Hus as a pestiferous heretic, who had to be suppressed; he lost his
position as the Synodal preacher in 1408.

V.

Hus Again Rector.

Since 1378, there were two sets of rival popes most lustily pelting one
another with papal curses. The Council of Pisa in 1409 deposed popes
Benedict XIII and Gregory XII as heretics and schismatics and then
elected Alexander V, who died on May 11, 1410, most probably poisoned by
"Diavolo Cardinale" Cossa, who then became Pope John XXIII. Now there
were three popes and a three-cornered fight. To make the good old times
still more interesting, three rivals struggled for the crown of the Holy
Roman Empire.

[Illustration: POPE ALEXANDER V]

Though King Wenzel demanded strict neutrality, Archbishop Sbynko sided
with Gregory XII, and at the University the Bohemian "nation" under the
lead of Hus was the only one to remain neutral. Wenzel was bitter and
on Jan. 18, 1409, decreed the Bohemian "nation" three votes and the
three German "nations" one vote in all University affairs.

Aeneas Sylvius, later Pope Pius II, estimates that 200 German professors
and students on May 16, 1409, left Prag and founded the University of
Leipzig and spread the news of the Bohemian heresies and hatred of Hus.

At Prag Hus was now at the height of his influence, enjoying the favor
of the Court; he was again elected Rector of the University.

VI.

Hus is Accused to the Pope.

Now Archbishop Sbynko went over to the rival pope, Alexander V, and
convinced him that all the troubles in Bohemia were due to the teachings
of Wiclif spread by Hus. These teachings, he said, made the clergy
disobedient and led them to ignore the authority of the Roman Church,
made the laity think it was for them to lead the clergy, encouraged the
King to lay hands on the property of the Church.

[Illustration: KING WENZEL OF BOHEMIA]

As a result Alexander V sent a bull on Dec. 20, 1409, ordering the
Archbishop to suppress all books of Wiclif and all preaching except at
the usual places; this last was to silence Hus in Bethlehem Chapel.

On July 16, 1410, the Archbishop burned two hundred manuscripts of
Wiclif, many of them in costly binding; two days later he excommunicated
Hus and his followers.

[Illustration: POPE JOHN XXIII]

This caused an indescribable sensation all over, in some places serious
riots resulted. The publishers of the excommunication were in danger of
their lives. The King compelled the A