Tobias von Bechin

Representation of Tobiáš z Bechyně in St. Bartholomew's Church in Kyje (Prague)

coat of arms

Tobias von Bechin (Czech: Tobiáš z Bechyně ; also: Dobeš z Benešova ) († March 1, 1296 ; probably in Prague ) was Bishop of Prague .

Life

Tobias came from the important Bohemian noble family von Beneschau . His father was Wok from Beneschau ( Vok z Benešova ). In addition to Tobias, he also had sons Beneš, Andreas, Čeněk and Milota.

Tobias is first mentioned in 1262. At that time he was canon of Prague and Passau . For 1269 he is documented as provost of Mělník , for 1275 as provost of Prague and Vyšehrad .

After the death of Bishop Johann , the Prague Cathedral Chapter elected Tobias von Bechin as his successor on November 15, 1278. The Olomouc bishop Bruno von Schauenburg confirmed the election on behalf of the Mainz Metropolitan Werner von Eppstein . A few weeks later, Tobias and his entourage went to Olomouc . There he was ordained a priest on February 25, 1279 by the Seckau bishop Wernhard von Marsbach . The next day, Tobias was ordained bishop through Bruno von Schauenburg, with the assistance of the then Basel Bishop and later Archbishop of Mainz Heinrich von Isny .

Due to his membership of the high nobility, Tobias already earned great services to the Bohemian monarchy from the election of the bishop. Before his election, King Ottokar II. Přemysl died on August 26, 1278 in the battle of the Dürnkrut against the Roman-German King Rudolf I of Habsburg. The guardianship of Crown Prince Wenzel and the imperial administration of Bohemia was taken over by Margrave Otto von Brandenburg , nephew of the fallen king , in July 1278, according to the royal disposition . In the ensuing political tensions, Tobias represented Bohemian interests, which is why he was refused entry to the Prague Cathedral after his return from the episcopal ordination in 1279 . After the cathedral chapter was also obstructed by the castle garrison, church services could only be held in the church of the Strahov Premonstratensian monastery . The episcopal town of Raudnitz and the episcopal castle there were occupied by Otto's Brandenburg party in 1279. The episcopal court on Prague's Lesser Town was looted. Because of the war-like situation, Tobias had some patronage churches of his diocese fortified. In May 1281 Tobias took part in a state parliament at which the Bohemian nobility made a promise of peace. Only then could services take place again in the cathedral.

At the turn of the year 1281/1282 Tobias negotiated for the Bohemian state party with Otto von Brandenburg. An agreement was reached. Government power in Bohemia was to be transferred to Bishop Tobias von Bechin and state officials. Otto undertook to evacuate the land and to release the imprisoned Crown Prince Wenceslaus II , whose father Ottokar II Přemysl had died in the Battle of Marchfeld in 1278 , for a payment of 15,000 pounds of silver. Probably against the appointment, Otto took the state privileges and the Prague cathedral treasure with him.

Tobias also made great contributions to the subsequent renewal of public order. Despite the prevailing famine, he managed to raise the ransom for the release of the then 12-year-old Wenceslas, who was able to return to Prague in 1283.

Although the Provisional Government, led by Tobias, was able to restore peace in the country, the Bohemian Noble Party soon split into two groups. The Witigonen gained influence, whose member Zawisch von Falkenstein married the queen widow Kunigunde von Halitsch and was thus able to influence the young King Wenzel. Important positions were occupied by members of the Witigonen and Zawisch was appointed the highest chamberlain and highest burgrave.

The Witigonen, for their part, were fought by the Habsburg camp, to which Tobias belonged and to which the majority of the Bohemian nobility also joined by 1288. Although Tobias himself did not take part in the armed conflict, his property was looted. Probably under the influence of his wife Guta von Habsburg , whom he married in 1285, King Wenceslaus II also evaded the influence of the Witigones. In early 1289, Zawisch was accused of high treason, captured and beheaded in 1290. Thereupon Zawisch's brother Witiko II of Krumau ( Vítek z Krumlova a Hluboké ) took revenge with the murder of Čeněk of Kamenice, a brother of Bishop Tobias.

King Wenceslaus II compensated Tobias for the war damage he suffered. This included various immunities and the right to fortify some of the episcopal cities. In addition, he was granted the income from the confiscated property of the Witigonen.

Although Tobias played an important role in the political disputes, he also devoted himself to his episcopal duties. His work can be understood from the existing bishops' documents and a collection of forms from the episcopal chancellery. He regulated economic, administrative and legal matters and incorporated the diocese into land deaneries. He arranged for the choir in St. Vitus Cathedral to be repaired and for new vestments and liturgical books to be purchased. During his tenure and with his support, the Zbraslav Cistercian Monastery and the Augustinian Monastery near St. Thomas in Prague were founded.

Tobias took part in public life alongside King Wenceslas II until mid-1294. He probably died two years later in Prague. His body was buried in St. Vitus Cathedral.

literature

• Zdeňka Hledíková : Art. Tobias (Dobes) from Bechyne (Benesov) († 1296). 1278-1296 Bishop of Prague . In Erwin Gatz (ed.), Clemens Brodkorb (collaborator): The bishops of the Holy Roman Empire 1198 to 1448. A biographical lexicon. Volume I, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-428-08422-5 , pp. 583-585.

predecessor	Office	successor
Johann III.	Bishop of Prague 1278–1296	Gregor von Waldek