A
KING‘S FUNERAL
Translation from Old French to Lithuanian by A. Kasperavicius
Translation from Lithuanian to English by Gloria Kivytaite O‘Brien
Philippe de Meziere, writing
in the French chronicles c. 1364, told about some noble travelers who had made
their way from
He says that the group of
courtiers learned that the Lithuanian people were pagans, and that when their king
died, his barons dressed him in bright armor and placed him on a white horse,
similarly arrayed in armor. Then, they erected a “cage” of strong
standing logs around the king and his steed. Next, they chose from among
themselves, the dead king’s best friend. This person would have eternal
friendship with the king, by allowing himself to be
burnt along with him, so that their souls could enter the pagan heaven
together. They consider this to be the greatest honor possible, and with a
ready will, would voluntarily enter the enclosure to stand beside the dead
king, seated on his horse as though still alive. The barons, with great
devotion, prayers and lamentation, light the flames to devour their king and
his best friend.
The following story was told
to him as the absolute truth, though he seems to repeat it tongue in cheek.
Not so long ago, there was a
battle between some Prussian nobles and the Lithuanian king’s men. Among
the combatants was a brave young Prussian knight of strong Christian faith, who
survived with the loss of one eye, and became the Lithuanian king’s
prisoner. This knight’s courage, personal integrity and ethical behavior
so impressed the king, that he kept him close, showed him great affection, and
even showered him with costly gifts. All this, in spite of
the fact that the knight was a Christian.
When the king died, the
barons met to decide which of them would be the king’s escort on his trip
to heaven. There was great competition amongst them; each candidate did his
best to persuade the rest that he was the right man, the first among friends.
Eventually, after much argument, they unanimously decided that the honor really
belonged to the Prussian knight, the king’s most beloved friend. They had
no doubt the knight would be overjoyed that he was chosen to go with the king.
This Christian knight,
hearing of the barons’ decision, and understanding that it meant he would
be burned alive next to the king, was overtaken by deep gloom and anguish. But
he hid these feelings, outwardly showing great satisfaction and thanking the
assembly for offering him such a distinction, for which he was unworthy, being
only the king’s faithful servant. The barons concluded their meeting,
satisfied that they had made a good decision, believing that the Prussian would
be a fitting companion for their good king.
And so the knight, putting
his trust in God and Christ’s True Holy Cross, began his oration by
addressing the barons: “My lords, you and I all know well, the
king’s virtues, courage and refinement. If I am
uneasy, it is only that my facial flaws may hinder the progress of our
souls. You all can see that I have only one eye, to my regret. Not having all
parts of my body, I greatly fear that I am not worthy of escorting such a
perfect man as the king. However, if you decide that I am truly worthy, I am
entirely ready, as this would be the greatest blessing.”
The barons conferred anew,
and decided that the Prussian was certainly not worthy of the honor, since he
didn’t have all his body parts. They chose another of the king’s
friends, and, thanking the Christian knight for his goodness and loyalty, gave
him his freedom.
The Lithuanian king and his
friend were burned according to their pagan custom. The knight returned to his
own Christian homeland.
The loss of an eye proved fortunate for the knight, as he would certainly have
burned with the king, if he had both eyes. This story was told to de Meziere by
some old and valiant Christian knights, as the absolute truth.
© English
Translation - Gloria O’Brien Oct 2008
This article was printed in Bridges July/Aug 2008