Lesny Ivan. About the ailments of the powerful (Lords of the world through the eyes of a neurologist)

CHARLES IV
“I came to the Czech Republic and found neither father nor mother, nor brothers, nor
sisters, and no acquaintances. And I forgot how to speak Czech, and only
Later I learned my native language again and began to speak and understand like anyone
Czech. I found the kingdom in such a pitiful state that there was not a single
fortresses, nor unmortgaged estates.
Most Czech lords engaged in violence out of greed and arrogance, not
knowing neither fear nor bow before the king.
The once glorious city of Otakarov lay in ruins, and I had to stay
like a tradesman."
Charles the FOURTH. LIFE STORY.

This pitiful view of the destroyed residence of the last Přemyslids and
the state of the Czech lands in general was revealed to the eyes of the eldest son of King John
Luxembourg on October 30, 1333, when, after a ten-year stay
in France he returned to his native Prague to serve as margrave
Moravian to take, in the absence of his father, the rule of the Czech Republic into his own hands and
Moravia. The Margrave was seventeen years old at that time.
His first wife, the same age as Carla Blanche Valois, also arrived in Prague.
sister of the French king Philip VI (the marriage between them was concluded in
at the age of seven, which was not a rarity at that time at court). A
since King Jan laid in his three Prague Castle along with everyone
treasures of the crown - even before it was destroyed by fire, and its own
he did not have a house in the city, the young margrave settled in the Old Town
- apparently in the house "U Shtupartu", about which it is known that he served
refuge and to his father when he returned from the battlefield or from knightly
tournaments in Prague (however, he usually didn’t stay here for long,
limiting itself to collecting money for the rental of lands of the Czech Crown and
newly acquired territories). However, the new ruler of the Czech lands
intended to settle permanently in Prague in order to better fulfill his duties
monarch. For this he had all the prerequisites: innate good
qualities, plenty of courage and youthful enthusiasm, as well as great for
that time education and cultural level acquired in France.
From there he brought his new name: May 16, 1316 - on his Day
birth - he was named at baptism Vaclav - in honor Grand Duke,
now he was returning home as Karl. He adopted this new name at his confirmation.
and it was under him that he later entered history.
Another, symbolic name "Father of his country", which first fell over
his coffin, determined the established ideas about the role of Charles IV in the Czech
stories. According to these ideas, this is an invariably majestic sovereign
in a formal robe with a golden crown on his head: then he signs
founding charter of the university - the oldest in Central
Europe, so that the knowledge-hungry inhabitants of his beloved kingdom
Czech “didn’t have to go to foreign thrones”; then he heads on
high on the throne is a brilliant assembly of imperial princes and electors; That,
kneeling, standing in quiet thoughtfulness in the Karlštejn chapel - in that
beautiful castle that he himself built along with numerous other
magnificent buildings.
The traces that Charles IV left in our capital alone are truly
indelible. We meet them at every step, without realizing it.
It is enough to walk through Charles Square, one of the largest
squares of Europe; just walk along the wonderful stone bridge,
spanning the Vltava, in which the spirit of France is still felt today,
from where Charles IV brought with him the famous architect Matthew from Arras;
just admire the panorama of Hradcany with the slender tower of the Cathedral of St.
Vita...
An integral part of Gothic Prague - this "poem of stone" -
is the university building Carolinum, the monasteries of Charles and Emauza,
rising with their towers above the surrounding neighborhoods, and many others
buildings that owe their current beauty to Charles IV. His stamp is on
founding charter of the New Prague City. Karl put it with his own hands
the first stone in the foundation of its fortress walls, and also freed its inhabitants
for a while from all taxes - in turn, everyone who bought
plot in the New Prague Town, was obliged to build on it within one and a half years
house...
However, not only the famous bridge is associated with the name of Charles IV,
University, Karlštejn, New Prague Town, St. Vita, Karlovy Vary and
so on and so forth. By order of the wise sovereign, to the Czech Republic from the famous wine
and the grapes of the French region Burgundy were brought and grafted here
vine. Charles IV supported the construction of ponds and took care of
the flourishing of the cities, which he bestowed with many rights and privileges; When
the interests of the kingdom and the crown were in jeopardy, he did not hesitate to speak out
against the arbitrariness of landowners, not only from the standpoint of the law, but in the case
necessity and from a position of strength...
If we set out to replace a history textbook with ourselves, which is by no means
is not included in our tasks, in listing Karl’s merits it would not be possible without
mention of the Golden Bull, without raising the Prague bishopric to
archbishopric or without expansion of the territories of the Czech Crown due to new
big powers. In all these and OTHERS affairs of state,
diplomatic and legislative character, Charles IV showed himself to be a monarch,
acting in the name of the scope and glory of the ancient kingdom he inherited
from their Přemyslid ancestors.
NOTHING HUMAN WAS ALIEN TO HIM. Let's put it aside
respect and look at Karl's personality a little differently. Let us remember, for example,
how, according to Neruda’s romance, he sat down with Bushek from Velgartits “to the oak
table”, at which - why not believe the poet? - they drank together
"Lots of cups and sang at the top of our lungs." Or like in royal attire
the sovereign was walking among the masons who were erecting the walls of the New City, and
had conversations with them - with understanding and knowledge of the matter. Yes, even in Czech
language!
Charles IV generally had a weakness for Czech, his native language.
Although all the important letters he published and his biography were written
in Latin, he insisted that in ordinary communication and office work
in institutions they wrote and spoke Czech. In the Golden Sylla, this
fundamental law of the "Holy Roman Empire", which was in force in
throughout its history, it was said that all officials in the empire, and even
the sons of German princes and electors must learn Czech. And although
all of Karl's wives were of foreign origin, the Czech language predominated and
at court. Particularly eloquent evidence of national consciousness
Charles is the introduction of Slavic liturgies in the Emauza built by him
monastery It is known that Charles IV gave the monastery "On the Slavs"
in particular, a unique gospel, the authorship of which is attributed to opat
Sasau monastery Prokop, which later came to Reims, where it became
a traditional prop for the coronation rites of French kings.
However, this is about another weakness of Karl, or rather, about his passion.
It is known that he collected relics, that is, the relics of saints, which he kept in
precious boxes - works of art made by the best goldsmiths
masters of that time. Less known is that Charles had numerous
collection of rare manuscripts and hand-written books of religious and
secular character (with them he later supplied the new university
library), and also that he extended his passion as a collector to
antique coins, cameos and natural minerals. About the size of all his collections,
containing, according to the inventory of 1379, more than 3,900 units,
"testifies the message that gives the result of the robbery of Sigismund: when
in 1422 he took the collections of his father and brother out of the country, he
500 carts were needed. “However, he did not have a chance to rejoice at the spoils for long,”
we learn from the book of the publishing house "Svoboda", dedicated to collecting,
- since already at the German Brod (now Havlickuv Brod) the carts were captured
Hussites."
Charles IV was also a man who certainly inherited a few drops
the restless blood of his father - a knight and adventurer. What
concerns his mother - Elisha Przemyslovna, then, according to what has come down to us
According to historical documents, she was also by no means phlegmatic. So
Thus, the state, diplomatic and human wisdom of the Czech
king and Roman Emperor Charles IV had to gradually mature as
It matures with age in every person. In his youth he was by no means
a monk, as evidenced not only by contemporaries (in the reliability of their
statements can sometimes be doubted, because, as you know, the Germans
did not like Charles IV, saying that he was a father to the Czechs, but a stepfather
Germans), but also, in particular, the dream that he mentions in his biography
the monarch himself. This is what he dreamed about on August 15, 1332 in the village of Torenzo
near Parma in Italy:
"When we were driving from Lucca to Parma with our father, we stopped
in a village whose name is Tarentum. It was on Sunday, Ascension Day
Our Lady And that night, when we were sleeping, we dreamed of an angel of God
stands on our left side, where we are lying, and pushed us to the side,
says: Get up and come with us. And we answer him in spirit: Master, we do not
we know how to go with you. And he lifted us up by the hair and lifted us high above
a great army that stood at the fortress, ready for battle. And the angel held us in
air above this army and addressed us: Look and see! And we look
another angel descended from heaven, waving a fiery sword in his hand, and sculpted one
in the midst of the army and cut off his male vessel with a sword. And he died, fatally
wounded man sitting on a horse. Then the angel holding us by the hair said: You know
Are you the one who was wounded to death by an angel? And we answered: We don’t know, sir,
We don’t know the place either. And he says: Let it be known to you that this is
the Viennese dolphin, who was so punished by God for the sin of adultery. That's why
Take care of yourself and tell your father to avoid such sins, otherwise
worse things will befall you."
This “dolphin of Vienne” was the Dauphin of Vienne, Charles’s cousin. Describing your
dream, Karl further reports that this cousin was really at the same
time wounded and soon died. One could say - an ordinary dream and faith
into dreams. But where does the “male vessel”, “sin of adultery” and serious
warning to Karl and his father? At the very least, this indicates that
too calm a conscience.
The fact remains that Charles is 1332 years old (and more late period,
when he - still a young Roman Emperor - Pope Clement VII
condemns for being too “free, unworthy and unsuitable for an emperor”
clothes) far from the sensible king of the fifties - seventies -
king of the period of his greatest political and diplomatic successes and
wise ruler of the Czech Republic and the entire “Holy Roman Empire”. He's far from it
still religious - sometimes to the point of hypocrisy: later his fanatical attitude towards
religious duties surprised even his contemporaries and was attributed to him
religious psychopathy inherited from his grandfather Wenceslas II. However, apparently
This is not the only or sufficient explanation.
Charles's religiosity may have been due in part to his position
Emperor of the "Holy Roman Empire", endowed by him with "God's grace",
feeling like “the hand of God on earth” and the protector of the church. And the church then
the time when feudalism reached its greatest flowering in our lands,
arrogated to itself the right not only to interfere in European politics, but also
without restrictions to control the thinking and views of all members of society, not
excluding crowned heads. So Charles IV, no matter how superior he was to his
contemporaries in their statesmanship, greatness of spirit, education and
cultural level, still remained a son of his time, in which religion
played a dominant role in the entire spiritual sphere.
On the one hand, Charles IV supported the church in every possible way, enlarged it
possessions, founded monasteries and churches, trusted representatives of the church
high government positions (in the Czech Republic, hierarchs belonged to the largest
nobles - feudal lords), including the post of Czech chancellor, which he was in
in particular, the Litomysl Bishop Jan of Stršeda. However, on the other hand,
His religious tolerance amazes him. (For example, preacher Jan Milic
from Kromeriz - predecessor of Hus and critic of universal moral
the decline of the church and clergy, the sale of indulgences - did not suffer
no punishment, although he called his king the Antichrist).
These apparent contradictions, complementing the image of Charles IV, nevertheless
only confirm what has already been said, namely: that even he could not,
in essence, to step over the boundaries of the era that formed him and which he
represented at the highest rung of the social ladder. At the same time these
contradictory sides foreshadow the crisis of feudal society
- a crisis that is still timidly manifested in the sermons of Jan Milic,
Konrad Waldhauser and other critics of church abuses like
underground flow. The time when it will splash out with full force on
surface, not far away: its first explosion will befall the reign of its sons
Charles Wenceslas and, above all, Sigismund.
THE SON ALSO DOESN'T RUN FROM THE FIGHT. Charles IV went down in history as the king of the world and
peace of mind. He knew how to state and diplomatic arts and achieve
more than weapons. And not at all because he was afraid of battle. Battles and fights
- greater or lesser - he experienced more than
enough. In the ranks of the French knightly cavalry, Charles took part in
last battle father at Crecy, although he behaved there and not as bravely as his
blind father. However, the fact that he knew how to resist enemies even with a sword in his hand,
Charles proved this long before this battle. For example, in Italy, with which King John
made fantastic plans that ultimately collapsed. And maybe,
precisely because he was convinced from his own experience how transient
conquests won by the sword, his son became such a staunch advocate of peace.
Thanks to skillful negotiations and thoughtful marriage policy, he managed
annex Brandenburg to the lands of the Czech Crown (unfortunately, his son
Sigismund sold it at the Diet of Constance to the Nuremberg burgrave Friedrich
Hohenzollern, predecessor of the founder of the dynasty of Prussian kings and
German emperors), Svidnik, vast territories in Saxony, the Palatinate and
etc. And all this without bloodshed, without the suffering that comes with it
population every war.
Nevertheless, Charles IV knew how to take a fight. We can read about this in
biography of Karl, attractive in its modesty. This is what he writes about the battle
for the fortress of San Felice, in which he participated as a sixteen-year-old youth and
where he was knighted for bravery:
“Then we held council and went out into the field and pitched camp there, but they came
there on the day of St. Catherine from the city of Parma, and on that day the fortress should
was to surrender into the hands of the enemy. And at noon with two thousand helmets and six
We began the battle with the enemies with thousands of foot soldiers, and there were the same number of them, or even
more. And the battle lasted from noon until sunset. And on both sides there were
almost all the horses were beaten, and we were almost amazed, and our horse, on which
We were sitting, and she also fell. And we were torn away from ours, both standing and looking around
around us, we saw that we were almost defeated and in a desperate situation. But
Lo and behold, at that very hour our enemy began to run away with his banners, and
first of all the Mantians, and others followed. And so by grace
God's help, we won victory over our enemies and eight hundred helmets, we fled
those who converted were taken prisoner, and five thousand foot soldiers were killed. And with this victory
The fortress of St. Felix was liberated. And in this battle they dedicated us,
together with two hundred heroic men, to the dignity of knighthood."
Although this memoir was written many years later and with the consciousness
time has passed, yet one can feel the author’s pride in him for the fact that in
early youth he showed himself good fighter and was worthy of knighthood
his father's reputation.
Karl proved his fighting spirit in mature age when his head is already
was decorated with a royal and imperial crown, and the neck began to bend downwards
an illness, or perhaps the consequences of a spinal injury in youth. Entered into
legend, for example, how in June 1356 the then forty-year-old Czech king
he himself went with his army on a campaign against the Zhampakh fortress in order to
punish the robber knight Jan from Smoin, nicknamed Shell, who robbed
on the roads of passing merchants and peaceful people, and, despite the warning
king, did not give up his robbery business. Karl took the fortress, and Shell
sentenced to death by hanging. This is a decisive intervention
gained the king such a reputation that after him, as the chronicle says,
such calm was established in the Czech Republic and throughout the empire as in no other
other country.
The chronicles, however, brought to us other examples - as they say,
the other side of the coin, when Karl had to resist the machinations and
conspiracies of hidden enemies. When Charles IV returned from his coronation in 1355
in Rome, he stopped in Pisa to receive honors from the local townspeople
(Pisa belonged to Lombardy, which recognized Charles as its supreme
ruler). Karl had no idea that the city was secretly preparing a riot against
him. The conspirators set fire to the town hall where the emperor was staying at night.
together with the Empress (Anna Svidnitskaya). Fortunately, both managed to escape from
burning building. In the morning, the rest of the coronation party dealt with the rioters.
the emperor's retinue (the retinue initially consisted of 4,000 Czech cavalry, however
Most of it had already been dissolved by this time). Rebel leaders
lost their heads, and the emperor lost one hundred and fifty of his knights.
The attempt to poison Karl with poison will be discussed later.
THE SORROWS OF CHARLES IV. "We, Charles IV, Emperor of Rome, King of Bohemia,
Germanic, Lombardian, Arelatsky, Duke of Brandenburg, Margrave
Moravian...".
This is approximately how the monarch's letters began in his last period.
life. Maybe this initial clause sounded a little different, not in this
matter: we just wanted to emphasize how great the power of Charles was, what
he owned a vast empire. Of course, he did not rule alone, but with the help
advisors, attorneys and high government officials. But I chose them
with a happy hand. Even Francesco Petrarch, the Italian poet and humanist,
a great admirer of Charles, he confessed that the emperor was surrounded
themselves as people of such a high spirit, as if ancient Athens were their homeland.
In the absence of the king or during his illness, they governed those entrusted to him
lands practically themselves.
So, during the period of illness.
For the Czech king and the Roman emperor were also tormented by various ailments
and illness, family worries, internal strife. And he was a Man of Meat and
bones.
Charles IV experienced his first great disappointment in his youth, being
Margrave of Moravia, a few months after his return from
France to Prague. Then, with the enthusiasm characteristic of every youth,
took on a difficult task: to return back what he frivolously squandered
father prone to adventure - trust in the throne, property pledged
crown, order in official affairs and in the governance of the entire country. His efforts
bore fruit and were perceived favorably until the moment
it did not affect the interests of some Czech feudal lords who enjoyed frequent
the absence of a king and those who profited at the expense of the people. They made sure
so that rumors reach the king that Charles wants to seize his throne. Ian believed
and deprived his son of the position of ruler of the country. With a sense of injustice, Karl
went to his brother in Tyrol. He returned to the Czech Republic only in 1338, on
own funds having bought from his father the position of governor of the Czech lands -
King Jan at that time, somewhere in Lithuania, was converting pagans to the Christian faith.
During his life, Charles IV was widowed three times. About the reasons for the death of his wives -
Blanche of Valois (d. 1348), Anne of the Palatinate (d. 1353) and Anna Świdnicka
(d. 1362) - we do not have sufficient materials to allow
at least roughly establish a diagnosis of their death. She could step on
as a result of the most common diseases, which, at the low level at which
There was medicine at that time, they were practically incurable. But your spouse
survived by Eliska Pomorzanska - judging by the sources, the woman exclusively
good health and masculine strength. Widowed, she lived the rest of her life in her
estate in Hradec Kralove.
Charles IV became the Czech king and Roman emperor at the age of thirty.
age. Being a wise and prudent monarch, he had a great influence
not only on Czech, but also on German and Italian history. Therefore, before
We have received information about his life from both domestic and foreign sources.
sources. In our time, mainly in the 19th and 20th centuries, it was given
a lot of attention in the monographs of Czech historians (Josef Shusta, Josef Klik,
Jiří Spevaček and others), as well as foreign ones (Konstantin Hefler, Emil Verunski,
Gerald Welsh and others).
Many of them agree that in the life of the Czech king and the Roman
Emperor at a certain moment a visible turning point occurs, and it is stated
significant difference between the behavior of a young prince and a mature king. Case
here not in the usual opposition of youth and old age that exists in
the life of every person, changing with age. It's about deeper
change - a change in the character and entire personality of the king, one pole of which
represents the cheerful, cheerful disposition of the young prince, and the other pole -
the already mentioned religious hypocrisy and some kind of gloomy importance
aging emperor.
According to one of the leading researchers of the biography of Charles IV, Joseph
Shusta, this turning point dates back to 1350. Everything indicates that
the turning point was associated with an event that at one time excited not only
Prague, but also all of Europe: serious and sudden illness Emperor. TO
Unfortunately, chroniclers contemporary to Charles speak about the nature of this disease
differently. There is little talk about this in the literature. And yet let's
let's try to come in now
VISIT TO THE BED OF THE SICK EMPEROR AND KING and establish a diagnosis,
which has not yet been determined with precision. Instead of anamnesis and
examinations at our disposal are only meager information from chronicles
the patient's contemporaries. For ease of orientation, we will select from them all that
concerns our topic.
Charles IV suddenly fell ill in October 1350. At that time he was
thirty-four years old. The illness was serious. The king had to refuse
planned trips and stay in Prague continuously for almost six months. In January 1351
year, he, however, visits the Bezdez fortress and Zittau, but from a trip to
Southern Germany is forced to abstain. In 1351, the king had difficulty getting ready
in Budejovice for a diplomatic meeting with the Austrian Duke Albrecht.
The emperor's illness caused concern at the court of the Pope in Avignon,
and also in Germany, where in February 1351 Archbishop Gerlach of Mainz
even consults with the Count Palatine of the Rhine Rudolf about measures in case of death
Carla. Similar measures were also discussed by the Swabian cities - and much earlier,
back in November 1350. Charles IV himself was aware of the seriousness of his illness:
he writes to his great-uncle, Bishop Baldwin of Trier and instructs him
management of some affairs of the empire.
What was the disease that threatened his life? It was paralysis
all four limbs, as can be learned from the chronicle of Heinrich Taub from
Selbach. Another chronicler who went down in history under the symbol
A follower of Matthew of Neuenburg, defines the disease as “particularly severe and
constant powerlessness", and the authors of both sources express surprise at
about the fact that later complete healing finally occurred. The paralysis has passed
finally somewhere in August 1351, that is, the illness lasted in general
complexity for about ten months.
Thus, it was a question of sudden onset tetraparesis, or
tetraplegia, which means paralysis of all four limbs, the course of which
was at first frighteningly rapid, but after less than six months the matter
things are getting better. Based on the then prevailing ideas about the character
disease, its etiology, chroniclers judge that its cause was poisoning.
Follower of Matthew of Neuenburg accuses of attempt on the king's life
Czech nobility, from whom Charles IV confiscated estates that had previously been pledged
crown Matteo Vilani expresses bewilderment that no one was punished, but
therefore he comes to the conclusion that the queen was involved in the matter (Anna
Palatinate): to keep the king's love, she allegedly gave him a drink
a drug that left the king seriously ill. Researcher Werunski, with
on the other hand, claims that in southern Germany poisoning was suspected
brother of King John Henry.
This etiological interpretation is completely in the spirit of that time,
when poisoning was one of the most popular means, how to get rid of
from an inconvenient opponent. Besides. Charles IV nineteen years earlier in
Pavia was indeed poisoned. Returning home on the first day of Easter with
services, the king, according to his own recollections, saw that “the servants
got sick, especially those who ate before lunch... I, writes Karl, did not
who had breakfast that morning, sat at the table and didn’t want to eat, and we were all
scared. And so, looking around, I saw a handsome and strong man,
which was unknown to me. And this man walked in front of the table,
pretending to be dumb. And having become suspicious of him, I ordered him to be taken under
guard. And after much torture, he admitted on the third day that he was in the kitchen
mixed poison into my food at the instigation of Azza, the deputy of the Milanese count."
However, modern historians are skeptical about the idea of ​​poisoning as
cause of Charles IV's illness. We also have to abandon this idea. Moreover
not only because in the Czech Republic there was no reason for a conspiracy against such
popular monarch here: and mainly because the character itself
illness is evidence against poisoning. It's impossible to imagine the poison
known in the fourteenth century, which would have caused tetraplegia lasting
ten months and finally ending with the complete recovery of the patient.
Therefore, Shusta suggests gouty polyarthritis, for which
Characterized by simultaneous inflammation of several joints.
This assumption is acceptable to the extent that Charles IV really
suffered from gout. In the Great French Chronicle, written approximately
circa 1380, contains news of Charles's official visit to France in
1378. The event is described through the eyes of an eyewitness in reportage form and is given
in a fairly complete presentation. Pierre is listed as the author of the description
d "Agreman, chancellor of the French king Charles V. From here we learn that
Emperor Charles IV, then sixty-two years old (and just a few
months before his death), from time to time he could not walk from pain, and his
had to be carried on a special stretcher. In the Paris Louvre it was worn in
chair. However, when the pain subsided, the emperor was able to move freely. ABOUT
that gout was the cause of these difficulties is evidenced by her
intermittent character - intermittance. Palacki also mentions that
Charles IV "was tormented by gout." However, the final proof is
testimony of the anthropologist Jindřich Matejka, who in 1928 studied
the remains of the king during the opening of his tomb. The anthropologist discovered undeniable
traces of gout on the spine and long bones.
ATTEMPT TO DIAGNOSIS. Does this prove, however, that the disease of 1350
Was it gouty polyarthritis? The only thing that speaks in favor
this assumption, it is the fact that from then on the emperor began
characteristic flexion of the neck, described by contemporaries and captured
artist in the chapel of St. Catherine in Karlštejn Castle. Matteo Vilani,
who saw Charles IV five years after his illness, claims that the king
bends forward when walking. It is possible, however, that such a posture
developed by the king gradually.
At the same time, gout - whether it is a one-time attack or chronic
the disease never manifests itself as complete tetraplegia. paralysis of all
four limbs. Of all the forms of gout described by the professor
Frantisek Lenoch, none of them manifests as complete paralysis. Moreover, neither
one disease of the bones or joints does not end in complete paralysis, which
would go away completely afterwards.
Sudden onset and gradual complete healing of paralysis
indicate, on the contrary, in favor of a clear neurogenic disorder.
Paralysis of the limbs can be caused either by damage to the peripheral
motor neurons (emanating from the spinal cord), or damage
brain, brainstem or upper spinal cord. Wherein
in the first case, flaccid paralysis occurs, weakening the muscles, and in the second -
spastic paralysis, causing muscles to stiffen. However, spastic
paralysis of all four limbs as a result of brain damage is associated with
such a severe disease of the central nervous system that it is inconceivable that
without modern treatment, it could pass without a trace, as happened in the case
Charles IV. The only exception would be multiple sclerosis of the brain.
However, this is a recurrent disease. And Charles IV lived another 28 years without
he showed characteristic signs of this disease Chroniclers are sure
would not fail to leave us relevant evidence of this.
In the same way, damage to the spinal cord in its various parts
leads to various types paralysis In the area of ​​the cervical vertebrae it can
lead, as a result of pressure from a tumor or intervertebral disc, to
spastic paralysis of the upper and lower extremities, and damage in the area
the lower part of the cervical vertebrae - to mild paralysis of the upper and spastic,
paraplegia. This case, however, might be probable
only then if complete healing had not subsequently occurred. At
damage to the vessels of the spinal cord (with softening of the spinal cord) also
It is impossible to imagine the complete disappearance of all signs of the disease.
So, if we exclude degenerative lesions that entail
persistent and worsening diseases over time, inflammation remains
nerves and spinal nerve roots, which can cause
complete temporary Paralysis. We are talking about inflammation caused by various
poisons, bacterial and infectious, which can have a number of causes.
Moreover, this paralysis is weak, symmetrical, often complete, and almost always
temporary. It is this diagnosis that is most fully answered by the evidence
chroniclers about the illness of Charles IV.
Although polyradicular neuritis is a disease that does not entail
fatal, it can nevertheless become life-threatening due to
damage to the muscles of the respiratory tract. In any case, it is a disease that can
last for months. It was this disease that could lead to paralysis
all four limbs, with an initial aggressive course and a complete final
recovery, or almost complete, because it cannot be ruled out that
curvature of the neck could be incomplete paralysis (residual paresis) of the cervical
muscles. And although we have no confirmation that in 1350 Charles IV suffered precisely
No other disease explains polyradikuloneuritis with such completeness
all the symptoms that Charles IV exhibited and his complete recovery.
WHAT DID THE EXHUMATION SHOW? In modern times, in 1978, the remains of Charles IV
were again exhumed and again studied by a commission headed by a scientific
National Museum employee Emmanuel Vlcek. A member of this commission was
and the author of these lines. It turned out that on the left side of the cervical vertebrae there is visible
a clear trace of hemorrhage pressing outside at the level of the third to fifth cervical
vertebrae This external hemorrhage could cause, through vascular
changes or direct pressure, paralysis - and at the same time could not
affect the king's health.
In this regard, speculation arose about the adventures of Karl, not too much
marked by official history. We are talking about participating in tournaments under someone else’s
name, which Charles IV allegedly undertook when he was already the Czech king and
Roman emperor. The Pope's remark mentioned here regarding
the clothes of young Charles are also sometimes cited as an argument of frivolity and
the king's adventurism in his youth. In those days, such a wound could cause
a fall from a horse or, more likely, a blow from a spear.
However, it is unlikely that in the fourteenth century anyone succeeded
not only survive after cervical spinal cord injury, but even
get well. The spinal injury itself may not have caused
consequences or cause temporary paralysis, however, with paralysis,
the duration of which would exceed six months and which would pass
subsequently in itself, it is inconceivable that it could be a consequence
spinal cord injuries, especially in the cervical vertebrae. It is possible
however, that Charles IV's spinal injury may have caused
the place of least resistance where inflammation then occurs
spinal cord trunks. This possibility is enhanced by the fact that in 1371
Charles IV fell ill again with a serious illness that lasted four months,
in which we only know that “doctors, like 21 years ago, doubted
in his recovery." It is known that polyradiculoneuritis, inflammation of the trunk
peripheral nerve, sometimes gives relapses. Was this a new attack?
Pressure on the spinal cord of a tumor or intervertebral disc could not
to return to normal as quickly as happened in the case of the first illness,
or would certainly appear again during the next 27 years of life
king. In the fourteenth century there could already have been infectious or toxic
causes of inflammation, and if they are not mentioned in historical sources,
so it was probably because they were rare; and today it's not like that
already a common disease. And at the level of medieval medicine, we can learn about
it only in those rare cases when it befell the crowned lady.
Charles IV died in November 1378 from "jumping fever" - rather
everything from bronchopneumonia. As established in 1978, its cause was
fracture of the femoral neck.
Be that as it may, as far as we have been able to establish, the "case of Charles IV" -
one of the first - if not the first - case of strong suspicion
polyradiculoneuritis.
This is where we can put an end to our modest contribution to history.
illness of the greatest Czech king. And although we opened the door to you
the "non-royal" side of his life, we hope you will still agree that this
did not in any way detract from the role that Charles IV played in such an exceptional way
played in our history.

WENCLAUS IV
"As a child he became a king; as a child, unfortunately, he also ruled as an adult
age: complacent and fair, until unbridled passions drove him
true path, and he began to reign not as a husband, but according to his own whim and
wayward, like everyone else weak person who wants to look strong."
Frantisek PALACKI. HISTORY OF THE CZECH PEOPLE IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC AND MORAVIA

Wenceslas IV clearly refutes the proverb about the apple falling not far from
apple trees He became an apple that rolled quite far from Charles’ tree.
However, let's be fair: being the son of a great father is never easy. From
Such a son is usually expected to not only equal his father’s greatness, but also
will surpass him.
First of all, Vaclav did not inherit his father’s tenacity,
prudence and diplomatic talent. At the same time, his image
conveyed to us by history and traditions is largely distorted. The fact is that
it is conditioned and sometimes eclipsed, dramatic events that era
full of contradictions and twists that are characteristic primarily of the second
half of the reign of Wenceslas IV, which lasted forty-one years. The question arises:
but any other ruler, not excluding the famous father Wenceslas, would have been able to
to adequately cope with your mission in such an era?
On the problematic nature of a fair characterization of this Czech king
objectively indicated by the same Palacki who writes:
"On the moral character and entire personality of Wenceslas IV, unfortunately, none of
his contemporaries did not leave anything faithful and from nature written
image; Fragmentary judgments and stories have reached us, mostly
biased and belonging to people who, personally communicating with the king,
spoke about him based on their own experience and their own views. Those
the same passions that, during his 41-year reign, caused
the great division in which Western Christianity still finds itself,
gave rise to contradictory conclusions about the character and behavior
King Wenceslas both among his contemporaries and among his descendants. This led to
that if, on the one hand, most writers portrayed him as low
drunkard and senseless brawler, then, on the other hand, there were voices
who noted in him a very intelligently thinking martyr who succumbed to his
the misfortune of the hatred of evil people..."
TWO POPES AND THREE VOICES. The reign of Wenceslas IV (1378--1479)
was anything but an idyll. When, as an eighteen-year-old boy, he
ascended the Czech throne, the position of the Czech state was largely
wonderful. Its territories, thanks to Charles IV, almost doubled; Czech
the king was considered at the same time the king of Rome (he became emperor
only after the coronation in Rome); the international prestige of the Czech Republic has increased
kingdom thanks to the "marriage" policy of Father Wenceslas: the youngest son of Charles
Sigismund received the Hungarian crown as his wife's dowry, and his daughter Anna married
for the English king Richard II. After accession to the throne with his right hand
the young Czech king Wenceslas IV had a crown council headed by the prince
Přemysław Teszynski, which included many experienced zemstvo and imperial
officials, in particular Jan from Stršeda.
On the other hand, from the very beginning there were also unfavorable
circumstances. First of all, the double papacy, which had already poisoned
last days the life of Father Vaclav. At that time, the Catholics were led by two
Popes - one in Rome, the second - in Avignon, and almost the entire church was
engulfed in deep moral decay. Its culmination can be called
pontificate of Antipope Urban VI (1378--1389), on whose account (or rather,
to whose illness) dozens of crimes against
humanity, the insidious murders of bishops and cardinals, and even more often -
accusing them of heresy and condemning them to be burned, not to mention sold
indulgences, prebends and other ways of accumulating church wealth. About
Urban VI knows that he suffered from delusions of grandeur, aggravated by
mania of persecution that drove him from murder to murder. He was ill
paranoia - a chronic disease that is not very common among
mentally ill. Today it is even treatable. However, paranoia
What befalls a person with great power can turn out to be bad for others
a real disaster, as happened in the case of Urban VI.
At first, Wenceslas IV sided with the Pope, which led to a break
with France, which, of course, stands in the position of the Pope of Avignon. One for
the other was followed by wars and clashes within the "sacred Roman-Germanic
empires", in which Vaclav was constantly involved. In addition, pope,
which Wenceslas recognized, refused to confirm his claims to the Roman
throne. Therefore, Wenceslas IV demanded (being not alone in this) that
the problem of the double papacy was solved by the resignation of both popes and the election
new, only dad. The University of Prague opposed this,
more precisely, its German majority, which continued to remain on the side
Pope The consequence of this was the publication in January 1409 by Wenceslas IV
the so-called Decree of Kutnogorsk, according to which foreigners were taken away,
and the Czech people were given votes. Thus, Vaclav completed his work
great father (at the founding of the university, his academic society
divided into nationalities: Bavarians, Saxons, Poles and Czechs, that is
two Slavic people against two German ones. However, as a result
the gradual Germanization of Silesia, the “Polish” voice essentially became
the third German voice, and the Czech people thus found themselves in their
own university in the minority).
Although the motive for this decision of Vaclav was not clearly expressed
patriotism or national identity as it has sometimes been interpreted
romantic and Renaissance literature, publication of the Decree of Kutnogorsk,
undoubtedly was the most significant act of his reign. Whoever developed it
this document, the main thing remains that Vaclav signed it. Many places
This “Decree” has been confirmed more than once in our history.
For example:
"Since the German people have no right to live in
Kingdom of Bohemia, and, moreover, in various matters of Prague education...
arrogated to himself three votes in decisions, while the Czech people,
the kingdom's true heir, has the only vote... we command you
by this decree strictly and imperiously... so that the Czech people in all councils,
courts, exams, elections and in any other cases and proceedings... to
three votes were always allowed and henceforth and forever enjoyed the privilege
these voices..."
The publication of the decree contributed to the shedding of Prague in those years, since together
with professors and students from Prague to Leipzig and Krakow moved and
many German merchants, artisans and officials, one way or another
previously enjoyed the privilege of “three votes”.
Unlike his father, who was on better terms with
the Catholic Church, in particular with its higher clergy, and in fact
relied on it, Vaclav from the very beginning of his reign entered with the highest
clergy in disputes. Moreover, it would be a simplification to say that the motives for these disputes
were purely economic in nature. Their culmination was a spicy
clash between the king and the Prague archbishop and major feudal lord John of
Jenstein on the issue of the Kladrub monastery, on whose estates Wenceslas IV
wanted to found a new episcopate in Pilsen. When the archbishop violated these
plans, the king became so excited that Jan had to flee from his anger from
Prague.
It is not surprising because the views of church circles on the king were
completely negative; Moreover, we should not forget that during his
reign, two major figures of the future Hussite revolution appear on the stage
-- Jan Hus and Jan Zizka. Therefore, in the eyes of the Roman Church, Wenceslas appears slightly
Isn't he a half-heretic?
FIRST - ONE PRAISE... We have already said that Wenceslas IV did not inherit
from his great father a whole series of necessary qualities. But he had the quality
which Charles IV clearly lacked. While still a young man, the king surrounded himself
advisors from the lower noble strata. His choice was successful: they were like
usually capable, loyal and devoted people to their king. Wenceslas IV trusted
them high government positions (at the end of his life he brought him closer to the court and
Jan Žižka from Trocnov), which, of course, displeased the noble
nobility, headed by the noble family of Rozmberks. In conspiracies
The archbishop did not lag behind against Wenceslas. Things went so far that
the king was captured twice and kept in custody at the Castle, and later in
Vienna. They tried to poison him more than once. High nobility always sympathized and
Vaclav's brother Sigismund entered into an alliance with her, and with him most of the others
relatives of the king.
So let's return to Frantisek Palacky's assessment: historical
sources from church circles did not forgive Vaclav Archbishop Jan from
Jenstein and Vicar General Jan from Pomuk, and indirectly Jan Hus and
Jan Zizka; the Germans, in turn, did not forget the Kutnogorsk Decree,
infringed on their rights, and the higher nobility reproached him for preferring the lower
nobility and knighthood. The inconsistency of these views had, to
Unfortunately, it also influenced Czech historical science.
We are, however, interested in the personality of King Wenceslas IV primarily from the point of view
from the doctor's point of view - Vaclav's illness, or more precisely, the gradual deterioration of his health
and first of all his neuropsychic state and his behavior as
man and as a ruler are, of course, closely interconnected.
The beginning of Wenceslas's reign is marked in history with nothing but laudatory reviews.
In the "Chronicle" of the Brabant diplomat Edmund de Dinter, who personally knew
Wenceslas IV ("Chronicle" written in 1445-1447), one can read that
the Czech king was “a monarch who not only knew how to speak pleasantly, but also
educated." Along with the Czech language, Vaclav was fluent in German, and in
in his library, religious books coexisted with works of German
Minnesingers. During the reign of Wenceslas, a great deal happened in the Czech Republic.
cultural revolution. Czech writers no longer write exclusively in Latin,
The number of authors writing in the rich, beautiful Czech language is growing. Jan Hus
invents the so-called diacritic letter, replacing the inconvenient
reading ligature (still existing, in particular, in the Polish language)
diacritics used above letters.
The young king shows himself well at first and in governing the country,
defending law and justice. The Chronicler mentions that "if in his days
reign, someone carried gold on his head or went his own way, no one would have
offended." This could be said at that time about a rare European country.
Vaclav’s walks around Prague, dressed in a simple dress, became a legend,
during which he allegedly monitored whether butchers and bakers were deceiving the people.
(The real reason for the royal “masquerade” could, of course, be much more
more prosaically: he simply did not want to be recognized when he returned from
nightly wanderings to his residence in the Old City).
At the same time, he really protected the townspeople from the tyranny of the nobility, and
traders - Jews - from persecution.
Soon, however, everything changed. “Later,” writes researcher F.M.
Vartosh, - Vaclav limited himself to simple raids and Goodwill. This happened
few where the further away, the greater the need for state
a husband of such caliber and such working energy as the deceased was
Emperor." And again about Wenceslas: "In the morning he said “yes”, and in the evening - “no.”
This is about the period that followed the first imprisonment of Vaclav by the so-called
noble community, and his overthrow from the Roman throne, on which he
replaced by Sigismund. About the period when Vaclav's cousin Jošt is everywhere
proclaims that the Czech Republic will soon have a new king. With time
Vaclav's indifference and apathy increase; o" is indifferent to
that in Poland, Germany and Italy the Czech Republic is spoken of as a country of heretics; Not
protests vigorously against the imprisonment of Huss in Constance (although this
and was primarily the concern of Sigismund, who, being emperor
Roman, exposed Gusa safe conduct), does not make any preparation for
defense in case of a crusade against the “heretic” Czech Republic. In a word,
last years The reign of Wenceslas IV was marked by a lack of any interest in
matters that should have interested him most.
An expressive feature of Vaclav’s character was his exceptional
hot temper. It first appeared in a clash with Archbishop Jan of
Yenstein and his supporters. Vaclav's aggressiveness, allegedly
contemporary chroniclers, in the affects of anger knew no bounds, especially
when he learned that all his efforts had ended in failure. As
"evidence" of his cruelty is a fact, possibly fictitious), that
when someone (probably from the circles of the higher clergy) wrote on the wall: “Vaclav,
second Nero,” the king allegedly added: “If I haven’t been there before, then I will.”
WHAT CAUSED THE CHANGE? So, what, in addition to the usual royal concerns and
failures was the reason why the king's character changed so clearly in
the worst side is that Vaclav lost control of himself, often succumbed to anger and
- in the end - apathy? Although it is difficult to consider objective judgments about
that a promising ruler suddenly turned into a cruel monarch,
"the destroyer of trust, who consults with demons" (unnamed
clergyman close to the Cathedral of St. Vita), or the characterization of Vaclav
as a “wild man” and “terrible-looking” (Augustinian monk from Regensburg
Ondrej), there is still a lot of indisputable evidence. In particular,
in 1400, the Electors considered Wenceslas in Oberlenstein a man "useless and
lazy, completely unsuited to the Roman Empire" (Another question -
how much the same electors corrected the matter with Sigismund).
Personality formation occurs, as is known, in childhood. When
Charles IV and his wife Anna Swidnitskaya was born on February 26, 1361 in
Nuremberg, the desired heir, the father was, of course, infinitely happy. He
gave freedom to the prisoners and sent gold to Aachen - the place of his coronation
weighing as much as a newborn. Already at the age of two, Vaclav was crowned
(against the will of Archbishop Arnošt of Pardubice) as the Czech king, and
his father unwisely spoiled him in the future - for example, at the age of 15 he was
declared king of Rome. On the other hand, Vaclav was deprived of his maternal
worries - his mother died when the child was not even two years old.
After the death of his father, Vaclav was left alone in the Luxembourg family.
His half-brother Sigismund was invariably unfriendly towards him. WITH
with minor exceptions they behaved in a similar way towards Vaclav and
other relatives.
Then another enemy enters Vaclav's life - alcohol. At first, how
Usually, the passion for it does not go beyond the bounds of secular customs. Later, by
testimony of Enea Silvio Piccolomini (Pope Pius II), Czech
the king once said that if he had fought in Italy, he “would have taken only
wine".
Vaclav's outbursts of anger were also associated with alcohol. In Edmund's Chronicle
de Dintera who, as we have already said, was personally acquainted with the king and in
at the beginning of his reign noted the education of Wenceslas, you can read
the following: "When he drank to excess, he became ferocious and in this
was in a depraved and dangerous state."
It is difficult to say what the Brabant chronicler understood by the concept
"corrupt". However, the question arises: what was it - manifestations
uncontrollable anger or pathological affects of anger inherent in alcoholics?
As you know, the decline of inhibitions and the “affect of the moment” are the most common
symptoms of alcoholism.
It is also a reliable fact that Vaclav’s alcoholism intensified. Some
contemporaries claim that this was due to two poisoning attempts,
after which Vaclav complained of a constant “burning” in his throat.
However, stories about angry dogs,
with which Vaclav allegedly loved to poison people, or about the skin on which the executioner
allegedly wrote down the names of the victims of the royal wrath. All this is already confirmed
the Augustinian monk quoted here. We repeat again that the chroniclers,
most of whom were from the clergy, clearly did not differ
sympathies for Wenceslas, who had antagonized the high clergy. All this,
however, does not change anything in the fact that Vaclav’s anger affects
pathological in nature and could well correspond to the picture of chronic
alcoholism, in favor of which there are many facts.
So, were these simple affects of anger or was this how it manifested itself?
organic brain disease?
Testimony of Wenceslas's contemporary, the Opata-Augustinian Rudolf from
Zagani does not skimp on the harshest words addressed to Vaclav: according to him, he
was "not so much a king as a cannibal in the kingdom of the Czechs." Opat Rudolf,
no doubt shows by this characteristic hatred of the king, who
spoke out harshly against the church hierarchy in Wroclaw. It's interesting that the
Rudolf compared Wenceslas IV with his contemporary Charles VI, the French
a king who went down in history under the nickname Mad.
Along with the affects of anger, it is also necessary to take into account Vaclav’s apathy,
developed in recent years. "He could not decide on any action and
drowned his bitterness in wine,” writes about the behavior of Wenceslas after his deposition
from the Roman throne, the German historian Mahilek. This inability to act
progressed over time.
Even without falling under the influence of those negatively disposed towards Vaclav
church, German and high society sources, based on indisputable
historical facts it can be argued that this Czech king suffered
alcoholic dementia (dementia) - a common consequence of chronic
alcoholism. Moreover, we have reason to believe that Wenceslas IV had
the nervous system is disturbed.
DISEASE AND "WHITE MICE". According to the data we have,
Wenceslas IV was seriously ill twice. He first fell ill in 1393 in Vienna.
It is known that the disease was dangerous, but its signs are nowhere to be found.
described. Sources give only the vague “mortally ill” and the fact
about recovery. In all likelihood, it was a matter of poisoning. At the same time with
king, the same illness befell the Bavarian Duke Friedrich, who 4
December of the same year died, Wenceslas IV was still struggling with death on December 7th.
By all accounts, both rulers were poisoned. There could be no epidemic
speech, since no one except them fell ill at this time and in this place.
More detailed information has reached us about the second serious illness
Wenceslas IV, which occurred fifteen years later, in 1408, in Prague. Then
The king suffered from paralysis of all four limbs (tetraplegia). Kurial Detrich
describes the king’s illness this way: “He could not move his arms or legs, and his
had to be carried or carried on the back." So, the king moved in a carriage
or he was carried by lackeys. He was finally healed by the king's personal physician Albik from
Unichova, who left us the following testimony about this: “I, Albik,
prescribed a regime for King Wenceslas, and this helped him a lot, so he soon
was able to walk and ride a horse." So, some time later (it is unknown how
long - weeks or months?), the king could walk and ride.
What kind of “regime” was this? Albik reports that it was the king who received.
From point of view modern medicine it's hard to imagine healing with
with the help of rose water and oil balm, (rather, a spontaneous
relief), but to Albik’s credit it must be said that he managed to keep
king from ordinary alchemical practices.
It is noteworthy that Wenceslas IV was struck in 1408 by almost the same
in the same way as his father in 1350. However, etiology (origin and causes)
Vaclav's illness is completely different. Karl's disease is inflammation of the nerves and their
roots - lasted ten months, after which complete healing occurred. IN
At the same time, upon examination of his skeleton, it was found that Charles IV
suffered an injury (in battle? at a tournament?), which caused paravertebral
an outpouring that pressed from the outside on the cervical vertebrae. This could also lead to
Carla has tetraplegia (paralysis of all four limbs). Vaclav has about this
etiology is out of the question. Unlike his father, he did not receive military service
education and almost never (with the only exception when the king
led the army, but the battle never happened) did not fight. Thus,
the cause of Vaclav's tetraplegia, which finally subsided, could be inflammation
nerves due to alcoholism or the so-called Korsakoff's disease, with
which, as people say, “white mice” appear. The word "contract"
in the description could indicate a spastic, central
quadriplegia, but it means not only “tightened”, but also “flaccid”
(atrophy?), and in addition, spastic (convulsive) quadroplegia in such
short term would not return to normal enough for the patient to walk and
ride a horse, whatever the reason. So almost
we can certainly say that we were talking about flaccid quadriplegia,
peripheral, most likely caused by alcoholic polyneuritis.
Later
THE KING'S FACE ALSO CHANGES. It is noteworthy that the pretty young man,
as we know the king from the bust in the triforium of the Church of St. Vita, sleek mature
the husband that Vaclav appears to us on the Old Town Mostecka Tower,
according to modern chronicles, he finally turns into a human
"terrible-looking", with a terrible face. It must be said that in his portrait in
Martin Rotler's Bible (Vaclav IV and his wife) shows a certain change.
It is quite possible that such a change, which was recorded by contemporaries
king, there could be a certain swelling and change in complexion characteristic
for chronic alcoholics.
It remains to mention the death of King Wenceslas IV. Its historical
the context is quite well known: at the insistence of the Pope, as well as his
brother Sigismund, Wenceslas finally took some measures against the Hussites,
the consequence of which was new worries, culminating in the so-called
the first Prague defenestration: on July 30, 1419, crowds of Prague residents burst into
in the New Town Hall, threw members of the magistrate from the windows, laughing with
galleries above the Hussite tabernacle, which was carried by the procession,
headed by Jan Zhelivsky.
Wenceslas IV was at that time in the so-called Novi Hradok in
Kunratice, where he increasingly retreated from unrest-ridden Prague. Having learned about
defenestration, the king became agitated and died - it is believed that from a heart attack
attack. Many images have come down to us in which Vaclav is holding onto
heart. The famous Czech physician Thomayer was of the same opinion,
clearly believed that Wenceslas IV died as a result of a myocardial infarction.
There is, however, one circumstance in this that argues against
this theory: the said incident occurred on July 30, and the king died only
August 18. Given the medical capabilities of that time, it seems
It is implausible for anyone to survive 3 weeks with a myocardial infarction. A
If I had survived this disease, I would most likely live longer (otherwise
speaking, in case of a mild heart attack, he would simply recover).
WAS THIS REALLY A MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION?
Ancient Czech chronicles describe the death of the king as follows: “Died at the hour
evening prayer, from a sudden blow from grief and with a great cry and roar
as if by a lion, in New Town, otherwise Kundratitsa..." Almost in the same language
Wawrzynets from Brezova also speaks about this event in his “Chronicle of the Hussites”
wars": "From this (from the news of the members of the magistrate thrown from the tower) the king
Wenceslas became very angry... And that same summer, on Wednesday after the Ascension of the Virgin
Mary, on the 16th (?) day of August, King Wenceslas at the hour of evening prayer
received a blow and with a great cry and a lion's roar died suddenly in New Town
not far from Prague."
Neither the “great cry” nor the “roar” are known to accompany a heart attack
myocardium, but they are the initial symptoms of grand mal epileptic
attack, or so-called epileptic condition - life-threatening
a phenomenon in which an epileptic seizure does not go away as usual, but
lasts several hours. It is known that people suffer from epileptic seizures
are usually chronic alcoholics, and some of them die in
epileptic condition.
We have already mentioned that the upbringing of Wenceslas IV was unreasonable, and
his base, and also under the influence of family circumstances, he developed
frustration neurosis, mental and emotional balance was disturbed.
Added to this was excessive alcohol consumption, which led to
organic changes in the brain, common in chronic alcoholism, that is
to the affects of anger, alcoholic polyneuritis, alcoholic dementia and
changes on the face. This, in all likelihood, led to epileptic
seizures and - ultimately - the death of Vaclav in epileptic
condition...
As you can see, it is difficult to give an objective assessment of not only life, but also death
Czech King Wenceslas IV.
Therefore, in conclusion, we turn again to Palacki, to the maximum extent possible.
the desire for objectivity of which there is no doubt:
"Czech history until the very beginning of the 15th century developed under
predominant monarchical influence, like all peoples: from the throne
the king and his entourage depended on the main direction and success of all affairs
public life. But we learned in what wretched state it found itself
influence during the reign of Wenceslas IV, when not only the king, but also his
opponents fell into insignificance from base passions. It was becoming
the reason that then Czech history took its beginning and the impulse did not
from above, from the Court of the monarch and high-ranking layers of the people, and from below, from
from his very bosom, from aspirations and efforts, that, having been born among the people themselves, than
further, the more decisively they took over his life and, like a new element,
changed the course of not only Czech history, but in some respects history
universal."

No illusions - no disappointments.

Japanese proverb

Disappointment as a personality quality is a tendency to worry about unfulfilled expectations, hopes, dreams and the collapse of faith in someone or something.

Disappointment is the bitter taste of melted idealizations. The life of a fool is a collection of disappointments. It would seem that at the carnival of life there is an innumerable number of faces and colors, but the algorithm for disappointment in life is banally simple. A person sets the wrong main goal or greatly idealizes something. Sacrificing and neglecting much, he goes towards a goal that is not his own or passionately desires to possess the object of idealization, hopes for him, expects something good and bright from him, believes in him. In the first case, we observe a senseless waste of time, energy and mental strength on moving towards something that will not make him happy. In the second, what the laws of the universe really dislike is a violation of the equilibrium state. Any deviations, excesses and distortions excite equilibrium forces, and they punish a person for the idealizations sitting in his mind.

Disappointment is the delights of a fantasy, idealized mind. The simplicity doesn't disappoint. If a person attaches excessive importance to food, sex, money, material goods, equilibrium forces tend to return him to an equilibrium state. Idealized friendship - get betrayed by friends, idealized sex - live as an impotent, idealized a car, apartment, money - no problem, have it, but only without health and alone. The person is overcome by disappointment. In his youth, an unreasonable person follows a chain of disappointments. He made some mistakes, healed his mental trauma and went looking for the same rake. Igor Guberman accurately noted: “Having once paid for the joys of love sensations with acute pain, we are so afraid of new hobbies that we wear a condom in our souls.” In adulthood, when it is not possible to change the situation, disappointment becomes a manifested personality quality.

Going somewhere other than your goal is fraught with severe disappointment. No, to set yourself a spiritual goal - to cultivate kindness and caring in yourself and in your children - a man considers, for example, building and furnishing a house to be the main goal of life. He works hard for many years, like a galley slave, and finally finishes building a house. Then he lives to arrange it, then furnish it with furniture. By building a house, he sought to prove to himself and those around him his importance and significance. Someone else's goal comes from the outside - under the influence of stereotypes, false beliefs, beliefs and the influence of others. There is a house, but there was no feeling of happiness and there never will be. People make grandiose plans, dream, form idealizations in their minds, and then, having achieved the “desired” goal, they realize that they have received a fake, a surrogate of what they dreamed about. They begin to see that the effort was not worth the time and energy. Having wasted his life on this house, which constantly requires repairs and care, a person will experience disappointment at the end of his life. Old, feeble, unwanted by anyone, he will live out his life in this house if the children, who do not have good feelings for him, do not send him to a nursing home even earlier. Happiness is spiritual; you will not find it in the basements of a material house.

A person receives the greatest depth of disappointment from that to which he is overly attached. A young family introduces me to their five-year-old son, and the mother says: “As soon as my son was born, our life ended. Now we live only for him.” The child hears this, and the thought becomes a thorn in his mind: “I am the head of the family. My life is the greatest value." As he grows up, he becomes convinced that he is the Center of the Universe, that the sun would not rise in the morning if I were not there. A selfish egoist is growing up, unaccustomed to thinking and caring about someone. The time comes when he creates his own family. The mother, who dedicated her life to him, believes that since she lived for her son, it would be fair if he lived for her, or at least took care of her. But my son doesn’t even have a hint of such nonsense thoughts. At best, he will congratulate you on your birthday and on the holiday of March 8th. Mom experiences terrible disappointment and becomes depressed. Now the frustration is getting business card her personality. There are millions of such disappointed women over the age of forty.

Often they understand the reason for their disappointment with life, but nothing can be corrected. Life is written in white, the years have passed, an old head and young shoulders. What was the reason for the disappointment? Well, it turns out that the child does not need to be loved? It is necessary, it is still necessary. But in the context of raising children, the main goal should be not material, but spiritual goals. Happiness is spiritual. Finding the spiritual in the material is the same as eating earth in the hope of getting iron for the body. The material goal for the child is health, education, material well-being and a good spouse. A woman, according to her nature, is inclined to live for children and take care of them. But education is not just about feeding, drinking and putting to bed. Education is the development of virtues in a child, that is, positive personality traits, it is the art of giving as much spiritual taste of happiness as possible. The son should understand the taste of happiness from the grateful smile of a loved one for the care shown to him.

Instead of declaring that he is the navel of the Earth, the boy needs to be taught responsibility and caring for others. For example, a mother says to a five-year-old child: “I always forget to wash my hands after a walk. Can you remind me when we get home that we need to wash our hands?” For a child, this is a game and, at the same time, instilling responsibility and caring - two undoubted personality advantages. By gradually instilling in her son respect for her interests, concerns and anxieties, the mother will release into life not an inveterate, selfish egoist, but a responsible, self-confident, caring man who will never leave his mother.

A few hours before his death, a journalist met with oligarch V. Berezovsky. In front of him sat a deeply unhappy, disappointed man, to whom billions of dollars had never brought happiness. Here are excerpts from the interview: – Do you miss Russia?– To return to Russia... I don’t want anything more than to return to Russia. When they even opened a criminal case, I wanted to return to Russia. They even opened a criminal case! It was only on Elena's advice that Bonner stayed. The main thing that I underestimated is that Russia is so dear to me that I cannot be an emigrant. I changed a lot of my ratings. Including yourself. As for what Russia is and what the West is. I absolutely idealistically imagined the possibility of building a democratic Russia. And he had an idealistic idea of ​​what democracy in the center of Europe was. He underestimated Russia's inertia and greatly overestimated the West. And this happened gradually. I changed my idea of ​​the path of Russia... I should not have left Russia... – If you had stayed in Russia, you would now be in prison. Do you want that?– Now, looking back at how I lived these years in London... Berezovsky slowly looked ahead, then pressed his hand to his chest - it was shaking. He turned to me and looked into my eyes for a long time. Finally said: “I don’t have an answer to this question now... Khodorkovsky... preserved himself.” Here Berezovsky looked at his feet, then quickly glanced at me and began to speak quickly, as if making excuses: “It doesn’t mean I’ve lost myself. But I experienced much more overestimation and disappointment. Khodorkovsky is still smaller. I... lost my senses.” - Life?- Meaning of life. I don't want to get involved in politics now. - What should we do?- I do not know what to do. I am 67 years old. And I don’t know what to do next.”

Petr Kovalev 2013

(Latin Carolus Magnus or Karolus Magnus, German Karl der Große, French Charlemagne, born April 2, 747, † January 28, 814 in Aachen) - king of the Franks from 768 (in the southern part from 771), king of the Lombards from 774, Duke of Bavaria from 788, Emperor of the West from 800. Eldest son of Pepin the Short and Bertrada of Laon. After Charles, the Pipinid dynasty was called the Carolingians. Karl received the nickname “The Great” during his lifetime.

Place and year of birth

Karl's biographer Einhard reports that he was unable to obtain information about Karl's birth and childhood, but in another place notes that he died in the 72nd year of his life, that is, he should have been born in 742. In the unpreserved Aachen epitaph it was said that Charles died in the 70th year of his life, that is, he was born in 744. In one of the early medieval chronicles, under the year 747 it is said: “In this year King Charles was born.” In it, under the year 751, it is said about the birth of Karl’s younger brother Carloman, and this date is not in doubt.

The place of birth of Charles is completely unknown and is disputed by many cities: Paris, Ingelheim, Worms, Lüttich, Karsberg in Bavaria and many other cities make claims, however, not supported by sufficient evidence.

The beginning of the reign. Death of Carloman

On July 28, 754, Charles, together with his brother Carloman, was anointed king in the Church of Saint-Denis by Pope Stephen II, and after the death of Pepin, he and his brother ascended the throne. By dividing his father's inheritance with his brother, Charles received possession of lands in the shape of a vast crescent, running from Atlantic Aquitaine to Thuringia, through most Neustria and Austrasia, through Frisia and Franconia and on all sides covering the possessions of Carloman's brother. Charles's residence was Noyon. The brothers did not get along with each other, despite the desperate efforts of their mother, Bertrada, to bring them closer, despite everyone and everything. Agreement between them was maintained with the greatest difficulty, for many of Carloman’s entourage tried to quarrel between the brothers, and even bring the matter to war. When in 769 one of the lords from the southwest named Gunold (possibly the son of Wayfar) raised the Western Aquitaines and Gascon Basques in rebellion, Charles was forced to go alone to suppress the rebellion, since Carloman refused to join him with his army . But, despite this, Karl resolutely continued his planned campaign and, with his tenacity and firmness, achieved everything he wanted. He forced Gunold to flee to Gascony. Without leaving him there alone, Charles crossed the Garonne River and obtained the extradition of the fugitive from the Duke of Lupus of Gascony.

Fearing an agreement between Carloman and the Lombard king Desiderius, Charles decided to get ahead of events. He not only became close to his cousin, Duke of Bavaria Thassilon, who, remaining faithful to the traditions of his family, became the son-in-law of the Lombard king, but in 770, on the advice of his mother Bertrada, he married the daughter of Desiderius Desiderata, relegating his legitimate wife Himiltrude to the background ( who had already given birth to his son Pepin). The conflict could have flared up in earnest if Carloman had not died, and very timely, in December 771. Karl attracted to his side some of the figures closest to Carloman and seized his brother’s inheritance. His daughter-in-law Gerberga and nephew Pepin, born in 770, took refuge with Desiderius.

Karl's personality and appearance

According to biographer Karl Einhard, Karl was very tall (almost seven feet tall), strongly built, and inclined to be overweight. His face was distinguished by a long nose and large, lively eyes. He had long blond hair. Karl's voice was unusually high-pitched for such an imposing man. Over the years, the king began to suffer from lameness. No portraits of Charles survived during his lifetime, and many artists depicted him according to their imagination, using only some of the features from this description. Although many took the description of Karl's heroic physique as an epic exaggeration, the exhumation of Karl's grave confirmed the correctness of the description: the length of the skeleton was 192 cm.

The king was very simple and moderate in his habits. On ordinary days, his outfit differed little from the clothing of a commoner. He drank little wine (he drank no more than three cups at dinner) and hated drunkenness. His weekday lunch consisted of only four courses, not counting the roast, which the hunters themselves served directly on spits, and which Karl preferred to any other dish. While eating he listened to music or reading. He was interested in the exploits of the ancients, as well as the work of St. Augustine “On the City of God.” After lunch at summer time he ate a few apples and drank another cup; then, stripping naked, he rested for two or three hours. At night he slept restlessly: he woke up four or five times and even got out of bed. While getting dressed in the morning, Karl received friends, and also, if there was an urgent matter that was difficult to resolve without him, he listened to the litigants and passed a verdict. At the same time, he gave orders to his servants and ministers for the whole day. He was eloquent and expressed his thoughts with such ease that he could pass for a rhetorician. Not limiting himself to his native speech, Karl worked hard on foreign languages and, by the way, mastered Latin so much that he could express himself in it as in his native language; I understood Greek more than I spoke it. Diligently studying various sciences, he highly valued scientists, showing them great respect. He himself studied grammar, rhetoric, dialectics and especially astronomy, thanks to which he could skillfully calculate church holidays and watch the movement of the stars. He also tried to write and for this purpose he constantly kept writing tablets under his pillow, so that free time to train his hand to write letters, but his work, begun too late, had little success. Throughout his years he deeply revered the church and religiously observed all rituals.

Beginning of the war with the Saxons

Soon after his brother's death, Charles began a war with the Saxons. This was the longest and fiercest war of his reign. With interruptions, stopping and resuming again, it lasted thirty-three years, until 804, and cost the Franks the greatest losses, since the Saxons, like all the peoples of Germany, were ferocious and devoted to their cults. The border with them ran almost everywhere along a bare plain, and therefore was uncertain. Murders, robberies and fires occurred here every day. The Franks, irritated by this, finally, at the Diet in Worms, considered it necessary to start a war against their neighbors. In 772, Charles invaded Saxony for the first time, destroyed the fortress of Eresburg and overthrew the pagan shrine - the idol of Irminsul. But Charles understood that there would be no lasting pacification as long as there was an independent Saxony, or rather independent Saxons, outside the kingdom, since this people was divided into Western (Westphalian), Central (Angrarian), Eastern (Ostphalian) and Northern (Nordalbingen) Saxons.

Invasion of Italy

Charles was then distracted by Italian affairs. In 771, Charles divorced his wife, the daughter of the Lombard king Desiderata, sent her to her father and married the granddaughter of the Alemanni Duke Godfrey, Hildegard (Hildegarde). In 772, Karl had a son from Hildegard, who also received the name Karl. Desiderius was quick to accept the challenge. From the very first days of 772, he demanded from Pope Adrian I to anoint Carloman's son Pepin to the kingdom and resumed the offensive against the Papal States launched by his predecessors. Dad turned to Karl for help. In September 773, a strong Frankish army headed for the Alps. The Lombards closed and fortified the passes. Karl decided on a workaround. Along secret paths, the fearless Frankish detachment made its way to the enemy from the rear and with its very appearance caused general confusion in the Lombard army and the flight of the son of King Desiderius, Adelhiz. There is an indication that the pope managed to sow treason, both in the army of the king of the Lombards and in his possessions, that it was precisely this circumstance that was the reason for the very weak resistance. Fearing encirclement, Desiderius left the passes and retreated to his capital Pavia, hoping to sit out behind its thick walls; his son with Carloman’s widow and children took refuge in Verona. The Franks pursued the enemy in battle, capturing numerous cities of Lombardy along the way. Leaving part of his forces near Pavia, Charles and the rest of his army approached Verona in February 774. After a short siege, the city surrendered, and Charles had the pleasure of taking possession of his nephews, with whom Desiderius had so frightened him.

Charles - King of the Lombards

In April 774, the Franks approached Rome. Pope Adrian I gave Charles a solemn welcome. Charles treated the high priest with the greatest respect: before approaching Adrian's hand, he kissed the steps of the staircase of the Church of St. Peter. He promised to add new donations to many of the cities donated to the pope by his father (this promise was later not fulfilled). At the beginning of June, unable to withstand the hardships of the siege, Desiderius left Pavia and submitted to the winner. Charles took possession of the Lombard capital and the royal palace. Thus fell the kingdom of the Lombards, the last king They were taken captive to the Frankish state, where he was forced to become a monk, and his son fled to the Byzantine emperor. Having accepted the title of Lombard king, Charles began to introduce the Frankish system in Italy and united France and Italy into one state.

In 776, Charles was supposed to arrive in Italy again to pacify the uprising. The Dukes of Friulia and Spoleto, supported by Adelhis, hatched a conspiracy, hoping to capture Rome with the help of the Byzantine fleet and restore the power of the Lombards. Charles, after Pope Adrian warned him about the plot, again crossed the Alps and thwarted the plot of the conspirators. As a result, the Duke of Friul Rotgout was killed, the rebellious cities submitted, and Adelhiz was again forced to flee.

Continuation of the war with the Saxons

In 775, at the head of a large army, Charles went deeper into Saxon territory than usual, reached the land of the Ostphals and reached the Ocker River, took hostages and left strong garrisons in Eresburg and Sigiburg. The following spring, Eresburg fell under Saxon counterattack. After this, Charles changed his tactics, deciding to create a “fortified line” (mark), which was supposed to protect the Franks from Saxon invasions. In 776, having again fortified Eresburg and Sigiburg, he built a new fortress of Karlsburg and left priests in the border zone to convert the pagan Saxons to the Christian faith, which at first went quite successfully. In 777, the Saxons were again defeated, and then the majority of the Saxon Edelings (tribal nobility) recognized Charles as their overlord at a meeting in Paderborn.

Battle of Roncesvalles

In 777, Charles received the Muslim governor of Zaragoza, who arrived to ask for his help in the fight against the Emir of Cordoba, Abd ar-Rahman. Charles agreed, but in 778, finding himself in Spain at the head of a huge army, he failed at Zaragoza, where he was betrayed by yesterday’s allies. On the way back, in Roncesvalles, when the army was moving in an extended formation, as the mountain gorges forced it, the Basques set up an ambush on the tops of the rocks and attacked from above the detachment covering the convoy, killing everyone to the last man. Next to the commander of the detachment, Roland, Seneschal Eggihard and Count of the Court Anselm fell. This battle, which took place on August 15, 778, is called Roncevalles. Einhard does not give this name, however, he emphasizes that only the rearguard of the Frankish convoy and those who walked at the very end of the detachment were defeated. In the original version of the Annals of the Kingdom of the Franks, compiled in 788-793, there is no mention of this battle at all in the events dating back to 778. All that is said is that “after hostages were handed over from Ibn Al-Arabi, Abutarius and many Saracens, after the destruction of Pamplona, ​​the conquest of the Basques and Navarres, Charles returned to the territory of Frankia.” The revised version of the Annals, compiled shortly after Charles's death, also makes no mention of this battle. But there is a new important passage: “On his return [Karl] decided to pass through the gorge of the Pyrenees mountains. The Basques, setting up an ambush at the very top of that gorge, threw the entire army [of Charles] into great confusion. And although the Franks were superior to the Basques, both in weapons and in courage, this superiority was defeated due to the unevenness of the place and the impossibility of the Franks to fight. In that battle, many of those close to him, whom the king placed at the head of his army, were killed, the convoy was plundered; the enemy, thanks to his knowledge of the area, immediately scattered in different directions.” Einhard, in his work (this is the third description of the Battle of Roncesvalles) makes two main changes. He replaces "the whole army" from the rewritten version of the Annals of the Frankish Kingdom with "those who marched at the very end of the detachment" and lists only three of the noble Franks who fell in the battle (Eggihard, Anselm and Ruotland, that is, Roland (prefect of the Breton March) hero of the famous French epic "The Song of Roland". Exact date battle - August 15 - known thanks to the epitaph of Eggihard, Charles' steward - “it took place on the eighteenth day of the September calendars.” Twenty years later, when describing the same events, an unknown scribe of the Annals inserts a message that is not mentioned in the earlier texts. Apparently, drawing attention to this event was important to him. Most likely, all the details were taken by him from later texts. He says that the entire Frankish army entered the battle and claims that many Frankish leaders were killed. It was a real disaster. The defeat threw Gothic Christians in Spain into panic, among whom the Frankish invasion had raised great hopes, and many of them took refuge from Islamic rule in the Frankish state.

Widukind becomes the leader of the Saxon resistance

Upon Charles's return, other troubles awaited him: the Westphalian Saxons, having united around Widukind, who in 777 did not appear in Paderborn, but fled to the Danish king Siegfried (Sigifrid), forgot their oaths and ostentatious treatment and started the war again. In 778, having crossed the border at the Rhine, they climbed along the right bank of this river to Koblenz, burning and plundering everything on their way, and then, loaded with rich booty, they returned back almost without obstacles. Only once did the Frankish detachment catch up with the Saxons at Leisa and inflict minor damage on their rearguard. In 779, Charles invaded Saxony and crossed almost the entire country without encountering resistance anywhere. Once again, as before, many Saxons came to his camp, who gave hostages and an oath of allegiance. However, the king no longer believed in their peacefulness.

The next campaign in 780 was prepared by Charles more carefully. Together with his army and clergy, Charles managed to advance all the way to the Elbe - the border between the Saxons and the Slavs. By this time, Charles already had a strategic plan, which, in general, boiled down to the conquest of all of Saxony through Christianization. In this endeavor, Charles was greatly helped by the Anglo-Saxon Villegad, a doctor of theology, who began to actively plant the new faith. Charles divided all of Saxony into administrative districts, at the head of which he placed counts. The year 782 was again devoted to Saxon affairs. To pacify the Sorbian Slavs who attacked the border lands of Saxony and Thuringia, Charles sent an army, which included Saxons loyal to Charles. But just at this time Widukind returned from Denmark. The whole country immediately rebelled, undoing all of Charles's achievements. Many Franks and Saxons who accepted the new faith were killed, Christian churches were destroyed. Charles failed again because he did not take into account the Saxons' commitment to their own faith. The army sent against the Sorbs was ambushed near the Weser, near Mount Zuntal, and was almost completely killed by the rebels. At the same time, dissatisfaction with Charles’ innovations in Frisia also increased.

Charles's cruel measures against the Saxons. Widukind's baptism

Charles gathered a new army, came to Verdun, summoned the Saxon elders and forced them to hand over 4,500 instigators of the rebellion. They were all beheaded on the same day. Vidukind managed to escape. At the same time, the so-called “First Saxon Capitulary” was promulgated, which ordered that any deviation from loyalty to the king and any violation of public order be punished with death, and also recommended measures to eradicate any manifestations of paganism. The Battle of Detmold in 783 was indecisive; Charles had to retreat, but then won a victory at Gaza, near Osnabrück. For the next 784 and 785 years, Charles hardly left Saxony. During this stubborn war, he beat the Saxons in open battles and punitive raids, took hundreds of hostages, whom he took out of the country, and destroyed the villages and farms of the rebellious. Winter 784-785, unlike previous winters, which were a time of rest for Charles; was also carried out by him in Saxony, in Eresburg, where he moved with his family. In the summer of 785 the Franks crossed the Weser. Exhausted by many defeats, Widukind asked for mercy and began negotiations with Karl in Berngau. In the autumn, the Saxon leaders Widukind and Abbion finally appeared at Charles's court in Attigny, in Champagne, were baptized (and Charles was Widukind's godfather), swore allegiance and received rich gifts from his hands. This was the turning point in the Saxon War. In the chronicle of 785 it was recorded that the king of the Franks "subdued all of Saxony." After this, the resistance of the vanquished began to gradually weaken.

Military operations in Brittany

The authority of the king was almost unshakable in Neustria and Austrasia, but Charles still had to pacify the south of Gaul and its extreme west. Charles repeatedly invaded Brittany, the country of the Celtic tribe of Britons (Bretons), imposing tribute on them. On the approaches to Brittany in the late 70s, a British border mark emerged, including the cities of Rennes, Tours, Angers and Vannes. In 799, Guy, a representative of the influential Austrasian family of Lambertids, the ruler of this province, taking advantage of the discord among the Breton leaders, carried out a decisive expedition to the peninsula. In 800, the leaders of the Britons swore an oath of allegiance to Charles at Tours. However, this country did not completely submit, retaining its own religious mores and customs. Within a few years, the need arose for a new company; it was held in 811 and showed the fragility of the power of the Franks in a country that never renounced its political and religious independence.

Military operations in Aquitaine

In Aquitaine, from 779, Charles began to resettle royal vassals and systematically send there counts from among the Franks. And in 781, he elevated Aquitaine to the rank of a kingdom, and placed on its throne his new son from Queen Hildegard, who was born 3 years ago and received the Merovingian name Louis (Ludwig or Clovis). Aquitaine was to become a vast springboard in the fight against the Iberian Basques and against the Muslims of Spain. For the same purpose, he created the county of Toulouse and Septimania and put it at its head in 790-804. his cousin Duke Guillaume. In the 90s, the new King Louis undertook short-term campaigns beyond the Pyrenees, resulting in the fortified border of the Spanish March, consisting of a fortified border area with the cities of Girona, Urgell and Vic.

As for Charles, he, despite the creation of the kingdom of Aquitaine, refused any intervention in this region, even in those cases when cities and entire regions (Urgell, Girona, Cerdagne) declared a desire to come under his protection, or when in 793 The Emir of Cordoba made a raid to Narbonne and put Duke Guillaume in a difficult position. The Franks regained the initiative only at the very end of the century (from 799 the power of the Franks spread to the Balearic Islands), and achieved their first success only in 801, when King Louis of Aquitaine captured the Arab city of Barcelona, ​​and made it first the center of the county, and then the entire Spanish fortified zone (Spanish March), which soon expanded its borders (by 804-810) to Tarragona and the mountain plateaus north of the Ebro. In 806 Pamplona was subjugated.

The Pope sanctifies the appointment of Charles's sons as kings

In 781, on the same days when Louis became king of Aquitaine, Charles established for the four-year-old Carloman, his other son, born to him by Hildegard, the “kingdom of Italy”, and in the spring of 781 in Rome, the pope, at the request of Charles, consecrated this appointment, at the same time with dedication from Louis. On this occasion, the child received the royal name Pepin, which actually excluded his half-brother Himiltruda’s son, already bearing this name, from inheritance.

New uprising in the north

However, in 793, an uprising broke out again in the north, which covered not only Saxony, but also other territories inhabited by Frisians, Avars and Slavs. From 794 to 799 There was a war going on again, which already had the character of an extermination, accompanied by massive seizures of hostages and prisoners, with their subsequent resettlement as serfs in the internal regions of the state. The Saxon resistance proceeded with great ferocity (especially stubbornly in Vihmodia and Nordalbingia). Wanting to achieve victory over them, Charles entered into an alliance with the Slavic Obodrites, enemies of the Saxons, and again with his family spent the winter of 798-799 in Saxony in Weser, where he set up a camp, and in fact built a new city with houses and palaces, calling this place Gershtel (that is, “Army Station”). In the spring, having left Gerstel, he approached Minden and devastated the entire region between the Weser and the Elbe, while his allies, the Obodrites, successfully fought in Nordalbingia, which made it possible to decide the outcome of the struggle in Charles's favor. In 799, there was another campaign by Charles and his sons to Saxony, in which the king himself did not show any activity.

Charles subjugates the Lombard duchies in Italy

After Charles’s campaign in Italy, the country consisted, with the exception of the Frankish and ecclesiastical regions, of two more Lombard regions: the duchies of Spoleto and Benevento. The first, however, soon submitted to the Carolingians, but Benevento, protected by the Abruzzo mountains from the north, could retain its independence longer. The war with Benevento is presented by Einhard in an extremely simplified manner, and he tries to reduce everything to Peanut’s fear of Karl. In reality, the war was long: the Beneventes rebelled continuously, and the Franks had to again make punitive campaigns against their country. Duke Beneventa Arechis was married to the daughter of King Desiderius and therefore considered himself the sole hereditary representative of the rights of the Lombards. Especially since the prince Adelkhiz, the son of Desiderius, found himself a reception in Constantinople and received the rank of patrician here, Benevento’s relations with the empire and the formation of the Byzantine party here were very natural. Charles, who knew about his rival’s plans from Pope Adrian, decided to subjugate the remnants of the kingdom of Desideria. At the end of 786, Charles opposed the Duke of Benevento, Arechis. At the beginning of 787, Charles was already in Rome. Arechis, who did not receive timely support from the allies, sent his eldest son Rumold to Karl as a hostage with rich gifts in order to stop Karl’s attack on his territory. Charles, having accepted the hostage, nevertheless crossed the border and arrived in Capua. Arechis, retreating to Salerno, sent his second son Grimoald and twelve noble Lombards as hostages to Charles, promising complete obedience. Charles, agreeing, released the duke's eldest son to Beneventum, sending with him his representatives to take the oath from Arechis and his people, with the payment of an annual tribute. However, as soon as Charles left Italy, Arechis broke his oath and entered into an alliance with Byzantium to conduct further military operations against Charles. At the same time, Adalgiz, son of Desiderius, marched with his army towards Treviso and Ravenna to subjugate the north of the country. All of Charles's military achievements were jeopardized. But on August 26, 787, Arechis died unexpectedly, and a month earlier his son Rumold had died, which led to the failure of the Byzantine-Benevento treaty, especially since Arechis’s second son, Grimoald, was still held hostage by Charles.

Adalgiz, the son of Desiderius, after the death of his supporters, tried to continue the actions begun against Charles by coming into contact with Ataberga, the widow of Arechis, and launching an attack on the papal possessions. In response, Charles, despite the pope's calls for help, namely to go back to Italy and continue to hold Grimoald hostage, did the opposite. He did not go to Italy and released Grimoald. Subsequently, this action helped Charles, since when the war with Byzantium began, Grimoald supported the Frankish army, which led Charles to victory, as a result of which he took possession of Istria.

Subordination to Bavaria

Having given himself a free hand in Saxony and Italy, Charles turned against the Bavarian Duke of Thassilon, an old ally of the Lombards. In reality there was no Bavarian war. Charles, since he knew from the pope about Thassilon's conspiracy, subjugated Bavaria through diplomatic negotiations (backed up by some military actions), during which things developed for Thassilon hopeless situation, forcing him to obey. In 787, Charles surrounded Bavaria on three sides with troops and demanded that Thassilon renew the vassal obligations it had once given to Pepin. Thassilon was forced to appear before the Frankish king and give him a repeated oath of allegiance. The duchy was solemnly transferred to Charles, who ceded it as a benefice to Thassilon, but the entire Bavarian aristocracy swore an oath of allegiance to the king. But Tassilon, whom his wife Luitberga, daughter of Desiderius, constantly incited to treason, entered into an alliance with the Avars of Pannonia, which threatened to upset the balance emerging in the west.

A year later, in 788, at the General Diet in Ingelheim, Tassilon was forced to admit to weaving intrigues with his wife and was sentenced to death, which Charles commuted to imprisonment in a monastery in Jumièges. The same fate was destined for his wife and children. As for the duchy, Charles included it in the kingdom, divided it into several counties, subordinating them to the authority of a single prefect, appointing his own to this post. cousin Herald. At the same time, Charles annexed the South Slavic regions of Carantania (Chorutania) and Carniola to his territory. But before undertaking a full occupation, the Frankish king expelled many members of the Bavarian nobility. Apparently, Charles had difficulties in the process of completely subjugating the country, because six years later (in June 794), during the General Diet in Frankfurt, Thassilon was released from the monastery for a short period and brought to the city to re-renounce his claims to power.

Campaign against the Slavs

In 789, Charles made an expedition to defend the Mecklenburg Obodrites against the Slavic tribe of Lutichs (Wilts). The Franks built two bridges across the Elbe, crossed the river and, with the support of their allies (Saxons, Frisians, Obodrites and Lusatian Serbs), dealt a terrible blow to the Lutichians. Although, according to the chronicles, they fought stubbornly, they could not resist the enormous forces of the allies. Karl drove the Vilians to the Pena River, destroying everything in his path. Their capital capitulated, and Prince Dragovit submitted and gave hostages.

War with the Avars

Then a difficult war began against the Avars, which lasted from 791 to 803. According to Einhard, it was the most significant and fierce after the Saxon one and demanded very high costs from the Franks. The Avars were in alliance with Thassilon. Promising him to invade Frankish territory in 788, they fulfilled their obligation (unaware of the overthrow of Thassilon) by starting a war against Charles. In the summer of 791, Charles's army invaded the country of the Avars in three different ways and reached the Vienna Woods, where their main fortifications were located. Having left their camp, the Avars fled inland, the Franks pursued them until the Rab River flowed into the Danube. Further persecution stopped due to the massive death of horses. The army returned to Regensburg laden with large booty.

New Saxon Revolt

In 792, Charles's son from his first wife Himiltrude Pepin, nicknamed the Hunchback, upon learning that he was excluded from inheritance, rebelled. He managed to capture several counties with him, but was defeated. Charles spent the whole year in Regensburg, but he was distracted from a new campaign against the Avars by the Saxon uprising. Its scope surpassed even the events of 785. The Saxons were joined by the Frisians and Slavs. Temples were destroyed everywhere and Frankish garrisons were killed. In the summer of 794, Charles and his son Charles the Young, at the head of two armies, invaded Saxony. Seeing themselves surrounded, the Saxons rushed en masse to Eresburg, took oaths of allegiance, gave hostages and returned to Christianity. In the fall of 795, the king with a strong army again devastated Saxony and reached the lower Elbe. Having learned that the Saxons had killed his ally, the prince of the Obodrites, he subjected the country to secondary devastation, took up to 7,000 hostages and returned to the Frankish state. As soon as he left, the Saxons rebelled in Nordalbingia, the country north of the Elbe. Charles had to turn against them.

Continuation of the war with the Avars

The war with the Avars continued with varying degrees of success. The Frankish king needed to mobilize all his forces and enter into an alliance with the southern Slavs (as earlier in the war with the Saxons) to confront the nomads. The Annals of the Kingdom of the Franks (record of 796) describe one of the most important events of this war as follows: the Franks, led by the young son of Charles Pepin, in alliance with the Khorutan prince Voinomir, resumed the war against the Avars, took the “capital” of the Khagans Ring, which was actually a gigantic fortified camp, located at the confluence of the Danube and Tisza rivers, and captured rich booty there, exported to the Frankish state in a convoy of fifteen huge carts. After this campaign, according to Eingard, not a single inhabitant of Pannonia remained alive, and the place where the Kagan’s residence was located did not retain any traces of human activity. The terrible people of the Avars, who for several centuries terrified the entire Eastern Europe, ceased to exist. The strip of land running from the Aisne to the Wienerwald was gradually captured by the Franks and turned into the East Country (Ostmark, the ancestor of Austria).

Continuation of the war with the Saxons

Meanwhile, Karl and his sons, Karl the Young and Louis, fought in Saxony. The army combed the entire country up to Nordalbingia, and then returned to Aachen with hostages and large booty. In late summer and early autumn, Charles organized a grand expedition to Saxony by land and water; devastating everything in his path, he approached Nordalbingia. The Saxons and Frisians came running to him from all sides of the country, giving him a large number of hostages. During the expedition, Charles settled the Franks in Saxony, and took many Saxons with him to France. He spent the whole winter here, engaged in Saxon affairs. In the spring of 798 he completely devastated the lands between the Weser and the Elbe. At the same time, the Obodrites, allied with the Franks, defeated the Nordalbings at Sventana, killing up to 4,000 Saxons. After this, Charles was able to return to France, leading up to one and a half thousand prisoners. In the summer of 799, the king and his sons set off on their last campaign against the Saxons. He himself remained in Paderborn. Meanwhile, Karl the Young completed the pacification of Nordalbingia. As usual, Charles returned to France, leading with him many Saxons with their wives and children to resettle them in the interior regions of the state. But Charlemagne managed to begin preparing for the future by issuing a new “Saxon Capitulary” in 797, which abolished the regime of terror established by the capitulary of 785 and introduced progressive equality of the Saxons and Franks before the law. Saxon episcopal sees were established in Minden, Osnabrück, Verden, Bremen, Paderborn, Münster and Hildesheim, belonging partly to the Cologne and partly to the Mainz diocese.

Charlemagne - Emperor of the West

In the fall of 800, Charles went to Rome, where noble Romans plotted against Pope Leo III, arresting him during a solemn procession. Threatening with blindness, they demanded that Leo renounce his rank, but the pope managed to escape from the city and get to Paderborn, where Charles was at that time. On the advice of Alcuin, Charles promised the pope support. Charles spent almost six months in Rome, sorting out the feuds between the pope and the local nobility. On December 25, he listened to the festive mass in St. Peter's Basilica. Suddenly the pope approached his guest and placed the imperial crown on his head. All the Franks and Romans present in the cathedral unanimously exclaimed: “Long live and conquer Charles Augustus, God-crowned great and peace-giving Roman Emperor.” Although all this did not come as a surprise to Karl, he, according to Einhard, at first pretended to be dissatisfied with the pope’s “unauthorized” act. Karl even claimed that if he had known in advance about Leo III’s intentions, he would not have gone to church that day, despite Christmas. He did this, apparently, in order to calm the court of Constantinople. Charles, however, endured the hatred of the Roman emperors, which immediately arose, with great patience. Eventually, the Byzantine emperors had to recognize the new title of Lord of the Franks. In the current situation, a marriage alliance emerged between the Byzantine queen Irina and Charles, with the goal of thus uniting East and West. Western ambassadors were supposed to arrive in Constantinople in the fall of 802 to discuss this issue, but in the same autumn, on October 21, an incident occurred in the Byzantine capital. palace coup, who deprived Irina of power. The throne was taken by Nikephoros I, who refused to recognize Charles as emperor. In response, Charles, after a rather long war (806-810), took possession of Venice and Dalmatia, which were nominally in Byzantine territory, but were weakened due to internal strife and, thanks to an alliance with the Baghdad caliph al-Amin, forced Nikephoros, who fought the war in Bulgaria , go to peace negotiations in 810. 12 years after the start of the conflict, Byzantine Emperor Michael I, the successor of Nikephoros, who died in Bulgaria, formally recognized the new title of emperor, counting on the support of the West in the fight against Bulgaria, which defeated the Byzantine army in 811. For recognition of his imperial title, Charles ceded Venice and Dalmatia to Michael I. However, the legality of recognizing this title was disputed by the Byzantines in the 12th and 13th centuries.

However, Charles himself attached considerable importance to his new title, demanded a new oath after the coronation (802) and emphasized his position as a God-appointed trustee for the welfare of the people and the church. Charles's full title was: Karolus serenissimus augustus a Deo coronatus magnus pacificus imperator Romanum imperium gubernans qui et per misericordiam dei rex Francorum atque Langobardorum (roughly: "Charles most merciful exalted, crowned by God, great peacemaker, ruler of the Roman Empire, by the grace of God king of the Franks and Lombards").

The end of the war with the Saxons and the first clashes with the Danes

In 804, the grueling Saxon war came to an end. Charles arrived in Gollenstedt and resettled 10 thousand Saxon families from Nordalbingia to the interior of the state. Depopulated Nordalbingia was handed over to the Obodrites. At the turn of the VIII-IX centuries. The Franks for the first time directly encountered the Danes (Danes). In 804, the new king of Southern Denmark (Jutland), Godfred, who took the place of Siegfried, who died around 800, gathered an army and fleet in Sliestorp (as Hedeby was called in Latin sources), on the border with Saxony, intending to attack the Franks. The opponents negotiated, the outcome of which is unknown, but a direct clash was probably averted. Godfred acted more actively in 808. He attacked the land of the Obodrites, who had entered into an alliance with Charlemagne, and devastated it so much that the Obodrites were forced to ask him for peace and promise him tribute. During the campaign, Godfred razed one of the most important centers of Western Baltic trade, Rorik (Mecklenburg or Old Lübeck at the mouth of the Trave River), from the face of the earth, and took artisans and merchants from it to Hedeby, whose position was strengthened thanks to this. Immediately after the campaign, according to the Annals of the Kingdom of the Franks, he built fortifications on the border with the Saxons along the northern bank of the river. Eider: a rampart "from the western ocean to the eastern bay leading to the Baltic Sea", with one gate to admit horsemen and carts. For their part, the Franks in Nordalbingia, again taken from the Obodrites, built several fortresses; This marked the beginning of the Danish Border Mark.

The struggle for trade routes and centers and for influence on North Sea-Baltic trade also explains Godfred’s next famous action: in 810, with a large fleet, he sailed along the Frisian coast, winning victories, and returned, receiving a ransom of 100 pounds of silver. Concerned, Charlemagne gathered a fleet for a campaign in Denmark, but the need for the campaign suddenly disappeared: in the same year, Godfred was killed by his warrior, and power was in the hands of his nephew Hemming. Far from being so militant, Hemming agreed to peace negotiations and in 811 concluded an agreement that confirmed the inviolability of the southern border of Denmark - along the river. Eider.

Viking raids

In the last years of Charles's reign, a new danger loomed over the kingdom: Viking raids. From the end of 799, their sailing ships began to appear off the coast of the Vendee and land gangs of robbers. And in 810 the danger approached within a few days' march of horseback from Aachen, just at the time when Charles was busy in Nordalbingia strengthening the Danish March, in the fight against the restless Danes. To repel Norman raids, Charles ordered ships to be built on the rivers that flowed through Gaul and Northern Germany. In all ports and mouths of navigable rivers, on his orders, anchorages for ships were established and patrol ships were deployed in order to prevent enemy invasion.

Domestic policy

Charlemagne and Popes Gelasius I and Gregory I. Miniature from the prayer book of King Charles II the Bald.

With his happy wars, Charles expanded the borders of the Frankish state to a great distance. Equally tirelessly, going into every detail, he cared about improving the state structure, about the material and spiritual development of his state. He significantly increased its military power by regulating the collection of militia, and strengthened its borders with the military organization of marks ruled by margraves. He destroyed the power of the people's dukes, which seemed dangerous to the king. Individual districts were ruled by counts, who concentrated administrative, financial, military and partly judicial functions in their hands. Twice a year - at the end of spring or at the beginning of summer and in the fall - state diets gathered around the emperor himself; everyone could come to the spring free people, only the most important “advisers” of the sovereign were invited to the autumn festival, that is, people from the court circle, the highest administration and the highest clergy. Various issues were discussed at the autumn meeting state life and decisions were drawn up on them, which took the form of so-called capitularies. At the spring meeting, the capitularies were presented for the approval of those gathered; Here the sovereign received information from those who had gathered about the state of government, the situation and needs of a particular area.

Charles cared a lot about agriculture and the management of the palace estates; from him there remained detailed and thorough regulations concerning this administration (Capitulare de villis). By order of Charles, swamps were drained, forests were cut down, monasteries and cities were built, as well as magnificent palaces and churches (for example, in Aachen, Ingelheim). The construction of a canal between Rednitz and Altmühl, which would have connected the Rhine and Danube, the North and Black Seas, started in 793, remained unfinished.

Providing energetic assistance to the spread of Christianity, patronizing the clergy and establishing tithes for them, being in best regards with the pope, Charles retained, however, full power in church administration: he appointed bishops and abbots, convened spiritual councils, and made decisions regarding church affairs at the diets. Karl himself was diligently engaged in science; ordered the compilation of a grammar of the popular language, in which he established the Frankish names of the months and winds; ordered to collect folk songs. He surrounded himself with scientists (Alcuin, Paul the Deacon, Einhard, Raban the Maurus, Theodulf) and, using their advice and assistance, sought to educate the clergy and the people. In particular, he took care of the organization of schools in churches and monasteries; At his court, he established a kind of academy for the education of his children, as well as courtiers and their sons.

In 794, on the site of the thermal spa of the Celts and Romans in Aachen, Charles began construction of a huge palace complex, completed in 798. Having first turned into the winter residence of Charles, Aachen gradually became a permanent residence, and from 807 - the permanent capital of the empire. Karl strengthened the denier, which began to weigh 1.7 grams. Charles's fame spread far beyond the borders of his dominions; embassies from foreign lands often appeared at his court, such as the embassy of Harun al-Rashid in 798.

In February 806, Charles bequeathed to divide the empire between his three sons. Louis was to receive Aquitaine and Burgundy, Pepin - Italy and Germany south of the Danube, and Charles the Young - Neustria, Austrasia and Germany north of the Danube. However, Pepin died in 810, and Charles the Young in 811. Shortly before his death, in 813, Charles summoned Louis, king of Aquitaine, his only surviving son from Hildegarde, and, having convened a solemn meeting of noble Franks from the entire kingdom, on September 11 appointed him, with general consent, as his co-ruler and heir, and then placed a crown on his head and ordered him henceforth to be called Emperor and Augustus. Soon after, struck down by a high fever, he took to his bed. At the beginning of January, pleurisy joined the fever, and on January 28, 814, the emperor died. He was buried in the Aachen palace church that he built. At the insistence of Frederick I Barbarossa, his antipope Paschal III canonized Charlemagne.

Wives and children

From 768 - Himiltrude (or Himiltrude), daughter of Devum I, Count of Burgundy. Divorce.
Pepin the Humpbacked (Pépin le Bossu; 769/770 - 811). In 792 he took part in a conspiracy against his father, but was unsuccessful. He was imprisoned by his father in a monastery.
Rothais, (784 - ?)
from 770 - Desiderata (Désirée, 747 - 776), daughter of Didier, king of the Lombards. Divorce in 771
from 771 - Hildegard of Vintzgau (or Hildegarde; Hidegarde de Vintzgau, 758 - April 30, 783), daughter of Gérold I, Count of Vintzgau.
Charles the Young (Charles, 772 - December 4, 811), Duke of Inhelm.
Adelaide (773 - 774). Died in infancy.
Rothrude (775 - June 6, 810). Had a relationship with Count Rorgon (Rorikon) I (? - 839/840).
Pepin (Pépin, 777 - June 8, 810), king of Italy (781-810).
Lothair (Lotaire, 778 - 779). Twin with Louis, died as a child.
Louis I the Pious (Louis I le Pieux, August 778 - June 20, 840), Holy Roman Emperor (813-840), King of all Franks (814-840), King of Aquitaine (781-813), King of Alemannia (833-840) ).
Berthe (779 - 823). Married Count Engelbert (750-814).
Gisela (Gisèle, 781 - 808). She was not married.
Hildegard (Hildegarde, 782 - 783). Died in infancy.
from October 783 - Fastrade (765 - October 10, 794), daughter of the East Frankish Count Radolph.
Tetrade (Tétrade, 785 - 853), Abbess Argentiel.
Giltrude (Hiltrude, 787 - ?), Abbess of Farmautier.
from 794 - Liutgard (Liutgadre, 776 - June 4, 800).
Emma (Emme,? - 837).
Rotilde (Rothilde,? - 852).
from 808 - Gerswinde of Saxony (Gerswinde de Saxe, 782 - 834).
Adaltrude.
In addition to six wives, three mistresses of Charlemagne and several bastard children are known.
Maltegarde.
Rotilda (Rudhild) (790 - 852), Abbess of Farmautier.
Regina.
Drogon (17 June 801 - 8 December 855), bishop of Metz.
Hugo (Hugues, 802 - June 14, 844), abbot of St. Quentin.
Adalind (Adalinde).
Theodoric (807 - 818).

“The Robbers” was completed in 1781. Schiller had just completed a course at the Military Academy in Stuttgart, and wrote the drama while still studying there. The young writer had to publish the drama at his own expense, because not a single publisher in Stuttgart wanted to publish it.

But the director of the Mainham Theater, Baron von Dahlberg, undertook to stage it. The premiere took place in Mainheim in 1882. Schiller immediately became famous.

Genre and direction

Young Schiller is an ideological follower of Sturm und Drang, an association close to sentimentalism. The participants of Sturm and Drang carried an educational ideology on German soil. The works of Rousseau, especially his literary work, are very important for Schiller. "The Thieves" reflects the idea of ​​"natural man", the rejection of modern civilization and doubts about progress. Schiller shared Rousseau's religious concept (one of the qualities of the negative hero Franz Moor is atheism). Schiller puts Rousseau's ideas into the mouths of his heroes.

The genre of the work “Robbers” is drama. In the finale, all of Karl’s loved ones die, and he himself goes to surrender to the authorities. The contradictions in his life are insoluble. He is broken morally and expects physical retribution. Some researchers specify the genre, calling the work a robber drama.

Topics and problems

The theme of the drama is enmity and hatred between loved ones, which can kill; a person’s responsibility for his choices and his actions, for his moral obligations.

The main idea is pronounced by the priest: there is no greater sin than parricide and fratricide. Karl echoes him in the finale: “Oh, I am a fool who dreamed of correcting the world with atrocities and upholding laws with iniquities!”

In the preface, Schiller admits that his goal as a playwright is “to spy on the innermost movements of the soul.” The problems raised in the drama are human passions: revenge and betrayal, slander of the eldest son, the grief of a deceived father, Amalia's choice, the loyalty of the robbers and Karl to his word.

Social problems are associated with the omnipotence of feudal lords (the story of Kosinsky, whose beloved became the mistress of the prince, and he took away Kosinsky's lands and gave them to the minister). One of the epigraphs of the drama is “On tyrants.”

Women in the drama make a choice between honor and love. Amalia (Kosinski's fiancée) chooses love (while losing her lover). And Karl saves his Amalia from such a choice by returning home on time.

Plot and composition

The plot was borrowed by Schiller from Schubart’s story “On the History of the Human Heart.” The plot was influenced by stories of noble bandits fighting against feudal lords. Robbery was a common social phenomenon of Schiller's time.

The younger son Franz slandered the elder Karl in the eyes of his father, and then declared him dead. He wanted to inherit his father's wealth and marry his brother's fiancee. He declared his sick father dead and locked him in the family crypt.

Karl, a noble robber, but also a murderer, feeling worried about his bride, decides to secretly sneak into the family castle. He finds his father barely alive, having spent 3 months in the crypt, and Amalia still loving him. Karl wants to take revenge on his brother for his father’s suffering, but he strangles himself with a cord. The father dies after learning that Karl is a robber, and Amalia asks to stab her, so as not to part with him again. Karl fulfills Amalia's request and is brought into the hands of justice, simultaneously doing a good deed for the father of 11 children.

Heroes and images

Old Man Moore wants only one thing: for his children to love each other. He is too soft, which Franz takes advantage of and pulls out of his mouth a curse directed at Karl. It was the father's refusal to accept his son in his castle that prompted Charles to become a robber. The father either curses his son or calls him a pearl in the crown of the Almighty and an angel. The old man is not ready to accept his son Karl as a robber and murderer, and dies from this news.

Franz Moor, the youngest son, is treacherous and deceitful. His goal is to take possession of his father's estate. In his own words, he was mired in all mortal sins. Franz suspects that all people are like him. Franz considers a person to be dirt, and he himself is completely devoid of conscience.

The priest calls Franz a tyrant. Franz is an atheist, but deep down he is afraid of meeting God. He is tormented by the sin of parricide, which is reflected in the dream of the Last Judgment. His death is correlated with his sins: he hanged himself, like Judas.

The older brother Karl Moor is a noble robber. He himself does not consider himself either a criminal or a thief, calling retribution his craft, and revenge his trade.

Karl is devout, but treats churchmen with contempt, calling them Pharisees, interpreters of the truth, monkeys of the deity.

Karl, according to the priest, is consumed by pride. Indeed, Karl treats the robbers with contempt, calling them godless scoundrels and instruments of his great plans.

Karl is a natural person who acts according to common sense. Having learned about his brother’s treachery, Karl is ready to flee so as not to kill him in anger. He is generous and generous, giving Daniel a wallet. At the end of the tragedy, Karl decides not only to surrender to the authorities, but also to help the poor man by giving him money for his capture.

Moreover, Karl is a robber and murderer. He would like to forget the screams of his victims, trying to find justification for his actions in his pedigree and his upbringing.

Karl has a keen sense of justice. He himself rebels against human laws, considering them unjust, but is outraged that Franz violates God's laws when he kills and tortures his father: “The laws of the universe have been turned into dice! The connection of nature fell apart... The son killed his father.”

From Karl's point of view, revenge justifies his robbery and murder of his brother. And yet he does not consider himself entitled to be happy and love if he has killed so many.

Daniel, a seventy-year-old servant, is exceptionally honest. He does not console Franz, who told horrible dream about the Last Judgment, but only promises to pray for it. Franz calls this sincerity the wisdom and cowardice of the mob. Daniel refuses to stab Franz when the hour of retribution approaches, not wanting to commit a sin.

Images of robbers

They are loyal to their chieftain and do not agree to hand him over to the authorities even for a signed pardon. Karl calls the robbers punishing angels. His obligations to them force Karl to kill Amalia.

Amalia

The girl is faithful to her lover and idealizes him. Amalia is ready to go to the monastery, having learned about the imaginary death of Karl and his father, but does not agree to become Franz’s wife, she wants to stab herself when younger brother harasses her by force.

Amalia cannot imagine her life without her lover. When a girl finds out that her fiancé is a robber, she calls him both a demon and an angel. She herself becomes a victim of her lover's debt.

Conflict

The conflict in drama is external and internal. External social conflict: rebellion against feudal tyranny. He encourages Karl to become a robber, and Franz to plot intrigues against his father and brother. At the end of the novel, the conflict is resolved by Karl admitting the error of his ways.

Karl's internal conflict is the contradiction between the right to protest and the criminal ways of its implementation, based on violence. This conflict is insoluble.

Internal conflict is inherent in every hero. Amalia resolves the conflict between her love for Karl and her sympathy for Karl in disguise. Franz's internal conflict is the question of the existence of God. The father cannot decide whether to forgive or curse each of his sons.

Artistic originality

For the young Schiller, the main thing in drama is to convey his ideas to the reader and viewer. The plot is not based on facts of life, but comes from ideas. The character of Schiller's hero is conventional. He builds it rationally, based on his meager knowledge about society and the world, and subordinates it to an idea.

Schiller created a new type of drama. It has a political component, pathos, emotionality and lyricism.

Songs are of great importance in drama. Karl and Amalia sing, restoring their strength by playing the lute and pouring out their melancholy. The songs reveal the true feelings of the characters, for example, Charles sings about Caesar and the traitor Brutus, having learned about his brother’s betrayal.

Composition

The great Goethe said that with Schiller's death he lost half of himself. These two enlightenment writers are always nearby - even after death: their monuments stand in front of the theater in Weimar, and they are buried not far from each other. Goethe and Schiller revived the ballad and competed with each other in this genre. Schiller's ballads are full of mystery, danger, inevitability of fate, and sometimes cruelty. The core point of the plot is the hero's trials, the test of his knightly courage. For Schiller, like Goethe, the cross-cutting motif is the theme of human freedom, the idea of ​​equal rights for all peoples of the world, the assertion of the right to state independence and fair laws. In Schiller's dramas Mary Stuart (1880), The Virgin of Orleans (1801), and William Tell (1804), the idea of ​​equality and freedom occupies a central place.

Schiller congratulated the Great French revolution Having seen in it liberation from violence, but the cruelty of revolutionary actions pushed him away from the “free” republic, he develops his own program for human improvement, where he preaches the idea of ​​peace and harmony instead of revolutionary upheavals. Writers are often called the spiritual shepherds of humanity. It was this message that came to mind when I was thinking about the content of the ballad “The Glove.” You got the impression that the author was having a conversation with you, as if he was offering to “try on” events literary story on the reader. The ballad is based on a historical legend about events that allegedly took place in the 14th century in France, during the reign of King Francis. But the history of ancient times is interesting and relevant for us, our contemporaries. When you read the ballad, you get the impression that you yourself are a spectator of the performance, mentally transported to those distant times, occupy a chair in the arena of the royal menagerie and watch the events, the people...

Everywhere you can hear a quiet conversation, ladies fanning themselves with fans, worthy knights stand next to them, ready to fulfill any order of their lady of the heart. Here is the beautiful Cunegond - proud, unattainable. Near her is an excited Delorge. From the first point of view, it is clear that he is in love with Cunegonde. And if you look closely, we will see that she treats the young man with contempt. And, unfortunately, love is always blind...

The performance is about to begin. An imperious gesture from the king - and a lion enters the arena, another gesture - a tiger appears, then two leopards. The king is having fun, waiting for a bloody outcome. The courtiers are looking forward to death. I feel uneasy... Animals are animals, they live by brutal laws, but people who enjoy death... Creepy! Meanwhile, a battle between the leopards ensues in the arena. The audience comes to life. But the menacing roar of the king of beasts - the lion - and the animals calm down. It seemed that the performance was over. The audience is disappointed. And suddenly a glove falls from the hand of the beautiful Cunegonde, falling straight into a cage with formidable animals. All eyes turn to the lady. At some point, it seemed to me that I saw how proudly the lady’s chin rose, she felt like a queen.
The performance continues. Like the king at the beginning of the play, Cunegonde now makes an imperious gesture, sending Delorge to pick up his glove. Neil watches the action with tension and horror. I really want the king to stop this, like the king of beasts did - with one gesture! No! He just watches. Meanwhile, Delorge enters the cage and raises his glove. He goes to Cunegonde, everyone enthusiastically congratulates him, praises him, the proud beauty also promises the knight her love. And he throws the glove in her face and says: “No need for gratitude.” The hall freezes and Delorge leaves the lady. End of the performance.

I want to catch up with the brave young man who managed to defend his human dignity, who proved his courage. He defeated the world of evil, cruelty and managed to understand the real essence of the one without whom he could not imagine life just yesterday. A person begins with an action. Cunegonde did her deed. Delorge's action is delightful. The king did not act. What would I do if they did this to me?

One of the brightest periods in the history of the German Enlightenment is called “Storm and Drang”. Lyrics, drama and prose of the 70s of the 18th century are marked by high emotional tension and rebellious motives. The bearer of this rebellion is most often a lone hero who declares war on society. The conductor of this trend was the young Goethe, the creator of the image of Prometheus, proud and rebellious, who challenged Zeus himself.

Schiller joins the Sturm und Drang movement in the early 1980s. In the spirit of the ideas and artistic style of this movement, the young writer creates his famous drama “The Robbers.” The main character of the work expounds Schiller's thoughts on the Enlightenment. “Put me in command of an army of fellows like me, and Germany will become a republic, in front of which Rome and Sparta will seem like nunneries!” - proclaims Karl Moor. He is a well-born nobleman, nevertheless he equally disdains both the noble elite and those who crawl before them. TO parents' house Karl is tied not by his parents' estate, not by the count's privileges, but by his love for his elderly father and for Amalia, a pupil in their house.

The image of Karl is quite complex, unlike his brother Franz. Franz is portrayed by Schiller as cruel, treacherous, ready to commit a crime for his own purpose. By slandering Karl in front of his father, he thereby blocked his way home. Then Karl accepts the offer of the robbers to become their chieftain. The composition of Moore's gang is quite interesting. Many people know Latin, French swear word and ancient and recent history. These men are students who did not finish their studies. Karl Moor kicks out the scoundrels from his society.

Karl's gang robs not for the sake of enrichment, but for the sake of revenge. “My craft is punishment,” he says. Karl Moor always gives his share of money to orphans and helps talented young men get an education. But if you need to be cruel to the rich, or teach a lesson to a quitter who interprets justice in his favor, Karl has no regrets. The result of this rebellion could have been foreseen. Karl Moor, as an intelligent man, also recognized its futility. Moreover, the struggle for justice that he waged was accompanied by cruelty and new crimes. Karl Moor leaves the gang, realizing the futility of his activities. He admits that this whole plan was just youthful eccentricity and chimerical ideas. Schiller, like his hero Karl Moor, also renounces rebellion. And with this Essay he expresses hope for peaceful ways to improve humanity, education, and enlightenment. Schiller’s thoughts are still relevant today, because everyone wants to improve their life. It was, is and will be so at all times.