Vilém Slavata z Chlumu a Košumberka (; ) (1 December 1572 – 19 January 1652) was a

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 *Czech (surnam ...

nobleman from an old

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

n family. As viceregent ''(místodržící)'' of Emperor Ferdinand II of Habsburg (from 1617) he became famous as co-victim, along with

Jaroslav Borzita of Martinice Jaroslav (also written as Yaroslav or Jarosław in other Slavic languages) is a Czech and Slovak first name, pagan in origin. Its feminine form is Jaroslava. There are several possible origins of the name Jaroslav. It is very likely that origi ...

, of the 1618 Defenestration of Prague.

Life

Vilém was born at his family's estates in Čestín near

Kutná Hora Kutná Hora (; ) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 22,000 inhabitants. The history of Kutná Hora is linked to silver mining, which made it a rich and rapidly developing town. The centre of Kutná Hora, i ...

. His father Adam had been an administrator of Emperor Rudolf II of Habsburg, who in 1583 had taken up his residence at

Prague Castle Prague Castle (; ) is a castle complex in Prague, Czech Republic serving as the official residence and workplace of the president of the Czech Republic. Built in the 9th century, the castle has long served as the seat of power for List of rulers ...

and had guaranteed

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty, also known as freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice ...

to the

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

Bohemian estates by his

Letter of Majesty The Letter of Majesty (1609) was a 17th-century European document, reluctantly signed by Rudolf II in his capacity as king of Bohemia, granting religious tolerance to both Protestant and Catholic citizens living in the estates of Bohemia. The l ...

(''Rudolfův Majestát'') issued in 1609. Though he was raised in the spirit of the Unity of the Brethren, Slavata converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

in 1597 and became a fierce advocate of the older faith. Like his father he took service with Rudolf II who appointed him

burgrave Burgrave, also rendered as burggrave (from , ), was since the medieval period in Europe (mainly Germany) the official title for the ruler of a castle, especially a royal or episcopal castle, and its territory called a ''Burgraviate'' or ''Burgr ...

Karlštejn Karlštejn Castle (; ) is a castle in the Czech Republic. It is a large Gothic architecture, Gothic castle founded in 1348 by King Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV. The castle served as a place for safekeeping the Imperial Regalia as ...

. Under Rudolf's successor

Matthias Matthias is a name derived from the Greek Ματθαίος, in origin similar to Matthew. Notable people Notable people named Matthias include the following: Religion * Saint Matthias, chosen as an apostle in Acts 1:21–26 to replace Judas Isca ...

he became chamberlain of the

Crown of Bohemia The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were the states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods with feudal obligations to the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom of Bohemia, an electorate of the Hol ...

. Vilém supported the coronation of the devout Catholic Ferdinand of Inner Austria as Bohemian king against the resistance of the Protestant estates. In return Ferdinand vested him with the office of his representative at Prague, where he had to face the violent uprising of the nobles led by

Jindřich Matyáš Thurn Count Jindřich Matyáš of Thurn-Valsassina (; ; ; 24 February 1567 – 26 January 1640), was one of the leaders of the Protestant Bohemian Revolt against Emperor Ferdinand II. He took part in events that led to the Thirty Years' War, and after ...

on 23 May 1618. Together with J. Bořita of Martinice he was thrown out of a window of the castle by an enraged Protestant multitude. He was subsequently arrested by the assailants after surviving the defenestration albeit with severe injuries. One year later, he managed to escape to

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

. However, Elector John George I, anxious for his neutral position, forced him to retire to

Passau Passau (; ) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the ("City of Three Rivers"), as the river Danube is joined by the Inn (river), Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's population is about 50,000, of whom ...

. After Ferdinand's victory at the

Battle of White Mountain The Battle of White Mountain (; ) was an important battle in the early stages of the Thirty Years' War. It led to the defeat of the Bohemian Revolt and ensured Habsburg control for the next three hundred years. It was fought on 8 November 16 ...

in 1621, Slavata returned to Bohemia. A leading figure in restoring Catholicism, he received the title of a ''

Reichsgraf Imperial Count (, ) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. During the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly (Imperial immediacy, immediately) from the emperor, rather th ...

'' ("Count of the

Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

") and in 1628 was appointed High Chancellor of Bohemia. He died at

Jindřichův Hradec Jindřichův Hradec (; ) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 21,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservations, urb ...

Works

*''Historické spisování'' ("Historical writings"), 1637–1651 :This monumental (14 large-scale books) reminiscence in which Vilém comprehensively describes the causes and initiation of the Bohemian Revolt and the first phase of the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

, has importance for understanding of that era. His great annals are focused especially on the events of the years 1608–1619 on the territory of the

Czech lands The Czech lands or the Bohemian lands (, ) is a historical-geographical term which denotes the three historical regions of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia out of which Czechoslovakia, and later the Czech Republic and Slovakia, were formed. ...

References

1572 births 1652 deaths People from Kutná Hora District Habsburg Bohemian nobility Converts to Roman Catholicism Autobiographers Czech non-fiction writers 16th-century nobility from Bohemia 17th-century nobility from Bohemia Execution survivors {{CzechRepublic-historian-stub