Heresy
Execution and Aftermath
The whole business could not have been handled worse. The reformers had a martyr of the first order—one of their leaders and most eloquent speakers. The Czech nobles were appalled by the Emperor's betrayal. Theologians were disgusted by the shoddy proceedings. Even those who did not sympathize with Hus' teachings had to admire his courage. And all Czechs could not help but see the entire affair as interference by outside forces.
Response was immediate. On 2 September 1415, an assembly of 452 Bohemian and Moravian nobles signed a letter to the Council of Constance stating flatly that Hus should not have been executed. A good many kings had called a good many popes a good many names, but never had Europe seen this kind of spontaneous condemnation of the judgment of a general council. It was a portent. The burning of Hus transformed a reform movement into a resistance movement.