The Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren (ECCB) was formed in 1918 through the unification of the Protestant churches of the Lutheran and Reformed confessions. These two churches operated at the area of Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia since Emperor Joseph II. issued the Patent of Toleration, which ended era of religious oppression that had been lasting for more than 150 preceding years. The ECCB by its name refers to its rootedness in the Czech Reformation – to the legacy of Jan Hus, Utraquist Church of Hussites (1431-1620) and the Union of Brethren (1547-1620).