In the ballads concerning the royal Prince Marko we see that he was always chivalrous toward women, especially toward widows and oppressed maidens, irrespective of their social position or their religion. He is willing to succour Turkish maidens, for whom he is ready to jeopardize his life. In the ballad entitled “The Captivity and Marriage of Stephan Yakshitch” the bard tells of advances made to Stephan by a passionate Turkish maiden, which he repels with indignation at the mere idea of an alliance between a Christian and a Mussulman woman. King Voukashin might have corresponded with Voïvode Momtchilo’s wife previous to her marriage, but if so it must have been rather a political attachment than an affair of the heart.
[1] King Voukashin, the father of Prince Marko, was a vassal king to the Emperor Doushan the Powerful.
[2] Boyana is the river upon the banks of which Scutari is built.
[3] The Serbian bards of the fourteenth century invariably use the word “book” when speaking of a letter.
[4] Or, according to some bards, Piritor. It is said that the walls of the castle still exist in Herzegovina.
[5] Tchile, diminutive of Yaboutchilo, the full name of the steed.
[6] It must be remembered that these ballads are recited by bards before great gatherings of people of all ages and both sexes, hence such direct addresses.
[7] This is one more instance of the intensity of sisterly love to which we have previously referred.