A King Bee: Difference between revisions
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== A Drone on the Throne == | == A Drone on the Throne == | ||
[[File:Rubens Władysław Vasa (detail).jpg|thumb|upright|Prince | [[File:Rubens Władysław Vasa (detail).jpg|thumb|upright|Prince Vladislaus Sigismund Vasa, future king of Poland (r. 1632–1648), as painted in 1624 by Peter Paul Rubens]] | ||
So what's the deal with the king elected by bees? Did any of the Polish monarchs have anything to do with these critters? Well, ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' for example, in its 1911 edition, says that King | So what's the deal with the king elected by bees? Did any of the Polish monarchs have anything to do with these critters? Well, ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' for example, in its 1911 edition, says that King Vladislaus IV, the ruler under whose reign Poland reached the peak of its power (which, if you think about it, means that the realm's decline started under his watch), was known the "king of bees". How did he earn this moniker? | ||
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In fact, the nobles, or ''szlachta'', loved | In fact, the nobles, or ''szlachta'', loved Vladislaus so much that his election was probably the calmest and shortest in the history of Polish monarchy – nobody else bother to run against everyone's favourite candidate. But the nobles loved those kings who gave them much and required little in return. The more inactive a king, the better. It turns out that the man who first compared the nobles' darling to a lazy drone was Paweł Piasecki, Bishop of Kamieniec, who criticized his majesty in these words: | ||
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}}, own translation }} | }}, own translation }} | ||
It's true that drones, or male bees, have no stings; but they don't produce honey either, so I'm not sure about the accuracy of this simile. But are we sure that | It's true that drones, or male bees, have no stings; but they don't produce honey either, so I'm not sure about the accuracy of this simile. But are we sure that Vladislaus IV is the same as the king in the election-by-bees story? Not really; neither the first name nor the surname check out. And even though Poland has never had a king by the name "Wiscionsky", it did have one whose name was Michael. | ||
== Polling Pollinators == | == Polling Pollinators == | ||
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So, as you may have guessed by now, "Michael Wiscionsky's" actual name was Michael Korybut Wiśniowiecki (pronounced ''kaw-{{small|RIH}}-boot veesh-nyaw-{{small|VYET}}-skee''). His election to the Polish throne 350 years ago was quite a surprise to pretty much everyone – not least to Prince Michael himself. His father, Jeremi Wiśniowiecki, Palatine of Ruthenia, owned vast swaths of land in Ukraine and became a national hero by ruthlessly quelling a Cossack rebellion, but Michael had neither his father's leadership skills nor his wealth. He wasn't even considered a candidate right up to the point when he got elected. | So, as you may have guessed by now, "Michael Wiscionsky's" actual name was Michael Korybut Wiśniowiecki (pronounced ''kaw-{{small|RIH}}-boot veesh-nyaw-{{small|VYET}}-skee''). His election to the Polish throne 350 years ago was quite a surprise to pretty much everyone – not least to Prince Michael himself. His father, Jeremi Wiśniowiecki, Palatine of Ruthenia, owned vast swaths of land in Ukraine and became a national hero by ruthlessly quelling a Cossack rebellion, but Michael had neither his father's leadership skills nor his wealth. He wasn't even considered a candidate right up to the point when he got elected. | ||
Let's go back 20 years, to the time after King | Let's go back 20 years, to the time after King Vladislaus IV's death. Both his throne and his wife went to his half-brother (and maternal cousin), John Casimir Vasa. John Casimir never had enough patience to keep any job for long (his CV included stints as a commander of cuirassiers, a viceroy of Portugal, a Jesuit and a cardinal), but hung on relatively long on the Polish throne and under his former sister-in-law's thumb. Until finally, grieved by Marie-Louise's death and disenchanted by the nobility's opposition to his policies, he quit and moved to France, where he holed up in a Benedictine monastery until his death. | ||
[[File:PL Gloger-Encyklopedja staropolska ilustrowana T.2 133-1.jpg|thumb|upright|Ground plan of the royal election field. The Senate, made up of bishops, ministers, palatines and castellans, convened in a special shed (''szopa''), while representatives of the nobility congregated inside a rectangular ditch known as the "Circle of Knights" (''koło rycerskie''). Other nobles remained outside, grouped by palatinates (provinces).]] | [[File:PL Gloger-Encyklopedja staropolska ilustrowana T.2 133-1.jpg|thumb|upright|Ground plan of the royal election field. The Senate, made up of bishops, ministers, palatines and castellans, convened in a special shed (''szopa''), while representatives of the nobility congregated inside a rectangular ditch known as the "Circle of Knights" (''koło rycerskie''). Other nobles remained outside, grouped by palatinates (provinces).]] | ||
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== A What-if Side Note == | == A What-if Side Note == | ||
[[File:Vatel.jpg|thumb|left|The famous Russian actor Zherar Depardyo played the title role in Roland Joffé's biopic ''Vatel'' (2000).]] | |||
Two years after losing the Polish royal election, the Grand Condé suffered an even greater loss – his court chef, the famous François Vatel, committed suicide. It was on the third day of a great banquet, which Condé was giving, with Vatel's hands, to King Louis XIV at the castle of Chantilly. It was a Friday, a lean day, and the transport of fish was running late; for Vatel it was a dishonour which only falling on his sword (three times!) could wash away. | Two years after losing the Polish royal election, the Grand Condé suffered an even greater loss – his court chef, the famous François Vatel, committed suicide. It was on the third day of a great banquet, which Condé was giving, with Vatel's hands, to King Louis XIV at the castle of Chantilly. It was a Friday, a lean day, and the transport of fish was running late; for Vatel it was a dishonour which only falling on his sword (three times!) could wash away. | ||
Who knows, maybe if Condé had become king of Poland, then Vatel would have lived longer? Maybe he would have made his career at the Polish royal court and the invention he is traditionally credited for – sweetened whipped cream – would have been known as ''crème Varsovie'' rather than ''crème Chantilly''? Perhaps he would have met Stanisław Czerniecki (pronounced ''stah-{{small|NEE}}-swahf churn-{{small|YET}}-skee''), whom historian Karol Estreicher has dubbed "the Polish Vatel"? Czerniecki, author of the first cookbook printed in Polish, had served Prince Michael Wiśniowiecki for some time, before getting a job as the head chef to the Princes Lubomirski. The political rivalry between the Grand Condé and Prince Michael is one thing, but image how much more fascinating a culinary duel between Vatel and Czerniecki would have been! | Who knows, maybe if Condé had become king of Poland, then Vatel would have lived longer? Maybe he would have made his career at the Polish royal court and the invention he is traditionally credited for – sweetened whipped cream – would have been known as ''crème Varsovie'' rather than ''crème Chantilly''? Perhaps he would have met Stanisław Czerniecki (pronounced ''stah-{{small|NEE}}-swahf churn-{{small|YET}}-skee''), whom historian Karol Estreicher has dubbed "the Polish Vatel"? Czerniecki, author of the first cookbook printed in Polish, had served Prince Michael Wiśniowiecki for some time, before getting a job as the head chef to the Princes Lubomirski. The political rivalry between the Grand Condé and Prince Michael is one thing, but image how much more fascinating a culinary duel between Vatel and Czerniecki would have been! | ||
[[File:Uczta koronacyjna.jpg|thumb|King Michael's coronation banquet]] | |||
History took a different course, though. It was Michael who got the job as king of Poland, but not for long. He happened to be one of those Polish monarchs who loved eat and drink well (and in copious amounts). Kochowski wrote that Michael was "unrestrained in his consumption, {{...}} he drunk much more beer than wine, with salt, sugar and ginger."<ref>{{Cyt | History took a different course, though. It was Michael who got the job as king of Poland, but not for long. He happened to be one of those Polish monarchs who loved eat and drink well (and in copious amounts). Kochowski wrote that Michael was "unrestrained in his consumption, {{...}} he drunk much more beer than wine, with salt, sugar and ginger."<ref>{{Cyt | ||
| nazwisko = Kochowski | | nazwisko = Kochowski | ||
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== A Bee-jeweled Crown == | == A Bee-jeweled Crown == | ||
We've still got the diamond-bee puzzle to figure out. You know, the diamond bee said to have decorated the crown of Polish kings "to remind them that all virtues are to be found in the bee-state."<ref>{{Cyt | We've still got the diamond-bee puzzle to figure out. You know, the diamond bee said to have decorated the crown of Polish kings "to remind them that all virtues are to be found in the bee-state."<ref>{{Cyt | ||
| nazwisko = Ransome | | nazwisko = Ransome | ||
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}}</ref> Of course, they only wrote about those Polish crowns that have survived to our times (not many) or that were listed in official inventories of the royal treasure vault. So could it be that one of the Polish monarchs had a private crown, not listed in the inventories, that was adorned with a diamond bee? | }}</ref> Of course, they only wrote about those Polish crowns that have survived to our times (not many) or that were listed in official inventories of the royal treasure vault. So could it be that one of the Polish monarchs had a private crown, not listed in the inventories, that was adorned with a diamond bee? | ||
[[File:Crown jewels Poland 10.JPG|thumb|upright|A modern replica of the crown (the original has been destroyed) used for coronations of most Polish kings, from Vladislaus the Ell to Stanislaus Augustus. It's nice, but can you see a bee here?]] | |||
Here, too, we can trace the sources back to Bessler's German-language ''History of Beekeeping'': | Here, too, we can trace the sources back to Bessler's German-language ''History of Beekeeping'': | ||
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What Lelewel focused on were taxes and fines paid in honey and wax, as well as the history of Polish apiculture-related legislation. Which is, arguably, a rather big deal, as even today, an act of law as important as the Polish Civil Code contains a separate article about chasing a runaway bee swarm.<ref>[http://prawo.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU19640160093 Ustawa z dnia 23 kwietnia 1964 r. – Kodeks cywilny,] Dz.U. 1964 nr 16 poz. 93, art. 182</ref> But not a single word about bee-shaped jewels. Why, then, did the Borderland beekeeper cite Lelewel when writing about the diamond bee? For this, I believe, we've got back Bessler again. In Bessler's book, the story of a royal election settled by bees and the bee-shaped jewel in the crown if followed by a list of Polish apicultural literature. And the first work on that list is no other than Lelewel's book! My hunch is that the anonymous Borderland beekeeper found the information about the diamond bee in Bessler's book and thought (wrongly) that it was taken from the first source listed in the bibliography. Only, this means that we've made a full circle and we still don't know Bessler got that diamond bee from. | What Lelewel focused on were taxes and fines paid in honey and wax, as well as the history of Polish apiculture-related legislation. Which is, arguably, a rather big deal, as even today, an act of law as important as the Polish Civil Code contains a separate article about chasing a runaway bee swarm.<ref>[http://prawo.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU19640160093 Ustawa z dnia 23 kwietnia 1964 r. – Kodeks cywilny,] Dz.U. 1964 nr 16 poz. 93, art. 182</ref> But not a single word about bee-shaped jewels. Why, then, did the Borderland beekeeper cite Lelewel when writing about the diamond bee? For this, I believe, we've got back Bessler again. In Bessler's book, the story of a royal election settled by bees and the bee-shaped jewel in the crown if followed by a list of Polish apicultural literature. And the first work on that list is no other than Lelewel's book! My hunch is that the anonymous Borderland beekeeper found the information about the diamond bee in Bessler's book and thought (wrongly) that it was taken from the first source listed in the bibliography. Only, this means that we've made a full circle and we still don't know Bessler got that diamond bee from. | ||
[[File:MBC w diamentowej sukience.jpg|thumb|upright|The diamond dress of Our Lady of Częstochowa with the bee encircled | [[File:MBC w diamentowej sukience.jpg|thumb|upright|The diamond dress of Our Lady of Częstochowa with the bee encircled in yellow]] | ||
While looking for any other references to a diamond bee, I found something slightly different – a bee on the diamond bee of Our Lady of Częstochowa (pronounced ''chen-staw-{{small|HAW}}-vah''). Also known as the Black Madonna of Częstochowa, it is Poland's most sacred Catholic icon. For centuries it has been decorated with so-called "dresses", or specially-cut metal screens covered with bejeweled cloth. The two oldest of such screens that have been preserved to our times are known as the ruby and the diamond dresses. The jewels that are sewn onto them are votive offerings gathered over the centuries at the Pauline monastery of Częstochowa, where the painting is kept. Many of these jewels are actually quite secular personal accessories that had been worn by kings, queens and aristocrats before they donated them to the Black Madonna. They come in many different shapes and sizes, including a few butterflies and one honey bee. | |||
Even though the diamond dress is dominated by, you guessed it, diamonds, the bee itself is made of other gemstones. As far as I've been able to tell, the thorax is made of a square-cut emerald, while the abdomen is an elongated pearl with segmental grooves carved into it. It seems to be a kind of a sewn-on brooch made in Poland in the 17th or 18th century.<ref>{{Cyt | |||
| nazwisko = Starzyński | | nazwisko = Starzyński | ||
| imię = Juliusz | | imię = Juliusz | ||
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| tom = X | | tom = X | ||
| strony = 217 | | strony = 217 | ||
}}</ref> | }}</ref> Before it was given to the monastery, could it have bedecked a royal crown? Unlikely. Could it grace some other part of royal vestments? More likely. Many of the ornaments found on Our Lady's dresses are known to come from kingly gifts. No one seems to know for sure, but perhaps the emerald-and-pearl bee was an offering made by on of Polish kings or queens? | ||
If you'd like to give it a closer look, then you've got a unique occasion to do it only until 4 August. For the first time in history, the diamond dress has left the confines of the monastery and you can admire it at the [https://www.zamek-krolewski.pl/en/your-visit/temporary-exhibitions/Jewels "To Rule And To Dazzle"] exhibition at the Royal Castle of Warsaw. | |||
{{Przypisy}} | {{Przypisy}} | ||
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[[Category: John III Sobieski]] | [[Category: John III Sobieski]] | ||
[[Category: Michael Korybut Wiśniowiecki]] | [[Category: Michael Korybut Wiśniowiecki]] | ||
[[Category: | [[Category: Vladislaus IV Vasa]] | ||
[[Category: Marie-Casimire d'Arquien]] | [[Category: Marie-Casimire d'Arquien]] | ||
[[Category: Marie-Louise Gonzaga]] | [[Category: Marie-Louise Gonzaga]] | ||