Flamme A short introduction into history
Let us travel through time:
It was the beginning of the 15th century - the Hussite-Age. At that time the Catholic Church had developed into the greatest feudalistic power in Bohemia. The money received through the burden of taxation enabled the Catholic rulers to live a life of unparalleled prosperity. Around the turn of the 15th century and shortly after it, brave preachers rebelled against the life of the Bohemian rulers, especially in the Bohemian capital Prague. They demanded reforms. The preachers' spiritual father was Jan Hus. In 1414 Jan Hus was called to appear in front of the Council of Constance, where he was to defend his teaching. Despite a letter of safe passage granted to him by Emperor Sigismund he was arrested, sentenced and burnt at the stake as a heretic in 1415. Now the rulers believed they had stopped the petition for a referendum and went on living like lords. Four years after Johann Hus' burning, in several Bohemian areas rebellions by the poor people from cities and villages broke out and quickly spread over the whole country. With great fighting spirit the poor tried to regain power. The demands were made known to all people in the "Manifest of Tabor":

  • The Word of God is to be freely interpreted by Christian priests throughout the Kingdom of Bohemia and the Margravate of Moravia
  • The venerable Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ is to be given to adults as well as to children, as Jesus Christ has instituted
  • The priests and monks many of whom meddle with the affairs of the State, are to be deprived of their many wordly goods, which make them neglect their sacred office; and their goods shall be restored to us, in order that, in accordance with the doctrine of the Gospel, and the practice of the Apostles, the clergy shall be subject to us, and, living in poverty, serve as a pattern of humility to others
  • All the public sins which are called mortal, and all other trepasses contrary to the law of God are to be punished according to the laws of the country, by those in charge of them, in order to wipe from the Kingdom of Bohemia and the Margravate of Moravia the bad reputation of tolerating disorders

The demand for expropriation of ecclesiastical property was partly met by handing over land to the farmers in Bohemia and Moravia. The German princes and the Catholic Church were on the alert. Very carefully they pursued this development. They formed crusades of knights and farmhands from Europe and led them against the Hussites to smash this movement. The morale of the voluntary fighters of the Hussites was so unexpectedly high that they succeeded in defeating the men on the crusades. To be safe from recuring attacks, the Hussites started attacking surrounding countries. These actions did not only serve military purposes but supported the demands as well. Such an action allowed the army to come via Guben-Frankfurt to the Berlin area. In the Gersdorf-Camp, eight kilometres south-east of Eberswalde, the Hussites got the order to retreat because in Eger negotiations for a truce were in progress.
On their retreat the Hussites passed Bernau, and due to former fighting habits of armies, they destroyed buildings outside the town wall such as the St.-Georgen-Hospital.
It was Easter time in 1432.