Project of King George of Poděbrady

The impulse was the sharpening conflict between the Bohemian king and Pope Pius II, who canceled the Basel Compact as the pillar of the provincial constitution in March 1462.

The project proposed the creation of an international peace organization of independent states to stamp out war, outlaw aggression, and permanently maintain a pan-European peace. The new organization was not to be dependent on papal and imperial power. The international body was to replace the universal absolute power of the Catholic Church with an international plenum where discussion between equal participants would be possible.

After gaining support for the project from King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary and King Casimir IV of Poland, George of Poděbrady sent a delegation to King Louis XI of France in the summer of 1967 with the aim of concluding treaties of friendship between the Czech and French kingdoms and securing support for the gathering of a congress of European rulers to establish an international peace organization in which the French king was to play an important role. Although a treaty of friendship was arranged, support for the peace project was not agreed. The reason was that fully Catholic Europe was not ready for secular management of society in the Middle Ages.

The basic organizational structure and objectives of the project „Charter of the Universal Peace Organization“ (original title – Treaty for the Establishment of Peace in All Christendom):

It was to be an international legal entity (union, federation, organization) with its own emblem, seal, common treasury, clerical apparatus and other common organs.

There was to be mutual equality among the member states (including the emperor). The project did not count in the membership of the Pope. In the event of the death of the monarch, his successor was to confirm the obligations arising from the Charter. The admission of a new member was to be decided by a permanent congress of delegates. The congress was to have supreme powers. The sovereigns would be represented at the congress by persons empowered to act on behalf of the sovereign. The seat of the congress was to be changed after 5 years. The Council of Sovereigns (the representative and advisory body of the congress) was to be chaired by the French king (president).

The second most important organ of the organization was to be the International Court, which would be in charge of the legal agenda and dispute resolution.

An official apparatus headed by a secretary was to ensure the running of the organization, including the collection of contributions to the common treasury. A common economic policy, currency, food price regulation, etc. were considered.

Eight of the twenty-three articles of the Charter deal with the protection of world peace. War is outlawed, conflicts were to be settled in an international court.

Conclusion

In times of the most severe trials, a brilliant, timeless and utterly revolutionary project was created at the Czech court, which put George of Poděbrady centuries ahead of his time. Although Jiří’s project, despite his exhausting efforts, was never realised, his legacy carries on to the present day.

His revolutionary ideas only came true in the 20th century through modern international organisations such as the United Nations and the European Union, without which we cannot imagine the times we live in.