19 July – 22 August 1420
Coronation and the Four Articles, July 1420
On 28 July 1420 Sigismund is crowned King of Bohemia in St Vitus Cathedral at Prague Castle, before 24 Czech and Moravian nobles. His army is short of food, the contingents of the different nations quarrel, and on 19 July a fire burns through their camp. On 30 July Sigismund dismisses the crusade and leaves for Kutná Hora.
The Crown of Saint Wenceslas, made for Charles IV in 1347, with which Sigismund is crownedWikimedia Commons, unknown photographer, Public domain (KorunaVaclava.jpeg)
In early July, during the siege, the Praguers and the Taborites agree on their demands in the Four Articles of Prague, drafted mainly by Jakoubek of Stříbro and issued in Latin, Czech and German. They ask for free preaching of the word of God, communion in both kinds for all the faithful, an end to the worldly power and wealth of the clergy, and the punishment of mortal sins by the proper authorities in every rank of society. After Vítkov, Hussite masters led by Jan Příbram debate them with Catholic theologians before the papal legate, and the talks fail over communion in both kinds.
Communion from the chalice, children among those who receive it, in the Jena Codex, about 1500Wikimedia Commons, Janíček Zmilelý of Písek, Public domain (Antithesis Christi et Antichristi (Jenský kodex), 4465-110814-0056v.jpg)
The Taborites answer with twelve articles of their own, which the Praguers do not accept, and on 22 August they leave Prague for Tábor. The royal garrisons stay in Prague Castle and Vyšehrad.
The south front of St Vitus Cathedral with the Golden Gate of the 1360sWikimedia Commons, Yair Haklai, CC BY-SA 3.0 (South facade of St. Vitus Cathedral-Prague-2.jpg)
Sources
- Laurence of Březová, Hussite Chronicle, Czech edition Husitská kronika (1979).
- Petr Čornej, Velké dějiny zemí Koruny české V (2000).
- František Šmahel, Husitská revoluce 3: Kronika válečných let (1996).
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