Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia Net Worth

Background and career

Wenceslaus IV (also spelled Wenceslas; Czech: Václav; German: Wenzel; nicknamed the Idle; also known as Wenceslaus of Luxembourg; 26 February 1361 – 16 August 1419) King of Bohemia from 1378 until his death in 1419 and King of the Romans and King of Germany from 1376 until he was deposed in 1400. A member of the House of Luxembourg, he was the eldest son of Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor. He also ruled as Duke of Luxembourg (as Wenceslaus II) from 1383 to 1388.

Wenceslaus's reign was marked by conflicts with the Bohemian nobility and struggles over royal authority within the Holy Roman Empire. Opposition from German prince-electors culminated in his deposition as King of the Romans in 1400, although he retained the Bohemian crown. He was subsequently imprisoned by his half-brother Sigismund of Hungary in 1402, but escaped in 1403 and returned to Bohemia.

In religious matters, Wenceslaus joined or became associated with the reform movement surrounding Jan Hus during the Western Schism. Hus's execution at the Council of Constance in 1415 contributed to religious tensions in Bohemia, which intensified after Wenceslaus's death in 1419 and led to the Hussite Wars. Wenceslaus was also a patron of the arts and is associated with the Wenceslas Bible, an illuminated manuscript produced during his reign.