![Kosmas](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Kosmas.jpg)
Cosmas of Prague ( cs, Kosmas Pražský; la, Cosmas Decanus; – October 21, 1125) was a priest, writer and historian.
Life
Between 1075 and 1081, he studied in
Liège. After his return to Bohemia, he married Božetěcha, with whom he had a son named Hermann or Zdic and remained in
minor orders
Minor orders are ranks of church ministry. In the Catholic Church, the predominating Latin Church formerly distinguished between the major orders —priest (including bishop), deacon and subdeacon—and four minor orders—acolyte, exorcist, lec ...
. His son later became Bishop of
Olomouc
Olomouc (, , ; german: Olmütz; pl, Ołomuniec ; la, Olomucium or ''Iuliomontium'') is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 99,000 inhabitants, and its larger urban zone has a population of about 384,000 inhabitants (2019).
Located on t ...
. In 1094, he was ordained a
deacon
A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...
, and in 1099, he was ordained a priest at
Esztergom
Esztergom ( ; german: Gran; la, Solva or ; sk, Ostrihom, known by alternative names) is a city with county rights in northern Hungary, northwest of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom County, on the right bank of the river Dan ...
in
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
Works
His ''
magnum opus
A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...
,'' written in
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
, is called ''
Chronica Boemorum
The ''Chronica Boemorum'' (Chronicle of the Czechs, or Bohemians) is the first Latin chronicle in which the history of the Czech lands has been consistently and relatively fully described. It was written in 1119–1125 by Cosmas of Prague.
The ...
''. The ''Chronica'' is divided into three books:
*The first book, completed in 1119, starts with the
creation of the world and ends in the year 1038. It describes the legendary foundation of the Bohemian state by the oldest Bohemians around the year 600 (Duke
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
, Duke
Krok and his three daughters), Duchess
Libuše and the foundation of
Přemyslid dynasty
The Přemyslid dynasty or House of Přemyslid ( cs, Přemyslovci, german: Premysliden, pl, Przemyślidzi) was a Bohemian royal dynasty that reigned in the Duchy of Bohemia and later Kingdom of Bohemia and Margraviate of Moravia (9th century–130 ...
by her marriage with
Přemysl is a Czech masculine given name. The Polish alternative is Przemysł or Przemysław.
Famous bearers
Czech royals
* Přemysl the Ploughman – mythical founder of the Bohemian royal dynasty of Přemyslids
* Přemysl I Otakar – king of Bohe ...
, old bloody wars, Duke
Bořivoj and the
introduction of Christianity in Bohemia,
Saint Wenceslaus
Wenceslaus I ( cs, Václav ; c. 907 – 28 September 935 or 929), Wenceslas I or ''Václav the Good'' was the Duke ('' kníže'') of Bohemia from 921 until his death, probably in 935. According to the legend, he was assassinated by his younger ...
and his grandmother
Saint Ludmila
Ludmila of Bohemia (c. 860 – 15 September 921) is a Czech saint and martyr venerated by the Orthodox and the Roman Catholics. She was born in Mělník as the daughter of the Sorbian prince Slavibor. Saint Ludmila was the grandmother ...
, reign of the three Boleslavs, the life of
Saint Adalbert and bloody wars after year 1000.
*The second book describes Bohemian history for the years 1038–1092. The book starts with the heroic deeds of Duke
Břetislav, known as the "Bohemian
Achilles
In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's '' Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Pele ...
", for example with his victory over
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
. The ''Chronica'' also describes the long and great reign of King
Vratislav, who was known as a forceful ruler but a brave and good man. There is also a reflection on his wars in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
; this book ends with Vratislav's death.
*The third book (1092–1125) starts with a description of the time of instability and bloody civil wars after Vratislav's death between years 1092 and 1109. The ''Chronica'' ends with the reign of
Vladislav
Vladislav ( be, Уладзіслаў (', '); pl, Władysław, ; Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, sh-Cyrl, Владислав) is a male given name of Slavic origin. Variations include ''Volodislav'', ''Vlastislav'' and ''Vlaslav' ...
between 1109 and 1125. The same year, 1125, Cosmas died.
In the later 12th and 13th centuries,
Cosmas's continuators
Cosmas's continuators ( cz, pokračovatelé Kosmovi) were various Bohemian authors who wrote continuations in Latin of the '' Chronica Boemorum'' of Cosmas of Prague, which ends with Cosmas's death in 1125. They primarily wrote annals rather than t ...
brought his history down to 1283.
References
Literature
External links
*
*
Chronica Boemorum' — the chronicle accessible on-line at ''
Monumenta Germaniae Historica''
Cosmas biographyEnglish translationof the chronicle () by Lisa Wolverton published by
Catholic University of America Press
The Catholic University of America Press, also known as CUA Press, is the publishing division of The Catholic University of America. Founded on November 14, 1939, and incorporated on July 16, 1941,Roy J. Deferrari ''Memoirs of the Catholic Unive ...
{{Authority control
1040s births
1125 deaths
Chroniclers
12th-century historians from the Holy Roman Empire
Czech literature
Bohemian literature
Czech male writers
12th-century Latin writers
Writers from Prague