Current Affairs Key Czech nationalist text marks 600th anniversary

19-01-2009 16:44 | Rosie Johnston

In 1409, Wenceslas IV, King of Bohemia, was in a tight spot. He had already been imprisoned several times by his own advisors, and was being undermined by those in his kingdom with different religious views. So what did he do? Well, he commissioned a document which gave his opponents less of a say. The Kutná Hora or Kuttenberg Decree is seen by some historians as the first ever Czech nationalist document. Six hundred years ago on Sunday, it gave Czechs sitting on the council of Charles University in Prague more votes than their Saxon, Polish and Bavarian counterparts combined. I spoke to historian Marek Ďurčanský from Charles University to find out more:

The Kuttenberg Decree The Kuttenberg Decree   Back

Featured

Related articles

More

Section Archive

More

Latest programme in English