11.3. 1509 Ludvík Jagellonský became King of Bohemia

Louis of Jagiellon is described as one of the weakest monarchs. He died at the age of just 20, drowned in a swamp. He was crowned King of Bohemia on 11 March 1509.

During the short reign of Louis, the decline of the monarch's power continued. He contributed to this by spending most of his time in Hungary and interfering only very marginally in the affairs of the Bohemian kingdom.From an early age he avoided his second kingdom. He remained in Buda surrounded by the Hungarian nobles who had the greatest influence on him.

For four years the Bohemian Estates negotiated for Ludvík's visit to Prague. They even had to threaten him that if he and his wife Maria of Habsburg did not accept the invitation, they would look for another monarch. They arrived in the spring of 1522, but the reception was lukewarm. Louis was surprised that no one bowed to him. "There is nothing more royal in this kingdom than that he is king," said William of Pernstein.

Louis grew up very quickly because of his early accession to the throne after his father's death. Bishop Jan Dubravius of Olomouc said of the king. "Three extraordinary features are worthy of emphasis. They are all expressions of excessive precociousness, namely, that he grew up early, that his beard grew prematurely, and that his hair turned grey at the age of eighteen."

A key moment occurred when the Calixtines split the Church into two camps between 1523 and 1524. The majority were the reformers of Martin Luther, the so-called New Tractarians. The other camp, on the other hand, insisted on the old traditions and further brought Catholics closer together. The dispute with Zdeněk Lv of Rožmital and William of Pernštejn over the Rosenberg inheritance also had an impact on Ludvík's rule.

In addition to various pressures from the nobility, Louis also had to face the Turkish danger. In 1526, a Turkish army under Sultan Süleyman reached the Hungarian interior. Louis did not have enough resources to confront them, nor did he receive support from the Habsburgs and Duke John of Zapolya, Duke of Transylvania.

The decisive battle occurred on 29 August at Mohács, when Louis's army was defeated. "At first he hesitated and would have preferred to postpone the start of the battle. However, he succumbed to the urging of his commander-in-chief, Archbishop Paul Tomori of Kaloc, to attack the Sultan's army, not yet dismounted. First the Hungarian cannons thundered and then the Hungarian cavalry moved forward. But the much more powerful Hungarian artillery turned the attacking Christians to flight. A bloody battle ensued, in which the Sultan overwhelmed his opponent," writes Jan Bauer in his book Revolutions in Czech History.

Ludvík saved himself, but as he was fleeing the battle, he fell with his horse into a swamp and drowned...

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