What's in a Prague street name

Originally published on Twitter on 20 May 2022.

Loudova was built in 1930.

Matěj Louda z Chlumčan (died 1460) was commander of Písek, a Hussite warrior and diplomat, and owner of a farm in Chlumčany near Louny.

He studied at Charles University. He didn’t complete his studies, but he did became aware of Jan Hus’s teachings while there.

For his bravery in the Battle of Vítkov Hill (1420), he was given a house on Řetězová (in the Old Town), but instead moved to Písek.

After being captured at the Battle of Lipany (1434), he moved to the more moderate side of the Hussite spectrum and became a diplomatic negotiator in Basel.

This won him the approval of Sigismund, who named him Hofrichter of the royal cities. He then became a burgher in the Old Town, founding a dormitory (kolej sv. apoštolů) for poor students.

According to this link, his surname should be Lauda, and its adaptation to ‘Louda’ over the years is incorrect: http://nase-rec.ujc.cas.cz/archiv.php?art=7765