Page:The Acts and Monuments of John Foxe Volume 3.djvu/580

 how could these Rabbins greatly blame them herein, whom their—bloody tyranny had before provoked so unjustly, if now, with their glozing letters, they could not so easily appease them again?

Wherefore these aforesaid Bohemians, partly for the love of John Huss and Jerome their countrymen, partly for the hatred of their malignant papistry, assembling together, first agreed to celebrate a yearly solcmu memorial of the death of John Huss and Jerome, decreeing the same to be holden and celebrated yearly; and afterwards, by and by means of their friends they obtained certain churches of the king, wherein they might freely preach and minister the sacraments unto the Congregation. This done, they suppressed divers monasteries, Pharisaical temples, and idolatrous fanes; beginning, first, with the great monastery of the Black Friars, eight miles from Prague; driving away the wicked and vicious priests and monks out of them, or compelling them unto a better order. And thus their number more and more increasing, under the safe conduct of a certain noble man named Nicholas, they went again unto the king, requiring to have more and ampler churches granted unto them. The king seemed at first willingly and gently to give ear to the said Nicholas entreating for the people, and commanded them to come again the next day.

When the people were departed, the king turning himself to the noble man Nicholas, who tarried still behind, said: "Thou hast begun a web to put me out of my kingdom, but I will make a rope of it, wherewithal I will hang thee." Whereupon he immediately departed out of the king's presence, and the king himself went into the castle of Vissegrade, and within awhile after, into a new castle, which he himself had builded five stones' casts from thence; sending ambassadors to his brother to require aid.

These protestants being assembled in the town of Prague, holding their conventions, the king sent forth his chamberlain with three hundred horsemen to run upon them; but he, having respect unto his life, fled. When news thereof was brought unto the king, all that were about him, being amazed, utterly detested the fact; but the king's cupbearer standing by, said, "I knew before, that these things would thus come to pass." Whom the king in a rage taking hold of, threw him down before his feet, and with his dagger would have slain him; but, being letted by those who were about him, with much ado he pardoned him his life. Immediately the king, being taken with a palsy, fell sick, and within eighteen days after, when he had marked the names of such whom he had appointed to be put to death, incessantly calling for aid of his brother and his other friends, he departed this life before the princes, whom he had sent unto, were come with aid, when he had reigned five and fifty years, and was about the age of seven and fifty years. 1419.

Immediately after the death of Wenceslaus, there was a certain nobleman named Zisca, born at Trosnovia, who, from his youth