BOHEMIA

[s. 115] : A country of Central Europe, formerly an independent kingdom, now a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It has a population of nearly 6,000,000, of whom about two thirds are Bohemians (Czechs), the remainder being chiefly Germans. The capital and chief city is Prague. The language of the majority is Czech, one of the principal dialects of the western branch of the Slavic languages. Its alphabet is the Latin, and it bears a closer resemblance to the Polish than to any other Slavic language. Agitation for the official recognition of this language, with autonomy for the country, has been long-continued and disturbing. The 7 Bohtan is Roman Catholic, but the number of Protestants is increasing. Mi ion work is carried on by the ABCFM among the Roman Catholics, and by the UFCS among the Jews. religion BOHEMIANS: The Bohemians, or, as they call themselves, Czechs (Tchekhs), form one of the They occupy principal tribes of the Slavic race. the country of Bohemia in Austria, and number about four millions. They are all Catholics, with the exception of 150,000, who belong to the Protestant Reformed and Luther an Confe ion. The first germs of Christianity were planted among them by Cyril and Method i us, mi ionaries to tlae Slavs the 9th century, and the Bohemian Prince Borivoi was baptized by Method i us in 873-74. But Orthodox or Greek Christianity was unable to maintain itself long in Bohemia, and was soon supplanted by Catholicism. With the introduction of Catholic Christianity, Bohemia came under the influence of German civilization and feudalism, and gradually the German element grew stronger and stronger. Beginning with the year 1253 this German influence spread rapidly, so that the Bohemians were in danger of being entirely Germanized. The reign of Charles I., known also as Charles IV., Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, is considered one of the brightest periods of Bohemian history. He founded the University of Prague in 1348, and thus helped to make the capital of Bohemia the center of a great intellectual and educational m The most important period, how undoubtedly the time of John Hu and the reformatory movement which he began. Born in 1368 in an obscure village of Bohemia, and educated at the University of Prague, Hu raised his voice against the corruption and depravity of the Roman Church, and demanded a purer form of religion. Almost the whole of Bohemia joined his movement, and the enthusiasm which his sermons and writings evolced was very great. Beguiled into the Council of Con stance, where he was called to be heard, Hu was burned at the stake in 1415; but his death was the signal movement. ever, is for the beginning of the terrible Hu ite wars, which lasted for eighteen years, and the effects of which were felt through the succeeding generations, until 1620, when Bohemia lost her political independence and fell under the dominion of the Hapsburg dynasty of Austria. The Hu ite movement in Bohemia cannot be satisfactorily explained by merely regarding it as a religious movement. To understand its full bearing, one ought to bear in mind that it was also a national movement directed against the encroachments The of German ism that threatened Bohemia. religious element of Hu ism did not give all the fruit that might have been expected from it. After the death of Hu his supporters split into two parties, the Taborites and the Utraquists, or The former, which may be considCalixtins. ered as the extreme party, carried the principle of the free interpretation of the Scriptures to The Utraquists, forming the so extremes. called moderate party, were not disinclined to come to terms with the Catholic Church. To the Hu ite movement was due the formation of the Society of the Bohemian Brothers, known subsequently by the name of Moravian Brothers, distinguished for its piety, its good works, and the writers it contributed to Bohemian literature. 115