Jan Hus (around 1370-1415) was a heretic for the Catholic Church. In many ways he symbolises the epoch of the late Middle Ages: in an attempt to bring back the church, which had been rocked by the Great Occidental Schism, he develops a reform programme, which goes way beyond the limits of the Middle Ages.

His death by burning on the Constance Council 1415 turned him into a martyr. The illustration shows Jan Hus in his time: he is researched as a scholar and preacher of the late Middle Ages, as well as a publicly involved intellectual. The book draws a picture of Jan Hus, which is underpinned by historic arguments, and which places the events in Bohemia in a European context.