Prokop the Great ::: Project ETERNITY

Prokop the Great (Czech: Prokop Veliký) (d. 30 May 1434) was one of the most prominent Hussite generals of the Hussite Wars. His name has also been given as "Prokop Holy" ("the Bald"), and as "Procopius the Great".

He was a married ultraquist priest who belonged to an eminent family of citizens of Prague. Though a priest and continuing to officiate as such, he became the most prominent leader of the advanced Hussite or Taborite forces during the latter part of the Hussite wars. He was not indeed the immediate successor of ?ikka as leader of the Taborites, as has been frequently stated, but he commanded the forces of Tabor when they obtained their great victories over the Germans and Romanists at Usti nad Labam (Aussig) in 1426 and Doma?lice (Tauss) in 1431.

He also acted as leader of the Taborites during their frequent incursions into Hungary and Germany, particularly when in 1429 a vast Bohemian army invaded Saxony and the territory of Nuremberg. The Hussites, however, made no attempt permanently to conquer German territory, and on 6 February 1430 Prokop concluded at Kulmbach a treaty with Frederick of Brandenburg, burgrave of Nuremberg, by which the Hussites engaged themselves to leave Germany. When the Bohemians entered into negotiations with Sigismund and the Council of Basel and, after prolonged discussions, resolved to send an embassy to the council, Prokop the Great was the most prominent member of this embassy, which reached Basel on 4 January 1433. When the negotiations there for a time proved resultless Prokop with the other envoys returned to Bohemia, where new internal troubles broke out.

A Taborite army led by Prokop the Great besieged Plzen, which was then in the hands of the Romanists. The discipline in the Hussite camp had, however, slackened in the course of prolonged warfare, and the Taborites encamped before Plzen revolted against Prokop, who therefore returned to Prague. Probably encouraged by these dissensions among the men of Tabor, the Bohemian nobility, both Romanist and utraquist, formed a league for the purpose of opposing democracy, which through the victories of Tabor had acquired great strength in the Bohemian towns. The struggle began at Prague. Aided by the nobles, the citizens of the old town took possession of the more democratic new town, which Prokop unsuccessfully attempted to defend. Prokop now called to his aid Prokop the Lesser, who had succeeded him in the command of the Taborite army before Plzen. They jointly retreated eastward from Prague, and their forces, known as the army of the towns, met in the battle of Lipany, between Kourim and Kolin, the army of the nobles (30 May 1434). The Taborites were decisively defeated, and both Prokops, Great and Lesser, perished in this battle.

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Category:1434 deaths

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