Battle of Vyšehrad The Battle of Vyšehrad was a series of engagements at the start of the Hussite War between Hussite forces and Catholic crusaders sent by Emperor Sigismund . The battle took place at the castle of Vyšehrad from August 16 , 1419 , to c . November 1 , 1420 . Start of the battle . After the death of King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia , Queen Sophia ( with the help of Čeněk of Wartenberg ) tried to gain control of Prague . Sophia and Cenek recruited soldiers from Germany , who took up positions at Vyšehrad , Hradčany , and at the archbishop ' s palace and the cloister of St . Thomas in a part of Prague called New Town . The Hussite uprising was successful in other parts of Bohemia , and the towns of Klatovy , Písek , Louny , Žatec , and Plzeň came under Hussite control . On 25 October 1419 , Hussites captured Vysehrad as well . In November 1419 , fighting took place between Catholic fighters under Petr from Šternberk and Hussite peasants under the command of a priest , Ambrosius . These Hussites went from the area near Usti to Prague , surrounded Novy Knin , and attacked . After gaining reinforcements , Ambrosius ' s forces crossed the Vltava River . The Hussites won the battle but lost about 300 people . After taking Prague , the Hussites decided to assist citizens in Novy Knin . More fighting commenced as Hussite fighters captured the bridge to New Town on the Vltava River . Catholic soldiers who guarded the bridge were forced to withdraw to Hradcany , but many buildings in New Town were destroyed . On November 13 , 1419 , Queen Sophia promised to protect the Hussites in all of Bohemia . Utraquist s gave back Vyšehrad to the royal army . The battle under Nekmierz . Later in November , formations of Taborites , several hundred strong , left Prague . In December 1419 , one of these formations under the command of Jan Žižka was surprised by Catholic forces under the command of Bohuslav of Švamberk . A cavalry attack at Nekmierz ( Nekmer ) castle near Plzeň ( Pilsen ) by the Catholics was stopped by crossbow and gunfire from Hussite soldiers hiding behind wagons . Catholic infantry and cavalry were forced to withdraw . After the battle Žižka ordered a night march to Plzeň . In the Spring of 1420 , after capturing the town of Ústí ( German : " Aussig " ) , Hussite forces went to the Tábor Mountain where they built a new town which took the mountain ' s name . This new town became the capital of the Taborites ' collective . Citizens of Tábor chose four hetmen , or generals : Nicholas of Husí , Jan Žižka , Zbyněk of Buchovo , and Chval of Machovice . Similar army camps were also built , notably one on the mountain of Oreb , where another group of radical Hussites established themselves , and became known as the Orebici ( Orebites ) . Their civil leader was the priest Ambrosius , and their hetman was Hynek Krušina from Lichtenburk . Battle at Sudoměř . The Hussites lost Plzeň , in arrangement with the Catholics . Hussites , under command of Jan Zizka , were allowed to leave the town without difficulties . Catholics from Plzen sent information about Žižka ' s forces to Jindrich from hradce master of knights of St . John of Jerusalem and Bohuslav from Švamberk . After massing at Sudoměř , they decided to attack ; they had more soldiers than Žižka , as well as reinforcements from Písek . In the opinion of writers of chronicles , the attackers would not have had to fight with Hussites because they would be killed by horse legs . Žižka set his men on a small dam between two ponds , from which one was without water then . The back of the hussites was protected by a swamp . The Catholic commanders divided their forces into two groups . The first group which attacked the Hussites from the front received heavy losses . The second group of knights crossed the empty pond and attacked on foot . Soon the field of battle was covered by fog , and the Catholics withdrew . Both sides suffered heavy losses . In May 1420 Čeněk von Wartenberg surrounded Hradčany and joined Emperor Sigismund ' s side . Soldiers from Vyšehrad advanced on New Town . The Hussites begun a siege of Vyšehrad . In June 1420 there was a successful advance from Vyšehrad . Soldiers from this castle secured supplies which were sent to Hradčany . Siege of Prague . On 12 June 1420 , some formations of Sigismund forces successfully entered Hradčany with supplies . They took horses from the castle . At the time of the Prague siege , Sigismund ' s soldiers , who were placed in Hradčany and Vyšehrad , advanced on the Hussites ' position in Prague . After a successful defence of Vítkov Hill and the crusaders ' withdrawal , the Hussites begun artillery fire on Vyšehrad , but received heavier losses than Prague ' s defenders . After an unsuccessful assault on Vítkov Hill , the crusaders decided to attack the local Hussites ' position . In August 1420 , Hetman Jan Žižka left Prague with relief forces and headed to Písek , which was in danger from crusaders under the command of Oldřich from Rožmberk . 15 September 1420 saw the beginning of a second siege of Vysehrad . In the last days of October , the commandant of the castle accepted a capitulation arrangement . If he didn ' t receive any help from Sigismund ' s forces by 8 o ' clock in the morning of 1 November 1420 , he would surrender the castle . Meanwhile , another formation of Taborites , among them commander Jan Roháč z Dubé , captured the town of Lomnice . Sigismund planned a main attack using soldiers from Hradčany and Vyšehrad , and counting on reinforcements from Plzeň Union . The plan of battle was sent to Hradčany and Vyšehrad by courier , but the courier was captured by Hussites . The Hussites sent some soldiers under the command of Jan Žižka to stop the march of soldiers from Plzeň . Hussite artillery fire successfully stopped the attack of the Hungarian and German cavalry . Then the Hussite forces made their attack . After the battle , the crusaders ' formations withdrew . Four hundred knights were killed by the Hussites , who didn ' t take any prisoners of war . 1 November saw the capitulation of soldiers from Vyšehrad . Žižka ' s forces captured Zlaté Korouny and Prachatice . December 1420 saw the death of Nicholas from Husí . Aftermath . In January 1421 , Taborite forces , under command of Jan Žižka and Chval from Machovice , captured the town of Stříbro and cloister in Krakikov . The commandant of Stříbro Castle , Bohuslav from Švamberk , surrendered ; his soldiers were free to go . Because Sigismund didn ' t send a ransom for him , Bohuslav decided to join the Hussites . Eventually the Taborites chose him as their hetman . In February , Emperor Sigismund withdrew to Moravia and then to Hungary . June 1421 saw the capitulation of the soldiers in Hradčany .