1346-1620 CE
From 1346 to 1620 CE, the Bohemians traced an arc from golden age to catastrophe — Charles IV making Prague the imperial capital, Hus burning at Constance and his followers defeating crusade after crusade, a Hussite king defying Rome until Habsburg patience and Catholic revival cornered them at White Mountain. The Defenestration of Prague sparked a war that would devastate Europe; Bohemian independence did not survive its first battle.