Vlad the Impaller Chapter 8

 The lessons of the princes

8.

Vlad’s life was not all about the military, for he was required to learn with Radu during lessons. He was brought to the chambers of Mehmed II daily for the lessons of the books.

“My father, the Sultan allowed you to study with us.” Vlad was told by the young prince. Vlad was offered a seat in the study chamber next to Radu and before them was Mehmed. He was however asked to bathe and change into fresh clothes before he attends the lessons.

“Infidel! Why are you late?” Vlad was questioned by the tutor then.

“I was in the bath. I had to get clean.” Vlad replied.

“Miscreant! How can you be clean when you still smell like the horse’s manure?” The tutor belittled Vlad. “Did you bathe with it?”

“I am Vlad ---” Vlad was stopped by his brother.

“Tutor, my brother is tired. He will be better in his manners when he had rested.” Radu offered excuses for Vlad.

“If that is so, then let him rest with the books on his head. It will enlighten his mind.” Vlad's hours of the lesson were in the afternoon after his training. Vlad saw Radu from the corner of his eyes was reading from the Holy Book.

“Radu, why are you reading that book? You are ---”

“Silence, infidel. Radu is an exemplary student. He reads and writes well.” The tutor looked from Vlad to Mehmed.

“My Prince, why do we entertain this infidel in the lessons. He held no --- mind to learn.” The tutor looked to the young prince.

“He is --- to learn. He will learn for I said so.” Mehmed had agreed to Vlad in attendance at the request of Radu who had become his food friend and companion. Radu told him that Vlad was a good learner but due to the harsh situation, he was becoming angry.

“Radu, I can’t help him there for the Sultan sent him there but ---- I can make amends by having joined us in the later stages of the lessons. He will then be near you. As he was to attend the lessons, no harm will come to him.”

If there was any harm, it was the doing of Vlad for he was not reckless but brave in his training. He will ride the horse and release the arrows with determination to hit the targets. He was a fine recruit and even earned the respect of his peers. Though Vlad was given every aspect of the training as a Janissary he was not taught how to fire a musket.

“Only a true Janissary can use that weapon. You will respect that.” Vlad was told by his instructors. Without the use of the musket, Vlad trained hard with the swords and bow with the arrows.

“The warrior is not one without his weapons but a poorly wielded weapon is a way to get killed early.” Vlad was told. And horsemanship was essential.

“The horse is your legs and your friend. If you learned to ride well, you will be faster and above all, the horse may save you with its hoofs.” The horsemen spoke many times of their mount which fought off the wolves with their hoofs.

Unlike Vlad, Radu was into the finer aspects of learning. He had the books and tutors to give him knowledge. He studied not only the Holy book but also astronomy and economics.

“Trade is an essential part of the empire to enrich its coffers. Items can be brought from the far reaches of the land to trade at a higher price in other parts. It’s all about demand and supply.”

“The lessons of Athir al-Din al-Mutaddai ibn Umar ibn Ak Mufassal al -Samargandi al-Abhari was a philosopher, astronomer, astrologer, and mathematician.” Radu was told and taught to read the works of the above. His first lessons were to learn to pronounce the name correctly.

“A master of his field must be acknowledged in full; right from his name to the words he handed to us.” Radu was reminded many times. He learned and explained the works then.

“Radu, I am impressed with you. You are a stranger to my land and culture and yet you learned so much in that short time.” Mehmed praised the other in front of the Sultan.

“Yes, he has learned a lot. He will be a valued ally to the empire soon.” Sultan Murad smiled. It was all good days for the two Wallachian lads until words arrived from their land.

“My Sultan, the Wallachian is revolting against you. Their leader supports Vladislaus.” The envoy told the Sultan.

“The despot King Wladyslaw. How dares he challenged me?” Sultan Murad was enraged. “We have a treaty.”

There was peace proposed by Ulászló I and signed in Seghedino with Sultan Murad II. The papal envoy Giuliano Cesarini, with an enticing vision of a promise of victory in the crusade against the Muslims, persuaded new young King Władysław to engage his freshly victorious forces for another season of war, thus breaching the ten-year truce with the aggressive and still powerful Ottoman Empire.

“It was the religious papal who desired another crusade against us. He decries our faith as devil worshipping.” The Sultan was told.

“If it's war they want, we shall do battle.:” Sultan Murad II declared war. “I don’t care who. It can be the Saxons, the Romans, and even the Hungarians.”

“My Sultan, what of the Wallachian’s whelps?’ The Sultan was reminded of the two sons of Lord Vlad.

“They are to be ---” The Sultan was to issue the command to behead them when Mehmed intervened.

“Father ---- My apologies. My Sultan, the friends ---” Mehmed was snapped at.

“Friends? They are not your friends. They are hostages as I do deem fit to live or die.” Sultan Murad was upset. “Their father defies me.”

“It may be ---- My Sultan but I knew them well. Radu and Vlad are with us. We received yearly the recruits of the allies and occupied lands. Do we execute them when their King revolted? Or do we have them fight for us?”

“They are the enemies. They will stab us in the back.” Sultan Murad replied.

“They are the enemies if we had not taken care of them as our own, but if they are grateful to us, they won’t revolt. They will fight for us. Or stay as hostages. We can use that as leverage. Their father won’t battle us if they are here. Such is the reasoning for the hostages.”

“You have good reasoning, my prince. I will hear you for now. I have a war to fight. Tell your friends to know their loyalty and if they forget, my Janissaries will remind them well.” With that, the lives of Vlad and Radu were spared.

It was not so the thoughts of Lord Vlad.

“The new war against the Ottoman will be disastrous to us. My sons ---” Lord Vlad sighed. “I have no news on them. Are they dead or carrying arms against me?”

Lord Vlad had seen the ones who have converted into Muslims and fought against the Crusaders.

“My Lord, I am not to give you false hopes but the ----boys could be dead now.” The old adviser spoke to the Lord of Wallachia. “You have lived with the Ottomans. Mercy is not in their care when it comes to hostages.”

Lord Vlad nodded his head and then went to the family chapel to offer prayers. His lover had refused to see him for some months then, and his son Mircea was silent most times. He took solace in that he was still alive.

It was also the approach of young Janus when he prayed next to Jan in the army chapel. The words have reached the mercenaries that they were to ride for the borders.

“The Turks are at our border once more.” The call went out. Janus had then retrieved his armor but was taken by Jan to the chapel.

“We ride tomorrow to fight the Ottoman. In war, we are to die or live to die another day. So, say your prayer to God for his redemption.” Janus was told. He nodded to the request and knelt by the seat provided there. He clasped his hands together in prayer while he looked at Jan. He knew the other was nervous at that time. Jan once told him that before every battle, he will speak to God for guidance. It was not so for Janus.

“I will fight tomorrow and the day after it. I will not die.” Janus told himself. Then he raised a query to Jan. “Will there be others like us fighting for the Ottoman? I heard of their recruits maybe our people.”

“Janus, in the Black Army, we are not all Hungarians. We have Germans and others with us. We fight under the banner we served. It may be for the Ottoman army. I know the Janissaries held a diverse type of recruits. They be of different birth but they are like us; they serve under the banner. If so, they are our enemy. Whoever you meet in battle is your enemy, even he is Hungarian by birth, will be killed.”