by Adrian Barek

Having been occupied by varying European powers, the Czech Republic is short on the sort of war heroes whose brazen ingenuity or raw patriotic courage led them to vanquish invading hordes. Jan Žižka is a notable exception to this rule. Even if you’ve never heard of Žižka, you’re no doubt familiar with Zizkov, the traditionally blue collar district of Prague that takes its name from the one-eyed Hussite hero. Or perhaps you’ve seen the towering statue of Žižka astride his trusty steed that overlooks Prague from Vitkov hill. At over nine meters tall, the statue is billed as the largest equestrian statue in the world and is hard to miss.

Just who is the man behind the hype? Žižka led the Hussite armies during the anti-Hussite crusades of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund.

As with many historical figures, fiction has a pesky habit of blending with fiction. It is widely accepted that Žižka lost one eye in battle, but some reports claim that even after loosing the other eye in another battle Žižka continued to lead his armies despite being completely blind.

What is undisputed is Žižka’s military genius. Among his innovations was the use of armoured farm wagons for offensive and defensive purposes as well as for transporting his troops. His wagons were often equipped with canons that could be continually fired while charging enemy lines. When on the defensive, the wagons would form a circle to protect foot soldiers within it and fire on the enemy without. By using armoured wagons to such deadly effect, Žižka anticipated modern tank warfare by nearly 500 years.

Žižka's was a people's army in the truest sense as the vast majority of this soldiers were simple peasants and townspeople untrained in arms. Instead of training them to fight with traditional armaments - a complex and expensive process - Žižka taught them to fight with the tools they were most accustomed to wielding; mainly farming implements.

Over the course of fourteen years, the Hussite armies under Žižka's command successfully repulsed five foreign crusades. The fifth crusade was defeated before any swords could clash. By this time the Hussites were reputed throughout much of Europe as fierce fighters who inspired sheer terror in their enemies by singing 'Ye who are the soldiers of God' as they marched into battle. On their way to meet the Hussites, the crusaders were said to have heard their enemy singing and subsequently fled.

Žižka died of the plague while leading his army to an invasion of Moravia in 1424. It has been said that his dying wish was to have his skin made into drums so that he might lead his troops in battle even after his death.

previously published November 2006 Provokator print magazine

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