Hynek Krušina of Lichtenburg
Encyclopedia
Hynek Krušina of Lichtenburg (also: Henry Kruschina of Lichtenburg, in ; born: 1392; died: 4 March 1454 in Kłodzko ) was a Hussite commander and governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

 and lien holders of the County of Glatz, the Duchy of Münsterberg and the city of Ząbkowice Śląskie
Zabkowice Slaskie
Ząbkowice Śląskie is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship in south-western Poland. It is the seat of Ząbkowice Śląskie County, and of the smaller administrative district called Gmina Ząbkowice Śląskie....

 .

Origin, family and possessions

Hynek Kruschina was a member of the Lichtenburg family, which in turn was a branch of the powerful Ronow dynasty. His father was John Krušina of Lichtenburg, who was a Royal Colonel and Chamberlain and Burgrave
Burgrave
A burgrave is literally the count of a castle or fortified town. The English form is derived through the French from the German Burggraf and Dutch burg- or burch-graeve .* The title is originally equivalent to that of castellan or châtelain, meaning keeper of a castle and/or fortified town...

 of the Duchy of Jawor
Duchy of Jawor
Duchy of Jawor was one of the Duchies of Silesia, with a capital in Jawor. It was created in 1274 as a subdivision of the Duchy of Legnica in Lower Silesia under the rule of Henry V the Fat, the eldest son of Duke Bolesław II the Bald...

.

After his father died, Hynek was influenced by Čeněk of Wartenberg
Cenek of Wartenberg
Čeněk of Wartenberg was a commander of the Royalist Bohemian forces at the start of the Hussite Wars. Up until the first half of 1420 he was a commander of the Utraquist League, a moderate faction of the Hussite movement...

. Čeněk probably persuaded Hynek to participate in the Bohemian Diet of 1415, where he protested against the condemnation of Jan Hus
Jan Hus
Jan Hus , often referred to in English as John Hus or John Huss, was a Czech priest, philosopher, reformer, and master at Charles University in Prague...

 at the Council of Constance
Council of Constance
The Council of Constance is the 15th ecumenical council recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, held from 1414 to 1418. The council ended the Three-Popes Controversy, by deposing or accepting the resignation of the remaining Papal claimants and electing Pope Martin V.The Council also condemned and...

. Hynek and his brothers Alexander (who died ) and John inherited his possessions of Opočno
Opocno
Opočno is a small town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic.- Famous natives :* František Kupka, painter* Jaroslav Plašil, football player* František Zdeněk Skuherský, composer* Luboš Sluka, composer- External links :*...

, Kumburk Castle and Albrechtice
Albrechtice nad Orlicí
Albrechtice nad Orlicí is a village in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It is located southeast of Hradec Králové and has a population of 1,049 .-External links:*...

. As Alexander and John were still minors, Hynek acted as their guardian and regent. However, Queen Sophie of Bavaria claimed Albrechtice as part of her jointure
Jointure
Jointure is, in law, a provision for a wife after the death of her husband. As defined by Sir Edward Coke, it is "a competent livelihood of freehold for the wife, of lands or tenements, to take effect presently in possession or profit after the death of her husband for the life of the wife at...

. Hynek would not accept the loss of Albrechtice and a military conflict broke out, which was decided in 1414 in favour of the Queen. Probably as a result of this conflict, Hynek found himself in financial difficulties and was forced to sell Opočno, which he had intended to give to John when the latter came of age. To compensate for this, he purchased the Lordship of Hostinné
Hostinné
Hostinné is a town in the Czech Republic.-External links:*...

 from Tristan of Redern.

In 1420 at Wrocław, Hynek and his brother John and other Bohemian nobles openly defied Emperor Sigismund
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...

. Shortly thereafter he was appointed captain of a Hussite army at the Battle of Vysehrad
Battle of Vyšehrad
The Battle of Vyšehrad was a series of engagements at the start of the Hussite War between Hussite forces and Catholic crusaders sent by Emperor Sigismund. The battle took place at the castle of Vyšehrad from August 16, 1419, to c...

. Later that year, at Mount Oreb in Třebechovice pod Orebem
Trebechovice pod Orebem
Třebechovice pod Orebem is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has ca. 5,600 inhabitants.-External links:* *...

 near Hradec Králové
Hradec Králové
Hradec Králové is a city of the Czech Republic, in the Hradec Králové Region of Bohemia. The city's economy is based on food-processing technology, photochemical, and electronics manufacture. Traditional industries include musical instrument manufacturing – the best known being PETROF pianos...

, he founded the Orebites
Orebites
Orebites were followers of the Hussites in Eastern Bohemia. The founders took part in the procession on the Mount Oreb near Třebechovice pod Orebem. Later most of the noble supporters belonged to the East Bohemian church known as the Bohemian Brethren. The ideological founder of the Orebites...

, a federation of East Bohemian towns which was led by the priest Ambrož Hradecký
Ambrož Hradecký
Ambrož Hradecký was a Bohemian priest, preacher and political leader in the era of the Hussite Wars.- Life :Ambrož is first mentioned in 1419 as pastor of the Holy Spirit Cathedral in the East Bohemian town of Hradec Králové . Queen Sofia and her burgrave had him driven out of town, because he...

 and persued egalitarian goals.

In 1425 or later Hynek married to Anna Zajíc of Hasenburg, a daughter of William Zajíc of Hasenburg, who was an outspoken opponent of the Hussites and sided with emperor Sigismund
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...

. Anna and Hynka had a son name William (born: before 1430; died around 1487), whom they had named in honor of his maternal grandfather.

Hynek opposed the atrocities committed by the Taborites, but nevertheless participated in the Battle of Aussig in 1426. In 1428, he changed sides and submitted himself to the emperor. He then returned to his own estates.

Hynek's brother John was murdered in 1434, after a dispute with the city council of Broumov
Broumov
Broumov is a town in the Czech Republic, in the Náchod District of the Hradec Králové Region near the Polish border. The municipality at the small Stěnava River is the center of the Broumovsko area, along with the adjacent Adršpach-Teplice Rocks, a protected area popular with mountain...

. After John's death, the Lordship of Hostinné
Hostinné
Hostinné is a town in the Czech Republic.-External links:*...

 fell back to Hynek. In 1437, King Sigismund
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...

 gave him the Lordship of Miletín
Miletín
Miletín is a town in the Czech Republic....

, which his father had already held from 1404 to 1407.

Career

In February 1437 he attended the coronation of Emperor Sigismund's wife Barbara
Barbara of Celje
Barbara of Cilli was the spouse of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund and as such Holy Roman Empress. She was by marriage also Queen of Hungary and Bohemia and also Holy Roman Empress. She received the sobriquet "Messalina of Germany" for her political intrigues, and was instrumental in creating the...

 as Queen consort of Bohemia. After Sigismund died in December 1437, Hynek supported the candidacy of Sigismund's son Albert II. After Albert was elected as King of Bohemia, Hynek was allowed to bear the royal sword at the coronation ceremony on 29 June 1438 the St. Vitus Cathedral
St. Vitus Cathedral
Saint Vitus' Cathedral is as a Roman Catholic cathedral in Prague, and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. The full name of the cathedral is St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas and St. Adalbert Cathedral...

 in Prague and took part as seneschal
Seneschal
A seneschal was an officer in the houses of important nobles in the Middle Ages. In the French administrative system of the Middle Ages, the sénéchal was also a royal officer in charge of justice and control of the administration in southern provinces, equivalent to the northern French bailli...

 in the subsequent celebrations. In October 1438, Albert had to leave Prague to avert a Polish invasion in Silesia and afterwards travelled to Hungary to repel the Turks. He appointed a council to support governor Oldrich Celský. Hynek was a member of this council, along with Meinhard of Neuhaus and Hanuš of Kolowrat.

In late 1430s, Hynek tried to expand his possessions in eastern Bohemia. He succeeded on 6 September 1440 Hynek purchased the liens over the Lordship of Glatz, the Duchy of Münsterberg, the city of Ząbkowice Śląskie and some East Bohemian possessions, from Anna of Koldice, the widow of Půta III of Častolovice. The East Bohemian possessions included Nové Hrady, Rychmberk Castle, ​​Potštejn
Potštejn
Potštejn is municipality, Hradec Králové Region in Rychnov nad Kněžnou District. From the end of the 19th century till 1924 the name Potštýn nad Orlicí was used....

, Albrechtice
Albrechtice nad Orlicí
Albrechtice nad Orlicí is a village in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It is located southeast of Hradec Králové and has a population of 1,049 .-External links:*...

, Choceň
Chocen
Choceň is a town in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has c. 9,100 inhabitants.First written document mentions this place in 1227. In 1562 building of large Choceň Castle started....

, Hummel
Lordship of Hummel
The Lordship of Hummel is a historic landscape in the western part of the former County of Glatz in Silesia.- The Hummel Castle :The focus of the Lordship of Hummel was Hummel Castle, located on a mountain above the valley of the Bystrzyca Dusznicka river, approximately 3 km west of Duszniki Zdrój...

 and Častolovice
Castolovice
Častolovice is a market town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has around 1,600 inhabitants.The village lies 20 kilometers from Hradec Králové and was purportedly settled by Častolov of the Hronovec family in 1342...

. Anna's mother, also named Anna (died in 1454 or earlier), the widow of Jan II of Oświęcim
Jan II of Oświęcim
Jan II of Oświęcim was a Duke of Oświęcim since 1372 until his death.He was the only son of Jan I the Scholastic, Duke of Oświęcim, by his first unknown wife.-Life:...

 still resided in Častolovice; Hynek conceded her the usufruct
Usufruct
Usufruct is the legal right to use and derive profit or benefit from property that either belongs to another person or which is under common ownership, as long as the property is not damaged or destroyed...

 of Častolovice for the rest of her life. He also took over Půta's debt and undertook to raise Půta's three daughters, Anna, Catherine and Salome, befittingly.

The negotiations for the sale seem to have been accelerated by the kidnapping of Anna's eldest daughter (who was also called Anna). In the summer of 1440, she was taken by Sigismund of Reichenau from Kłodzko Castle to Chałupki Castle, which he held as a fief of the bishop of Wrocław. Sigismund wanted to marry Anna (the daughter), in order to obtain part of her father's inheritance. Anna (the mother), instead sold her husband's possessions to Hynek and married him three weeks later, on 29 September 1440. She hoped, Hynek would be able to arrange the release of her daughter. Hynek began by negotiating with Konrad of Oels
Konrad IV the Older
Konrad IV the Older was a Duke of Oels , Koźle, half of Bytom and half of Ścinawa during 1412–1416 , since 1416 sole ruler over Kąty , Bierutów, Prudnik and Syców and since 1417 Bishop of Wroclaw and Duke of Nysa.He was the eldest son of Konrad III the Old, Duke of Oleśnica, by his wife Judith...

, the bishop of Wrocław. He demanded that Anna be released and Sigismund be punished. In order to put pressure on Konrad, Hynek began to loot the Duchy of Nysa
Duchy of Nysa
The Duchy of Nysa , or Duchy of Neisse was one of the duchies of Silesia with its capital at Nysa in Lower Silesia. Alongside the Duchy of Siewierz, it was the only ecclesiastical duchy in the Silesian region, as it was ruled by a bishop of the Catholic Church...

. On 29 December 1440, Konrad promised to dispossess Sigismund, release Anna and transfer Chałupki Castle to Anna's relatives. However, Konrad hesitated to intervene. In early 1441, Hynek besieged Chałupki Castle and freed his stepdaughter. Sigismund and his accomplices managed to escape to another episcopal property, the nearby Kaltenštejn Castle. As Konrad had promised, Hynek could keep the castle. He installed his own vogt
Vogt
A Vogt ; plural Vögte; Dutch voogd; Danish foged; ; ultimately from Latin [ad]vocatus) in the Holy Roman Empire was the German title of a reeve or advocate, an overlord exerting guardianship or military protection as well as secular justice...

 and some troops on the castle.

In July 1441, Emperor Sigismund's widow Barbara returned to Bohemia to take possession of her wittum
Wittum
Wittum , Widum or Witthum is a medieval Latin legal term, known in marital and ecclesiastical law.- Provide for a widow at the wedding :...

. Hynek accompanied her on the route from Kłodzko to Hradec Králové
Hradec Králové
Hradec Králové is a city of the Czech Republic, in the Hradec Králové Region of Bohemia. The city's economy is based on food-processing technology, photochemical, and electronics manufacture. Traditional industries include musical instrument manufacturing – the best known being PETROF pianos...

, where she was received by Hynek Ptáček of Pirkstein
Hynek Ptáček of Pirkstein
Hynek Ptáček of Pirkstein was a Bohemian Nobleman, the highest Hofmeister and Münzmeister of Bohemia and regent of Bohemia's royal cities.- Life :...

, and other Bohemian nobles. Hynek had approached Hynek Ptáček the year before, when the Utraquists met in Nymburk
Nymburk
Nymburk is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic, located 45 km east of Prague on the Elbe River. It is also home to the Czech men's basketball team ČEZ Basketball Nymburk...

. In August 1441, Hynek joined the Landfrýd, a regional alliance of nobles and cities to keep the peace, at its meeting in Čáslav
Cáslav
Čáslav is a town in eastern part of Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic.- History :History of Čáslav begins after year 800 with founding of citadel and settlement called Hrádek. Near Hrádek, new town with huge square was founded by king Přemysl Otakar II in 1250...

. At this meeting, he probably came into contact with the robber baron Jan Kolda of Žampach, who held Rychmberk Castle ​​and the Lordship of Hummel illegally. These possessions were legally Hynek's, as he had purchased them from Anna of Koldice in 1440.

Discord remained between Hynek and Bishop Konrad, probably because of Hynek's utraquist sympathies and his Hussite past. Over the next few years, it led to military conflicts in which other Silesian princes were involved. Most of them rejected Hynek's claim on Duchy of Münsterberg, with the Estates
Estates of the realm
The Estates of the realm were the broad social orders of the hierarchically conceived society, recognized in the Middle Ages and Early Modern period in Christian Europe; they are sometimes distinguished as the three estates: the clergy, the nobility, and commoners, and are often referred to by...

 of Münsterberg, headed by Captain Frederick Stosch playing a crucial role. In order to deter them and underline his claims on Münsterberg, Hynek sacked on 20 July 1442, the monastery at Henryków
Henryków, Lower Silesian Voivodeship
Henryków is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ziębice, within Ząbkowice Śląskie County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Prior to 1945 it was in Germany....

, to which the citizens of Münsterberg had a special relationship. When Hynek attacked again, aiming to conquer the Duchy, the citizens of Münsterberg were able to repel him.

On 25 April 1443, the citizens of Münsterberg elected Duke William of Opava (1410-1452) as their new sovereign. He was a member of the Přemyslid dynasty
Premyslid dynasty
The Přemyslids , were a Czech royal dynasty which reigned in Bohemia and Moravia , and partly also in Hungary, Silesia, Austria and Poland.-Legendary rulers:...

 and his mother Catherine was a sister of Duke John I, who had been the last Duke of Münsterberg of the Piast line. Although William had married Hynek's stepdaughter Salome, the daughter of Anna of Koldice and the late Půta of Častolovice, a short time earlier, he became one of Hynek's opponents.

On 15 and 16 July 1443, Duke William of Opava and Münsterberg, Bishop Konrad of Wrocław and their allies besieged Chałupki Castle and took it. The city of Ząbkowice Śląskie
Zabkowice Slaskie
Ząbkowice Śląskie is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship in south-western Poland. It is the seat of Ząbkowice Śląskie County, and of the smaller administrative district called Gmina Ząbkowice Śląskie....

, which at the time belonged to the Lordship of Kłodzko, was also besieged. Karpień Castle, which Hynek has used as his base when he attacked the Diocese of Wrocław, was captured and destroyed.

The situation calmed down in the summer of 1444. By the end of 1444, the dispute between Hynek and William of Münsterberg, although he never gave up his claim on Münsterberg. Also in 1444, Hynek finally gained control over the Lordship of Hummel, which he had legally owned since 1440. Hummel Castle, however, remained a den of thieves. Soldiers holding he castle charged high tariffs from merchants and travellers who passed the castle on their way to Hummel Pass.

In 1446 in the parliament at Prague, Hynek signed a petition to the Pope, asking him to acknowledge the Compact of Prague and recognize Jan Rokycana as archbishop.

On 27 April 1452, Hynek attended the parliament at Prague where George of Poděbrady
George of Podebrady
George of Kunštát and Poděbrady , also known as Poděbrad or Podiebrad , was King of Bohemia...

 was elected as regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...

 of Bohemia. It was intended that George would exercise this rôle until the newly elected King Ladislaus Postumus came of age. However, Ladislaus died in 1457 and in 1458, George was himself elected King of Bohemia. On 16 October 1452, Parliament adopted a motion, which was then brought to Vienna by a high-level delegation, which included Hynek.

Legacy

Hynek spent his final years in Kłodzko, and died there in 1454. In Kłodzko, he was respected, because he had managed to keep the country out of the wars in the 1441 to 1445 time frame. He also enjoyed a reputation of religious tolerance. He was buried in the Augustinian monastery in Kłodzko. He had been the monastery's benefactor and had always had good relationships with it. On 9 December 1455 Hynek's widow Anna endowed a benefice
Benefice
A benefice is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The term is now almost obsolete.-Church of England:...

 that hymns may be sung at Krušina's grave every Tuesday. In an obituary published by the monastery at Kamieniec Ząbkowicki
Kamieniec Zabkowicki
Kamieniec Ząbkowicki is a village in Ząbkowice Śląskie County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of the administrative district called Gmina Kamieniec Ząbkowicki. Prior to 1945 it was in Germany under the name of Kamenz. Kamieniec Zabkowicki is an important...

, Hynek was described as a loyal patron .

A few weeks after Hynek's death, his son William — probably due to a preliminary contract concluded by Hynek — sold the possessions that had belonged to the Častolovice family, including the Lordship of Hummel, the lien of Kłodzko and the city of Ząbkowice Śląskie to George of Poděbrady
George of Podebrady
George of Kunštát and Poděbrady , also known as Poděbrad or Podiebrad , was King of Bohemia...

, who would later be elected King of Bohemia and who already owned the adjacent Lordship of Náchod
Náchod
Náchod -History:Náchod was founded in 14th century by knight Hron of Načeradice, who founded a castle on a strategical place, where local trade road reaches the defile called Branka. The first written note dates back to 1254.-Castle:...

. This allowed George to extend his family's possessions in Eastern Bohemia. In 1456, he purchased the Duchy of Münsterberg from Ernest of Opava
Ernest, Duke of Opava
Ernest of Opava was a member of the Opava branch of the Přemyslid dynasty. He was Duke of Opava from 1433 to 1461 and Duke of Münsterberg from 1452 to 1456.- Life :...

, thereby increasing his influence in Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...

. In 1459, George raised the Lordship of Kłodzko to a County, known in German as the County of Glatz.

Williem did not initially sell the Lordships of Hostinné and Kumburk, the original possessions of the Lichtenburg family. For reasons unknown, William later sold Hostinné to his stepmother, Anna of Coldice. He only retained the Lordship of Kumburk with Kumburk Castle, which his heirs retained until the end of the 15th century, and the Lordship of Miletín, which his heirs sold in 1522.

William Krušina's sons John, Hynek, Bernhard and Smil acquired Trutnov
Trutnov
Trutnov is a city in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has a population of 31,239 and lies in the Krkonoše in the valley of the Úpa River....

in 1527. Bernhard had two sons, also named Hynek and John. John died childless in 1539, leaving Hynek's son John Bernhard (who died in 1590), as the last member of the Krušina branch of the Lichtenburg family.
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