Name/Title
The Melantrich BibleEntry/Object ID
21Description
The Melantrich Bible, like all medieval translations of the Bible into Czech, is based on the Latin Vulgate. The religious transition in Bohemia from Protestantism to Catholicism can be found in the production and possession of the Melantrich Bible.
The Melantrich Bible was problematic for official Austrian censorship. The religious situation in the Czech lands was somewhat difficult during that time. In 1555, the Peace of Augsburg had settled religious disputes in the Holy Roman Empire, allowing a prince to determine the religion of his subjects.
Since 1526 the Kingdom of Bohemia (predecessor state of the modern Czech Republic) had been governed by Habsburg kings, who did not force their Catholic religion on their largely Protestant subjects. Maximilian II (1527–1576), Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia at the time of the Melantrich Bible’s production, although nominally Catholic, fostered Lutheran sentiments and formed alliances with various Protestant princes throughout Europe. It resulted in an expression of religious toleration that permitted such productions such as the Melantrich Bible. In 1609, Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia (1576–1612), increased Protestant rights. He was increasingly viewed as unfit to govern, and other members of the Habsburg dynasty declared his younger brother, Matthias, to be family head in 1606. Matthias began to gradually wrest territory from Rudolf, beginning with Hungary. In 1609, to strengthen his hold on Bohemia, Rudolf granted Bohemia’s largely Protestant estates the right to freely exercise their religion, essentially setting up a Protestant Bohemian state church controlled by the estates. Upon Rudolf’s death, Matthias succeeded in the rule of Bohemia (1612–1619) and extended his offer of more legal and religious concessions to Bohemia.
Conflict was precipitated by two factors: Matthias, already aging, and without children, made his cousin Ferdinand of Styria his heir and had him elected king in 1617. Ferdinand was a proponent of the Catholic Counter-Reformation and not well-disposed to Protestantism or Bohemian freedoms. He immediately took steps to impose Catholic uniformity in his kingdom.Transcription
Language
CzechNotes
Material: PaperBook Details
Publisher
Jiri Melantrich of AventinoPlace Published
* Untyped Place Published
PragueTime Period
1577Binding
Binding Type
Modern brown leather bindingCondition
Overall Condition
First 50 and last 30 folios in bad condition (modern lamentation to preserve paper); missing folios were added later handwrittenDate Examined
May 12, 2025Create Date
May 12, 2025Update Date
March 6, 2026