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The Hussite Wars, lasting from 1419 to 1434, were a defining period in Czech history, following the Golden Age under Charles IV. These wars arose from intense religious and political tensions sparked by the execution of Jan Hus, a Czech reformer who condemned church corruption and called for reforms similar to those of the English theologian John Wycliffe. Hus was arrested by the Council of Constance and burned for heresy in 1415, despite receiving a safe-conduct from Sigismund of Luxembourg. His death outraged many Czechs, particularly nobles and scholars, who supported church reform. This fueled a growing Hussite movement within Bohemia, divided into moderate Utraquists (who advocated for communion in both bread and wine) and the more radical Taborites.
After the death of King Wenceslaus IV in 1419, anti-Catholic sentiments in Bohemia intensified. His brother, Sigismund, who inherited the Bohemian crown, condemned the Hussites as heretics and launched crusades against them with papal support. However, the Hussites, under skilled commanders like Jan Žižka, effectively resisted these crusades. In battles like Sudoměř (1420), Žižka’s forces used innovative tactics, notably wagon forts and early handheld firearms, to fend off heavily armored Catholic cavalry. The Hussite army became formidable, employing mobile warfare and early artillery to repeatedly defeat the larger and better-equipped Catholic forces in battles like Německý Brod in 1422 and Tachov in 1427.
The Hussites, now powerful and united by their "Four Articles of Prague" (demands for religious freedoms and reforms), expanded their fight by launching raids, or Spanilé jízdy, across Catholic-aligned regions in Germany, Austria, and Hungary. Despite continued internal divisions, Hussite leaders like Prokop the Great continued to hold back multiple crusades. However, internal conflicts grew as moderate Utraquists sought compromise with the Catholic Church while radicals wanted to continue the fight. The conflict between these factions peaked in 1434 when Utraquist forces, allied with Catholic crusaders, defeated the Taborites at the Battle of Lipany, effectively ending the Hussite Wars.
In the aftermath, the Hussites and the Church agreed to the Compacts of Basel in 1436, allowing Utraquists to practice their version of the faith while submitting to royal authority. Although the Taborites were defeated, the Utraquist creed remained significant in Bohemia until the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. The wars left deep scars on Czech lands, reducing the population and damaging local economies. Religious strife persisted for centuries, but the Hussite legacy shaped Czech identity and influenced later Protestant movements, including the Moravian Brethren and Reformation thought in Central Europe.