24.9. 1483 Defenestration of the mayor and seven councillors

In September 1483 the second Prague defenestration took place. The local population forced a change in administration by throwing unpopular constables out of the windows of their town halls, as in the days of their grandfathers.

The first Prague defenestration took place on 30 July 1419. The second one took place on 24. September 1483, when the Prague Hussites suddenly seized the town halls in the Old and New Town and partly threw the Catholic councillors out of the windows and partly murdered them.

"During this defenestration in 1483, the Calixtinite rebels first killed the New Town councillors and threw them out of the windows of the town hall on the"Felix Krumlowský writes in his book Ladies' Tales of the Czech Middle Ages.

King Vladislav II. Jagiellon, who was currently staying in Trebic, wanted to summon the provincial cash and punish the rebels. However, due to the resistance of the Bohemian nobility, he was forced to reconcile with them. "On 24 September 1483, the population of Prague forced a change in the administration by throwing the unpopular consuls out of the windows of their town halls, as in the days of their grandfathers. This time the leaders of all three Prague towns paid the price for this defenestration," writes Otto Urban in his book Czech and Slovak History to 1918.

The events of 1483 probably also inspired the third defenestration in May 1618. "This Hussite tradition was apparently remembered by someone in the Smiřický Palace at that time, and the warlike participants of the meeting liked it very much. Thus, the uprising was decided," Krumlowský writes.

The news of the meeting with the governors did not remain secret and the next day not only the deputation of the Estates but also many other people headed to Prague Castle. Some hurried on foot, others rode on horseback. Of the five governors, only Vilém Slavata and Jaroslav Bořita from Martinice were present in the Czech office. At first it seemed that the meeting, watched by the crowd that crowded into the room, would be relatively peaceful.

It was only Jáchym Ondřej Šlik's personal attack on Martinic that made things dramatic. "The third defenestration took place on 23 May 1618, when the leaders of Czech Protestants threw the royal governors Vilém Slavata, Jaroslav Bořita of Martinice and the scribe Filip Fabricius out of the windows of Prague Castle. Their fall, however, was without serious injuries," writes Jan Bauer in his book Revolutionary Events in Czech History.

Sources:
Jan Bauer, Revolutionary Events in Czech History
Felix Krumlowský, Ladies' Stories of the Czech Middle Ages
https://encyklopedie.praha2.cz/