The Prague Hussites, Prague Union (

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, ...

: ''Pražský svaz'') or simply "Praguers" (

: ''Pražané'') was a faction of Moderate Hussites based in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

, the capital of the

Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...

. In September 1420, the first year of the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, European monarchs loyal to the Cat ...

, the Prague Hussites, led by

Hynek Krušina of Lichtenburg Hynek Krušina of Lichtenburg (also: ''Henry Kruschina of Lichtenburg'', in cz, Hynek Krušina IV. z Lichtenburka; 1392 – 4 March 1454, Kłodzko ( cs, Kladsko, german: Glatz)) was a Hussite commander and governor and lien holders of the Cou ...

, besieged

Vyšehrad Vyšehrad ( Czech for "upper castle") is a historic fort in Prague, Czech Republic, just over 3 km southeast of Prague Castle, on the east bank of the Vltava River. It was probably built in the 10th century. Inside the fort are the Basil ...

castle, which was held by Czech and German Imperial knights. They established a military camp on a nearby hill and engaged in artillery duels with the Vyšehrad garrison. Imperial troops from nearby Hradcany Castle fired into the

Old Town of Prague The Old Town of Prague ( cs, Staré Město pražské, german: Prager Altstadt) is a medieval settlement of Prague, Czech Republic. It was separated from the outside by a semi-circular moat and wall, connected to the Vltava river at both of its ...

in support of the besieged Vyšehrad garrison. The Prague Hussites sent out a call for aid, which resulted in thousands of Hussite reinforcements coming from

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; german: Königgrätz) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 91,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected by law as an ...

Louny Louny (; german: Laun) is a town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 18,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Ohře. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Administrat ...

, and

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 ...

. However,

Tábor Tábor (; german: Tabor) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. Administrative parts The followi ...

, the home of the

Taborites The Taborites ( cs, Táborité, cs, singular Táborita), known by their enemies as the Picards, were a faction within the Hussite movement in the medieval Lands of the Bohemian Crown. Although most of the Taborites were of rural origin, the ...

, a

Radical Hussite The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Hussit ...

faction, only sent forty horsemen. The Prague Hussites then completely surrounded the castle except for the cliffside by the river, which forced the garrison to agree to surrender if their lack of supplies persisted and

Emperor Sigismund Sigismund of Luxembourg (15 February 1368 – 9 December 1437) was a monarch as King of Hungary and Croatia ('' jure uxoris'') from 1387, King of Germany from 1410, King of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 until his death in ...

did not arrive to relieve them by October 31, 9 AM. Sigismund arrived at noon, October 31 and found that the castle had already surrendered. He initiated the

Battle of Vyšehrad The Battle of Vyšehrad was a series of engagements at the start of the Hussite War between Hussite forces and Catholic crusaders sent by Emperor Sigismund. The battle took place at the castle of Vyšehrad from 16 August 1419 to c. 1 November 14 ...

, in which his forces were defeated. Radical Hussite priests called for the Imperial corpses to rot on the field for three days, but the army of the Prague Hussites ignored it. The castle was sacked and on June 21, 1421, Hradcany Castle was also taken by the Prague Hussites and similarly ransacked. The Prague Hussites included primarily Bohemian nobility and merchants as opposed to the

and

Orebites The Orebites ( cz, Orebité) or Hradecti were followers of the Hussites in Eastern Bohemia. The founders took part in the procession on Mount Oreb, near Třebechovice pod Orebem and Hradec. Later, most noble supporters belonged to the East Bohem ...

, who included many peasants and lower-class clergy. During

, Prague Hussites tried to unite Hussite groups and reestablish the Christian church in Bohemia, but this effort was hindered by the Taborites who gained control of communities in southern Bohemia.

References

{{Reflist, 30em Hussite Wars