Letter of Majesty

The Letter of Majesty (1609) was a 17th-century European document, reluctantly signed by the Holy Roman Emperor, Rudolf II, granting religious tolerance to both Protestant and Catholic citizens living in the estates of Bohemia [1]. The letter also created a Bohemian Protestant State Church, run by said estates.[2] A similar Letter was issued for Silesia.

In 1611, Rudolf inexplicably permitted his cousin Leopold to invade Bohemia with some 7,000 troops. A considerable Bohemian force drove Leopold back from the suburbs of Prague, and the Bohemian Estates called upon Matthias to take over the government of their kingdom.[3]

Notes

  1. "The Bohemian Religious Peace (July 1609)"
  2. Wedgwood 2005, p. 71.
  3. Parker, 1997, p.8

References

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