Jan Hus

In the center of Prague a statue of Jan Hus watches over Týn Church. In the early 1400s Jan figured the Church should stop with the indulgences and Crusades. He wanted freedom for the Bohemian people too. The Church locked him up for a few years, then asked him if he still felt the same way. When he said yes, they burned him alive. Then to make sure he was really dead they ripped out his heart, nailed it to a stick and burned it again. Then they crushed his bones to dust. But too late for his ideas had already caught on and his followers, the Hussites, went on to profoundly influence what would become Protestantism. Prague was in fact one of the first Protestant cities. Interesting side note: while he was burning an old lady is said to have thrown a handful of sticks on the fire. Hus cried out "Sancta simplicitas!" or "Holy simplicity!" Czechs still say this, though in Czech ("Svatá prostoto!") when they see folks doing stupid things.