The Ballads of Marko Kraljević/Marko Kraljević and Djemo the Mountaineer
MARKO KRALJEVIĆ AND DJEMO THE MOUNTAINEER
Kraljević Marko Celebrated his Slava,
He kept his Slava that fell on St George's day.
And many invited guests were there—
Two hundred priests, three hundred monks,
Twelve Serbian bishops,
Four patriarchs well stricken in years,
And others without number.
For all there was meat and drink and to spare,
Natheless an aged monk lift up his voice and said:
"Give thee thanks, Kraljević Marko!10
There had nothing lacked in thy white manor,
An thou hadst fish from Ochrida[1]!"
Sore grieved was Kraljević Marko,
He called his servant Bogosav,
And gave him glass and wine-beaker:
"Pour thou the wine, Bogosav, my servant,
Give the glass in due order round the table,
See that thou pass not over any."
With that he gat him down from the white tower,
And made ready his war-horse Sharatz.20
After him hasted his aged mother.
And spake (soft) words unto him:
"Ah, my son, Kraljević Marko,
Take not any weapon with thee,
Else—so used to blood art thou—
Thou wilt surely shed blood on thy festal day."
Lo, in a strait betwixt two was Marko!
Ill were it, him seemed, to go unarmed,
And yet more evil to give not heed to his mother.
So he took with him no weapon,30
But mounted the war-tried Sharatz,
And steered him adown the grassland,
And came with a straight course to white Ochrida.
Now when he was come to the river bridge,
Lo, a knight was there,
Seated cross-legged on a brown horse;
And ever he threw his battle-mace to the clouds,
And caught it again in his white hands.
"God aid thee," saith he to Marko,
And Marko gave him fair greeting again. 40
Then said the knight to Marko of Prilep:
"Tell me, I pray thee, stranger knight,
Art thou not come from Prilep,
From the manor of Kraljević Marko?
Is Marko in his white manor?
And hath he many invited guests there with him?"
Kraljević Marko made answer:
"In good sooth—thou stranger knight,
This morning was I at Prilep,
And Marko is indeed in his fair manor.50
He celebrateth his patron saint,
And he hath many invited guests there with him."
The worshipful stranger knight answered him again:
"Though he have never so many, fair sir,
If God will and knightly fortune prevail,
His table shall swim in blood,
And by God, I will hang him,
Even on the gate of white Prilep.
For long since he slew my brother,
Musa, the outlaw." 60
So he urged his brown horse and went his ways,
And Marko's countenance was sore troubled.
This way and that he pondered, and his mind was divided;
For if he should make him known,
The Turk would surely slay him,
For that he had no weapon;
And if he suffered him to go his ways to Prilep,
The Turk would surely hew down many guests,
What time he sought Marko in his manor.
Many counsels he pondered, he resolved on one,70
And so he cried with a loud voice:
"Whither goest thou, Djemo?
Lo, here am I, Kraljević Marko!"
Djemo, the Mountaineer, turned him about,
But Marko put his trust in Sharatz.
On his Sharatz he trusted he should have escaped,
And he fled away athwart the wide plain,
And Djemo followed hard after him;
Swift was Sharatz, and had right well escaped him,
But Djemo seized his battle-mace; 80
He wheeled it round him and cast it,
And smote Marko between the living shoulders.
Marko fell down on the green grass,
He fell and Djemo hasted to him
And bound his hands behind his back.
Then he drew forth the chain from the saddle-bag,
And bound him fast in bitter iron.
On his feet two fetters,
On his arms two armbands,
Round his neck the heavy chain of iron. 90
Then he mounted Marko's Sharatz,
And by the halter led the brown horse
Whereon he had bound Marko,
And came straightway to white Ochrida.
And by Ochrida he set up a gallows,
For there he purposed to hang Marko.
But the Christian lords besought him, saying:
"Brother-in-God, Djemo the Mountaineer,
Hang not Marko here,
Lest vine and wheat bear not any fruit. 100
Lo, here be three charges of gold!"
Djemo took the three charges of gold,
And led away Marko to Vučitern;
And by the town he set up a gallows,
For he purposed to hang Marko there.
But the Christian lords besought him, saying:
"Brother-in-God, Djemo the Mountaineer,
Hang not Marko here,
Lest vine and wheat bear not any fruit,
Lo, here be three charges of gold!" 110
Djemo took the three charges of gold,
And drave Marko further to white Zvečan.
And there Djemo set up a gallows,
For there he purposed to hang Marko.
But from Zvečan the lords came and besought him:
"Brother-in-God, Djemo the Mountaineer,
Hang not Marko here,
Lest vine and wheat bear not any fruit.
Lo, here be three charges of gold!"
Djemo took the three charges of gold, 120
And departed thence
Through a certain mountain called Janjina.
And Djemo was sore athirst,
And he spake (softly) to bold Marko:
"Knowest thou, Marko, if there be water here beside or any inn?
Sore thirst prevaileth over me."
To him answered Kraljević Marko:
"Knights of worship speak not on this wise, Djemo,
But rather they slay horse or falcon,
And stay their thirst with blood from the throat." 130
Djemo the Mountaineer made answer:
"Nor horse nor yet falcon will I slay,
But I am minded to slay thee, Kraljević,
For to stay my thirst with blood from thy throat."
Therewith he pulled out his well-wrought sabre,
Being in mind to slay Kraljević Marko.
But Kraljević Marko spake to him, saying:
"Soothly, Djemo, there is an inn hard by
And an accurséd ale-wife, Janja.
Now will Janja revenge herself of me. 140
Greatly of her wine have I drunken,
But have never given her a dinar."
Thereof was Djemo passing glad,
And right so they came before the inn.
And Janja the ale-wife came forth.
When she looked and saw Marko in fetters,
Marko winked at her with the eye,
And she laughed, Janja the ale-wife:
"Well done and featly, mighty man of men!
Thanks be to God for all that he hath wrought. 150
For that I have seen Marko bound in fetters
I will give thee to drink, Djemo,
Without white dinars nor yet paras.
Yea, for three white days if so it pleaseth thee."
She took Djemo's horse from him,
And brought him into the tavern,
And made him free of wine and rakia.
Djemo the Mountaineer drank deep,
And toasted the health of Marko Kraljević.
He toasted him but gave him naught to drink. 160
And when Djemo was grown merry with wine,
Janja the ale-wife brought him wine,
Red wine, seven years old;
Therein she put all manner of herbs,
And Djemo's head sank down to sleep unpillowed.
Lightly to her feet sprang Janja,
And loosed the irons from her pobratim.
And Marko fastened them upon Djemo.
And when he had made fast the heavy iron chain,
Marko sate him down to drink the red wine; 170
And he struck Djemo with boot and spur:
"Up, Djemo, let us drink together!"
Djemo the Mountaineer looked round about him,
He perceived Marko above him,
He felt the heavy iron chain about his neck.
Lightly sprang Djemo to his feet
But the chain of iron drew him down.
With arms and legs he strained,
His arms cracked in the shoulders,
And his legs cracked in the knee-joints,180
But the hard iron held him.
Djemo sate him down on the black earth,
And Marko sat drinking the dark wine.
He drank to the health of Djemo the Mountaineer,
He drank to his health but gave him naught to drink.
And when Marko was flushed with wine,
He tied Sharatz to the brown horse,
And bound Djemo upon Sharatz,
Himself he mounted upon Djemo's brown
And went straightway to Vučitern. 190
Thence came forth to him Christian lords, saying:
"Brother-in-God, Kraljević Marko,
See that thou hang Djemo here.
Lo, here be three charges of gold!"
But Marko gave back to them the gold
That they had given to Djemo the Mountaineer,
And went on further to white Zvečan.
And the Christian lords came forth, saying:
"Brother-in-God, Kraljević Marko,
See that thou hang Djemo here. 200
Lo, here be three charges of gold!"
But Marko gave back to them the gold
That they had given to Djemo the Mountaineer,
And continued to white Ochrida.
And the Christian lords came forth, saying:
"Brother-in-God, Kraljević Marko,
See that thou hang Djemo here.
Lo, here be three charges of gold!"
And Marko would not take the gold,
But gave back to them the three charges 210
That they had given to Djemo the Mountaineer.
At Ochrida he builded a gallows,
And hanged Djemo the Mountaineer.
And he took fish from Ochrida lake,
And straightway gat him to white Prilep,
And there did honour to his patron saint.
- ↑ The lake of Ochrida is celebrated for its fish.