The Defenestration of Prague is the English title of a Czech docudrama which premiered in 2018.
The timing is significant. The defenestration mentioned in the title happened in 1618.
This docudrama was released in 2018 in order to mark and commemorate the 400-year anniversary of the defenestration which happened in 1618.
In 2023, this docudrama was shown on French and German television (arte tv).
Here is some basic information about this docudrama:
** Director: Zdenek Jirasky
** Writers: Klara Andresova, François-Xavier Durandy, Titti Fügediova, Zdenek Jirasky, Pavel Kosatik, and Frantisek Parkan
** Run time: 85 minutes
What is a defenestration? What does this mean? The word is based on the Latin word fenestra which means a window.
A defenestration happens when a person is thrown out of a window (against his or her will).
A well-known defenestration happened at the royal palace (Hradcany Castle) in Prague on 23 May 1618. What was the reason? What was the background?
The reason was a conflict between two versions of the Christian religion: the Catholic Church and the Protestant (Lutheran) Church.
The Holy Roman Emperor was Catholic and all his subjects were supposed to follow his faith. However, some subjects did not want to do this. They wanted to follow the protestant faith.
Many citizens of Bohemia wanted to follow the Protestant faith. The conflict between the two religions was escalating, because Catholic officials insisted that every citizen had to follow the Catholic faith.
On 23 May 1618, the conflict between the two religions culminated during a meeting at the royal palace in Prague. A delegation of protestants came to the palace to present their complaints and their demands.
The delegation met with two Catholic officials and their secretary in a large room on the third floor of the palace.
When the Catholic officials refused to accept the demands presented by the protestant delegation and refused to give them an immediate answer, the members of the protestant delegation decided that it was time to show them that they were serious:
They opened the window.
The two officials and the secretary were thrown out of the window.
This was the defenestration of Prague!
This moment is regarded as the beginning of the Thirty Years’ War, one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, which lasted from 1618 to 1648.
This drama does not cover the whole conflict. It covers only the defenestration in 1618 and the early years of the war (1618-1624). The later years (1625-1648) are not covered in this drama.
Who were the victims of the defenestration?
The two Catholic officials:
** Vilem Slavata (1572-1652)
** Jaroslav Borita (1582-1649)
The secretary:
** Filip Fabricius (ca. 1570-1632)
The drop from the third floor to the ground was 21 meters or 70 feet. But the three men survived the fall.
How and why could they survive such a fall?
According to Catholic observers, because they were saved by an angel.
According to Protestant observers, because they landed in a large heap of manure.
What do reviewers say about this drama? On IMDb it has a rating of 52 percent, which corresponds to a rating of 2.6 stars on Amazon.
In my opinion, this rating is too low. I like this drama and I want to give it a good rating, but I cannot go all the way to the top, because there is a flaw:
As stated above, the drama does not cover the whole conflict.
It covers only the opening moment (the defenestration) and the early years of the war (1618-1624). The later years (1625-1648) are not covered at all.
But what we have is well-done. The director shows how the conflict begins in May 1618. The director presents the key players of the conflict and the role which they have in the conflict. This is well-done.
In my opinion, this drama about the beginning of a long a bloody war deserves a rating of four stars (80 percent).
PS. Historians have recorded four cases of defenestration in Prague. Here are the four moments:
** 1419 – the first
** 1483 – the second
** 1618 – the third
** 1948 – the fourth
REFERENCES
# 1. Items available online
The German version of the Czech docudrama is available on YouTube. This version has German soundtrack and English subtitles.
Donald A. Hempson III,
“Out the Window:
Religion, Politics, and a Defenestration in Prague,”
Ohio State University (May 2018)
Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective
# 2. Books
The Thirty Years’ War, 1618-1648
By Richard Bonney
(2002)
Europe’s Tragedy:
A New History of the Thirty Years War
By Peter H. Wilson
(2009 = hardcover)
(2010 = paperback)
The Thirty Years War, 1618-1648: The First Global War and the End of Habsburg Supremacy
By John Pike
(2023)
*****
A 1662 woodcut of the 1618 event by engraver
Matthaeus Merian the Elder for
Johann Philipp Abelin's
Theatrum Europaeum
*****
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