es the
neighbourhood of the Hrad[vs]any. This is the Belvedere which stands at
the far end of a lovely garden called the Chotkovy Sady. Ferdinand built
this Belvedere for Anna, his Queen, with its airy loggias, its wrought
architraves and long domed roof. It is one of the most beautiful works
of early Renaissance spirit that I have ever seen. All honour to its
architect, Giovanni di Spazzio.

Ferdinand I proved to be no such moody bigot as his brother Charles V,
yet he was bent on stemming the tide of Protestantism, the floods of
which flowed over from the Germany of Luther's way of thinking to mingle
with the growing religious sects in Bohemia. This was not done without
torture and bloodshed, so the Hrad[vs]any witnessed the sufferings,
under the rack, of Augusta, the Bishop of the Unity of Bohemian
Brethren, and the execution of several prominent citizens of Prague for
defying royal authority in matters of conscience. Ferdinand, on the
abdication of his father, succeeded him as Emperor, and left his son
Maximilian to rule his turbulent Bohemian subjects. Maximilian stands
out in history as a picturesque figure, but I cannot see that he did
Bohemia any useful service. The fact that he had inherited the old
dominions of the House of Habsburg, Upper and Lower Austria, and was
also King of Hungary, kept him away from Bohemia a good deal. He called
occasionally upon the Diet of this his richest possession for support
against the Turks. The Diet thereupon called for religious freedom, and
no interference with their spiritual affairs. The discussions that
ensued seem to have led to no results. So we find one Habsburg after
another on the throne of Bohemia, trying to coerce its people, and each
one reducing the country to a state of greater discontent and disorder,
until the crash came in 1618, when King Matthias had roused the Bohemian
Estates to such a pitch of desperation that they proceeded to the act
which precipitated the Thirty Years' War.

The Hrad[vs]any did not see much of Matthias, whereas his predecessor on
the throne of Bohemia, Rudolph II, lived in the Royal Castle as a matter
of habit. True he was dethroned occasionally by his younger brother
Matthias, and no doubt Rudolph as King was hopelessly ineffective. He
was probably rather mad. Nevertheless, a certain amount of interest can
be drawn out of this Habsburg's connection with Prague, and the
Hrad[vs]any can show you some traces of his peculiarities. So, for