The Council of Constance to the Death of John Hus

What it is

This is a printed book by James Hamilton Wylie, published by Longmans, Green, and Co. in 1900. It reproduces the Ford Lectures he delivered at the University of Oxford in Lent Term 1900. The book covers the Council of Constance and the trial and execution of Jan Hus. The copy shown here is a scan held by the Cornell University Library and made available through the Internet Archive.

Why it matters

Wylie wrote more than 500 years after Hus died in 1415, so his book is a secondary account. It draws on earlier records of the Council, and it shows how a British historian of the early 1900s understood Hus, the Emperor Sigismund, and the Council. Reading it helps students see how later writers shaped the story of Hus, and why historians still argue about his trial.

Look closer

• Which people does Wylie describe as making the decisions at Constance, and which ones does he leave in the background?
• Wylie was a school inspector and wrote for a general audience. How might that shape the way he tells the story?
• What sources does Wylie rely on, and how can you check his claims against documents from 1415?