Sigismund

The Hussite Reformation: Life of Jan Hus and the Church

In 1414, a Czech theologian named Jan Hus was called before the Council of Constance for heresy against the Catholic Church and Pope. Jan Hus had preached about the need to reform the corruption within the Church, desiring to adhere more to a more communal Christianity that he believed the New Testament spoke of, and for that he had been excommunicated numerous times. His life up to this point set the groundwork for the eventual history of the Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Empire to change forever.

Jan Žižka

Jan Žižka

Jan Žižka was born circa 1360 in Trocnov, Kingdom of Bohemia. He spent his early years growing up at court, being a squire and subsequently a bodyguard for King Wenceslas IV of Bohemia. He lost an eye at an early age, saddling him with the nickname "One-eyed Žižka."