Good King Wenceslas
“Good King Wenceslas looked out, on the Feast of St. Stephen,” said the 1853 Christmas Carol that immortalized the Bohemia Duke. St. Vaclav or in
Latin Wenceslas. He came to the world in 903 in Stochov on the outskirts of
Prague and a son of Duke Vratislav of Bohemia and Dragomira a member of an
influential Bohemia clan. He also had for his grandparents the first documented
Presmyslid Duke Borivoj and his wife the future St. Ludmilla. The future Saint Vaclav
grew under the wings of his grandmother Ludmilla and from her castle of Tetin.
He received education on the Christian faith and became fluent in Slavonic and
Latin language. His education made him one of the most literate leaders in
Europe with his father’s passing in 921.
Duke of Bohemia
Good King Wenceslas in fact on the age of 13 ruled as Duke of Bohemia
in 921. He inherited a Duchy divided politically and religiously. In political
matters, Bohemia faced the choice of supporting a faction fighting for the
throne of East Francia, while in religious affairs, he faced the divide between
Christianity and Paganism still prevailing among Bohemians.
The matter on the throne of the Kingdom of East Francia threatened the
political independence of Bohemia. After the death of Charlemagne in 814, his
successors failed to maintain the unity of the Holy Roman Empire. The 843
Treaty of Verdun made the situation certain as the Holy Roman Empire split into
3 Kingdoms: West Francia, Middle Francia, and East Francia. East Francia
bordered Bohemia and its political instability poured over to the latter. Fight
between King Henry the Fowler and Duke Arnulf of Bavaria forced Bohemia to
choose between the 2 factions, choosing the wrong side potentially placed
Bohemia’s future in crisis.
On the other hand, the rise of Christianity also spelled a division
among the people of Bohemia. Many in Bohemia looked upon Christianity as a
threat to their traditions. Part of the nobility only accepted Christianity for
political reasons whether for advantages or fear of death and annihilation.
Borivoj and Ludmilla accepted the faith whole-heartedly while Vaclav’s mother
Dragomira only became a Christian by name and continued to support pagan
elements within the country. This divide alongside the issue of East
Francia became challenges defining the rule of Vaclav.
Only 13 with his father’s demise, Vaclav required a regency which his
mother Dragomira took responsibility for. Anti-Christian factions then moved to
undermine the young Duke attacking his capability fitting more for priesthood
rather than governance. Tensions between Ludmilla and Dragomira further
escalated on the issue of recognizing the rule of King Henry the Fowler of East
Francia. Ludmilla’s faction then tried to convince the young Vaclav to plot
against his mother. However, by September 921, Dragomira discovered the plot
and attacked first. She ordered the assassination of Ludmilla on September 15,
921 with 2 nobles or servants strangling the devout Dowager to death. The tragic
death of Ludmilla turned her into a martyr and eventually a Saint. The
assassination further backfired as the violent act led to Dragomira’s fall from
power. In 922, Vaclav began his direct rule ordering his mother’s exile until
925.
As a Duke, Vaclav showed tremendous devotion to his Christian faith. He
vowed chastity and frugality. Moreover, he allowed to continued works of the
German missionaries in the Duchy. His blunt support for proselytizing of
Christianity failed to sit well with the pagans in the court. More so felt the
same with the Duke’s foreign policy.
Vaclav decided to recognize the suzerainty of the Saxon King of
Francia, Henry I the Fowler, in 929. He intended to maintain peace by bending
the knee to Henry and paying the tribute of 500 silver pieces and 120 oxen.
According to legend, the 2 leaders met and fostered mutual respect for their
piety. Vaclav earned so much of Henry’s admiration that the Francian King granted
the Bohemian Duke’s request for the arm of St. Vitus which he later interred to
a Church dedicated to the relic. Many proud nobles scoffed over the
subservience of Vaclav and began to plot.
Within the Christian factions that initially supported Vaclav, dissension also festered with the Duke’s reforms. The trigger of discontent laid in
Vaclav’s decision to adopt the Latin liturgy at the expense of the vernacular
Slavonic Liturgy introduced by Sts. Methodius and Constantine. The act stroke a
core to Bohemian identity. Dissatisfaction also came from Vaclav’s reliance on the clergy for counsel rather than his lords. Vaclav’s growing centralization of
power and weakening of the local Lords made things worst. Thus, a combination
of cultural, religious, and political issues began to build up against Vaclav.
Many of those dissatisfied rallied behind his brother Boleslav for support and
even a substitute.
The Premyslid Cain
Born in 908 or 910, Boleslav was the younger brother of Vaclav. He also
grew up educated by Ludmilla but developed a closer relationship with his mother
Dragomira. As a result, he became a rallying point for pagans within the
Bohemian court.
Either in 929 or 935, Bohemian lords approached him and hoped for his
support against his brother Vaclav. On September 28, Boleslav invited Vaclav to
his castle in Stara Boleslav to celebrate the feast of St. Cosmas and Damian.
As Vaclav made his way to mass, Boleslav’s supporters attacked the Duke’s
retinue. Amidst the melee, Vaclav fell and said to have uttered for his last
words, “May God forgive you, brother.” Whether fully involved or only
complicit, Boleslav shouldered the responsibility and became known as Boleslav
the Cruel. On the other hand, Duke Vaclav’s virtues and devotion to
Christianity made his fall a martyrdom and considered many Bohemians considered
him a saint and by 984 the patron saint of Bohemia.
After the bloody transition from Vaclav to Boleslav, the new Duke hoped
to heal the wounds. Boleslav repented over the events. As he heard stories of
miracles on the tomb of his late brother in 932, he ordered his brother’s
remains to be interred to the new Church of St. Vitus. He also allowed for
Christian missionaries to continue their works. He supported the establishment
of the Benedictine convent of St. George, which became the necropolis for the
Presmyslid Dynasty. Later in his life, he worked for the establishment of an
independent Bishopric in Prague which only came to fruition a year after his
passing in 973.
Despite being labeled “the Cruel,” Boleslav proved to be an effective
and strong Duke. He established Prague as the center of government and strengthened the central authority of the Presmyslid through military campaigns over powerful
autonomous Bohemian nobility. He built castles and churches as administrative,
economic, and military centers across Bohemia – a symbolic establishment of
central authority over the lands. Thus, clerics and magistrates that manned
these castles and churches served as agents of the duke. He expanded the
finance of the Premyslid by collecting a tax to all freemen called the peace
tax. Moreover, the rise of Rus principalities opened trade routes north that
greatly benefited Bohemia. He imposed customs/protection fees of 1% to
merchants to cash in the rising trade. He fostered mercantile activities further
by issuing the Bohemian denarii based on the Bavarian model. By the end of his
reign, Prague grew wealthy and popular for the trade of fur, slaves, and tin as
stated by the Arab traveler Ibrahim ibn Jakub. The filing of the coffers
allowed Boleslav to build his “great guard” composed of several thousands of
men that served as the Premyslid’s armed wing. His “great guard” allowed him to
expand his dominion over Moravia, Silesia, and modern day Slovakia.
In diplomacy, he continued his brother’s policy of peace with the Kings
of East Francia. He recognized the rule and overlordship of the future Holy
Roman Emperor Otto I. For his fealty, he exercised extreme autonomy and absence
of interference from Otto I. Relations further strengthened when Bohemia joined
Otto’s coalition forces to fight the Magyars in 955 in the historical battle of
Lechfeld.
In other affairs, he established blood relations with the Piast Dynasty
of Poland by marrying Dubrawka, daughter of Duke Mieszko I of Poland.
Demise
Boleslav passed away in 972 to his son who ruled as Boleslav II.
Boleslav II continued his father’s policy of evangelization and loyalty towards
the Holy Roman Emperors. The Premyslid rule cemented in Bohemia and lasted
until its extinction in 1306.
Summing Up
The reigns of St. Vaclav and Boleslav cemented Premsylid rule in
Medieval Age and engrained in Czech history for posterity. The sainthood of
Vaclav created a legend that became a subject of embellishment and mythmaking.
Nevertheless, it elevated the status of the Premyslid as a divinely ordained
house that provided a justification for their rule over Bohemia. St. Vaclav
became a symbol of protection for the Czech people. The square and his monument
became sacred ground for resistance against foreign intervention. Boleslav,
on the other, despite his bloody ascension strengthened the Bohemian state with
centralization. It allowed Bohemia to survive and thrived until it became a
Kingdom and great power by the end of the 13th century.
See also:
Premyslid Dynasty
Premyslid Dynasty
Bibliography:
Websites:
"Saint Wenceslaus." Franciscan Media. Accessed on February 13, 2021. URL: https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-wenceslaus
"Wenceslas." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Encyclopedia.com. Accessed on February 13, 2021. URL: https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/history/czech-and-slovak-history-biographies/saint-wenceslaus
Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. "Wenceslas I." Encyclopedia Britannica. Accessed on February 13, 2021. URL: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Wenceslas-I-prince-of-Bohemia
Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. "Boleslav I." Encyclopedia Britannica. Accessed on February 13, 2021. URL: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Boleslav-I
Books:
Agnes, Hugh LeCaine. The Czechs and the Lands of the Bohemian Crown. Stanford, California: Hoover Institution Press, 2004.
Cornej, Petr & Jiri Polorny. A Brief History of the Czech Lands. Prague: Prah Press, 2003.
Mahoney, William. The History of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood Press, 2011.
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