AKHMET III. AND THE ZAPOROGIANS
S. Rudansky
(The letter written by the Cossacks to the Sultan is in a museum in Russia)
In the year 1600, in that God’s year,
A letter came from Akhmet
To our Zaporogie:
“I, Sultan, the son of Mohammed,
The grandson of the one God,
The brother of the Crescent
And even of the Sun;
Knight strong and great,
King of Kings,
Champion of all the world,
And Tzar of Tzars:
Tzar of Constantinople,
Tzar of Macedonia,
Greece, Serbia, Moldavia;
Tzar of Babylon, Podolia and Halych,
And glorious Krimea:
Tzar of Egypt, Arabia, Jerusalem,
The Keeper of the Tomb in Jerusalem
And of your God;
I am the Sorrow and the Help
Of all Christian men—
I say to ye, Cossacks,
Surrender!
Or expect no good from me.”
In the same year the Zaporogians
Read the Letter
And said to their foe, the Sultan:
“Thou, Sultan, art the devil’s son,
The grandson of Haspid[[17]] himself,
And thou, a hornèd chort[[18]]!
“Thou art but a wretched inn-keeper
In Constantinople;
A Macedonian brewer,
Greek and Moldavian swine,
And Babylonian blacksmith;
“Thou oppressor of Serbia and Podolia,
Krimean parrot, Egyptian swine-herd;
Owl of Jerusalem!
No help of Christians art thou, but a fool;
No protector of our God.
Thou art not worthy to kiss us anywhere—
Nor worthy to hold our Zaporogie.
“We shall fight thee
By land and sea!
We do not fear thee,
Thou son of a dog!
Such is our answer!
“We know not what year this may be,
Because we have no calendars in our Seech—
Our ‘Meassiatz’[[19]] is now in the heaven;
This day is the same day as with you.
Then, Turks, after these words
Try to take us!”