Jan Keupp

Constance is a lovely German city on the Southern (Swiss) side of Lake Constance. The bishop of Constance used to be very powerful during the Middle Ages and the unwillingness and inability to deal with his position was why Constance never joined the Old Swiss Confederation.

When the Emperor was no longer willing to tolerate the existence of multiple popes and the Pope in Rome, John XXIII, was in a weak position due to the recent sack of the city in 1413. Thus, the whole Catholic world assembled in the neat city of Constance from 1414 to 1418, burned two Czech priests at the stake, chased one pope out of office, pushed two others to abstain (half-heartedly), so that in 1417, a new pope, Martin V, could be elected in Constance and the schism restored.

Typical for many mega events, the city itself did not profit from it in the long run, only a few plutocrats made big profits. Inflation actually made life harder for the common people. The Jewish community was forced, in the end, to pay the Emperor's huge debts and bills incurred for the event. Coming to Constance was not a good choice in the end for Jan Hus, John XXIII and also the Duke of Austria (who lost part of his Swiss lands when he supported John XXIII at the wrong time). In contrast, a modern visitor will enjoy the wonderful sight of the city and the excellent exhibition about the Council of Constance. This book is a nice primer about the event.… (mer)