John of Luxembourg  was a Bohemian king, ruling during the first half of the 14th century, whose prominence in Czech culture despite being grandly overshadowed by that of his son Charles IV makes him a significant figure in Czech lore and history. 

Being from Luxembourg, John did not have any sentimental connection to Bohemia. He spent most of his time abroad dealing with international affairs and fighting in battles, rarely ever coming to the Czech Kingdom (and when he occasionally did, it was usually to acquire funds.) For this reason, he is commonly known as the “alien king” or “king foreigner” in Czech culture. However, in other European countries, John of Luxembourg was renowned as a brave knight and a skilled warrior. There even remains a bon mot, originating from these times, claiming that “without God and the Czech king, there can be no battle.” Thanks to his successful foreign policy, it should be noted, the Czech kingdom acquired a significant amount of land, which his son then inherited. 

Speaking of his son, another of his culturally significant actions is his role as the father of Charles IV, a king regarded as perhaps the greatest Czech ever, even bearing the nickname “father of the (Czech) nation.” Charles was the son of John and his first wife, Elizabeth of Bohemia, to whom John married at the age of fourteen and was the reason he came to rule Bohemia in the first place. John’s relationship with his family, though, was far from perfect. The two partners didn’t get along well because of their different personalities and political opinions, and the relationship between John and his son was not much better.  

John lived through many battles in his lifetime, but last one near the city of Crecy became legendary in Czech culture. The story goes that the king, now completely blind, refused to give up even though the battle was already clearly lost. Instead, he commanded his men to tie their horses together so they would lead John straight into the heat of battle. He also ordered them to lead young Charles out of the battlefield, by force if necessary, to ensure his son’s survival. Then, fully aware of his inevitable fate, the blind king uttered his famous last words, roughly translated to “By God shall it never be that a Czech king shall flee from battle!” and charged straight into the battlefield where he fought to the end.