Wenceslaus crouch

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Memorial stone for Wenzel Hocke in Politz

Wenzel Hocke (baptized on January 8, 1732 in Neustadtel ; † March 1, 1808 in Oberpolitz ), popularly known as Hockewanzel , was a Catholic priest and archdechant in Politz since 1779. He was very popular for his philanthropy and was seen as Eulenspiegel in priestly garb - an original that is unparalleled in the German-Bohemian region. Funny stories were told about him, which later found their way into literature. There is only evidence that Wenzel Hocke was baptized on January 8, 1732, but not born. Since some of the godparents had to travel a little longer, it can be assumed that the birth was a little before the day of the baptism.

Life

Wenzel Hocke came from the family of a miller and grew up in the Neustadteler Mühle under the care of his mother. He studied theology and was ordained a priest in the Leitmeritz Cathedral in 1756. He worked as a chaplain in various places for 13 years. In 1769 he became pastor in Kleinbocken (today Malá Bukovina) near Tetschen . In 1779 he was appointed Archdechant of Politz after his predecessor JK Pitsch died of the plague. Politz is only a few kilometers away from Hocke's birthplace.

It was typical of the new archdechant that he used a very specific and sometimes harsh humor, the target of which were, among others, the Leitmeritz bishop Ferdinand Kindermann von Schulstein with the episcopal consistory or the authorities of the Politzer Castle. That doesn't mean, however, that Hocke was a carefree comedian. He performed his pastoral service in the parish conscientiously, as evidenced by the surviving visitation report from Bishop Kindermann, which states, among other things: "In the church there is exemplary order and cleanliness ... the school children are exemplary educated" .

But Hocke also vehemently demanded the rights of a Politzer archdean. Politz was a well-known Marian pilgrimage site and therefore the archdechant had the privilege of the so-called inful , the wearing of episcopal insignia on solemn occasions, but this privilege was not kept too often by the bishops. Bishop Kindermann, who casually wrote about Hocke that he was "a person with extraordinary priestly maturity" , tried to reassure the archdechant by appointing him in 1797 as episcopal vicar. Eventually, however, he relented, and Hocke confirmed the Inful's prerogative. Kindermann's successor Wenzel Leopold Chlumčanský von Přestavlk appointed Hocke to the consistorial councilor in 1807 . A year later, Hocke died in the Politz rectory. Despite all the honors, he had always lived the life of a simple pastor from the country. He was buried in Politz in the cemetery by the church at the foot of the cemetery cross, a place that is considered the most honorable place in any cemetery.

Popularity after death

Even after Hocke's death, his reputation did not evaporate and the joke stories about his deeds lived for many years in the oral traditions, especially among the German Bohemians. In 1881 Anton Nittel published the retelling in book form. The stories from the Hockewanzel saw a number of other editions in the decades that followed.

Some of Nittel's stories were published in Czech translation in the monthly magazine of the diocese of Leitmeritz Zdislava and also in the literary newspaper .

The figure of the Hockewanzel was also borrowed from the Reichenberg-born writer Otfried Preußler for his book The Flight to Egypt Royal Bohemian Part , which was also published in Czech in 1996.

literature

personal data
SURNAME Squat down, Wenceslaus
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Crouched seat
BRIEF DESCRIPTION catholic priest
DATE OF BIRTH January 8, 1732
PLACE OF BIRTH Neustadtel
DATE OF DEATH March 1, 1808
Place of death Horní Police