An der Seite König Sigismunds und Herzog Albrechts V. von Österreich : die Herren von Liechtenstein und Nikolsburg im Hussitenkrieg (1419–1436) und die Bedeutung dieser Zeit in der Hausgeschichte

This study examines the role of the aristocratic Liechtenstein family during the Hussite Revolution, when it was one of the most ardent supporters of King Sigismund and the Austrian duke, and then from 1423 of the Moravian margrave Albrecht V, while also trying to recognize the importance of this period in the family's history. In Bohemia and Moravia, the Hussite Revolution led to the increase in the political and economic importance of the nobility on both sides. In the case of the Hussites, they profited from the forced confiscation of church property and from their participation in military campaigns across the whole of Central Europe. In the case of the Catholics, they benefited from the military service under King Sigismund and Duke Albrecht, and from the pledges of church and royal estates. The author shows that despite the Liechtensteins' loyal service to Sigismund and Albrecht during the Hussite Wars, they received substantially less property than other families, and any significant gains were only made in Austria where they were given part of the estate which Albrecht V had confiscated from the feudal lord Otto von Maissau. Of greater significance for the family history was its involvement in Sigismund of Luxemburg's sovereign rule over Moravia, where Hartneid V of Liechtenstein held the rank of governor of Znojmo and burgrave of Špilberk Castle in Brno. Although the Hussite Wars did not result in any significant increase in the wealth of the Liechtenstein family, and the family in fact probably suffered some economic losses, its firm commitment to the side of King Sigismund and Duke Albrecht undoubtedly contributed towards the strengthening of the family's position amongst the high nobility in the half century after the fall of the Austrian steward, Jan I of Liechtenstein (1394).