Page:Lectures on The Historians of Bohemia by Count Lutzow (1905).djvu/53

 Sigismund were to attack the Saxon house ; other columns were to attack the new town from the Vyšehrad, and the old town from the Spital field .’

Of the attack on the Žižkov, Březov writes: ‘The men of Meissen with their seven or eight thousand horsemen ascended the hill with much clatter and the sound of trumpets, and they occupied the wooden forts and the small tower in the vineyards. When they attempted to scale the wall that had been constructed out of earth and stones, two women and one girl, and with them about twenty-six men who had remained in the earthwork, manfully defended themselves with stones and spears, for they had neither arrows nor firearms. One of these women, though unarmed, surpassed the men in courage, and would not retire from her post. “It is not beseeming,” she said, “that a faithful Christian should give way to Antichrist.” Thus fighting bravely, she was killed and gave up the ghost. Žižka, who hurried to the spot, would himself have been slain had not his men with their fighting-clubs delivered him from the hands of the enemies. Now while the whole city feared its ruin, and all were with their children praying tearfully and placing their hopes in heaven alone, a priest came to the hill carrying the body of Christ in the sacrament, and behind him followed about forty bowmen and some peasants who were not in armour, but carried their fighting-flails.

‘The enemies seeing the sacrament, hearing the tolling of the bells and the loud cries of the people, were