{"collection":"Northern European Mythology","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/neu/hbs/hbs20.htm","path":"neu/hbs/hbs20.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/neu/hbs/hbs20.htm","text":"Sacred-Texts\u00a0Legends & Sagas\u00a0Index\u00a0Previous\u00a0Next\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n p. 111\n \n \n \n UROSH AND THE SONS OF MARNY\u00c1VA\n \n IN the fair field of K\u00f3sovo were four pavilions pight\n \n By the fair church of K\u00f3sovo, Sam\u00f3drezha the white.\n \n Vuk\u00e1shin lay in one fair tent, and Lord \u00daglyesha was nigh;\n \n Goyko the duke and Urosh, the tsar\u2019s son, lay thereby.\n \n The tsars rob one another of the empire of the tsars,\n \n And they yearn to slay each other with the gilded scimitars.\n \n They know not whose is the empire. \u201cIt is mine,\u201d Vuk\u00e1shin saith,\n \n But the great Lord \u00daglyesha answers: \u201cIt is mine, upon my faith.\u201d\n \n And Goyko, the proud vo\u00fdvoda, saith likewise: \u201cIt is mine\u201d;\n \n But the son of the tsar, Prince Urosh, in silence must he pine,\n \n For he dares not break his silence before those angry ones,\n \n Before the three great brothers, Marny\u00e1va\u2019s mighty sons.\n \n \u2003Vuk\u00e1shin writeth a letter, and a herald doth he send,\n \n To N\u00e9delko, the archpriest, in the city of Prizrend;\n \n And he bids him come to K\u00f3sovo, that he may there decide\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 112\n \n \n \n To whom of the four princes the realm belongs, this tide;\n \n For he had given the sacrament unto the glorious tsar,\n \n And shriven him; and the ancient books, with the archpriest they are.\n \n \u00daglyesha writeth a letter and a herald doth he send\n \n To N\u00e9delko, the archpriest, in the city of Prizrend;\n \n And Goyko, the great vo\u00fdvoda, he writeth yet a third,\n \n And sendeth a fiery messenger to the archpriest with his word;\n \n And the son of the tsar, Prince Urosh, sent a letter likewise away.\n \n In secret the fiery heralds went with their letters on that day.\n \n By the house of the Archpriest N\u00e9delko, in Prizrend, the white town,\n \n The heralds met, but the archpriest out of his house was gone,\n \n For he sat at the service in the midst of matin song.\n \n So fierce were those fierce heralds, so keen the strong of the strong,\n \n That they came not down from the chargers, but through the door did dash,\n \n And the good Archpriest N\u00e9delko they smote with the woven lash:\n \n \u2003\u201cCome swift, thou priest, to K\u00f3sovo, that there thou mayst decide\n \n To whom of the four princes the realm belongs, this tide;\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 113\n \n \n \n For thou didst give the sacrament unto the glorious tsar,\n \n And shrovest him, and the ancient books of learning with thee they are.\n \n If thou comest not to K\u00f3sovo, forthwith thou shalt lose thy head.\u201d\n \n \u2003Then wept the Archpriest N\u00e9delko, and unto them he said:\n \n \u2003\u201cTill we are done with the service, get hence, ye strong of the strong,\n \n And it will be shown hereafter to whom doth the realm belong.\u201d\n \n \u2003Out rode the heralds straightway. When the liturgy was done,\n \n Forth came the Archpriest N\u00e9delko, and spake to all and one:\n \n \u2003\u201cWith me the tsar took sacrament, to me he did confess;\n \n But I asked not of his kingdom, but of his wickedness.\n \n But to the house of Marko in the town of Prilip hie,\n \n For Marko was my pupil to read in charactery;\n \n And the good Marko Kr\u00e1lyevich was a scribe before the tsar,\n \n And the books of yore with their ancient lore, this day with him they are;\n \n And who shall have the kingdom, Prince Marko shall make known.\n \n He speaketh the truth, for he feareth none save the true God alone.\u201d\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 114\n \n \n \n \u2003To Prilip, to Prince Marko\u2019s house, went on the heralds four;\n \n They came unto the milk-white house, and smote with the ring on the door.\n \n And Y\u00e9vrosima heard it and called unto her son:\n \n \u201cDo thy father\u2019s heralds at the door with the ring strike thereon?\u201d\n \n \u2003Marko arose and opened the door. They bowed where they did stand:\n \n \u201cGod bless thee, Marko!\u201d But Marko, he stroked them with his hand:\n \n \u201cNow welcome, sons! With the champions and the tsars are all things well?\u201d\n \n But thereupon the heralds down on their knees they fell:\n \n \u2003\u201cThe lords are well, Prince Marko, but they are not at peace this night;\n \n In K\u00f3sovo they quarrel, by Sam\u00f3drezha the white;\n \n The tsars rob one another of the empire of the tsars,\n \n And they yearn to slay each other with the gilded scimitars;\n \n But to whom the realm belongeth, no man of them doth know,\n \n Wherefore they cite thee to tell them on the field of K\u00f3sovo.\u201d\n \n | Prince Marko went into the house: | \n| | \u201cMy mother of delight, | \n \n In K\u00f3sovo they quarrel, by Sam\u00f3drezha the white;\n \n The tsars rob one another of the empire of the tsars,\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 115\n \n \n \n And they yearn to slay each other with the gilded scimitars;\n \n But to whom the realm belongeth, no man of them doth know.\n \n Therefore they cite me to tell them on the field of K\u00f3sovo.\u201d\n \n \u2003Though greatly Marko loved the truth, she conjured him the more:\n \n \u2003\u201cLet not my rearing be accurst in thee, the son I bore,\n \n For thy father or his brethren speak not false, whate\u2019er the stress,\n \n But according to the living God speak out his righteousness.\n \n Hurl not the spirit, Marko; save thou the soul, my son.\n \n Rather lose life than that the soul should have a stain thereon.\u201d\n \n \u2003Marko brought forth the ancient books, and mounted Dapple the gray;\n \n On Dapple\u2019s back he rode the track to K\u00f3sovo that day.\n \n And when he came to the king\u2019s tent Vuk\u00e1shin stood thereby:\n \n \u2003\u201cHere is my good son Marko, and fortunate am I!\n \n For he will say, I trow, this day, the realm of the tsars is mine.\n \n Then from the father to the son shall the realm stand in our line.\u201d\n \n \u2003Marko heard, but said naught; from the tent he turned away.\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 116\n \n \n \n Vo\u00fdvoda \u00daglyesha saw him, and aloud his thought did he say:\n \n \u2003\u201cHere is my nephew Marko, and a lucky man am I!\n \n For I trow he will say to me this day that mine is the empery.\n \n Say, Marko, that the realm is mine. We will share the government.\u201d\n \n \u2003But Marko the Prince said nothing, nor turned unto the tent.\n \n Goyko, the vo\u00fdvoda, saw him, what time he went thereby:\n \n \u2003\u201cHere is my nephew Marko, and a lucky man am I!\n \n He will say that unto me, Goyko, the empire doth belong,\n \n Because I erstwhile loved him, when he was weak and young.\n \n For I loved him very dearly, and in the bosom fold\n \n Of my mantle did I keep him like an apple of red gold;\n \n Where\u2019er I went upon my steed was Marko wont to ride.\n \n Say then, Prince Marko, in this wise, what time thou shalt decide,\n \n That all the empire of the tsars is given unto me,\n \n And thou shalt be the overlord, and I the tsar at thy knee.\u201d\n \n \u2003But Marko aye kept silence, and turned not to the tent.\n \n To Urosh\u2019 white pavilion upon his way he went;\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 117\n \n \n \n Unto the tsar\u2019s fair tent he rode. Urosh leaped up awake\n \n From the fair silken cushions, and to the prince he spake:\n \n \u2003\u201cA lucky man am I to-day; my godfather I see!\n \n Marko the Prince will say to whom the Servian realms shall be.\u201d\n \n \u2003Then they embraced each other, and wished each other well;\n \n And sate upon the cushions until the evening fell.\n \n When the dark night was over, and the white morning shone,\n \n They rang the bells for matins, and to church the lords are gone.\n \n They came forth from the service before the church to dine,\n \n And then they ate the sugar, and drank the brandy-wine.\n \n Marko looks on the ancient books, and a great word saith he:\n \n \u2003\u201cO thou, my sire, Vuk\u00e1shin, is thy realm too small for thee?\n \n May a curse go out and through it, for ye seize another\u2019s reign!\n \n And \u00daglyesha, my uncle, too small is thy domain?\n \n May a curse go out and through it, for another\u2019s realm would ye seize!\n \n And thou, my uncle, Goyko, to a strait are thy provinces?\n \n May a curse go out and through them, for an other\u2019s realm would ye steal!\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 118\n \n \n \n See\u2014and may God forget you!\u2014what the book doth reveal!\n \n For the realm belongeth to Urosh, from the father to the son;\n \n The child is of the tsar his house, and in him the line goes on,\n \n And the tsar left it to him at the season when he died.\u201d\n \n \u2003Vuk\u00e1shin, when he heard it, drew the dagger from his side;\n \n On his son leaped Vuk\u00e1shin, to stab him in that hour,\n \n And Marko fled before him, for he had not will nor power\n \n In arms against his father to lift the hand and fight.\n \n Marko ran round about the church, Samodrezha the white;\n \n Three times round white Samodrezha the circle did they make;\n \n The king well-nigh had caught him, when a voice to Marko spake:\n \n \u2003\u201cInto the church, Prince Marko!\u201d the voice from the church did say,\n \n \u201cFor the sake of truth thou wilt perish at thy father\u2019s hand this day.\u201d\n \n \u2003Marko ran hard into the church as the doors wide open drew;\n \n Vuk\u00e1shin fell against them as again the doors shut to,\n \n And smote the beam with his dagger. Therefrom did the red blood drain.\n \n \n \n \n \n p. 119\n \n \n \n The king repented: \u201cBy the one God, I dread my son have I slain.\u201d\n \n \u2003A voice spoke to him from the church: \u201cDost hear where thou dost stand?\n \n Thou smot\u2019st not thy son, but an angel, with the dagger in thy hand.\u201d\n \n \u2003The king was wroth at Marko, and cursed him thereupon:\n \n \u2003\u201cMy son, God slay thee! Mayst thou have nor sepulcher nor son!\n \n May the soul go not from thee till thou servest the Turk in war!\u201d\n \n \u2003His father cursed him, but he won the blessing of the tsar:\n \n \u2003\u201cO my godfather Marko, may God thee ever shield!\n \n May thy face shine in the council; thy saber slash in the field!\n \n May none excel thee in battle, and thy name far and wide\n \n Be everywhere remembered while the sun and moon abide!\u201d\n \n \u2003So spake Vuk\u00e1shin and the tsar, and so did it betide.\n \n \n \n Next","title":"UROSH AND THE SONS OF MARNY\u00c1VA","type":"page"}