Neklan was the sixth of the seven

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 ...

n mythical princes between the (also mythical) founder of the

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–1 ...

Přemysl the Ploughman Přemysl the Ploughman ( ''Přemysl Oráč''; English: Premysl, Przemysl or Primislaus) was the legendary husband of Libuše, and ancestor of the Přemyslid dynasty, containing the line of princes (dukes) and kings which ruled in the Lands of t ...

and the first historical prince Bořivoj. The names of the princes were first recorded in Cosmas chronicle and then transmitted into the most of historical books of the 19th century including František Palacký's ''The History of the Czech Nation in Bohemia and Moravia''. According to the

Chronicle of Dalimil The ''Chronicle of Dalimil'' ( cs, Dalimilova kronika; Kronika tak řečeného Dalimila) is the first chronicle written in the Old Czech language. It was composed in verse by an unknown author at the beginning of the 14th century. The Chronicle ...

, Neklan had two sons,

Hostivít Hostivít was the last of the seven Bohemian mythical princes between the (also mythical) founder of the Přemyslid dynasty Přemysl the Ploughman and the first historical prince Bořivoj. The names of the princes were first recorded in the ''Chron ...

and Děpolt. One theory about the number of the princes is propped on the

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plast ...

es on the walls of the Rotunda in

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 ...

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 ...

but Anežka Merhautová claimed that the frescoes depict all the members of the Přemyslid dynasty including the Moravian junior princes.

Origin of the name

Neklan's name is thought to be derived from the Slavonic word ''"klát"'' meaning ''to tilt'' and prefix ne- (''non'') so it describes him to be a peaceful ruler. Záviš Kalandra thought the names of the seven princes were cryptical names of ancient Slavonic days of the week - Vojen being the sixth - Friday with just a confusing evidence. Another theory says that the names were mistaken from a coherent and partly interrupted old Slavonic text.Vladimír Karbusický: Báje, mýty, dějiny. Nejstarší české pověsti v kontextu evropské kultury, p.237, Praha 199

/ref>

Legend in Cosmas Chronicle

Once

Vlastislav {{for, a Czech village, Vlastislav (Hazlov) Vlastislav was mythological prince of Lucko (by Žatec). Son of legendary Czech prince Vojen, a brother another prince Vnislav. Dalimil´s chronic and Kosmas don't match in this what when was he died ...

, the prince of Lučans (with their centre in

Žatec Žatec (; german: Saaz) is a town in Louny District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře river. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monumen ...

on the river

Ohře The Ohře () or, slightly less commonly in English sources, the Eger (, Czech also: ''Oharka'' or ''Ohara'', Celtic: ''Agara'', pl, Ohrza), is a 316 km river in Germany (50 km) and the Czech Republic (266 km), left tributary of ...

), started war against Neklan and besieged his castle,

Levý Hradec Levý Hradec is an early medieval Bohemian Gord (archaeology), gord situated 3 km northwest of Prague borders near Roztoky, in the Czech Republic. This fortified settlement served as the original seat of Bořivoj I, the first known Přemy ...

. Neklan didn't want the war in his country so he wanted to make peace with Vlastislav. However, his guide and second most powerful man in the Bohemian camps, a warrior called Tyr, persuaded him to lend him his armour. So Tyr went to war in place of Neklan, like

Patroclus In Greek mythology, as recorded in Homer's ''Iliad'', Patroclus (pronunciation variable but generally ; grc, Πάτροκλος, Pátroklos, glory of the father) was a childhood friend, close wartime companion, and the presumed (by some later a ...

once in place of

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 Pe ...

. He stroke a fierce battle of Tursko and although he died, Bohemians won and Lučans were killed to a man (literally, one man escaped the field having followed a witch's instructions).

Seven mythical princes after Přemysl

Notes

Mythical Bohemian princes Přemyslid dynasty Fictional Czech people {{Europe-myth-stub