Protestantism in Poland and Bohemia - James Aitken Wylie

old edicts against the Protestants. The artful
insinuations of the chancellor prevailed over the
easy temper of the monarch, and Maximilian,
although with great distress of mind, put his hand
to the hostile mandate. "But," says the old
chronicler, "God had a watchful eye over his own,
and would not permit so good and innocent a
prince to have a hand in blood, or be burdened with
the cries of the oppressed."[18] Joachim,
overjoyed, set out on his journey homeward, the
fatal missives that were to lay waste the Bohemian
Church carefully deposited in his chest. He was
crossing the bridge of the Danube when the oxen
broke loose from his carriage, and the bridge
breaking at the same instant, the chancellor and his
suite were precipitated into the river. Six knights
struck out and swam ashore; the rest of the
attendants were drowned. The chancellor was
seized hold of by his gold chain as he was floating
on the current of the Danube, and was kept
partially above water till some fishermen, who
were near the scene of the accident, had time to
come to the rescue. He was drawn from the water
into their boat, but found to be dead. The box
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