Conrad and the Bohemian nobles obeyed the Imperial command, and thus tacitly admitted the claims of Frederick Barbarossa. The Emperor awarded Bohemia to Frederick, and Moravia to Conrad; and we are told, as a proof of the terrorism he exercised, that when the Bohemian prince and nobles appeared before him to hear his decision, he caused a large number of executioners' axes to be brought into the hall where he received them.
This settlement was not of long duration. Besides the two candidates already mentioned, the Přemysl princes Venceslas, Přemysl Ottokar, a brother of Frederick, Břetislav, and Vladislav, all claimed the throne about this time. Another prolonged struggle ensued, and it was only after the deaths of Frederick, Conrad, and Břetislav, and the renunciations of Venceslas and Vladislav, that Přemysl Ottokar became undisputed ruler of Bohemia (1197); the government of Moravia fell to Vladislav, with the title of margrave, and under the supremacy of Přemysl Ottokar. The period in the history of Bohemia which ends with the accession of Přemysl Ottokar I is noticeable for two important facts—the rise of the power of the nobility, and the extension of German influence.
The constant struggle between the Přemyslides had very often obliged them to seek aid from the powerful nobles, who from having been government officials had gradually become territorial magnates, as they demanded and received large grants of land from the princes whose cause they favoured. These lands were usually granted as hereditary gifts, and their owners therefore became less dependent on the favour of the reigning prince, though they still desired to hold the great State appointments, and, indeed, soon began to consider themselves as having an exclusive claim on them. It is an interesting proof of the increasing importance of the nobility that some of the oldest noble families of Bohemia—a few of whom are still represented—are able to trace their origin up to this period; surnames, however, were not yet fixed. The influence of Germany over Bohemia became greater at this period, both with reference to the external relations to that country and as regards the internal condition of Bohemia. Legally, the only bond which denoted the dependency of Bohemia on Germany was the obligation of sending three hundred soldiers to take part in the Italian expeditions of
