The Taunua Mountains
Adolfseck
On the
steep rocks near the lovely little town of
Schwalbach,
the ruins of a knight's stronghold are still to be seen. It was called
Adolfseck,
and belonged to the Emperor Adolphus of Nassau, who inhabited it six
hundred
years ago. He concealed his paramour in this castle, which lay in the
depths
of the forest far from the turmoil of the world.
Often he was to be seen riding through the silent
woods
towards this little fortress. There the fair and frail one would be
waiting
for him on the balcony, and would greet him with a loving welcome. She
was
always closely attended by a little white dog, which would rush forward
to
meet the proud knight, barking briskly and wagging its tail with
delight.
The emperor and this beautiful woman had first met
each
other in a strange way. It happened once that Adolphus had been
severely
wounded in battle, and had been carried to a cloister near the Rhine
where
She had nursed him. At that time she wore a nun's veil, but that did
not
save her woman's heart from being awakened, and a love for the proud
knight
stole into her soul, kindling a fire there which she was unable to
quench.
She struggled desperately with herself, and by the aid of prayers and
tears,
she hoped to quench the longing in her soul. But in vain, and when the
knight
spoke to her of his love she could resist no longer. Under protection
of
the darkness Adolphus escaped from the cloister with her, and hid his
beloved
one in his stronghold of Adolfseck.
But the beautiful sinful creature knew that what
she
had done was wrong, and that Heaven would surely punish them both. The
fate
she feared, was to befall them sooner than she expected. The Archbishop
of
Mayence, Gerhard of Eppstein, a very strict and severe man, heard of
the
shameful .elopement, and in great wrath he excommunicated his audacious
nephew.
But as the curse had no effect on the latter, who continued to visit
his
lady-love, the archbishop called the electors together at Mayence, and
demanded
in righteous indignation the abdication of the imperial evil-doer. The
electors
obeyed the chancellor's demand and chose Albrecht, son of Rudolf of
Habsburg,
emperor under the name of Albrecht IV.
But Adolphus was not inclined to give up his
rights so
quietly, and gathered his troops together against his opponent. He soon
found
however that the number of those who remained faithful to him, was very
small.
With the exception of the Count Palatinate, and a few faithful cities
on
the Rhine, no one supported his rights. It was agreed that the decision
between
these two combatants should take place on the property of the Count
Palatinate.
A day before the event Adolphus rode over to Adolfseck for the last
time,
tried to comfort his weeping ladylove, and at last bade her good-bye.
He wanted the fight to take place early in the
morning,
so that in the evening he might return to her either as a conqueror or
as
a dethroned emperor. With a heavy heart he rode forth, and the weeping
lady
did not close an eye that night, but stared out into the darkness; she
could
neither pray nor weep; it seemed to her that the curse was coming
nearer
and nearer, and would soon fasten on that unholy deed of hers; she felt
she
had done irreparable wrong, she had torn her nun's veil from her head
to
her own disgrace and to his destruction.
At last day dawned, but the light was even more
hateful
to her, since she knew he must be in the heat of the fight, striving
for
his crown, and that his life was in imminent danger. What if he lost
both?
The thought seemed to pierce her very heart, and thus she passed the
dreadful
hours in anguish and torment.
These two wearers of the German crown fought a
desperate
fight. Like lions they struggled for the possession of the kingdom, but
fate
was against Adolf, even though he strove with heroic courage. His
followers
became less and less, and Albrecht became more and more successful. At
last
in despair he dashed through the ranks of his enemies, until he reached
his
terrible opponent, Albrecht; then the two closed together in a deadly
fight.
Desperation lent strength to Adolf, but his eyes were dazzled and soon
he
sank lifeless to the ground, pierced by Albrecht's sword.
When night was sinking over the battlefield, a
woman's
figure was seen wandering about the dead and dying in a distracted way.
She
was followed by a little white dog that seemed also intent upon finding
some
object. Soon the dog's whimpering led her to where Adolf's corpse lay,
and
With a piercing cry the unhappy woman threw herself upon it.
The Emperor Adolf's body was brought to the
cloister
of Rosenthal and was buried there. Not till much later was the body of
this
unhappy ruler given a place among the tombs of the emperors in Speyer.
The
poor creature who had sorrowed for him so deeply, died shortly
afterwards
of a broken heart, after having sincerely repented of her sins.
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