Editing Siege of Pilsen (section)

== Eve of the battle ==
[[Image:Kurfürst Friedrich V. von der Pfalz als König von Böhmen.jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|left|[[Frederick V, Elector Palatine|Frederick V of Bohemia]], painting from 1634.]]
{{Campaignbox Thirty Years' War}}
On 23 May 1618 the Protestant [[nobility|nobles]] overthrew the rule of [[Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor|King Ferdinand II]] and threw the [[Roman Catholic]] governors of Bohemia from their office at Prague Castle in the [[Defenestrations of Prague|Defenestration]] of [[Prague]]. The new government formed of Protestant nobility and gentry gave [[Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld|Ernst von Mansfeld]] the command over all of its forces.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gardiner |first1=Samuel Rawson |title=The Thirty Years' War, 1618-1648 |date=1874 |publisher=Scribner, Armstrong |page=33}}</ref> Meanwhile, Catholic nobles and priests started fleeing the country. Some of the monasteries as well as unfortified manors were evacuated and the Catholic refugees headed for the city of Pilsen, where they thought that a successful defence could be organised. The city was well-prepared for a lengthy siege, but the defences were undermanned and the defenders lacked enough [[gunpowder]] for their artillery. Mansfeld decided to capture the city before the Catholics were able to gain support from the outside.