Aehmat, 5 p # Emperour of the Turfy

888 Achmat, eighth Emperour of the Turfy.
1608
An Aflcmbly
of the
Scares of
Beheadft
hoiden at
Prague, in
thePrefenee
of
the Emperour.
The Requefls
of
the Nobility
and
States of
Bohemia
unto the
Emperor*
The three and twentieth day of May, an AfTcmbly
ot the States of Bohemia was called at fragile,
the Emperour himfelf being thece prefent, Adam
WaJdfteine carrying the drawn Sword before him-
In which AHembly, the Nobility and States ;o£
the Country with one confent prorailcd to fpend
their Goods and Lives in the Emperours quarrel •,
yet in the mean time requeuing thefe things following
to be granted and confirmed unto them;
viz. That Religion, according to the confeffion of
Bohemia and Augujla, ihould inviolately be kept,
and that they which profeffed the one, fhould not
therefore feoffor defpife the other.. That Bohemians
only fhould be preferred to Archbifhoprrcks,
Abbotfhips, and other fpiritual Preferment/That
theArchbifhop fhould not.-roeddlerwith Civil and
Political Affairs. That Eecjefiafiical Offices fhould
be permitted unto the Proteffant Miniflers, as informer
time, rhc_CathoKcks. in the mean time
holding that they had. The Poutificial difpenfation
in canfe ; sof Matrimony, according to the Decree
of the Aflembly hoiden in the Year icoa,
fhould be abrogated and taken away. That it
fhould not be lawful for Priefts and other Ecclcfiaftical
Pcribns to buy Lands or Territories, with-'
out the expels content of ail the three States, but
to hold themfclves contented with theirTythsand
other their Revenues. That it fhould be lawtulfbr
all men in their own Ground and Territories to
build Churches for Religion, on both fides. That
Proteflants and Patrons of the Univerfity of Prague
friould be- joyoed to (he Confiftory, as they were
in the ..time of the Emperour Ferdinand. That one
fhould be chofen for Burgrave in this Aflembly.
That chief political Offices fhould not be left void
above a Month. That unto thefe political Offices
men of both Religions fhould be admitted; fo that
if the Burgrave were aCatholick, the chief Judge
fhould be a prot(|ftant. That every man fhould
ep joy his Right, and that no Peace Ihould be publifhea
againft the. tf me; neither that they which
were of the Order of Knights fhould be rafhly
fued, or bound to any arrett. That one of the
Bohemians Ihould always be chofen into the fecret
Council, and made acquainted with the Bohemian
Affairs-rrlSliat every man might haveaccefs to
the Emperour, and not all things to be done by
his Counfeilors.' That it fhould be declared to all
Men, what was to be underfiood by the Crime of
-Trcafon. That a difference fhould be made betwixt
Offences j and that no roan fhould for any
light Offence, together with his Goods, lofe his
Life and Reputation. That the Suits of Widows,
Orphans, and others alfo, fhould with Expedition
be difpatcbed, and not from day to day deferred.
That from henceforth £ he Father fhould not be
bound to pay the Sons debt, which he was run
into without his knowledge j neither yet the Son
himfelf. That in political Offices Mea fhould not
be too much grieved with too heavie Exactions.
That Men fued fhould not be fummoned but in
good Terms, and that fuch as were in any Reputation
be bound unto any arreft, without the
hearing of their Caufe, and much lefs to be imprifoned-
That the Sword, upon frowardnefs or
madnefs taken out of the Church of Thine certain
years before, fhould be again let in the former
place. That Lawyers which pleaded mens Caufes'
fhould be contented with fuch Fees as were by
common Decrees appointed them. And laft of
all to conclude, they in any wife requeued the
Emperour, that it would pleafe bim to eafe the
Nobility and States of Bohemia of thefe Griefs, before
they were compelled re anfwer unto fuch
thitigs as were to be propounded unto them on his
behalf. Who eafily granted unto raoft of thefe
Articles, thofe which concerned Religion only
excepted, fo that the Senators of the old Town
of frague obtained the defired Sword to be agaio
forthwith let in the wonted Place. But as for the
bufinefs of Religion, it was altogether put eft and
deferred unto the next Aflembly to be hoiden at
the Feaft of St. Michael.
About the int) of May, the Arch-duke Matthias^
Ambafladors, having received fate Conduct
from the Emperour and the Nobility of the Kingdom
ot Bohemia, came to fragile • and btfng ad­
baftadors
come to
mitted ioawne'Cbuncel of the Nobility, Charles Prague.
Count Ti/entfftif to whom that charge was given,
having in^he^Archdukcs Name fitft faluted the
Nobility, • caufed what he and the reft had in
charge, Wise before them out of a long Writing
in the Bohemian Tongue read; which done, when
as the Nobility fo requiring, they were put afide,
and almoft an hour after were called again, tncy
received Anfwer, That the points of the Ambaffage
by them propounded, were greater, and of
more weight, than that lufficicnt Deliberation
could thereof in fo fhort a time be had; and that
therefore it was by'the Nobility thought meet,
chat Commiffioners on both fides, meeting together
in the open Field near unto Vekritfe, fhould
there confult of thefe Articles-, and by the Confent
of the Emperour and the Arch-duke, to do what
they might to end the matter ; Unto which
Anfwer the Arch-dukes Ambafladors contenting,
the ninth of June returned again unto the Camp.
-The Empcrours Ambafladors within iwp days
after with forty Coacher and in hundred Horfc
following them unto the Place appointed; who oftentimes
going to and fro, at length fo wrought
the matter on both fides, that the Bufinefs quietly
and friendly ended, they were again made
Friends. <
The Articles of which Pacification and Agreement
betwixt the Emperour and* the Arch-duke
were the feventeenth day of June, in the Cattle
of fragile, openly read in the Bohemian Tongue,
Lichtenftem, Rwtskie, and other Chieftains, the
Arch-dukes Amballadours, being there prefent, in*
order thus:
That the Emperour refuted nor, but that the
The Articles
of Pa­
Crown of Hungary fhould be delivered into the
Arch-duke Matthias's Hands; and to yield unto cification
him the Kingdom ot Hungary, and to remit unto betwixt
the Emperonr
and
his Subjects the Oath of their Allcgeancc before
given unto him, fo that the Nobility and States the Archduke
of Hungary fhould chute no other King but the Mat-
Arch-duke. That in the next Diet of the Empire,
he fhould propound unto the States of the
empire to be confidered of, what Contribution
they ought to make unto the Archduke for the
defence of their Frontiers, \i happily longer War
were to be made with the Turk. That he fhould
caufe the Writings which concerned that Kingdom
of Hungary, within the fpace of two Months gibe
delivered-unto the Arch-duke. That he fhould
likewife alio furrender up the Arch-dukedom of
Auflria, by himfelf hitherto pofTeffed, unto the
Arch-dukc: yet fo as that the Arch-duke fhould
take upon himfelf all the Emperours Debr,as well
in Hungary as in Aufltria^ and within a year fhould
caufe lufficient Recognizance or Caution, (ealcd
with his own hand, to be delivered unto the
Creditors. That he fhould caufe all the Letters
and Writings, as well concerning the upper AH-\
firia^ as the nether, within the fame time to be
delivered unto him, together with a Copy of the
Priviledges therein, until that Deliberation might
be had concerning them, to be transferred unto
him alfo. That the Nobility and States of Bohemia
fhould in the Emperours Name ratifie and
confirm the Treaty held at Vienna, for the making
of the Peace betwixt the Emperour, the turkf, and
_jhel
1608
Matthias,
the Archdukes
Am*
Commiffioners
appointed
fcrthe
ending of
the Troubles
betwixt
the
Emperonr
and Matthias
the
Arch*
duke.
thiai.