Chapter VII: The Revival of Bohemian Literature (2)

I shall only mention a few of the most important of Šafařik's numerous writings. His many Bohemian essays on Slavic philology and archaeology--mostly published in the Journal of the Bohemian Museum--have indeed inestimable value for those who devote themselves to these studies, but little interest for others. Šafařik's first work was a small collection of Bohemian songs, written when he was only nineteen-years of age, and entitled _Tatranská Músa s lyrou Slovanskou_ ("The Carpathian Muse with Slavic Lyre"). Early works also were several translations, of which that of the _Clouds_ of Aristophanes and that of Schiller's _Maria Stuart_ are the most important. A work which had already occupied Šafařik at Jena, but which he only completed during his stay at Neusatz, was his German _Geschichte der Slavischen Sprache und Literatur_ ("History of the Slavic Language and Literature"). Neusatz or Nový Sad, a town in the south of Hungary, close to the frontier of Croatia, and not far from that of the present kingdom of Servia, was situated very favourably for the purpose of studying the various Slav languages. In his book Šafařik, contrary to the now generally accepted method of dividing the Slavs into three branches, distinguishes two classes of Slav nations only, and divides his book into two parts in accordance with this system. The first part deals with the Old Slavic language, the Russian, Servian, Croatian languages, and some minor dialects. The second part contains the history of the Polish and Bohemian literatures, and notes on the now nearly extinct dialects of the Slavs of Northern Germany, The book became antiquated even during Šafařik's lifetime, and he planned a new revised and enlarged edition, which was to have been published in Bohemian. Failing health and other occupations prevented Šafařik from carrying out this work. Even in its first state the book, which was only reprinted after Šafařik's death, long remained the standard authority on the little-known subject of which it treats. It is only since Mr. Pypin and Mr. Spasovič; published in 1865 their (Russian) _History of the Slav Literatures_ that Šafařik's work can be considered as superseded. Another fruit of Šafařik's residence in the South Slav countries was his _Serbische Lesekörner_, an historical and critical analysis of the then little-known Servian language. This book also was written in German.

During his stay at Prague, Šafařik produced his most important work, which rendered him famous in all Slav countries. I refer to the _Starožitnosti Slovanské_ ("Slavic Antiquity"), which was published in 1837. The book--written in Bohemian--is an attempt to record the history and culture of the Slavs in the earliest times. The subject, still very obscure, was then entirely unexplored. Šafařik intended the work to consist of two parts, but only the first, which is purely historical, was completed. Of the second part, only some essays on the ancient ethnography and archaeology of the Slavs were published. The historical work, which Šafařik again divided into two parts, deals, in the first, with the history of the Slav race from the time of Herodotus to the fall of the West Roman empire. The second part continues that history to the time when most Slavs were converted to Christianity--that is to say, speaking roughly, to about the year 1000. Šafařik's work entirely revolutionised the then current ideas on the origin of the Slavs and their early history. The more recent writers who, particularly in Russia, have studied these subjects, acknowledge that Šafařik's great work has been the foundation of their researches. One of his minor works requires notice, as it is connected with the much discussed question of the antiquity of the MSS. of Königinhof and Grüneberg. In 1840 Šafařik published jointly with Palacký a German work entitled _Die ältesten Denkmäler der Böhmischen Spracke_. In this book the two authors maintain the ancient origin, not only of the MS. of Königinhof, but also of that of Grüneberg, in which scarcely any Bohemian scholar now believes. Of course the question had not then--more than fifty years ago--been so thoroughly thrashed out as is now the case. Šafařik was an indefatigable worker. Besides his many published works, a large number of MSS. in his handwriting dealing with Slavic research were found. They prove that, had circumstances been more favourable, and had his health not failed him, he might have produced yet more works on the subjects to the study of which he devoted his life.

The works of Jungmann, Kollar, and Šafařik will always be highly valued by Bohemians, and indeed by all Slavs. But the career of Palacký, the greatest of the Bohemian leaders, whom I mention last, has a far wider interest, as have also the contents of his greatest work. Dealing mainly with Bohemian history, it incidentally throws a great deal of light on many questions connected with the general history of Europe up to the year 1526. It is much to be regretted that English historians have as yet availed themselves so little of Palacký's monumental _History of Bohemia_.[160]

FRANCIS PALACKÝ was born in 1798 at Hodslavice in Moravia, not far from Přerov or Prerau, an old centre of the Unity. The traditions of the Brethren never quite died out in this part of Moravia. Palacký's forefathers had belonged to the Unity, and the family, during the many years of persecution, continued secretly to worship according to its teaching. When the Emperor Joseph II., who, as regards religious toleration, was far in advance of his age, issued a decree authorising Protestant religious services according to the Augsburg and Helvetic Confessions, Palacký's parents declared their adherence to the former creed. It may be mentioned that the Bohemian Brethren have only during the present reign again been recognised as a religious community. The traces of the traditions of the Brethren are very noticeable in Palacký's works, particularly in his masterly account of the career of Hus.

After obtaining the rudiments of education in local schools, Palacký in 1812 proceeded to the Protestant lyceum at Pressburg in Hungary. Here already Palacký gave proof of his studious nature, and his predilection for historical research was already evident Gifted with the Slav facility for acquiring languages, Palacký at Pressburg obtained a thorough knowledge of the English language. We are told that Bolingbroke's _Letters on the Study and Use of History_, Blair's _Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres_,[161] and the historical works of Robertson and Gibbon were among Palacký's favourite books. Other historical works that he read with great interest were Karamsin's _History of Russia_ and Johannes Müller's _History of the Swiss Confederation_. After finishing his studies at Pressburg, Palacký continued to live there for some time, and was engaged as tutor by several noble families. It was during his stay at Pressburg that his life-long friendship with Kollar, that has already been mentioned, began. It was, indeed, probably mainly through Kollar's influence that he decided to devote his life to the study of Bohemian history and literature; he had previously thought of becoming a minister of the Protestant Church.

Pressburg, and Hungary generally, was not then a desirable residence for one who intended to devote himself to Slavic studies, which the Hungarian Government regarded with marked displeasure. Palacký, therefore, travelled to Prague, where he had the good fortune to obtain the protection of Dobrovský, who from their earliest acquaintance had realised the exceptional talent of the young Moravian. Through Dobrovský's influence Palacký obtained from Francis Count Sternberg the appointment of archivist to the family of which Count Francis was the head. This appointment left Palacký sufficient leisure to pursue his historical studies, and the small salary attached to it was very welcome to Palacký. He had, indeed, while a tutor, laid by a little money, but that could not last long, and his literary work was not likely to afford him much pecuniary gain. One advantage which Palacký obtained by his appointment as archivist to Count Sternberg will surprise English readers, but his Bohemian biographers lay great stress on it. Palacký's post secured him against all molestation on the part of the police. The Austrian police authorities in the earlier part of the present century were empowered to expel from any town "strangers of no profession," and they were particularly likely to do so in the case of a man known to be favourable to the Bohemian national movement.

In other ways, also, the modest appointment was a turning-point in Palacký's career. Through the favour of Francis Count Sternberg, and of his brother, Count Kaspar, president of the Bohemian Museum--which the two brothers had, jointly with Count Kolovrat, founded in 1818--Palacký became acquainted with many of the Bohemian nobles. He succeeded in obtaining from many of them the then quite exceptional permission to study the archives contained in their castles. Had it not been for the researches which he was allowed to make in these archives--particularly in those of Prince Schwarzenberg at Trěbon or Wittingau--Palacký would have been unable to write his _History of Bohemia_. The impulse to write the work, indeed, also came from the Bohemian nobles. The Diet in 1829 conferred on him the title of "Historian of the Estates of Bohemia;" but their legislative authority was very limited, and ten years passed before the title conferred on Palacký was confirmed by the authorities of Vienna.

It was on the suggestion of Palacký that it was decided that the newly-founded society of the Bohemian Museum should publish an annual journal, which was to contain principally studies on the history, ethnography, literature, and mythology of Bohemia. After some discussion as to whether the new journal should appear in Bohemian or in German--even so learned a Slavist as Dobrovský declared that it was impossible to publish a scientific periodical in the national language--it was decided to publish it in both languages. The _Journal of the Museum of the Bohemian Kingdom_ ("Casopis Musea Království Českého") first appeared in 1827, and Palacký was its first editor. The German edition, which, though the great Goethe wrote in its favour, found few readers, was discontinued in 1831. The version which appeared in the national language, on the other hand, has been continued up to the present day. It is invaluable to those who endeavour to study the history and literature of Bohemia, and I have used its volumes extensively while writing this book. Mr. Morfill, one of the few English writers on Slavic subjects who writes with thorough knowledge and insight,[162] has truly described the volumes of the journal of the Bohemian Museum as a "mine of Slavonic lore."

Palacký's time up to 1837 was fully occupied with the duties connected with the editing of the new journal, with the composition of minor historical writings, and with his studies in the Bohemian archives. He soon, however, found that the preparations for his great history of Bohemia which the Estates urged him to write, would necessitate study in foreign archives also. Palacký, therefore, visited Munich and Dresden, and in 1837 undertook a more extensive journey to Italy, where he spent considerable time in studying the valuable documents contained in the archives of Venice and Rome. In the latter town he found some difficulty in obtaining access to the library and archives of the Vatican. Count Rudolph Lützow, then Austrian ambassador at Rome, who was himself a Bohemian, and to whom Palacký had been recommended, succeeded, however, in obtaining for him permission to examine at least some of the MSS. which he wished to see. Palacký has himself left us an interesting account[163] of the difficulties he encountered on the part of Monsignor Marini, prefect of the Vatican archives. They were caused, it was stated, principally by alleged indiscretions committed by Ranke, who some time previously had been allowed to study the archives of the Vatican.

After Palacký's return to Bohemia, the task of continuing his great historical work absorbed him so completely that he ceased to edit the Journal. His quiet and studious life was, like that of other Bohemian scholars, interrupted by the revolutionary events of the year 1848. The movement in favour of the revival of Bohemian nationality had hitherto been an entirely literary one, and the Bohemians very naturally chose their most prominent writers as their political leaders. As Bohemia, with many other non-German parts of Austria, then formed part of the Germanic Confederation, prominent Bohemians, and among them Palacký, were invited to take part in the proceedings of the German National Assembly that met at Frankfort in 1848. Palacký's reply, which caused great sensation at the time, is still worth quoting, as it became the watchword of the Bohemian patriots. He wrote: "I am not a German, but a Bohemian. Whatever talent I possess is at the service of my own country. My nation is certainly a small one, but it has always maintained its historical individuality. The rulers of Bohemia have often been on terms of intimacy with the German princes, but the Bohemian people has never considered itself as German." It is a proof of the rapidity with which Palacký acquired consideration, that one of the short-lived Austrian cabinets of 1848 (that of Pillersdorf), wishing to obtain the support of the Bohemian nation, offered him the post of Minister of Public Instruction. Though his national theories prevented Palacký from taking part in the deliberations of the German National Assembly, he was a member of the Slav Congress at Prague and of the Austrian Parliament which in 1848 and 1849 met first at Vienna, then at Kremsier.

The short period of liberal government in Austria ended with the year 1849. Palacký suffered, like all the Bohemian patriots, from the German and absolutist rule, which was re-established in Bohemia in a more aggravated manner than before.[164] A paper to which Palacký contributed was suppressed because of an article from his pen which had caused sensation, and the military authorities deliberated whether the writer should be tried by court-martial.

In 1861, when a new attempt to establish constitutional government in Austria was made, Palacký was made a life-member of the Upper Chamber of the Parliament of Vienna. He only spoke there twice, in August and September of the year that he had been named. The question of an agreement with Hungary was then under discussion. Hungary claimed almost complete independence, and Palacký rightly maintained that the establishing new small states was contrary to the tendency to union that then prevailed in Europe. Palacký advised the Hungarians, as well as the Bohemians, to make considerable concessions to the Central Government of Vienna. He seems already to have foreseen, what actually occurred six years later, that Hungary would be granted almost complete independence, and Bohemia considered a mere Austrian province.

Though Palacký, always favourable to the preservation of the Austrian empire, was prepared to concede to the Central Government in Vienna far more extensive powers than the Hungarians were, he yet claimed for Bohemia and the Parliament of Prague a very extensive autonomy, on lines similar, though not identical, with those of the ancient Bohemian constitution, which perished on the day of the battle of the White Mountain. When Palacký found that the Parliament of Vienna was discussing matters that he considered beyond its competency, and encroaching on the rights of the Bohemian representative body, he left Vienna on September 30, 1861, and never again took his seat in the Austrian Upper House. Of the Bohemian Parliament Palacký was a member from the time that it first met in 1861. He attended its meetings whenever the National or Bohemian party took part in its deliberations, which they, from political reasons, often refused to do. From 1861 to his death in 1876, Palacký was the recognised leader of the National party in Bohemia. A detailed account of his life during that time would be a record of the political struggles of Bohemia during those years, and would be out of place here. The admiration and veneration of the Bohemians for the "Otec Vlastí" (Father of the Country), as he was called, increased with his increasing years. On April 23, 1876, the completion of Palacký's great historical work was celebrated by a banquet at Prague, at which the historian was present. He seems to have felt the presentiment of approaching death, and indeed described the speech which he delivered as his testament. The speech is so characteristic of Palacký that I shall quote a few words from it. "Our nation," he said, "is in great danger, surrounded, as it is, by enemies in every direction; but I do not despair; I hope that it will be able to vanquish them, if it has but the will to do so. It is not enough to say 'I will'; every one must co-operate, must work, must make what sacrifices he can for the common welfare, particularly for the preservation of our nationality. The Bohemian nation has a brilliant past record. The time of Hus was a glorious time. The Bohemian people then surpassed in intellectual culture all other nations of Europe.... It is now necessary that we should educate ourselves and work in accordance with the demands of culture and intellect. This is the only testament that, speaking almost as a dying man, I wish to leave to my people." Palacký's presentiment proved but too true. He died, after a very short illness, on May 26, 1876. His funeral was the occasion of general national mourning in Bohemia.

Though, as already mentioned, the study of history from his early youth appealed particularly to Palacký, it was by a work of a very different character that he first became known to the small group of men who in the earlier half of the present century were interested in Bohemian literature. While still studying at Pressburg, Palacký published a translation of some of the poems of Ossian, which was enthusiastically welcomed by his friends.

It was at Prague only that he decided on writing his _History of Bohemia_, which made him the foremost man of his nation, and which he has himself described as "especially the work of my whole life." Palacký's preliminary labours in the archives of his own country and then in those of Germany and Italy have already been noticed. Of the immense difficulties which Palacký's historical work encountered he has himself given an interesting account. All printed writings were then in Austria and Bohemia under the control of the "censure-office," to which I have already referred. The Government, there is no doubt, was in principle opposed to the publication of a history of Bohemia founded on the best available documents, that is to say, of a work really deserving the name of a history. They were too ignorant to know to how great an extent such a work would contradict the short accounts of the past of Bohemia--written with a strongly Romanist and anti-Bohemian tendency, and founded on Hajek's chronicle--that were then in general use; but they somehow felt that this would be the case. "The Austrian Government was convinced," Palacký writes, "that its past conduct as regards Bohemia would not obtain praise from the tribunal of history. What occurred during the Thirty Years' War and since that period in the interior of Bohemia is still one of history's secrets; it makes the few who have attempted slightly to lift the veil under which these events are hidden shudder."

In 1836 the first volume of Palacký's _History of Bohemia_ appeared. It was published in German, as were all the volumes that were issued up to the year 1848. Henceforth the book appeared simultaneously in German and Bohemian. When Palacký, towards the end of his life, re-wrote his great work, the earlier parts also appeared in Bohemian. The first volume, dealing with a period when the history of Bohemia is more than half mythical, was treated very leniently by the censors, who considered the fables of Prěmysl and Libussa very harmless. In the Austria of the earlier part of this century the words "Securus licet Ænaeam Rutulumque ferocem committas ..." were as true as in the Rome of the emperors.

Difficulties, however, began when Palacký had reached the period of Hus. The masterly account of the life and death of the great Bohemian, no doubt the most brilliant part of Palacký's work, greatly displeased the censors to whom it was submitted. The ecclesiastical censor suggested a very plain course, namely, that Palacký's work should be entirely suppressed. Prince Metternich, who was consulted, proposed that Palacký should omit all "objectionable reasoning," but should be allowed to state facts.

The correspondence between Palacký and the censors--published by the former after the suppression of that detestable institution--is irresistibly comic. The censors had not only, as is generally supposed, the power of striking out passages in an author's work that displeased them, they were also entitled to insert passages in a book that were often in direct contradiction with the writer's views. Palacký's description of the corruption of the Roman clergy in the fifteenth century was suppressed, and he was ordered to attribute the rise of the Hussite movement to the "stubbornness, inflexible obstinacy, and dogmaticalness" of Hus. Palacký patiently consented, but he ventured to remonstrate when objections were raised against his account of the courageous demeanour of Hus when before the Council. He was instructed to state that Hus had "appeared irresolute" when brought before his judges. Palacký remarked that this statement would be in contradiction with the passage quoted above which he had been ordered to insert The ignorance of the censor is proved by the fact that when Palacký quoted Poggio Bracciolini's account of the death of Jerome of Prague, he was unaware of the existence of the well-known Italian humanist, and requested to be informed who he was. He also expressed doubts as to the authenticity of the letter to Lionardo Aretino in which that account is contained, though it had then already been frequently printed, and is quoted by numerous Protestant and Catholic writers, including Pope Pius II, Palacký lived to see the abolition of censure, and to republish in their original form the volumes of his History that he had been obliged to submit to it.

Political events and the ever-increasing mass of materials, which of course proportionately increased Palacký's labours, delayed the progress of the History, and it was only in 1867 that the second part of the fifth volume, which reaches to the accession of the House of Habsburg to the Bohemian throne in 1526, was published. Bohemian historians generally end their work with the battle of the White Mountain in 1620, and this was no doubt Palacký's intention. His remark, quoted above, proves that he never intended to write the history of Bohemia during and after the Thirty Years' War. In 1861 he had, however, already formed the decision to end his narrative with the year 1526, and he informed the Estates of Bohemia--who contributed to the expenses of the publication--of that intention.

During the last nine years of his life Palacký employed whatever spare time his political engagements left him in re-writing parts of his History in accordance with fresh materials, in completing the Bohemian version of parts that had at first appeared in German only, and in eliminating the passages that the censors had obliged him to insert. This new revised edition was, as already mentioned, completed only in the year of the author's death.

Palacký's _History of Bohemia_ is now recognised as one of the great historical works of the nineteenth century. Though less known in England than on the Continent, it has there also obtained the praises of historians, such as Bishop Creighton and the late Mr. Wratislaw. It is not easy to define the circumstances that rendered the publication of Palacký's monumental work a political event in Bohemia, contributing greatly to the revival of national feeling. The record of a glorious past came as a revelation to the Bohemians, whom the German inhabitants of Austria were, in consequence of their long supremacy, in the habit of treating with contempt. It fortified the patriots in their belief that their nation and its language would not perish. It is this conviction which alone explains the intense veneration for Palacký which all Bohemians felt, many of whom had neither the money to buy nor the time to read his great historical work. The recently published centenary memorial of Palacký contains many striking instances of the devotion with which Bohemians of all classes regarded the historian of their country. I may be permitted to quote one anecdote from the Memorial. A young tailor's apprentice from Moravia, named Breynek, during a visit to Prague, met Palacký in the street. Innumerable photographs of the great historian had rendered Breynek familiar with his features. He walked up to him, stating that he was a Moravian and a countryman. Palacký conversed affably with him for several minutes and then gave him his hand. This meeting became the principal event of Breynek's life. Every date was designated as having happened "before I met Palacký" or "after I met Palacký." He only regretted that he had been too shy "to kiss the hand that had written the history of his country." Palacký's History, as already noted, was published simultaneously in German and in Bohemian; the earliest volumes indeed at first appeared in the former language only. The book is therefore not so inaccessible as the works of the earlier Bohemian historians, from which I have given copious quotations. An English translation of Palacký's history of Bohemia is, however, still a desideratum.

With the exception of a short German biography of Dobrovský, most of Palacký's minor works are connected with his great History; some are the results of studies preparatory to the great work; others contain documentary evidence in support of statements made in the book; in others again, Palacký enters into controversies with some of the critics of his work. I shall mention some of the most important of these works. In the year 1829 the Bohemian Society of Sciences offered a prize for the best essay on the early historians of Bohemia. Palacký won this prize with his first historical work, entitled _Würdigung_ _der alten Böhmischen Geschichtschreiber_. The book was written in German, and was first published in the Journal of the Bohemian Museum, that then appeared in German as well as in Bohemian. In 1830 it was republished separately in an enlarged form. The book gives short and concise sketches of the lives of the Bohemian historians from Cosmas to Hajek. It is still of value, and indispensable to all who study the works of these historians. Like this book, closely connected with Palacký's principal work, is a short historical sketch entitled _Die Vorläufer des Hussitanthums_ ("The Precursors of Hussitism"). The fate of this little book is rather curious. In 1842 Palacký read a paper on "The Precursors of Hus" before the Bohemian Society of Sciences. Wishing to publish its contents, he, as in duty bound, submitted the MS. to the censure-office. The officials there, however, entirely declined to give their consent to the publication of the book. A copy of the MS. came into the hands of Dr. Jordan of Leipzig, who in 1846 published it there under his own name. This was done with the consent of Palacký, who was more desirous that the fruits of his research should become public than that he should obtain personal recognition. The book has since been reprinted under the name of the real author, and still has great value. I have availed myself of its contents when writing of the precursors of Hus In chapter ii. of this book.

It is not surprising, if we consider the previous general ignorance on the subject of Bohemian history, that from the moment his book began to appear Palacký became the object of violent attacks. The first attacks proceeded from German writers, but after the publication of the volume that deals with Hus, other Catholic writers also joined in these attacks. The treatment which the Slavs of Northern Germany, and sometimes those of Bohemia also have endured on the part of the Germans, could only be defended by describing these tribes as brutal, savage, and cruel barbarians. Palacký has certainly proved that these descriptions, founded on vague statements of German monks or on the mendacious Hajek, are at least grossly exaggerated. Palacký's impartial account of the career of Hus, who had in Austria previously been described in accordance with the words of the censor, which I have quoted, displeased the more prejudiced Roman Catholics, Professor Höfler, who was both a fanatical Teuton and a bigoted Roman Catholic, was the most persistent opponent of Palacký. Palacký replied to his criticism in his _Geschichte des Hussitanthums und Professor Höfler_ which appeared in 1868. Mainly polemical also was Palacký's small work, _Zur Böhmischen Geschichtschreibung_, published in 1871. In this book the author defends his historical work against the attacks of Professor Höfler and other German critics. He gives here also an account of his old controversies with the censure-office, from which I have quoted.

Several collections of documents are also due to the diligence of Palacký. In 1860 he published a collection of--mostly Latin--documents referring to the reign of King George of Poděbrad. A similar but far more interesting collection of Latin and Bohemian documents was published in 1869. I have in chapter iii. frequently quoted this collection, on which, indeed, my account of the career of Hus is principally based. The Latin documents are printed in that language only, but Palacký has given a Latin translation of those that were written in Bohemian. An additional collection of documents, published in 1873, refers to the period of the Hussite wars. In the last years of his life Palacký published in three volumes a selection of the most important historical, political, and literary essays which he had written in Bohemian. This is by no means a complete list of Palacký's works. In the "question of the MS." he, as already mentioned, figured as a defender of the authenticity of these documents.

It is to the four writers whom I have now successively referred to that the revival of the Bohemian language and of Bohemian literature is principally due. They were the centre of a group of writers who, if less talented, were no less patriotic and enthusiastic. The isolated position in which they were at first placed, surrounded by Germans or Germanised Bohemians, and living under an absolute Government, that always treated them with suspicion and often with positive enmity, caused these men to draw closely together; many of them were indeed on terms of intimate friendship. The vast amount of correspondence that passed between them, to which I have already referred, is now gradually being published. It is characteristic of these writers that they rarely limited their labours to one subject, but generally wrote both in poetry and in prose, and on the most varied subjects. Their patriotic motive was the wish to prove that the new, or rather revived, literature possessed works on all subjects and in every literary form. That this sometimes led to superficiality and mediocrity cannot be denied.

WENCESLAS HANKA (1791-1861) has already been mentioned in these pages as the discoverer of the MS. of Königinhof, and it is as such that he is principally known. He is, however, the author of a collection of Bohemian songs that soon became very popular, and of several works on Bohemian grammar and etymology. He also published numerous translations from the German and from the Slav languages, and edited Hus's _Deerka_ and _Dalimil's Chronicle_, which were then almost unknown.

A better poet than Hanka was his contemporary Ladislav Čelakovský. The best of his many poetical works are two collections of national songs entitled respectively _Echoes of Russian Song_ and _Echoes of Bohemian Song_. These books, contrary to what the title would lead one to infer, are mainly original, though Čelakovský has made thorough use of his knowledge of the legends and traditions of the Slav peasantry. Another collection of poetry is entitled _The Hundred-Leaved Rose_. As in Kollar's _Daughter of Sláva_, the love motive struggles with the patriotic motive for supremacy in this poem--not perhaps to its advantage. We possess prose works also of Čelakovský dealing with the Bohemian language. That subject was ever before the minds of the Bohemian writers of the earlier half of this century, of whom Čelakovský is one of the most correct.

It is beyond the purpose of this book to give a complete list of the modern "minor poets" of Bohemia. I may mention as among the best, Macha, who imitated Byron, Jungmann's friend Marek, Halek, Koubek, and Rubes. The last-named is the author of a song entitled _Ja jsem Čech a kdo je vic?_ ("I am a Bohemian, and who is more?"), which is still very popular in Bohemia. The drama has only been greatly cultivated in Bohemia within the last twenty years, particularly since the establishment of the large Bohemian theatre at Prague. At present Bohemia possesses a considerable number of dramatic authors. Of older dramatists we must first mention Joseph Tyl (1808-1856), the author of very numerous dramatic works. In one of these Tyl introduced a song beginning with the words _Kde je domov muj?_ ("Where is my home?"). This song rapidly became very popular, and can now almost be considered as the national air of Bohemia. Wenceslas Klicpera (1792-1859) wrote over fifty comedies and tragedies, and, though none of his plays are above mediocrity, contributed considerably to the development of the Bohemian stage, which then possessed hardly any dramatic works. Of novelists belonging to the early period of the revival of Bohemian literature, we should mention Mrs. Božena Němcova, who was born in 1820 and died in 1862. Her novels, which deal mainly with the simple life of the Bohemian villagers, have obtained a well-deserved popularity. Mrs. Němcova's masterpiece, the _Babička_ ("Grandmother"), has been translated into English, French, Russian, German, and many other languages. A very talented writer of historical novels was Wenceslas Beneš Třebizky (1849-1884).

Two gifted sisters, whose work was of great assistance to the development of Bohemian literature, also deserve mention. I refer to the sisters Rott, who belong to a period somewhat later than Mrs. Němcova. The elder sister assumed the pseudonym of Karolina Světla (1830-1893), and is the author of many interesting novels, of which _Križ u potoka_ ("The Cross by the Stream") obtained the greatest success. Sophia Rott--afterwards Mrs. Podlipská--(1833-1897) produced a cycle of historical novels that have great interest, though they are not devoid of anachronisms.

Of writers on scientific subjects, one of the earliest was John Presl (1791-1849). Presl was Professor of Natural History at the University of Prague, and the first modern Bohemian works on this subject are due to him. The patriots, as already mentioned, wished to prove that all subjects could be treated in the national language. Presl is the originator of the present system of Bohemian phraseology as regards the subjects on which he wrote, and he has therefore well deserved the gratitude of the Bohemian people. It is of him and of Marek that the story is told that, when they were visiting Jungmann to discuss the future of Bohemian literature, the latter remarked to his visitors: "It needs only that the ceiling of this room should fall in, and there will be an end of Bohemian literature!"

Great also are the services to the Bohemian cause of Charles Jaromir Erben; born in 1811, he died in 1870 as archivist of the town of Prague. Erben's works, like those of many Bohemian writers of his time, deal with various subjects. It is really only the establishment of the national university which has made it possible for us to have specialists in all branches of science at the present day. Erben published several collections of Bohemian popular poetry and various interesting works on the folklore of his country. We have to thank him also for an edition of selected works of Ilus, which has value until the definitive edition of the works of the Bohemian martyr is completed. The works of Hus, particularly those written in the Bohemian language, were formerly almost inaccessible. Erben also edited Štitný's books on _General Christian Matters_, Harant of Polžic's Travels, the Chronicles of Bartoš, the writer, and many minor works. These editions have valuable notes and biographies of the ancient writers, which I have frequently used in the earlier parts of this work.

More limited was the range of studies of Dr. Joseph Jireček (1825-1888). His works mostly deal with Slavic, particularly with Bohemian literature. Jireček's _Rukovět_, or _Handbook of the History of Bohemian Literature_, is still one of the best books dealing with the subject. That part of the work which refers to the writers of the so-called "unity", founded on entirely new documents, will not be superseded for a considerable time. Dr. Jireček played a considerable part in Bohemian and Austrian politics, and was, as Minister of Public Instruction, a member of Count Hohenwarth's short-lived Cabinet (1870-1871).

One of the results of the revolutionary movement of 1848 was the rapid development of journalism in Bohemia. Its originator was Charles Havliček (1820-1856). Endowed with an exceptional talent for satire, he strongly attacked the unpopular Austrian rule in Bohemia. He collected many of his political articles in the famed _Kutnohorskí Epištoly_ ("Letters from Kutna Hora"). Of his satirical works, _Křest' Svatého Vladimira_ ("The Baptism of St. Vladimir") is the most witty. During the time of reaction that followed the revolutionary years 1848 and 1849, Havliček was exiled to Brixen in the Tirol by the Austrian Government. We owe to this exile his _Tyrolské Elegie_ ("Tirolese Elegies"), one of his finest works. Havliček was allowed to return to his country shortly before his death.

As a result of the brilliant example given by Palacký, great attention has recently been devoted to the long-neglected annals of Bohemian history. Dealing now only with those who are deceased, I will first mention Dr. Anton Gindely (1829-1888), whose studies were mainly devoted to the history of Bohemia in the early part of the seventeenth century. He did not live to complete his great work, a history of the Thirty Years' War, but his minor studies have thrown considerable light on little-known subjects connected with Bohemian history. Thus the great influence of Christian of Anhalt on Bohemian politics can be considered as almost a discovery of Gindely's. It may be said that Gindely's speciality was his liking for the study of original sources (the "Quellenstudium," as it is called by the Germans), and there may have been some exaggeration in his method.

Professor Karel Tieftrunk's (1829-1897) studies of Bohemian history deal with a rather earlier period than that chosen by Dr. Gindely. His principal work, _Odpor stavuv cěských proti Ferdinandovi I._ ("The Opposition of the Bohemian Estates to Ferdinand I."), is very valuable, and is founded on the contemporary record of Sixt of Ottersdorf, as well as on careful archival study.

Professor Wenceslas Tomek (1818-1905), during his long life of study, enriched Bohemian literature with numerous and valuable historical works, and he held up to his death the rank of the most prominent historian of his country. In the last years of his life he published his memoirs, which are somewhat disappointing. The extreme caution which was innate in an Austrian subject of Tomek's generation, and perhaps also the staunchly conservative views which he held after youthful radicalism had left him, induced him to avoid, with perhaps exaggerated caution, all mention of matters that might give offence to the governing powers. Wenceslas Tomek was born at Králové Hradec (Königgrätz) in 1818. His father, as he tells us, was a shoemaker, who had some time previously established himself in that town. Though Tomek for a time studied law, he soon devoted himself entirely to historical work. Even in his younger and more liberal days he appears to have been a fervent adherent of the Church of Rome; but he tells us in his memoirs that he was severely reprimanded by the then formidable "censure"-office for having stated in one of his earliest writings that Socrates--a pagan!--had been an honest man. The greatest work of Tomek, his _Dějepis města Prahy_ ("History of the Town of Prague"), perhaps one of the greatest town-histories of the nineteenth century, which he only began late in life, remained unfinished. It is of priceless value because of the treasures of research that it contains, and is as valuable to those who frequently differ from Professor Tomek's views as to those who are always in sympathy with his opinions. A history of the University of Prague by Tomek also remained unfinished, and it may be considered as having been superseded by Dr. Winter's more recent works. Tomek is also the author of a biography of John Zǐžka, which--as indeed do all Tomek's works--gives evidence of deep and conscientious research. That the author is not in sympathy with the hero of his biography is a fact which, though it does not diminish the historical value of the book, undoubtedly detracts from its artistic worth. Zǐžka's biography remains unwritten, and the strange, totally uncritical, and fantastic _Jean Zǐžka_ of George Sand is perhaps none the less a truer portrait of the great Bohemian hero than Professor Tomek's book. The other works of Tomek on Austrian and Bohemian history are little more than school-books.

Two writers who died recently, and whose influence on the Bohemian literature of the present day is great, are Neruda and Zeyer. As is frequently the case with Bohemian writers, these authors cultivated several branches of literature. Jon Neruda was born in the Prague Malá Strana (the part of the city which is situated on the left bank of the Vltava river) in 1834. His books, both in prose and in verse, are very numerous. Of his poems, the _Písně Kosmické_ ("Cosmic Poems"), which are the result of deep philosophic thought, had a great success when they appeared in 1878. Some critics, however, assert that the book is somewhat obscure. Of Neruda's many prose works, some of which first appeared as _feuilletons_ in the _Narodni Listz_, the foremost Bohemian newspaper, the best are the _Malostranské povídky_ ("Tales of the Malá Strana"). Neruda died in 1891.

Julius Zeyer (1841-1901) was certainly one of the most prominent writers of the period of the literary revival in Bohemia. Though he did not begin writing in early life, he was, like most of the writers of his time, the author of numerous works both in prose and in verse. His first book, _Ondry Cernyšev_, a historical novel, the scene of which is laid in Russia at the time of the Empress Catherine II., appeared in 1875. Zeyer lived a considerable time in Russia, and also frequently visited Italy. Next to his own Bohemia, these two countries influenced him most. In perhaps the best of his many novels, _Jan Maria Ployhar_, the scene is laid in Italy. Of Zeyer's poetical works, the best is his _Vyšehrad_, a cycle of epic poems which deal with the legendary period of Libusa and Premysl. It is undoubtedly one of the most valuable fruits of modern Bohemian poetry.[165] Zeyer also attempted, though not very successfully, to write for the stage and he is also the author of a biography of the Bohemian patriot, Vojta Naprstek, with whom and with whose family he was on terms of friendship.

The last twenty years have contributed in a quite unprecedented manner to the development of the Bohemian language and literature. The Bohemian writers now living have added greatly to the fame of their country, and have brought the national language to a degree of purity and polish which it had never attained before. Many circumstances have contributed to this result. The foundation of the Bohemian Academy of Francis Joseph, which added to the Society of Sciences and that of the Museum a third learned society, has been very helpful. The foundation of a large national theatre has greatly encouraged dramatic authors, and the fact that the national language has to a very great extent among the middle classes, and to a lesser degree among the upper ones also, taken the place of German, has been of immense value to the Bohemian novelists. Those of the present day have naturally a great superiority over their predecessors, who, when attempting to describe Bohemian society, wrote of counts and barons, while the counts and barons of that period in real life only spoke German.

The living Bohemian writers are so numerous that I have, though reluctantly, omitted the names of many whose works are of value. The study of history continues in Bohemia without interruption, as is indeed natural in a country where the records of a splendid past afford some solace to those who feel that their country plays but a subordinate part in the present Austro-Hungarian empire. Of the living historians of Bohemia, one of the most prominent is Professor Joseph Kalousek, born at Vamberk in 1838. He showed from early youth great talent for historical research; and his writings include, besides larger works, a vast number of articles that have appeared in the various Bohemian reviews and magazines. One of the most important works of the learned professor is his _Statni Pravo_, a study of the ancient constitution of Bohemia. The book first appeared in 1871 at the moment when an imperial decree had assured the Bohemians that the constitution would be restored to them. Other works of Professor Kalousek are a treatise on the use of the chalice in Bohemia in the period previous to Hus--a matter the importance of which only those thoroughly acquainted with Bohemian history can gauge--and a recent book entitled _Obrana_ _Knižete Václava Svatého_ ("A Defence of Prince Wenceslas the Holy"). Dr. Kalousek, a firm adherent of the Church of Rome, here upholds the memory of St. Wenceslas, who has been treated rather unfavourably by Palacký and other Bohemian historians. Kalousek has also shown great interest in the history of the Bohemian peasantry during the period of serfdom. Many of the documents referring to this subject, published by him in the _Archiv Česky_, which he edits, are of great value.

Among the historians of the present day I should next mention Dr. Jaroslav Goll (born 1846). Professor Goll is one of the shining lights of the new Bohemian University, and his historical works are very valuable. Dr. Goll studied for a time at the German University of Göttingen, which was then, in consequence of the presence of the great historian Waitz, a centre of historical study in Germany. Somewhat later Goll for a short time acted as secretary to the historian Bancroft, then Minister of the United States in Berlin. These and other visits to foreign countries enabled Goll to acquire a thorough acquaintance with foreign languages. He has proved his knowledge of French by the translation of the _Fleurs du mal_ of Baudelaire, which he published jointly with the poet Vrchlický. Goll subsequently devoted himself entirely to historical research. His studies, dealing with the formerly little-known community of the Bohemian brethren, which appeared both as separate works and in the columns of the _Časopis Musea Českého_ ("Journal of the Bohemian Museum"), are of great importance to the history of Bohemia. Of great and fascinating interest also is Dr. Goll's _Čechy a Prusy_, a work which deals with the little-known relations between Bohemia and Prussia in the Middle Ages. Together with Professor Pekář--also a distinguished historian--Professor Goll edits the _Česky Časopis historický_, a review whose purpose is similar to that of the English historical review.

Dr. Anton Rezek (born 1853) is one of the prominent historians of Bohemia, though political duties--he was for some time a member of the Austrian Cabinet--and latterly ill-health, have somewhat interfered with his historical studies. His works deal mainly with the history of Bohemia during the earlier part of the sixteenth century--a momentous period; for it was then, in 1526, that the permanent rule of the house of Habsburg over Bohemia began. Many of Rezek's works have been published in the _Časopis Musea Českého_, and some have appeared in German also.

Dr. Joseph Truhlář has devoted himself successfully to the interesting subject of humanism in Bohemia. The humanist movement, suspected both as coming from Rome and as having what were believed to be pagan tendencies, reached Bohemia late. Its principal adherent in that country was Bohuslav of Lobkovic, whose letters Dr. Truhlář has edited and published. He is also the author of the interesting work entitled _Humanismus a Humaniste v Čechach za Krále Vladislava II._

Professor Sigismund Winter (born 1846) is the author of interesting works dealing with the internal condition of Bohemia in ancient times. His history of the University of Prague, his _Život cirkevni_, a study of the ecclesiastical condition of Bohemia in the Hussite period, and indeed all his writings, are indispensable to the student of Bohemian history.

Of younger Bohemian historians Dr. Wenceslas Flajšhans deserves mention. He has devoted much time and talent to the study of the life and works of Hus, of whom he has recently written an excellent biography. Dr. Flajšhans is also the author of a history of Bohemian literature, to which I here gratefully acknowledge my indebtedness. Mr. Jaroslav Vlček, who, together with Mr. Hladík, edits the review _Lumir_, has also begun a history of Bohemian literature that is of great interest.

The study of philology has recently been greatly developed in Bohemia. One of the greatest living Bohemian philologists is Professor Gebauer, to whose writings it is principally due that the genuineness of the MSS. of Zelená Hora and Králové Dvur is now generally considered doubtful. Professor Gebauer has now begun the publication of a historical grammar of the Bohemian language on a large scale. Only Part I. and Part III. (consisting of two volumes) have as yet appeared. Another of the principal opponents of the genuineness of the MSS. was Professor Tomas Masaryk (born 1850). Besides being a philologist, Dr. Masaryk is also a distinguished writer on philosophical subjects.

Of great value to Bohemian philology and early literature are the labours of Mr. Adolphus Patera, formerly head librarian of the Bohemian Museum at Prague. For many years Mr. Patera has employed his annual holidays in searching for early Bohemian MSS., many of which, though forgotten, still exist in the libraries of the towns and monasteries of Bohemia and Moravia. Mr. Patera has been indefatigable in deciphering these very ancient MSS., and has published the results of his work in the _Časopsis Musea Království Českého_. The very interesting but long-neglected study of Bohemian folklore has been greatly assisted by the labours of Mr. Patera's successor, Dr. Zibrt, librarian of the Bohemian Museum. He has published many of the results of his researches in the periodical _Česky Lid_ ("The Bohemian People"). To render his studies accessible to a larger number of readers, Dr. Zibrt very wisely publishes a French edition of his periodical. Professor Mourek, who has mainly studied philological subjects, has enriched the literature of his country by very valuable Bohemian-English and Anglo-Bohemian dictionaries. The learned professor is a thorough master of the English language. Dr. Jaromir Čelakovský (born 1846), up to recently archivist of the city of Prague, a son of the poet Čelakovský, is the author of many valuable studies concerning the ancient judicial and constitutional institutions of Bohemia. Dr. Augustine Sedláček (born 1843) is the author of a monumental illustrated work entitled _Hrady a zámky české_ ("Strongholds and Castles of Bohemia"), of which thirteen volumes have already appeared, and which is invaluable for the student of Bohemian history and archaeology. The prehistoric antiquity of Bohemia has recently been the subject of erudite works by Dr. Píč (_Starožitnost země české_, "The Antiquities of the Bohemian Land") and Dr. Niederle (_Starožitnosti české_, "The Antiquities of Bohemia").