EP 356: The Black Monk; The Dance of the Dead: The Dead Bride (Hubert)
The Black Monk
The fortress of Werfenstein rises up from the stream of the Danube close to the eddy, supported by blocks of granite. There used to be an eerie tower on top of the rocks emerging from the waters next to the castle. The Black Monk resided within these walls, and legends claim that he could not find peace as punishment for the godless deeds he committed while still alive. His appearance was seen as an ill omen.
Once, Emperor Henry II rode past the Werfenstein with several noble lords, Bishop Bruno of Würzburg among them. Then heavy black clouds arose, and lightning writhed above the waters.
“By God, Lord Emperor”, the bishop shouted, “do you see the gigantic, black, threatening figure over there on the battlements of the tower?”
“I only see moss and stone.”
“And don’t you hear the rustling of the folded robe?”
“The storm wind howls, the thunder cracks.”
“Now the Terrible One climbs down, but in his eye glitters deadly revenge!”
“The weather seems to have agitated you, your Excellency!”
Finally, they arrived at Persenbeug.
“This was a marvelous journey — nature is also beautiful when she grumbles” the Emperor said smilingly.
The bishop shook like a leaf, and was unable to find a reply.
Countess Richlita von Ebersberg did whatever she could to provide a festive reception to her highborn guests.
“There he is again, the horrible one,” the ecclesial lord groaned, “he reaches for me—”
“You seem to be succumbing to a severe fever”, said Henry, shaking his head.
“Begone! Begone!” cried Bruno, rose up from his chair, rushed towards the bay window, and flung himself from the window down into the Danube.
But then, a black, shadowed, gigantic figure floated past the window and emitted horrifying laughter.
This time, the Emperor thought that he had seen more than clouds, and heard more than the roaring of the wind.
Once, during the times of the crusades, a ship crewed by Thuringians once drove down the river. Then the ghostly monk showed himself, and distorted his chalk-white face into a malicious grin. Soon, the vehicle drifted towards the rock and capsized. Of all the soldiers and sailors, only one was able to save himself with the aid of a plank.
At a later time, the ghost seemed to strike the empty air with a rod. It didn’t take long until a horrible hailstorm shattered forests, seeds, and huts.
At another time, after the monk appeared, a flood occurred of a severity as it has never occurred before, and hopefully will never occur again.
The horrible one also summoned fiery conflagrations which destroyed thriving communities and cities.
The last time the Black Monk was allegedly seen, he appeared on the doom-laden battlements of this tower when the Turks threatened Vienna.
He flailed around with a sword as if his intent was to fight a grim enemy.
After that, the tower was torn down, and its stones were used as fortifications against the barbarians.
But even if the fiend has been rendered invisible to observers, he lives on in legend, and superstitious people still make the sign of the cross whenever they perceive this uncanny location.
Source: Bowitsch – Vom Donaustrande, p. 57ff
The End
The Dance of The Dead
A young man once climbed up to the alpine pasture during the winter. He knew that he would encounter no one up here during this time of the year. He spent the night in his hut, but woke up and went outside in order to relieve himself.
He noticed that there were lights in the hut next door, and shadows were moving past the windows as if people were dancing there. He thus went to the hut, peered through the keyhole, and now saw several couples spinning in dance. He had not seen any of these people before. As he was freezing, he fetched his overcoat.
When he returned and peered through the keyhole again, he noticed that the dancers were covered all over with icicles. Now he startled, for he had recognized his lover, who had died recently. She, too, was wearing icicles in her hair, on her sleeves, on her jacket, and on her skirt. He shuddered, and hurried back into his hut, crawled into his bed, and pulled his blanket over his head.
Then there was a knock at his door. He didn’t dare bid the knocker to enter, but then the door opened on its own, and his lover Emma stepped towards his bed and pulled the blanket away from his head. What she told him next has remained his secret for all his life.
(From Wiler)
The End
Source: Jegerlehner – Walliser Sagen, p. 115f
The Dead Bride
Lauf Castle, which is usually called Neu-Windeck, is said to have been uninhabited for a long time before its destruction, as its hauntings could be heard day and night.
During that period, a young knight who was foreign to this region sought hospitality in this castle. He had difficulties with finding the entrance during the darkness of the night. The courtyard was covered by tall grass, and his shouts echoed eerily between the lonely walls.
Finally, he saw a light in one chamber of the castle, and climbed the stairs towards it. In the old great hall, a young woman was sitting at a table and seemed to be so preoccupied with her thoughts that she didn’t notice him as he entered. She was beautiful, like an angel, but the redness of her cheeks seemed to have paled as if from sorrow.
When the knight greeted her, she looked up and nodded with her head. When he conveyed his request for hospitality, she rose up, fetched wine and venison as well as all sorts of poultry, and indicated to the stranger that he should enjoy the meal. Bread and salt were missing, but he did not have the courage to ask for these, for the whole situation seemed entirely uncanny — especially since the maiden had not uttered a single syllable so far.
But soon, the wine lifted the spirits of the knight, and he started a conversation:
“You must be the daughter of this house?”
She nodded with her head.
“And your parents?”
She indicated a few portraits on the wall, and spoke with a quiet voice: “I am the last of my line.”
The beautiful maiden appealed to the young knight considerably, and, since he indulged with his tankard eagerly, his heart opened more and more. He was poor, and thought to himself that he might make his fortune here.
After a few speeches, he took her hand and asked her if she was still unbound.
She affirmed this with another nod of the head, and the knight proposed marriage to her. Her face lightened up. She rose up, took two rings and a rosemary wreath from a drawer, and stuck the latter into her black curls of hair. Then, she waved to the knight to follow her. He obeyed, not without dread, and would have liked to go back on this word. But at this moment, two venerable, festively dressed old men entered who took him and the maiden into their midst and led them to the castle chapel.
There, several tombs were located, and on one of them there was a cast iron bishop in full priestly regalia. The maiden touched the iron figure, which quickly rose up and stepped in front of the altar, where the candles lit up on their own. The iron countenance of the bishop seemed to come alive, his eyes shone like a star peeking through light fog, and he spoke with a deep, hollow voice:
“Kurd of Stein, speak whether you want to marry the maiden Bertha von Windeck, and make her your wife?”
The knight quavered like the leaves of an aspen in the wind, the word died on his tongue, and his senses started to fail him. Then, the crowing of the rooster on a nearby farming estate became audible, the whole congregation vanished, and a terrible whirlwind tore through the chapel which seemed to pull the castle into the depths. The knight fell unconscious, and when he revived, he was lying in the tall grass of the courtyard, and his loyal horse was next to him.
The End
Source: Sunken Castles, Evil Poodles By Jurgen Hubert
Picture credit: Ruins of Werfenstein Castle by Jürgen Hubert
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