The miniseries of the Czech Mint, which was created on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the Old Town Execution, has presented the main actors and the venue of the tragic event. The fourth and last gold coin introduces you its consequences, which is entitled as "Dark Age".

The pre-White Mountain period was kind to our people. The Czech estates had considerable political power. The Czech language developed comfortably, while the publication of the first complete translation of the Bible into Czech became the greatest achievement. In the kingdom there was a religious tolerance confirmed by the majesty of the Rudolf´s majesty. However, all this was in conflict with the Habsburg efforts to strengthen royal power and the Catholic faith, which resulted in the Bohemian Revolt. In the end, the rebellion failed. Moreover, it unleashed a European conflict of unimaginable proportions - the Thirty Years' War. The builders of the uprising were severely punished by the Habsburgs, but the Old Town execution was just the beginning. The Czech nation has since been plagued by one tragedy after another. There was a severe recatholicization in the country, which caused a mass exodus of Czech Protestants. Half a million Czechs, which means almost a quarter of the population, including world-famous personalities such as the educator Jan Amos Komenský or the graphic artist Václav Hollar fled abroad from religious oppression. There was an extensive confiscation of Czech estates. Emperor Ferdinand II. laid the foundations of absolutism. The centralism associated with it then led to the Germanization of the nation and the decline of Czech language. The burning of forbidden books also contributed to this - including the Czech Kralická Bible. The post-White Mountain Dark Age full of oppression and hopelessness lasted for a century and a half. The change did not come until the end of the 18th century, during the reign of the enlightened rulers, when the Czech National Revival began.

The reverse side of the coin, which is the work of the medal maker Mgr. Petr Horák, is dedicated to Ferdinand II. At the top you will find his portrait supplemented with a Habsburg eagle. At the bottom there is the scattered inscription RUDOLFŮV MAJESTÁT (RUDOLF´S MAJESTY). This document of Rudolf II., according to which no one was to be forced into the Catholic or other faith, was cut by Ferdinand II. The composition of the reverse side is closed by the inscription POBĚLOHORSKÁ PROTIREFORMACE. Since the coins of the Czech Mint are licensed by the foreign issuer, the island of Niue, the obverse side bears its national emblem, the nominal value of 10 DOLLARS (NZD) and the year of issue 2021. All this is supplemented with the Old Town sidewalk with twenty-seven crosses that represent the executed Czech lords.

Remember that you can store the complete four coins in a wooden collector's box that you will also find in the offer of the Czech Mint.