Peter Vok of Rosenberg (; 1 October 1539 – 6 November 1611) was a nobleman of the

House of Rosenberg The House of Rosenberg ( or ''Páni z Rožmberka'') was a prominent Bohemian noble family that played an important role in Czech medieval history from the 13th century until 1611. Members of this family held posts at the Prague royal (and ...

, descended from the

Vítkovci The Vítkovci () were a Czech noble clan from southern Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czech ...

. Rožmberk was a leading Protestant in the unsettled years before

Battle of White Mountain The Battle of White Mountain (; ) was an important battle in the early stages of the Thirty Years' War. It led to the defeat of the Bohemian Revolt and ensured Habsburg control for the next three hundred years. It was fought on 8 November 16 ...

Life

Peter Vok was born in

Český Krumlov Český Krumlov (; , ''Böhmisch Krumau'') is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 13,000 inhabitants. It is known as a tourist centre, which is among the most visited places in the country. The historic centre ...

, the son of Jošt III of Rosenberg, then head of the house of Rožmberk, and his wife Anna of Rogendorf. Fourteen days after Peter's birth, his father died. Peter came under the guardianship of first his uncle Petr V of Rosenberg and later

Albrecht of Gutnštejn Albrecht ("noble", "bright") is a given name or surname of German origin and may refer to: First name * Albrecht Agthe, (1790–1873), German music teacher * Albrecht Altdorfer, (c. 1480–1538) German Renaissance painter * Albrecht Becker, (190 ...

, Oldřich Holický of Sternberg and Jeroným Schlick. He received his early education at home in the castle at Český Krumlov. Even as he reached adulthood, Peter lived in the shadow of his older brother

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

. While William was a life-long Catholic, Peter sympathised with

Utraquism Utraquism (from the Latin ''sub utraque specie'', meaning "under both kinds"), also called Calixtinism (from chalice; Latin: ''calix'', borrowed from Greek ''kalyx'', "shell, husk"; Czech: ''kališníci''), was a belief amongst Hussites, a pre ...

and eventually joined the

Unity of the Brethren Unity of the Brethren (Latin ''Unitas Fratrum'') may refer to: *Unity of the Brethren (Czech Republic), the province of the Moravian Church in the Czech Republic * Unity of the Brethren (Texas), a Protestant church formed in the 1800s by Czech immi ...

. William died in 1592, and Peter inherited the Rosenberg holdings. Aged forty, Peter married the much younger Kateřina of Ludanice. Initially an idyllic marriage, with the young Kateřina appreciating the attention paid her by her aging husband, the union began to break down, in part because of Kateřina's worsening mental illness. The couple had no children, and the Rosenberg line ended with Peter Vok. He died, aged 72, in

Třeboň Třeboň (; ) is a spa town in Jindřichův Hradec District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,300 inhabitants. The historic town centre with the castle complex is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monum ...

in 1611 and was buried in a Rosenberg tomb in the

Vyšší Brod Monastery Vyšší Brod Monastery (; ) or Hohenfurth Abbey () is a Catholic monastery in the Czech Republic. Description As one of the most important historical landmarks of South Bohemia, the monastery is recognized as a cultural monument by the Minis ...

. Shortly after Peter's death, his nephew Jan Zrinský of Seryn also died, and as such the whole Rosenberg dominions passed to the Švamberk family.

In popular culture

After his death, Peter Vok became the subject of popular legends which characterized him as a generous benefactor and an exemplary Renaissance cavalier. In the modern imagination, he is thought of above all as a lovable rake. His romance with the miller-knight's daughter Zuzana Vojířová is the subject of several stories and the opera ''

Zuzana Vojířová ''Zuzana Vojířová'' is an opera by Jiří Pauer Jiří Pauer (22 February 1919 in Libušín, Czechoslovakia – 28 December 2007 in Prague, Czech Republic) was a Czech composer. Pauer studied first with Otakar Šín, then from 1943 to 1946 a ...

'' by

Jiří Pauer Jiří Pauer (22 February 1919 in Libušín, Czechoslovakia – 28 December 2007 in Prague, Czech Republic) was a Czech composer. Pauer studied first with Otakar Šín, then from 1943 to 1946 at the Prague Conservatory with Alois Hába, and fina ...

.Czech & Slovak Republics Jane Simmonds - 2006 p141 "11 km (7 miles) to the west, is famous with Czech visitors for its 16th-century love story involving one of the most powerful Bohemian lords, Peter Vok of Rožmberk, and a miller's daughter Zuzana Vojířová."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vok, Peter 1539 births 1611 deaths Nobility from Bohemia People from Český Krumlov

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...