Boček I of Poděbrady (also: ''Boček I of Kunštát and Poděbrady'', german: Botschek I. of Podiebrad, cz, Boček I. z Kunštátu a Poděbrad; died: 1373) was founder of the

Poděbrady Poděbrady (; german: Podiebrad) is a spa town in Nymburk District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 14,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Elbe. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an u ...

line of the House of Kunštát.

Life

It is not known when and where Boček was born. Because his father, Gerhard (or Heralt) was chamberlain ( cs, italic=yes, Komorník) at the courts in

Brno Brno ( , ; german: Brünn ) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic ...

and

Znojmo Znojmo (; german: Znaim) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. Znojmo is the historical and cultural centre of southwestern Moravia and the second most populated town in the South Moravian R ...

, Boček probably grew up in

Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The me ...

. Before 1350, Boček went to

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

, where he presumably held some office at the court in Prague and acquired the favor of King Charles IV. In any case he was

enfeoffed In the Middle Ages, especially under the European feudal system, feoffment or enfeoffment was the deed by which a person was given land in exchange for a pledge of service. This mechanism was later used to avoid restrictions on the passage of ti ...

in about 1350 with some smaller

escheat Escheat is a common law doctrine that transfers the real property of a person who has died without heirs to the crown or state. It serves to ensure that property is not left in "limbo" without recognized ownership. It originally applied to a ...

ed manors. In 1351 or earlier, Boček married Elizabeth of Lichtenburg ( cs, italic=yes, Eliska z Lichtemburka), a daughter of Henry of Lichtenburg, at Žleby Castle. By this marriage, he came into the possession of the pledged Lordship of

, which he received as a hereditary possession from King Charles IV. In a document dated 1353, he described himself for the first time as ''Boček of Poděbrady''. Later, he called himself ''Boček of Kunštát and Poděbrady'', or ''Lord of Poděbrady''. He founded the Poděbrady branch of the House of Kunštát;

Poděbrady Castle Poděbrady Castle ( cs, Zámek Poděbrady) is a castle in the town of Poděbrady in the Czech Republic. History A wooden fortress originally stood at the site of the present castle. King Ottokar II of Bohemia replaced it by a stone castle, whi ...

was the seat of the family for several generations. From 1353 to 1358, Boček held the office of

cup-bearer A cup-bearer was historically an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty was to pour and serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues (such as poisoning), a person must have been regarded as ...

( cs, italic=yes, Číšník) at the court of Charles IV. After he lost the favor of the king, he sought to broaden his family possessions in Bohemia and Moravia. Before 1365 he erected a castle named Obřany Castle in the vicinity of

Bystřice pod Hostýnem Bystřice pod Hostýnem (; german: Bistritz am Hostein) is a town in Kroměříž District in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,000 inhabitants. Administrative parts Villages of Bílavsko, Hlinsko pod Hostýnem, Rychlov and S ...

in the Hostýnské mountains. It was named after the lost family seat of the Kunštát family, Obřany Castle in

. As he had built the castle without permission, King Charles IV and his brother, Margrave John Henry, ordered its destruction. In Moravia, Boček purchased

Potštát Potštát (; german: Bodenstadt) is a town in Přerov District in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,200 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Administrati ...

and in 1365 half of the town of

Prostějov Prostějov (; german: Proßnitz) is a city in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 43,000 inhabitants. The city is known for its fashion industry. The historical city centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an Cultural ...

. In 1369, he bought the town and castle of

Bučovice Bučovice (; german: Butschowitz) is a town in Vyškov District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,500 inhabitants. Administrative parts Villages and hamlets of Černčín, Kloboučky, Marefy and Vícemilice are ad ...

from Erhard of Bučovice. Before 1371, he also bought the

Litice Castle Litice Castle (german: Lititz) is a castle in Záchlumí municipality in the Ústí nad Orlicí District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. History The steep slopes of the foothills of the Orlické Mountains gave the advantage of a st ...

in East Bohemia. Boček died in 1373.

Family

By his marriage with Elizabeth of Lichtenburg, Boček had three sons: * Boček II of Kunštát and Poděbrady (died in 1416) * Henry / Hynek (died after 1376) and * Ješek (died after 1393) They also had a daughter: * Elizabeth (died in 1402), abbess of

St. George's Convent, Prague The Convent of Saint George ( cs, Klášter svatého Jiří) was a convent of Benedictine nuns located in Prague Castle in Bohemia (now the Czech Republic) between 973 and 1782. Founded in 973, the convent was next to the seat of ecclesiastical ...

:cs:Boček z Kunštátu a Poděbrad

References

* Ondřej Felcman, Radek Fukala ''et al.'': ''Poděbradové. Rod českomoravských pánů, kladských hrabat a sleszkých knížat'', Nakladatelství Lidové Noviny, 2008,

Footnotes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bocek 01 Of Podebrady Medieval Bohemian nobility 14th-century German nobility 14th-century births 1373 deaths Podiebrad family