The last and final great battle of the Saints

Armageddon theories about the Ottoman expansion in the Czech literature (16th–17th centuries)

Abstract

In the 16th–17th centuries the interpretation of the Ottoman expansion became one of the most difficult questions in Hungary and the Czech lands as well. All intellectuals were looking for an answer to the question: If the Christian faith is the true religion, why does God allow this chatastrophe? The most accepted theories are the following: 1. theory of crime and punishment (Biblical parallels); 2. Apocalyptical interpretation; 3. humanists’ explanation that the Ottoman expansion is a foreign political and not a theological-philosophical problem. In my study the apocalyptical interpretation by Czech Scholars will be presented, especially the motif of final battle at Armageddon. The most important sources about it are: Václav Budovec z Budova: Antialkorán, Jiřík Johannides: Dwogj spis včiněný, [Anonymous]: Obaudwauch Antykrystůw, Konstantynopolitanského a Ržjmského, Partlic ze Špicberka, Šimon: Flagellum Dei. Bič aneb metla Božj and Metamorphosis mundi.