Cosmas's continuators ( cz, pokračovatelé Kosmovi) were various Bohemian authors who wrote continuations 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 ''

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. Th ...

'' of

Cosmas of Prague 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 so ...

, which ends with Cosmas's death in 1125. They primarily wrote

annals Annals ( la, annāles, from , "year") are a concise historical record in which events are arranged chronologically, year by year, although the term is also used loosely for any historical record. Scope The nature of the distinction between ann ...

rather than true chronicles. Florin Curta, ''Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages (500–1300)'', Vol. 1 (Brill, 2019), pp. 603–604. The first continuator was an anonymous canon of

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 Basilic ...

, whose work covers the years 1125–1142, essentially being annals of the reign of Soběslav I. In the 1170s, an anonymous monk of Sázava combined a history of his monastery from its foundation—''De exordio Zazavensis monasterii''—with a continuation of Cosmas down to 1162. Together these two works are called the first continuation. Nora Berend, "Historical Writing in Central Europe (Bohemia, Hungary, Poland), c.950–1400", in ''The Oxford History of Historical Writing'', Vol. 2 (Oxford University Press, 2012), pp. 312–327, at 317.

Vincent of Prague Vincent of Prague ( 1140–1170) was a Czech priest and chronicler. He was a canon and notary of Prague Cathedral. His ''Annals'' cover the reign of Vladislav II of Bohemia from his accession in 1140 until 1167.Lisa Wolverton (2016)"Vincent of ...

, whose chronicle covers the years 1140–1167 of the reign of Vladislav II, may also be regarded as a continuator of Cosmas. His work was continued down to 1198 by

Gerlach of Milevsko Gerlach is a male forename of Germanic origin, variations of which exist in many Germanic and Romance languages. Like many other early Germanic names, it is dithematic, consisting of two meaningful constituents put together. In this case, those ...

. The anonymous so-called second continuation of Cosmas was compiled at Saint Vitus' Cathedral in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

shortly before 1300. It includes annals that cover the years 1196–1283, like the ''Stories of Wencelas I'', the ''Stories of Přemysl Otakar II'' (or ''Annales Otakariani'') and the ''Narration on the Bad Years after the Death of Přemysl Otakar II'' for the reigns of Václav I (1230–1253) and Otakar II (1253–1278). The two latest continuators are

Henry the Carver Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal ...

, whose ''Chronicle'' of the

abbey of Žďár An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nuns ...

ends in 1300, and

Henry of Heimburg Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

, whose ''Chronicle of the Czechs'' ends in the same year. The continuators differ from Cosmas in key ways. They eschewed the narrative chronicle in favour of the annals, and they dispensed with classical references in favour of

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

ones. Although the canon of Vyšehrad compared the hero of the

battle of Chlumec :''See Battle at Chlumec (1040) for a possible earlier battle, and Battle of Kulm for the Napoleonic battle.'' The Battle of Chlumec was the culmination of a 12th-century war of succession in the Duchy of Bohemia. It occurred on 18 Februar ...

in 1126 to

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 ...

, the 13th-century continuators prefer comparing the Czechs to the

ancient Israel The history of ancient Israel and Judah begins in the Southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age. "Israel" as a people or tribal confederation (see Israelites) appears for the first time in the Merneptah Stele, an inscr ...

ites. This annalistical biblical form of historiography was unique in central Europe.

Editions

*Bláhová, Marie; Fiala, Zdeněk (eds.). ''Pokračovatelé Kosmovi''. Prague, 1974.

References

{{reflist Medieval Czech history Latin-language literature