De Lituania
JA STEJSKAL. ÜLO IOCC
.Jrromr. original!Y .Jan of Prague. was bo approximately between 1368 and 1 310. He stndird at Prague l’niversit:· where he received the relat ive!�· high grades of a hachelor of theolog . Jerome entered the Premonstratensian monastrr,· of Strahov in Prague while completing bis studies. and just after bis grascribe the periocl of Jrromc“s life which he spent. as a preadJ r in tllf• „“·ild“‚ Lithuanian Iands. Th Grand Duch�‘ of Lithua nia. the state formNl after the unifkation of Lit.huania itself ( ukszt.o a). Samogitia (ZnmdZ) ancl the conquercd territorirs in the Russian Iands. rf’adwd its largest size dnring the reign of Graue! Duh „.ito1d (1392-1430). The area of this state in the period of its greatest expansion was about 900.000 km2. „·hile present Lithuania has onl about 62.000 km2. that cor responds with the area of Lithuania itself and Samogitia.1 Lithuania itself is a rdati,·dy mountainous land. contrar:· to Samogitia, which is a lew land countr:·. ““hat can also he seen from tlw Lithuanian names of these two regions.2 The river Niewiaia seems to be the natmal border between these t ·o regions. which will be the objects of m:· interest and which were interrsting for the Christian missionaries ecause of their paganism. at the end of tlw th and beginning of the 15th century. In this time there lived approximate!Y 110.000 inhabitants in the territor of about 58.000 km2. „·hich means 3 persons per 1 km2. In Prussia. for example. there lived the samt> nnmlwr of people ( 1 70.000) in an area of 42.000 km2. which giws 4
1 \\‘. Wielohorski. Litwa etnogra cna. Wilno 1928.
2 Co cx pistolaris Vitoldi magni 45
proplr for 1 km2 :J It „·a.s th� result of he permanent attacks of the Teu tonic Onirr in thi� trrritor�· which Pxplain \vhy a wide territory n�ar the horder was cowr(‚(\ by forest and was practicall:v depopulated.
Grnerall�·. the missions were wekomed b�· the Polish King W!adys!aw .la�i<‚llo and hi� cousin Grand Duke Witold. Jerome had spent some time at thr conrt of the king and lea ed the Lithuanian language there, ac coroing to onr sources.4 Languag harri�rs “�’er the biggest proble of the Christian missions to Lithuania. Jf’rome was equipped with a Ietter of re commrndation frorn 1 ing „·lad�·slc \“ .Jagiello to Grand Duke Witold. This lrttrr hao hr n a\\epted. l) caus \\“itold order d his ‚·captains“ to help Jrrom<>·s acti,·iti s.5 The s�·st matic baptising of the people of the country „·as startro and „·as strongl�‘ supported by the ruler and by the newly. 1387
rstahlishro bishopric in \’ilnius (\\“ilno). \\’itold ordered that: „.. .if some Rnth nian wonld like to be baptised. he can be: if he does not want to be, hr llHIY sta.v „·ith bis own religion (i. e. Orthodox). but every Lithuanian who ors not wilnt to be baptise i will be baptised according to the bishop’s \\’ill ….._6
Jrronw s��ms to haw been the fa,·ourite confessor of JagieHo which is „·h�· he was given the exceptional Ietter of recommendation. Jerom� was not tIw rst Cz ch priest of th� king. There is evidence that ·’… Czech prirst s W<‚rr at thr conrt of Jagiello. who instructed him about the Christian faith . . … 7 It is possible that the newly baptised king prefered the Czech Jrrome. hrcanse he had good experience with Czech priests who had been coming to \’ilnins Par!ier. In any rase, Jerome set out on the journey to Lithuania.
lt is not eas�· to specif�· Pxactly wlwn Jerome left Krak6w and started his mission acti,·it.v in Lithuania. It was probablr between the years 1395 and 1398. According to our sources he became the confessor of King
3 H. Lowmianski. Popis�‘ wojska \ ‚ielkiego Ksi�SI\’a Litewskiego W. XVI. jako zrodlo do dziejow zaludnicnia. �1ediae\’alia w 50 rocznic� prac naukowej Jana D bro�·skiego. \\’arszawa 1960. p. 433.
4 A. S. Piccolomini. Historia de Europa. eh. 26: Script.ores rerum prussicarum , Leipzig 1870. pp.23i-239.
.; Ihid.
6 .T. Knrczewski. Biskupst,·o wilenske. Wilno 1912, p. 165.
‚ A. ProC’h zka. Dzi�jP \ ‚itolda „·· ksi�cia Lit,vy. \Vilno 1914: p. 41.
46
\Yiad,,·slaw .Jaö dlo on August 30. 1394 at the latest.8 After so e time SJH’nt at tlw kin) ’s conrt and corr sponding to bis own words in the Tracta tns Agnin.�t the Fonr Pmgue Article.�. Jero <> „spent three years preaching Christianit�‘ in th<> land of the Saracens“ .9 Althongh Lithuania was seen by th<‚ pop<> as a formally haptised conntry since 1390, there were any pagans lc{t · <‚SJH’ciall�· in Samogitia – who wer call d Sarraceni 10 throughout Eu rop<>. Th �- ar 1398 rnnst be sf’en as the lat st possible for the issions comin from Litlmania itsdf or fro Poland t.o Sarnogitia, because on Octo hrr 12. 1398 the tf’rritor�‘ was. a ording o the treaty, given to the Teutonic Ord<>r. It is possihle that Jero continued his rnission in Lithuanian ter ritor�·. lmt Samo itia was ck·finitely dosed for th for er confessor of the Polish kiug.
His sta�· in Samogitia is an i portant somTe for the study of pagan mytholo v and cultur<‚ in this region.
The Christianisation in Europf‘ had rnostly come band in hand with a stahilisation of the states and their rnling dynasties, when the adrninis tratiw preferf’nces of the Chnrch h gan to bf‘ useful and co patible with thf‘ achif’\‘ lilf’Jlt of centralisation. This is onf‘ of the reasons why rnlers snpportPd thf‘ prorf’ss of Christianisation. G nerally, the initiative came from tlw lf’rs. as in the case of Bohf’mia in 8-15. Poland during the reign of Ii szko I. et fif’szko nsed this proress for he removal of opposition in tllf‘ f’onntr�·. 1 1 In EiE’van Russin. as in Poland. baptism was arcepted jnst after the f’Onsoliclation of the state. Tlw Lithuanian case was much morr complkat<‚d, hecanse tlw qnf’stion of th acceptance of baptism was dos ly f’Ollll<‚f’tf’d with the choice hf’tween wf’stern Catholicism and easte Ortho 9 Cocl. hihl. ag.. n. 385, f. 276/b: „Quod go facilitPr probarem, eo quod tribus annis continuis dem Christi predicans, …“
1° For examplP: Fontes rer. Bob.. IV, p.287.
1 1 H . Lowmianski. Poczqtki Polski. Z cb:i j 41
hr \\“s s11pporting this tlwory. On the contrary, the f{nssian duoniclcr \\TitPS : ‚“…t!Je Catho}ic haptism of �fendog bad been a chrat: he continnerl to sanifiep to his old idols and gods. to tlw rst of thf’m : onadif’j. and to TelaweL Dwiriks. to the Rare God and to !vledein. ‚\’hf’ll hP saw a harc. did not leave the house: he burnt the dead and marlr his pa�anism official“ . 13
Thf> oth r formally baptiserl member of the ruling dynasty was Witenes (1293 131 ). Dnt this was all about rhe evangelium and its in uence on tlw lf’rs in this time. Those includ d who were baptised were buried, acconling to an anonymous description, still in th pagan way: „. . . the son of thr rulrr rstahlished a special sacred forest and a group of priests to take c daws of thf‘ lynx and started to cry…“Y1 Other rituals were practiced in the case of thc pean‘ agreement with Hungary by duke 1\:iejstut in the middle of the 14th centnr�r. 1 iejstut had ordered the throat of an ox to be cut, then he brdauhed his facE‘ and hands with he blood. followed by his o cers. Then he swore that he would rather follow the fate of this ox than infringe the agr rm nt. 1“ Tlwse rituals wE’re p rformE>d up o the time of JagieHo.
Ncvcrthclrss. during th r ign of Grand Duke Witenes the rst catholic dmrch was hnilt (1298) and dedica cd to St. Nicholas. This chnrch was ns�>d PSpf’ciall�- h:v· Christ.ian foreigners. Two ranciscans living near the dmrch carricd out. all tlw spiritual services for the Christians coming to Vilnius. 16
Thr brothrr and successor of Wit.enes Giedymin (1315-1341) promised
12 �I. Kosman. Drop zanikn poganstwa u Baltow. Warszawa 1976, p. 17.
13 A. �Iierz�·nski. Zrodla do mytologii litewski j, Warszawa 1896. p. 139.
14 A. ßrü\kn r. Starozytna Litwa. Ludy i bogi, Olszt n 1979, p. 70.
1·5 �1. Kosman. Forma nmow mi�dzynarodowy h Litwy w pierwszej cwierci XIII wieku,
Prz lqd Histor�·czny. 57, 1966, n. 2, pp. 216-218.
16 �I. 1 osman. Poga1is wo. chrze5cijarist.wo i synkretyzm na Litwie w dobie przedrefor
mar�·jni’j. Konmnikaty Mazursko-Warminskie 1/115, 1972, p.188.
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his offiC’ial <Wcrptanc<> of haptism. hnt he nrver cast o his old pagan idols. His sons die! tlw same. and so did his grandson Jagiello, until he nally ha dPcision with re ard to his religion. Many members of .Ja idlo’s fmuil�· had alr<‚ady accepted baptism. especially t.be daugbters of th<‚ Litlmanimt m rs. wbo marri<‚d the Christian rulers of the surrounding conntri<’s (Aldona Gif‘ :vmin married Kazimierz the Great in 1325, Keana .Joanna 1\azimNz the Pomeranian, et.c.).
.Jagi<‚llo concln(lf’d a peace with the Te11tonic Order in 1382 whicb n islH‘ Trrritorial annPxations in tlw east werf‘ thns balanced by tbe loss of Samogitia. .JagiPHo was in actnal or pot<’ntial conflict. everywbere: wit.h losem\· in th<‚ ast. with Polancl in l’krain and in tbf‘ west witb the Teu tonic Ordn. Earh of th se powers had in its hands tbe strongest argnment of the Ppoch: The paganism of Litlmania. .Jagidlo bad to unite with one of tlwsf‘ riYals and had to make an important choice.
.Jnst aft<‚r th<‚ treat�· with the T<’ntonic Order. he had some negotiat.ions „·ith fosrm\·. His moth<‚r .Jnlianne was strongly propagating Orthodoxy and haci compl<‚tPd somf‘ o cial disc11ssions ahout .Jagiello’s marriage witb a danghter of D�·mitr Donskii. but D mitrP mad(‚ tbe marri ge conditional on .Jagirllo·s accPptanc<> of Orthodox · .H1 .Jagidlo hirnself remernbered the proposals which Iw h d received: „…multi imperatorcs reges et principes di Yf’rsi rmu Ockm clnce magno Litwanorum cnpiPhant. affeetabaut et clesi er ahant. parrntdam proximatis contrahcre perpPtna …“.19 But at this mo lll<‚Ilt .Jagidlo was looking for an a.lly against the Trutonic Order. who conlcl also bring somr important snpport for bis territorial expansion to the east. Th<‚r<‚for(‚ h<‚ tn rd bis at.tention to I\rak6w and the Catbolic Church. Ac ct>ptance of the Orthodoxy could not bave st.opped thc con ict with the Teutonic Orclrr and it might merely have caused another argument to be used against th<‚ Grand Duchy of Litbuania. Dmiu thr spring of 1385 .Jagi(‚Ho took part in the sumrnit witb Polish Iords in 1\re ‚a. On August 14 ht> put a edaratiou into the hands of the
17 :vr. Kosman. Drogi zaniku…. p.l7.
l Akra nnii Polski Litw n. 1. Krakow 1932. p. 2. l ! l Ihid.
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Polish Iords that IH‘ would arn’pt h ptism arcording to the western liturgy:
.0 ..“ 2
·· . . . with all his not �’f’t baptised brothers, r latives, Iords and Iands Ewr�‘ pagau bad to h haptised, but the Orthodox inhabitants of JagieHo’s Iands wer not indnded to this obliga ory dedaration. The rst step was th haptism of the ruler on Febrnary 15, 1386, bnt before this act one of tlw gr at paradox s of European histor�‘ had happened. The Catholir Polish nohilit�· c!f’darf’d the pagan JagidloPolish King on January 11, 1386. .Ja�i Ho lf’ft th rountry for Poland in Jannary 1386 and SkirgieHo-Iwan lwram govf’rnnr of the Grand Dnrhy. So nnder the rule of the Orthodox �o,wnor thC‘ Catholic Christianisation of thP country had to continue.21
In 1387 .Jagidlo had corne back t.o Lithuania to fnlfil his cledaration from I rewno. Firstly he f’stroyecl the old pagan holy places, then caused t hf‘ haptism of tht> peoplf‘ of high ranks in t.h Lithuanian state. It probably took the form of plunging them undf’r water.22
The mf’tho s of baptism were strongly criticised by the Teutonic Order nring thf‘ Connril of Constance, berause everybody who had accepted baptis got a pr s nt, nsually somf‘ clothes. This was, according to the nitirs. why many peopl accepted baptism t.wice. That was nothing new: Alreacly dnring thf‘ mission to the Normans in the 9th century rohes were pr srnted to thC‘ O wly baptised people. One knight, when he had put on his r ss, said to the priests: „. . . this is my twentieth time I have put my head over tht> haptistery and everytime I have received nice clothes, but now Iook at me. The shepherd should wear this dress. not a knight. Were I not shy to go hom naked , I wonld disown yom dress and your baptism . . . “ .23
The presence of t.he Gr d Duke and King Wladyslaw Jagiello during thc baptism of hf‘ nobility was relevant, because the ruler played an impor tant role in the hierarchy of the pagan religious system and he had to play the same role in the n w one. His will was an order for bis serfs. During
20 Akta unii Polski z Litw 1, p.l.
21 A. Prochazka. Dzi<‚je Wit.olda …. p. 42, He thinks that the Orthodox baptism of Skir gidlo was the reaction on Witold’s residence in the territor of tbe Teutonic Order.
22 J. Fijalek. Kosciolkatolicki na Litwie. Warszawa-Krakow 1914, p. 24. M. Kosman, Drogi zaniku . . . . p. 27. Kosman rep ats Fijalek’s opinion.
23 I. . Szajnocha. .Jadwiga i Jagiello 1374- 1413, 3-4, Warszawa 1969, p.175.
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.
tIH‘ y „·hi(‚h Ja idlo had sp nt in Pol;md important changes regarding rdigion f not pstahlishC’d.24
\\“<‚ nmnot SC‘ any reartion against haptism in Lithuania itself during thC‘ rampai n of 1381 Bnt in Samogitia thP situation was much mor ddirat<‚. Th<‚r<‚ ,,. f<‚ not so many forPignPrs propagating t.he nt?w crt?cd as in Litlmania itsC‘]f (Anksztot a ) . and t hc r<>lationship betwrt?n this territory and thC‘ c<>ntr<‚ in \“ilnins was not so strong. Th pror ss was also compliratt?d hC'(‚ansC‘ of th<‚ langnage harri r. This is rdl ctrd in the activity of Eing \\“lad�·s!aw Ja idlo himsC’lf: “. . . herausp none of t.he priests who had come with th<‚ kin knC’\\“ tbC‘ langnagr. the king hims lf the mediator between th m aml th<‚ pC’op!C‘. H<‚ tanght them thc Patrr Noster and t?xplained to thC’m \\·ho rC’all�· rrC’ated thP world …“.26 This happened in 1413, 26 years aft<‚r thC‘ formal acrC’ptance of Christianity. whC’n Lithnania more or less frC’Pd Smnogitia from thC‘ hand of th<‚ Teutonic Order.
�[. Str�·jkowski chararterisPd tlH‘ inhahitants of Anksztota and Samogi tia as a ,,·ihl trihP. According to his rhronic-1 . they wt?re drcss<‚d in fells. and thPir shocs wert? madf‘ out of hast. Th iron „·hich they used was usu all�- stol n from n nssian plonghs. lnstC’ad of hclms thE’y used animal skulls. ancl thp�· C’JH’rally liv d likf‘ th wolv s. �?tr.27
Gi!hPrt OC‘ Lanno�‘- who visited Lithuania in 1413-1414 described the dr ssofth Lithmmianwonwnassimplr. ltrf’mindcdhimofthatofPi rarcly. Th mrn had. according to Lanno . long and dishev lled hair.28 Dln osz. contrar�‘ to Lannoy. writes abont their short dress and their shor , cnt hair and heaHl.20 A neas S. Piccolomini writes about the manners of tht? Litlmaniau women. According t.o him thcy had a Iover regularly as tht? ‚“s<>rond hnshand“‚. These lovrrs, so-called rna rimonii adiutores, t.ook thf‘ pla of thr hnshands. when thf‘ lattt?rs dici not fulfil their matrimonial
·I 1. Str�·jkow�ki. Kronika polska. litewska, mudzska i wszytskiej Rusi, 1574, Warszawa 1846. p. 78.
2“ Ihid.
26 .J. Dlu osz. Dziejow polskicb ksi g dwana5cie., tr. K. �1echerzyriski, Krak6w 1876- 1877. \“01. 4. p. 15 .
27 �I. Str�·jkowski. Iüonika
2 G. ci Lanuo�·- Podr6ie i misje do Polski. in: Cudzoziemc:y o Polsce. Relacje i opinie, I\rakow 1 71. p. 7:).
29 .J. Dln�osz. DziPjow…. t. III. p. 446.
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.
… pp. 220-222.
ollligatiollS.�0 Accorclin to Zar bski. this n eal story had its origin in the r ports of the nH•mb rs of the Teutonic Order at the court of Frederick 111, \Yhrre A. S. Piccolomini livrd.�1
For tlH· explanation of the contemporary life Lithuanian mythology „·onld hr the most important. source, and it is deeply connected with Jer omr’s mission.
Thr first scholar who daimed to establish Lithuanian mythology was T . arhut t . ßut h only put together ev rything he knew about Greece, Romr ancl lndia. which bad nothing to do with the reali y of Lithuania.32 LN me rrcall thP strong tradition which teils about the origin of Lithuani ans. n’p at d hy T. Narbutt. Since the 15th century some similari ies of the Litlmanian langnage have heen compared with Latin and Italian (ignis- 1t.qnis. de·ns-diev .�. noctes-naktis etc.) including the name of the country and its inhahitants (Litua. Lituani·-l’Italia. l’Jtaliani).33 The conclusion was that th<‚ Litlmanians w<>n· the inhabitants of ancient Rome who had left the comltr�‘ as emigrants and carrird with rhem not only the language, but also thC’ir rdigion. including the mythology.34 During bis mission to Samogitia (according to A. S. Piccolomini) Jerome had come to the tribe venerating thC‘ snn and th big hammer exhibited in the village. He asked the pagan prirsts what it meant. and hey answered that many years ago the sun had heC’n raptur d hy a powprful king in a strongly forti ed tower-jail. But the signs of the zodiar ( ! ) liberated the snn. using this big hammer. Jerome ex plained to tl m that the sun and the stars were no gods. They wcre things created God. and God ordered them to sbine forever for the pro t and hdp of th people.35
What conld. he the rea.lity in this report of Aene Piccolomini and ““hat was rnisnn f’rstanding or use of the traditional picture of paganism? .Jrrome and Aeneas met. each other during the Basel council, and I sup-
30 A. S. Piccolomini. Historia de Europa, eh. 26, p. 275.
31 I. Zar�bski. Srosnnki Eneasza Sylwiusza z Polsk i Polakami, vol. 1, Krak6w 1939, p. 366.
32 T. Narbutt. Dzieje starozytne narodu litewskiego, vol. 1-9, Wilno 1835-1841.
3� .J. Dlugosz. Dziej6w …. vol. 3, p. 442.
31 .J. Dlngosz, Dziej6w . . . ,vol. 3, p. 443.
3″ A. S. Piccolomini. Hist.oria…. eh. 26. pp. 237-239.
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posC‘ that .JC’roUH“ told this stor.v to Aen as at that time.36 It seems to me that .l<‚ronw did not nn erstand this m:vth well. According to Lithuanian m�·tholog�· thP snn is not a god hnt an ohj ct made by god Telawel, who hammC’recl thC‘ snn and tlw stars.37 Jerome was educated at Pragne Univer sity and his ima C‘ of the mytholog was inftuenced by classical Greek and Roman mythology. ‚vherP the sun had the form of a god. He had known ho“· thf‘ ‚·dassiral paganism“ lookcd like. In this case he w completely ignorant of old Slavir m?thology. which was not far from the Lithuanian; or it rould haw b Pil Aencas Piccolomini’s fantasy. The people in Samogi tia did not wnf’n1tf‘ th<‚ s1m and not the hammer, but the god-smith, who llHHk thr snn: ancl th<‚ hammer tlwy used as some kind of relic, to apply Christian tPnniuology. So in that rase, if m theory is right. Jerome might haw SPf’n some ha.mmPr. perhaps thc hammer of Telawel.
ThPre is an intPresting testimony of Saxo Grammaticus concerning th<‚ ··hammd‘. The Danish Princf‘ Magnus. thP son of Niels (1105-1134), romin hark from an xpedition to the east took with him a big hammer as a troph�·.:l nt in this rase. the hammPr was not used for the Iiberation of the sun. hnt the hravenl�‘ powers originall�· used it for breaking the ice in thf‘ rivers dnring the spring.39
There is also a paralld in Finnish mythology. wherc god Ilmarinen tak<’s the samf‘ rol<‚ as t.he Lithuanian Telawel.40
nt what ahont the signs of th zodiar? The also seem to be an anachronism in th<‚ Lithnanian rase. In tlw m.vtholog:vof this rPgion there was not fonnd an�·thing that rould recall the zodiac. Perhaps the myth „·hirh originat.f’d. from Bela s ran br us<‚d as som kind of comparison. This myth t<‚lls ahout. t.welve sons who became hammers according to God’s decision to pmsne th<‚ devils to hrll.41 It provf’s the existenre ofthe hammer as an instrument of God’s will. hut nothing which could be connerted with the signs of tIH“ zocliac.
36 A. Krch k , C’erhov� na basilejskem sn mn. Rome 1967, p. 56, p. 132.
l M. l{osman. Drogi zaniku…,p. 73.
H A. HolrlPr-E gPr. Saxanis Gramatici Gesta Danornm, Strassburg 1866.
39 J. Powi rski. Z bada1i na mitologiq balto- slowianska. in Slavia Antiqua, vol. 24. p. 311.
’10 A. 1i rz�·nski. Zroclla o mytologii…. p. 142. 4 1 A. Driirkn r, Staro �·tna Litwa…. p. 155.
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\Y can provP tlw exist nce of th s<‚ signs in the Czech Iands only in the 12th f'<‚Jltnr�·. in tht> Homiliar of Opatovic . where the anthor writes about s1wrial amnlf’ts. which r pn’sented the astrological signs. They were put on
tlw IWck an nse against illness.42
Tlw otlwr vidence ( 1 4th cen ur ) is included in the speech of Thomas Stitn�·: .. . . . the people ket>p the pagan astrological signs, they venerate the Ioon. thC‘ stars and th ordf’r of thE’m. which has the name zodiac . . . “ .43
E’wrthd<’ss it is not a usnal pagan st r otype. it could be an invention of .Jrrom<‚ or A 1was.
Accorcling to Piccolomiui. the other tribe which Jerome visited in this timr vm<‚ratPd snakf’s. Inhabitants of ewry honse which he entered had wnPrated thrir own snake as somt> kind of home idol. They sacri ced to this snakr a mf’al. nsuall milk. The honsek eper hi self fed the snake <‚V<‚ryday. .J<‚rom ordered th m to bring all the snakes to one place and lmrn them. ßnt one of them was so big that it was not possible to burn it_44
Tlw cult of thP snakrs outlived Jerome’s mission. There is much more f’Yidrnc ahout this cult latE’r. Niebolas of Hnssow writes in 1525 that ‚“ . . . not far from onr land the people ar venerating snakes. They also sac ri r<‚ to thf‘ woods . . :‘ .45
h�ing Sigismund August writes in 1547 to bishop Mariejowski: “ . . . the pPopk wnf’rat<> snakes and sacri ce to them pnblicly or in privacy . . .“ .46
I prows according to this evidence that the people really did it, so that it is not som kind of stereotype or the imagination of Jerome or Aneas. But th re is onP thing which sounds like a motif to me. It is the question of the big snak , „·hich could not be bnrnt. I would like to return to this case later, in conn<‚ction with some other similarity. In he Czech tradition, there l’Xists some kind of home idol too. Bohnslav Baibin writes about “ . . . the
42 F. HPcht. Das Homiliar des Bischofs von Prag, Beiträge zur Geschichte Böhmens I, Pragu 1863. p. 2 1 .
43 C. Zihrt. Se:mam zvyklosti a pover pohanskych, Praha 1894, p. 48.
44 A. S. Piccolomini. Historia de Europe. eh. 26, pp. 237-239.
45 Nicolai Hussoviani Carmina, ed. J. Pelczt.ar, Krak6w 1894, p. 86.
46 M. Kosman. Reformacja i kontrreformacja w Wielkim Ksi�stwie Litewskim w swietle polemiki w znaniowej. Wroclaw 1966. p.28.
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foolish womf’n who prrpare the meal for the home’s ‚little housekeeper‘ . . .“ . This ritual was usnall performen on Thnrsda 47.
Piccolomini also teils how .Jeromc rontinued in his missionary activit.y to th<‚ t<‚rritor of the tribe which sacri ced to the sacred and eternal re, and a sp<‚ciall estahlished group of pries s took rare of this re. They had a s con of this re. They usuall snrrounded the re and observed the shadows of thf‘ sick p rson. which had app arrd behind the ames. When they saw the facr of the sick person. he would snrvive the illness. but if the saw bis hack. this person wonld die. Next morning the told the relatives of the sick wlwthrr hr had t.o make his last will. especially regarding his property. .Jcrom<‚, according o Aenf’as. had scattered this re and introduced the Christian faith into the area.48
Fin‘ was. togeth r with the main gods. an important object of venera tion in Samogitia and in Auksztota. Fire and its smoke were like mediators h<‚h\“<‚<’n the earth and t.hf‘ gods living in heaven. That is why, in my opin ion. th�> main sarrifices were put into the re as gifts to the heavenly gods,
<‚SpN·iall�‘ P<‚ n and Telmvel. For �>xmnp!C‘, in 1320 thr marshal of thc Teu onic Order coming from
l<‚mf’l attack<‚d tbr land near \Vonl. hnt he was overthrown an kille . Thcn his armonr<‚d hod_v, sitting on his horse. was sacri red to the fire.49
AnotiH’r comtnr of tllf• T<‚utonic Ordrr was sacri ced in 1389. He was stifi<‚ re and then also. dressed in armonr, thrown into th<‚ rc.50 The second stor happenecl in the par of Samogi ia which formall�· bdong<>d to the T 11tonir Order in this period, according to he agr<>cm nt from the year 1382.
There are some references about the main sacred re. This re had been situated on the high bank of the river . rif'“·iaia.51 Another main re, situa ed in \’ilnius. was scattered during Wlad_vslaw Jagiello’s mission in 1387. and th<> pagan altar. which was situated near this re, was broken. Som group of chaplains established for the ceremonies of the sarrifice was
4 7 D. Dalbin. Mis\ellanea historica regni Dohemiae. Prague 1681, vol.,3, p. 196. ‚1� A. S. Pi\rolomiui. Historia de Europe, eh. 26, pp. 237-239.
4 A. Mierz�·nski. Zrödla do m�·tologii, p. 120.
O lbid.
‚d .J. Dlngosz. DziPjow …, vol. 4, p. 150.
55
dissoln•d. TIH’ll th dmrch was fonnd<‚d in the former pagan sacred place, which corr<’sponrls with the nsnal practice of the missions.52 This is in he sam<‚ wa:v similar to thf‘ <„Xperiencf‘ of Jerome, but the sacred fires were thronghont tlH• ‚“hole conntry. and th scattering of the pagan sacred fires S<‚Pms to haw lw n a favourit ster(‚otype. The auguring from the fiame r<‚minds ns of tll „dassical ntlts“ . and we have no more evidence for it. lt conld Iw an inwntion of Prome or Af’neas.53
Th<‚ last trilw which was visited by Jerome, according to references of .\Pn<‚as. was tlw trib which sacrifin·d to its gods in the sacred forests. H<‚ pr ach<‚cl to this trib<> for „many days“ . Finally, he ordered the people to fdl th<‚ for<’st. Th<> pPoplP agref’d and came with axes, but everybody was afraid to start felling the tr es. TherE’fore Jerome hirnself felled the rst timh<‚r. Tlw p<‚ople. S ing that nothing wrong happened, followed his f’Xample. But in th<‚ middle of th<> forest was the biggest and oldest oak, and tlw p opl<‚ lwli<‚v d that this oak was the seat of the god of this forest. Som<‚hody triNl to cut th<> timber. hut bis axe re ected o the timher and wonnd th<> wounded person; nobody wanted to continue working or ev<>n tonehing this timbt>r. Jerome ord r d the wounded person to get up and showwl that the injury was not scrious. Tlwn the people after seeing that nothing wrong had happ<’ned continued to f ll the trees with Jerome, and th<> d stroy d th whole forf’st.. Th re w r more sacred for sts in th r<‚gion. and .J rom orrl<‚red th m also to be felled. But the people stirr d np against Jerome, and the women went to Grand Duke Witold and dedarf’d hat h<‚y would rather leav the country than relinquish the old mannf’rs. Tht>y said that th y had no place anymore where they could find God (!) to ask him for the rains. But Jerome decided to destroy v r�:thing. ThE>refore. th Grand Duk promised the women that he would uish .J romf“s activi ies, and he withdrew him promptly.54 According to
52 J. Dlu osz. Dzi jow …. vol. 3, p. 443. C. Zibrt. Seznam …, p. 32. He writes about the famons recommpndation of Pope Gregory I to bishop Augustin, the missionar in Anglo Saxon Iands. GrP or recommen ed to build the Christ.ian churches in the places of the olrl pa an sanctuaries.
53 S. Tinhin. G schichte des Aberglaubens, Lepzig 1888. p. 27. 54 A. S. Piccolomini. Historia de Europe, eh. 26, pp. 237-239.
56
tradition hP sair\: ·’… Christ can manage without his faithful. but I cannot mana f‘ withont m:v sPrvants…“.55
1. Stryjkm• ski givPs ns the same stor:v but with a different end. The wonn(kd p0rson was not somP unknown man but Jerome himself, and he was rawl�· „·onnrled. Bnt just when he marle the sign of the cross over bis injnr�·. it disappf’ared. and he continu<‚d his work.56
Stryjkowski placed this story in the year 1387. at the o cial beginning of the haptism of thc land. Bnt we know for snre that in this time Jerome was ncithf’r in Litlmania nor in Poland. He was in Prague. lt seems to f‘ that 1. Stryjkowski took the story from an unknown source or simply from an oral trac\ition. not from Piccolomini, because there is an important rliffcrmcf‘ hf’t,wen thcm. It is also possible tlmt Stryjkowski simply trans fo l d Piccolomini’s story a cording to his own imaginat.ion and joined it to his dwptf’r ahont the baptism of Lithnania in 1387. An exact compari son of th<>sP t o works mnst he done to answer this question exactly, and it is not tlw ohjPct of my work.
LPt me comc back to thP case of the oldest tree which could not be frll<>d. or the higgC’st snake which could not be burnt. In each story, cel ehrating thC‘ missious, tlwre had to be somC‘ stereotypical di culty, to be m· rpow<>rNI with the hPlp of God. This is a phenomenon, which makes C’ad1 of those stories unrPa and mnst be connected with a special medieval “ ‚�· of thinking.
Ho“·C’wr. thC‘ „Polish“ haptism of Lithuania was made in a tolerant way, on tlw contrar.v to the way practiced b�‘ the Teutonic Order; the slightly fanatic style of .JC’romP wa.. cxceptional.
GPn rally. it is possible to say that this tolf’rant way of baptising won Samogitia from thC‘ hands of the Tentonic Order. There is a deep cantrast })(‚tWPen the mPthods of Christianisation of these two sides.57 The delegation from Samogitia informed the council in Constance about the style of the Tentoni Order in the case of the haptism of the territory. They said:
.j J. Fija! k. Koki61…. p. 50.
.% �L Str�·jkowski. ronika .. . , pp. 79-80. ·�7 I. 1 osman. Drogi zaniku…, p.43.
57
··. . . tlH‘ Orckr did not huild an dmrch and did uot establish any priest in its part of Samogitia . . .“ .5
58 A. Proch 58
MED IUM AEVUM QUOTIDIANUM
31
KREMS 1994
HERAVSGEGE E� YO� GERHARD JARITZ
GEDRCCKT �1IT :: TERSTÜTZUNG DER KULTURABTEILUNG DES A:\1TES DER :\IEDERÖSTERREICHISCHE J LANDESREGIERUNG
Titelgraphik St phau J.Tramer
H ransg b r: 1edium Aevum Quo idiannm. Gesellschaft zur Erforschung der materiel len Knltnr des �1ittelalters. Körnermarkt 13, A-3500 Krems, Österreich. – Für den Inhalt verantwortlich zeichnen die Autoren, ohne deren ausdrückliche Zustimmung jegli ch r Xachd ck. auch in AusziigPn. nicht Pstattet ist. – Druck: I 8·-10. A-1050 Wien.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
Vorwort 7
CHIUSTL KnÖTZL, Die Heiligen und ihrr Klienten. Zur
VPr\\·rrHinng hagiograpbischer Qudlen in der Alltagsge-
schichte c!Ps �Iitt<‚lal ers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
GERHARD .JARITZ, „Popular“ Medicine and he „Elites“ in
thr Lat<‚ 1iddl<‚Ages ……………………………………… 24
.JA STE.TSKAL. Dr Lituania 45 ßomsu.v GRGI . ThP lnventoriPs of ZagrPb Cathedral 59
A Kl‘ DIGl“ GE
71
5
Vorwort
Das Yorli<‚gf’udr H<‚ft vou Merli·um Ae·11um Q·uotidiamtm setzt zum ‚inen die Pnhlikation von VorträgPn am International Medie11al Congress in Leeds mit <l<‚lll ßcitrag von Chris ian Erötzl fort.. Zun anderen kommt ein Referat \ahrzn �kichzritig mit Medi·u Ae·11u Quotidianum 31 erscheint Son VPrhawllungen hinsichtlich Sond< rhand VI und VII sind im Gange. \Yir ho (‚ll. Ihn n zu Beginn des .Jahres 1995 genaueres mitteilen zu können. Hf’ft 32 „·in! im Fdm1ar 1995 znm ErsdJ in n gelangen.
\\’ir möcht<‚ll di<‚ Gekgrnheit wahnwhmen, unseren Mitglieder ein fro h<’s \\'<‚iuachtsff’st sowi<‚ Erfolg und Ruhe für das Jahr 1995 zu wünschen. Anß<’nkm mö(‚htf’ll wir si< nnwrlich h<>rzlich f’inladen, uns Beiträge für un S<‚r Pnblikationsorgan zu Üh<‚rmitt ln. \\’ir werckn uns bemühen, diese nach grgelwnen :.Iöglichk<‚it n rasch zu publizif’ren.
7
G rhard Jarit.z, Herausgeber