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 years had held the reins of the State. It was inevitable that the country should now become the scene of internal anarchy as well as the prey of aliens.

Rudolph's victorious army immediately marched into Moravia, and the German king was favourably received by a part of the inhabitants, specially by the population of the Moravian towns, most of whom were Germans. In Bohemia complete anarchy prevailed, and it was at first uncertain who had the strongest right to the guardianship of Ottakar's son Venceslas, then only seven years of age. After some dispute the Bohemian nobles recognized Ottokar's nephew, Otho of Brandenburg, as the guardian of the young Prince Venceslas. Otho appeared in Bohemia with a small force, and the country prepared to resist Rudolph, whose army by this time entered Bohemia.

A treaty was, however, soon concluded (1278) by which at least a temporary settlement was obtained. Otho was to govern Bohemia as Venceslas's guardian for five years, and Rudolph Moravia in the same capacity and for the same period. It was also arranged that Venceslas should marry Rudolph's daughter Gutta; and the German king's son Rudolph, Agnes, daughter of the deceased King Ottokar.

Otho ot Brandenburg had hardly obtained the government of Bohemia when he began shamefully to misuse the power of guardianship that had been conferred on him. Aided by the German part of the population of Prague he seized the heir to the throne, and imprisoned him in the castle of Bösig. This treachery caused great indignation among the Bohemian nobles, and a great number of them entered into a confederacy for the purpose of rescuing their future sovereign. Civil war broke out while Margrave Otho had temporarily returned to his own country, carrying Venceslas as a prisoner with him to Brandenburg. Otho had left Bishop Everard of Brandenburg, a warlike and unscrupulous prelate, at Prague, as his representative, and the latter energetically defended the margrave's authority.