, 1421 (the coronation of Sigismund of Luxembourg was not recognized by the assembly).
Some of Želivský’s opponents also sat in the government (eg the knight Jan Sádlo from Smilkov) and in general it had a rather moderate Hussite wing on top, which the hot-blooded preacher had a hard time carrying.
Bloody dictator
Therefore, in June, he caused a coup in Prague. “On June 30, 1421, Želivský’s supporters occupied the Old Town Hall and forced the councilors to resign. The New Town Council also abdicated. After that, Želivský decided to merge the New and Old Towns into one administrative unit, “Petr Čornej describes this event in the History of Prague.
Thirty councilors were elected to the new joint council, mostly with no previous experience with such an office, while Želivský was preparing to seize absolute power and initiate terror against his opponents. Jan Sádlo, who had a long-standing dispute with Želivský, was soon to become his victim. He protested against the priest directing worldly affairs.
600 years ago, Zatec faced the Crusaders: his defenses led the enemies to despair.
In August 1421, a second crusade invaded Bohemia with two currents, which was stopped in the west by the fiercely defending town of Žatec.
The cities were to come to the aid of Hussite troops from Prague, which began to form near Slaný. However, Jan Sádlo did not arrive there with his men. His legitimate distrust of Želivský’s command abilities on the battlefield may have contributed to this, as he had previously failed in the battle of Most, where he had not prevented his men from escaping.
Želivský took advantage of Sádlov’s absence and accused him of treason. At the end of October 1421, Lard was to be defended at Prague City Hall. He therefore arrived in Prague on October 19 and a day later headed for the Old Town Hall under the promise of a safe departure.
However, the day before his opponent, he carried out another coup in Prague, deposed the existing councilors, whom he replaced with his people, and appointed his supporter Jan Hvězda z Vícemilií, called Bzdinka, to the position of Prague’s highest governor.
The great triumph of Jan Žižka. 600 years ago, he crushed Sigismund’s men near the Habers
He managed to seize absolute power over the city. And he immediately abused it. He had Sadr arrested immediately after his arrival at the town hall, and the newly appointed councilors immediately sentenced him to death without giving the nobles any opportunity to defend themselves in court. Sádel’s execution was carried out that night by the newly appointed Governor Bzdinka.
The road to the end
However, Sádl’s insidious execution eventually broke Želivský’s neck as other representatives of the moderate Hussites began to fear him. At the same time, it seems strong that the bloody preacher is not as strong as he seems.
Želivský still stopped at the end of the year, because the Prague and Tábor Hussite troops withdrew to Kutná Hora and Německý Brod, where from 6 to 10 January they repulsed and drove away the units of the Second Crusade. But as soon as the Hussite warriors began to return from their victorious campaign to Prague, clouds drew over the Želivsky dictatorship at the town hall.
600 years ago, Žižka first used wagon walls. He made a deadly tactic a trump card
The preacher’s opposition invited the camps to Prague again, and a nineteen-member arbitration commission was formed, the composition of which Želivský could no longer speak. The commission, Jan Žižka was also a member of it, dismissed Bzdinka on February 5, 1422 and appointed Hašek Ostrovský of Valdštejn in his place. Opponents of Želivský regained the upper hand in the Old Town.
at the same time, it was probably Žižek’s voice that decided, because the famous military leader already had enough of the bloodthirsty priest. The Želiv entry lost power and was banned from Prague City Hall. Its final end was near.