Wirtschaft, Krieg und Seelenheil

The “Golden City” under Embargo: Prague's International Trade during the Hussite Wars, 1420–1436

“…It is therefore possible that "Świdnica" beer refers merely to beer "brewed in the style of Świdnica," and yet the Catholic town of Olomouc in Moravia, for example, definitely imported its "Świdnica" beer from Silesia. 39 It seems therefore likely that the "Świdnica" beer of the Old Town bill is also a designation of origin rather than of variety. This means that at least in 1429-1430, large quantities of beer from Silesia reached the Hussite capital, representing a most blatant failure of the anti-Hussite embargo.…”

“…A letter written in January 1428 by the city's councilors to the council of the Bavarian town of Landsberg am Lech, for instance, testifies to the curious case of one Claus Port via the extraordinary story of the Nuremberg burgher Eberhard Grefenberger. 79 Grefenberger, who worked for one of the grand Nuremberg merchant-companies engaged in frequent trade with Bohemia, 80 participated in the fourth anti-Hussite crusade of 1427, where he was taken prisoner by the Hussites and transported to Prague. Through the mediation of a "pious woman" (probably a local Catholic), he looked for "merchants" and "guests" who could assist with his release.…”