WEBVTT - Libuše and Her City Touching the Stars 0:00:00.760 --> 0:00:04.400 Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of I Heart Radio 0:00:04.640 --> 0:00:08.480 and Grim and Mild from Aaron Manky. Listener discretion advised. 0:00:21.040 --> 0:00:25.119 There's a book by the nineteenth century check writer Aloise 0:00:25.200 --> 0:00:28.200 Harissak that any listeners who happen to grow up in 0:00:28.240 --> 0:00:33.599 a Zech school system might remember. Old Czech Legends is 0:00:33.640 --> 0:00:37.639 a collection of stories from a rich cultural history, some 0:00:37.840 --> 0:00:40.640 dating back to the days of Bohemia, one of the 0:00:40.720 --> 0:00:44.800 earliest incarnations of a Czech state. One of the tales 0:00:44.840 --> 0:00:47.600 in the book details how the Czech people first found 0:00:47.600 --> 0:00:50.920 their way to their homeland, while other stories talk of 0:00:51.040 --> 0:00:55.240 brutal wars or feats of bravery. There is one legend 0:00:55.400 --> 0:00:59.040 that stands out from the rest, though, about a princess, 0:00:59.560 --> 0:01:05.480 about magic, prophecy, and eventually in uprising by women against men. 0:01:06.200 --> 0:01:10.080 While there is no historical evidence to prove that any 0:01:10.200 --> 0:01:14.440 of these legends are anything more than just that legends, 0:01:15.040 --> 0:01:20.360 the story of LaBouche, the prophetic pagan princess who founded Prague, 0:01:20.959 --> 0:01:28.200 strongly persists in the Czech cultural imagination. I'm Dana Schwartz 0:01:28.680 --> 0:01:48.840 and this is Noble Blood. Like any legend, l Bushes 0:01:49.000 --> 0:01:52.880 differs based on who's telling it and when they're doing 0:01:52.920 --> 0:01:56.400 so here sex version of events is the most popular, 0:01:56.520 --> 0:01:59.200 so it's the one that will default too. He was 0:01:59.200 --> 0:02:03.560 writing during the Czech National Revival in the nineteenth century, 0:02:03.600 --> 0:02:07.360 a cultural movement dedicated to the Czech language and national 0:02:07.360 --> 0:02:11.840 identity during a time of Germanization, spearheaded by the Habsburgs. 0:02:12.360 --> 0:02:15.960 The Kingdom of Bohemia, known today as the Czech Republic, 0:02:16.400 --> 0:02:19.480 was at the time under the rule of the Austrian Empire. 0:02:19.840 --> 0:02:23.880 The Czech language had been essentially erased from the school system, 0:02:23.919 --> 0:02:26.040 so a number of works by here A Second his 0:02:26.120 --> 0:02:31.840 contemporaries were aimed specifically at students in collecting and retelling 0:02:31.880 --> 0:02:36.680 Czech legends first recorded by the eleventh century historian Cosmos 0:02:36.680 --> 0:02:40.600 of Prague. He was seeking to instill national pride back 0:02:40.680 --> 0:02:44.720 into the next generation. So the legend that goes like this, 0:02:45.240 --> 0:02:48.920 A tribe of Slavic people travel west in search of 0:02:49.000 --> 0:02:53.280 plentiful land. They're led by Forefather Czech, who they will 0:02:53.400 --> 0:02:57.480 later be named after a top a mountain. Forefather Check 0:02:57.600 --> 0:03:01.960 sees their land in the distance, inhabited and lush with 0:03:02.160 --> 0:03:06.399 rivers full of fish and fertile soil. During his lifetime, 0:03:06.520 --> 0:03:11.480 the people and land prosper living and working together in harmony. 0:03:12.120 --> 0:03:16.200 After he passes his son, Kroc assumes tribal leadership in 0:03:16.240 --> 0:03:20.440 accordance with an assembly of elders. Kroc was also considered 0:03:20.480 --> 0:03:23.640 a wise leader. During his time, he founded a school 0:03:23.720 --> 0:03:29.080 to teach religion, hymns, prophecy, and magic. Magic was considered 0:03:29.120 --> 0:03:33.400 the highest form of learning. Honoring the gods, Kroc would 0:03:33.440 --> 0:03:36.800 often go into seclusion to ask for the guidance of 0:03:36.840 --> 0:03:40.200 the gods, and prominent men of the tribe built him 0:03:40.240 --> 0:03:44.280 a castle, vi Shrad to do so. Tales of the structure, 0:03:44.320 --> 0:03:49.520 whose name means high castle, remained today. Cosmos. The eleventh 0:03:49.520 --> 0:03:54.000 century writer dates Vishrad's construction to six hundred and eighty 0:03:54.000 --> 0:03:58.680 three CE, but modern historians have concluded that in fact, 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:01.400 the actual bill thing would have been built closer to 0:04:01.480 --> 0:04:05.400 the tenth century. The disparity in the timeline calls into 0:04:05.480 --> 0:04:09.880 question the legitimacy of the story. It doesn't completely rule 0:04:09.920 --> 0:04:14.200 out Kroc's existence, but it certainly demonstrates a clear divide 0:04:14.320 --> 0:04:18.839 in what anthropologists think of Bohemia's origins and what legend 0:04:18.880 --> 0:04:23.120 tells us for reference. From this point on, these events 0:04:23.160 --> 0:04:26.840 are said to have taken place sometime in the eighth century. 0:04:27.240 --> 0:04:30.239 Kroc had no male heirs, but he did have three 0:04:30.440 --> 0:04:36.159 beautiful daughters, each with unique gifts. Kazi, the eldest, healed 0:04:36.279 --> 0:04:39.080 the sick with her vast knowledge of herbs and use 0:04:39.160 --> 0:04:44.080 of magic incantations. Teta the middle, was a pagan priestess 0:04:44.120 --> 0:04:48.640 who guided the people in sacrifices and prayers. And labushe 0:04:48.800 --> 0:04:53.600 the youngest and wisest, as noted, also the most beautiful, 0:04:54.160 --> 0:04:58.880 possessed the gift of foresight. Emphasis on the three sisters 0:04:58.960 --> 0:05:04.120 beauty with the added emphasis on Labush's particular beauty is 0:05:04.120 --> 0:05:07.719 a pattern we've seen repeated throughout stories of powerful women 0:05:07.800 --> 0:05:11.560 across cultural histories, and one that we've discussed before on 0:05:11.600 --> 0:05:15.800 this show. Why are most of our historical heroines described 0:05:15.880 --> 0:05:20.000 as striking beauties? Whether it serves to soften these women 0:05:20.040 --> 0:05:25.279 with incredible power, reconcile their femininity with masculine constructs of power, 0:05:25.760 --> 0:05:29.800 or further canonize them in the mythological sphere, it's a 0:05:29.839 --> 0:05:33.760 trope that pop culture still hasn't quite escaped from. On 0:05:33.839 --> 0:05:37.080 a simple level, it might just be that society as 0:05:37.120 --> 0:05:40.520 a whole tends to only value women if they're also 0:05:40.600 --> 0:05:46.479 considered attractive, but onward. Labusha's great power came in the 0:05:46.520 --> 0:05:49.719 form of prophecy. It said she was prone to fall 0:05:49.839 --> 0:05:53.640 into a trance and make predictions, which garnered some fear 0:05:53.720 --> 0:05:57.080 among the people. Due to her power and wisdom, the 0:05:57.080 --> 0:06:00.960 Assembly of elders appointed LaBouche, even she was the youngest, 0:06:01.240 --> 0:06:04.719 as the next ruler, and initially there was no dispute 0:06:04.800 --> 0:06:08.919 from the people. As tribe leader, Labusha's role was similar 0:06:08.960 --> 0:06:11.360 to that of a judge, and most of her work 0:06:11.400 --> 0:06:16.680 as ruler revolved around resolving disputes of all manners. After all, 0:06:16.760 --> 0:06:19.560 she was chosen for her wisdom and was known for 0:06:19.680 --> 0:06:23.960 her fair judgments, aided by her prophecies. One day, she 0:06:24.080 --> 0:06:27.600 was presented with a bitter conflict between two men over 0:06:27.640 --> 0:06:31.400 the boundaries of their land. According to Hirisak, when she 0:06:31.560 --> 0:06:35.000 ruled in favor of the younger man, the older launched 0:06:35.000 --> 0:06:38.840 into a fit of rage, beginning a tirade against Labusha 0:06:38.880 --> 0:06:42.320 and women as a whole. Quote, what kind of justice 0:06:42.360 --> 0:06:45.480 can we expect from a woman long haired but short 0:06:45.560 --> 0:06:48.520 on brains? Let her sew in spin, but not be 0:06:48.600 --> 0:06:51.800 a ruler and judge. Where else does a woman rule 0:06:51.880 --> 0:06:55.800 over men? Except here? We are the laughing stock among nations, 0:06:55.839 --> 0:06:59.480 and we can outstand for such a judge any longer 0:07:00.040 --> 0:07:03.080 her to die than bear such a rain end quote. 0:07:03.800 --> 0:07:10.040 Labusha considered her response thoughtfully and quietly, before rising and remarking, 0:07:10.760 --> 0:07:13.840 you are right. I am a woman, and I rule 0:07:14.120 --> 0:07:16.760 like a woman, not with a rod of iron, but 0:07:16.880 --> 0:07:20.960 with compassion, which you take for weakness. You need a 0:07:21.000 --> 0:07:25.120 stricter ruler, and your demand shall be fulfilled. Go now 0:07:25.160 --> 0:07:28.560 in peace. Let the people choose a duke to rule them, 0:07:28.680 --> 0:07:32.640 and I shall marry whomever they choose. Lubusha spent the 0:07:32.680 --> 0:07:36.360 rest of the day in her secluded garden worshiping Perun, 0:07:36.480 --> 0:07:38.920 a wooden idol with a head of silver and a 0:07:38.960 --> 0:07:42.360 beard of gold. She called upon her sisters to join her, 0:07:42.680 --> 0:07:47.040 and their discussions continued throughout the night. The next morning, 0:07:47.160 --> 0:07:50.520 Labusha called for a gathering of the clan leaders, who 0:07:50.520 --> 0:07:53.720 had traveled from far and wide to hear who would 0:07:53.760 --> 0:07:58.800 be chosen. As the duke, trumpets announced Labusha's arrival, who 0:07:58.840 --> 0:08:02.800 was accompanied on your side by her sisters, Lubusha made 0:08:02.800 --> 0:08:06.160 her speech, All of you know why I called you together. 0:08:06.600 --> 0:08:09.720 You did not appreciate the freedom I gave you, So 0:08:09.760 --> 0:08:12.280 the gods inspired me to tell you that I shall 0:08:12.400 --> 0:08:16.000 rule you no longer. You want a man, a duke, 0:08:16.080 --> 0:08:18.800 who will take away your children to serve him, who 0:08:18.800 --> 0:08:21.520 will choose the best of your cattle and horses for 0:08:21.600 --> 0:08:25.640 taxes according to his whims. You want to serve a master, 0:08:26.080 --> 0:08:28.760 and to pay for it, as so far you have 0:08:28.920 --> 0:08:32.120 not had to do in return, you will not have 0:08:32.240 --> 0:08:35.280 to be ashamed of having a woman ruler. So be it. 0:08:35.840 --> 0:08:39.080 Go ahead and choose a duke, But do so wisely 0:08:39.160 --> 0:08:42.600 and carefully, because it is easy to put someone in power, 0:08:43.000 --> 0:08:46.160 but hard to get rid of him. However, if you wish, 0:08:46.240 --> 0:08:50.960 I can advise you as to whom to choose. The leaders, 0:08:51.040 --> 0:08:56.080 having no candidate to follow through with enthusiastically excepted Lubusha's aid, 0:08:56.679 --> 0:09:00.240 Lubusha rose, her eyes grew dreamy as she and shared 0:09:00.360 --> 0:09:05.520 a prophetic trance. In a faraway voice, she advised, beyond 0:09:05.640 --> 0:09:09.520 the hills is a small stream called Billina, a hundred 0:09:09.520 --> 0:09:12.760 and twenty paces beyond, in a narrow valley, there is 0:09:12.760 --> 0:09:16.479 a field where you will find your future duke, a plowman. 0:09:17.040 --> 0:09:20.240 Go take along the clothing fit for a duke, Give 0:09:20.320 --> 0:09:23.200 the man my message, and bring him back here to 0:09:23.320 --> 0:09:27.280 be your ruler and my husband. His name is Premissile, 0:09:27.400 --> 0:09:30.760 and our descendants will rule here forever. You will not 0:09:31.000 --> 0:09:33.839 have to ask the way my white horse will lead you. 0:09:34.000 --> 0:09:36.720 Just follow him. You will be certain it is he 0:09:37.040 --> 0:09:42.000 when you see him eating off an iron table. Just 0:09:42.280 --> 0:09:45.760 as Labusha had prophesied, her white horse led the men 0:09:46.280 --> 0:09:50.920 straight to Schmistle. Upon their arrival, she Mustle stuck his 0:09:51.000 --> 0:09:54.240 staff into the ground and invited the men to join 0:09:54.360 --> 0:09:58.400 him for breakfast. The plowman turned over his iron plow 0:09:59.040 --> 0:10:02.160 and made it in to a table, just as the 0:10:02.240 --> 0:10:06.480 queen had prophesied. As the stunned men sat and ate 0:10:06.520 --> 0:10:10.360 the bread Shemissal offered them, they noticed that his staff 0:10:10.720 --> 0:10:14.200 that he had planted in the ground had sprouted three 0:10:14.400 --> 0:10:18.560 green buds. The next time they looked, two of the 0:10:18.640 --> 0:10:23.280 three now leafy branches had triveled and died. They asked 0:10:23.440 --> 0:10:26.840 their future king what this meant, and he answered, quote 0:10:27.400 --> 0:10:30.720 here ye that many of my descendants will rule, but 0:10:30.800 --> 0:10:33.840 only one of them will remain a king and a ruler. 0:10:34.720 --> 0:10:37.800 Their next question was as to the meaning behind the 0:10:37.840 --> 0:10:41.760 iron table. I eat at an iron table, he replied, 0:10:42.120 --> 0:10:44.800 so that you may know that my lineage will rule 0:10:44.960 --> 0:10:49.440 with iron. Take iron seriously, flow with iron in times 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:52.319 of peace, and in times of war, protect yourself with it. 0:10:52.600 --> 0:10:54.960 As long as the Checks have such an iron table, 0:10:55.280 --> 0:10:58.760 they will always defeat their enemy. When foreigners one day 0:10:58.800 --> 0:11:02.480 take this table from them, Checks will lose their freedom. 0:11:02.600 --> 0:11:05.440 Their third question, as the group made their way back 0:11:05.480 --> 0:11:08.640 to the castle, was to ask their future king why 0:11:08.720 --> 0:11:12.880 he was bringing his leather purse and best sandals when 0:11:12.920 --> 0:11:17.240 they had provided him with entirely new clothing. I give 0:11:17.320 --> 0:11:20.480 them to you to keep forever, so that my descendants 0:11:20.520 --> 0:11:22.880 may know where they came from, so that they may 0:11:22.920 --> 0:11:27.560 live in humility without pridefully oppressing the people entrusted to them, 0:11:27.960 --> 0:11:32.920 for we all are equal, he answered. As she promised, 0:11:33.040 --> 0:11:36.640 Labusha married Shemissle, who began to rule and judge as 0:11:36.720 --> 0:11:41.480 Labusha had, but manlier. Some versions of the story believe 0:11:41.559 --> 0:11:45.640 he consulted Labusha in his rule, but no matter the circumstances, 0:11:45.720 --> 0:11:49.320 it remains that Labusha did not have the position that 0:11:49.440 --> 0:11:53.559 she once did. The couple had three children, as Shemissule's 0:11:53.600 --> 0:11:58.240 buds had predicted. The most renowned element of Labusha's story 0:11:58.440 --> 0:12:01.600 was still yet to come, as described in the book 0:12:01.760 --> 0:12:05.480 Prague in Black and gold by Peter Demittz. Sometime later, 0:12:05.600 --> 0:12:09.160 on a mild summer night, Labusha, her husband, and the 0:12:09.200 --> 0:12:13.040 elders were standing on a cliff above the Voltava River. 0:12:13.559 --> 0:12:17.199 While looking across the water to the wooded hills, Labusha 0:12:17.320 --> 0:12:20.880 entered a trance, raised her hands towards the other shore, 0:12:21.320 --> 0:12:25.559 and uttered her prophecy, I see a great city whose 0:12:25.640 --> 0:12:30.240 fame will touch the stars. This is her most famous line, 0:12:30.840 --> 0:12:34.360 but Cosmos of Prague, the original writer, actually ripped it 0:12:34.400 --> 0:12:38.200 off of virgils a Kneed. She guided her people to 0:12:38.280 --> 0:12:40.720 cross the river and to find a man there who 0:12:40.800 --> 0:12:44.960 was busy hewing the threshold in check pra of a house, 0:12:45.440 --> 0:12:49.400 and asked him to build a castle to be called Prah. 0:12:50.040 --> 0:12:54.440 Right on the spot. Just as princes and army commanders 0:12:54.480 --> 0:12:58.040 bow their heads when they enter a house, Labusha proclaimed, 0:12:58.480 --> 0:13:01.560 so will they bow their head to my city. It 0:13:01.640 --> 0:13:05.400 will be honored, noble and respected by all the world. 0:13:06.160 --> 0:13:10.719 This prophesied city would of course become Prague, and it's 0:13:10.760 --> 0:13:18.000 with her vision of glory that Labusha's legend ends. But 0:13:18.160 --> 0:13:22.600 Labusha's legacy is the catalyst for one of the following stories. 0:13:22.640 --> 0:13:27.280 In Old Czech legends, Schmissul was the ruler check men wanted, 0:13:27.679 --> 0:13:30.640 but he was rejected by many of the land's women. 0:13:31.040 --> 0:13:35.280 Under Labusha's rule, men and women enjoyed equal rights and treatment, 0:13:35.640 --> 0:13:39.120 But just as Labusha had predicted, the Duke ushered in 0:13:39.160 --> 0:13:43.079 an age of patriarchal rule. It said that he struckt 0:13:43.120 --> 0:13:48.600 women of their rights and implemented practices associated with patriarchal societies, 0:13:48.640 --> 0:13:53.600 such as feudalism and serfdom. There was particular unrest among 0:13:53.679 --> 0:13:58.880 Labusha's former maidens, who felt abandoned and quote angry when 0:13:58.880 --> 0:14:01.880 the men held them up to ridicule and called them 0:14:02.000 --> 0:14:07.520 quote lost sheep end quote. The legend tells that a 0:14:07.600 --> 0:14:12.200 maiden named Vlassa, Labusha's favorite, was the one who first 0:14:12.360 --> 0:14:15.959 took up arms and gathered an army of tired, angry 0:14:16.040 --> 0:14:20.000 women across the land, beginning what became known as the 0:14:20.080 --> 0:14:25.160 Maiden's War against men. Last of strategically organized and trained 0:14:25.200 --> 0:14:28.680 the women who were leaving their husbands, brothers, and fathers 0:14:28.720 --> 0:14:32.080 to join their fight. The strongest women were chosen to 0:14:32.200 --> 0:14:35.480 lead the attack, and the most beautiful were chosen to 0:14:35.760 --> 0:14:38.640 entice the men away from their battle groups so that 0:14:38.680 --> 0:14:42.320 they could be killed. She Missile's army openly mocked the 0:14:42.400 --> 0:14:46.400 female warriors, but the king warned them not to underestimate 0:14:46.440 --> 0:14:49.840 the women's strength. He was right to do so. The 0:14:49.880 --> 0:14:54.320 bloody battles began and the women were winning. They fortified 0:14:54.440 --> 0:14:58.000 the castle Devine, utilizing it as a military base, and 0:14:58.040 --> 0:15:01.080 they warded off the men from even attempting a breach. 0:15:02.080 --> 0:15:06.440 Aiding Vlasta was another high ranking lieutenant and clever tactician, 0:15:06.720 --> 0:15:10.960 a woman named Charka. In her boldest plot, Charka staged 0:15:11.000 --> 0:15:15.359 a mock betrayal and feigned helplessness as she was quote 0:15:15.400 --> 0:15:18.840 tied to a tree and the left to die end quote. 0:15:19.000 --> 0:15:21.840 She screamed and cursed the rebel forces to gain the 0:15:21.880 --> 0:15:25.640 attention and sympathy of a band of men patrolling the 0:15:25.720 --> 0:15:30.160 forest for women. This group of men on patrol included 0:15:30.200 --> 0:15:34.160 one of the men's best fighters, Citrod, who believed charka 0:15:34.280 --> 0:15:37.760 story and freed her from her restraints. The men set 0:15:37.840 --> 0:15:41.080 up camp for the night, and thanking them, Charca board 0:15:41.200 --> 0:15:44.200 mead for all the men, which she had, of course 0:15:44.560 --> 0:15:49.240 spiked with a potent sleeping powder. Once the men fell asleep, 0:15:49.440 --> 0:15:53.560 the rebel forces emerged from the tree line. They slaughtered 0:15:53.600 --> 0:15:56.600 them all except Sir Trod, who was taken back to 0:15:56.720 --> 0:16:01.120 Devon and tortured to death. The men were so enraged 0:16:01.200 --> 0:16:04.400 that they abandoned the formalities of battle and began to 0:16:04.440 --> 0:16:09.200 attack all innocent women traveling on the roads. Vlosta, unable 0:16:09.240 --> 0:16:11.480 to bear the weight of the torment that the men 0:16:11.560 --> 0:16:15.320 were inflicting, ceded to their strategy and met the men 0:16:15.440 --> 0:16:19.720 in open combat. She was slain and the army disbanded 0:16:19.760 --> 0:16:23.800 soon after their leader fell. For their victory, lap the 0:16:23.840 --> 0:16:28.400 men burned Divine or the Castle of Maidens to the ground. 0:16:29.120 --> 0:16:32.480 In his telling, Hirosek would like to side with the women, 0:16:32.800 --> 0:16:36.120 but the narrative turns against them because he says they 0:16:36.120 --> 0:16:41.800 had quote no heart, okay, whatever that means. It was 0:16:42.000 --> 0:16:45.320 as Labusha predicted, the men would get what they wanted 0:16:45.640 --> 0:16:49.320 of patriarch a master at the expense of the freedom 0:16:49.520 --> 0:16:52.920 she had once ruled by. As is always the case, 0:16:53.320 --> 0:16:56.920 the casualties of patriarchy are the women whose voices are 0:16:56.960 --> 0:17:04.200 stripped away. Persistent as these legends are in Czech culture, 0:17:04.400 --> 0:17:10.120 there unfortunately is no real anthropological evidence supporting that they're 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:15.520 anything more than well legends. Really, that applies to Labusha's 0:17:15.640 --> 0:17:20.080 entire existence too. The more likely founder of the stronghold 0:17:20.119 --> 0:17:24.480 of Praha was Duke Bogevois, whose rule began circa eight 0:17:24.600 --> 0:17:28.480 hundred and seventy. He was the first documented duke of 0:17:28.520 --> 0:17:33.119 Bohemia and progenitor of the Shemissed dynasty. He was said 0:17:33.160 --> 0:17:36.639 to be the last son of the mythical Bohemian princes, 0:17:36.800 --> 0:17:41.040 and therefore a direct descendant of Laboushe and Shemissul. This 0:17:41.160 --> 0:17:44.800 lineage can of course not be confirmed by historians, and 0:17:45.119 --> 0:17:48.320 an opposing theory believes that he was instead related to 0:17:48.359 --> 0:17:52.480 a Slavic dynasty. The writer of the first Bohemian Chronicle, 0:17:52.640 --> 0:17:56.359 published about two hundred years after the Duke's death, believed 0:17:56.400 --> 0:18:01.040 that the distinction between myth and real history begins with 0:18:01.119 --> 0:18:06.679 Bogevoy's rule. Bougevoy was also notably Bohemia's first Christian ruler, 0:18:06.920 --> 0:18:11.520 and he built Bohemia's first church, dedicated to Saint Clement's. 0:18:12.200 --> 0:18:17.159 Despite revolts from traditional rivals, Bougevoy continued on to build 0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:20.639 a second church, this one to worship the Virgin Mary. 0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:24.200 Later in his life, he decided to move his resident 0:18:24.359 --> 0:18:27.840 closer to the latter church, and the castle built was 0:18:27.920 --> 0:18:32.919 called Praha or Prague Castle, which still stands today. The 0:18:33.000 --> 0:18:37.040 etymology of Praha is debated still to day among historians, 0:18:37.480 --> 0:18:41.160 with some believing its origin comes from the idea of napras, 0:18:41.400 --> 0:18:45.120 or a barren place on which the sun beat down mercilessly. 0:18:45.680 --> 0:18:48.720 It could also reference quote, the cleaning of the forest 0:18:48.840 --> 0:18:53.200 by fire or bracchiti. There are still, some, however, who 0:18:53.280 --> 0:18:58.359 find la Boush's idea of the threshold or pra most compelling. 0:18:58.920 --> 0:19:02.920 The idea the t wanted people to lower their heads 0:19:02.960 --> 0:19:06.760 and enter a city as they would a home. As 0:19:06.800 --> 0:19:09.159 for the Maiden's War, there is even less of a 0:19:09.200 --> 0:19:13.480 connection to recorded history. Some historians argue that the story 0:19:13.600 --> 0:19:17.280 is based on tales of the Amazonian warriors, while others 0:19:17.280 --> 0:19:21.600 believe it could have roots in Bohemia's factual past. Speaking 0:19:21.640 --> 0:19:26.320 to Radio Prague International, Voslav Ladvinka, the director of Prague's 0:19:26.359 --> 0:19:30.560 City Archives, tells us quote, there are some historians who have, 0:19:30.800 --> 0:19:35.800 in my opinion, a somewhat fertile imagination. They claim that 0:19:36.080 --> 0:19:39.800 there could have been a matriarchal society, that women had 0:19:39.840 --> 0:19:43.520 primacy and that they were overthrown by men. This could 0:19:43.600 --> 0:19:46.320 be true, but then the same could be said about 0:19:46.359 --> 0:19:50.679 the ancient Greeks, so it seems most likely that Cosmos 0:19:50.720 --> 0:19:54.560 took the basis for his tales from those ancient texts, 0:19:55.520 --> 0:19:59.639 and as we know, Cosmos did enjoy stealing from Roman 0:19:59.640 --> 0:20:18.520 epic X. That's the story or the legend of Labusha 0:20:18.520 --> 0:20:21.879 of Bohemia. But keep listening after a brief sponsor break 0:20:21.960 --> 0:20:24.600 to hear a little bit about how the legend has 0:20:24.640 --> 0:20:41.720 been translated into modern culture. Labusha's story has inspired the 0:20:41.760 --> 0:20:45.480 works of many Czech and European artists, and perhaps the 0:20:45.520 --> 0:20:50.359 most famous is her namesake opera, containing music by Czech 0:20:50.440 --> 0:20:54.800 composer Bedrick's Mantana and written first in German by author 0:20:54.880 --> 0:20:59.160 Joseph Lindzig. The opera was written in eighteen seventy one 0:20:59.320 --> 0:21:02.879 for the coronation of Franz Joseph as King of Bohemia, 0:21:03.200 --> 0:21:06.919 but Smitana ended up saving Labusha for the opening of 0:21:06.960 --> 0:21:10.840 the National Theater in Prague, which took place nine years 0:21:10.960 --> 0:21:16.760 later on June eleven. Act one of the opera depicts 0:21:17.040 --> 0:21:20.840 Labusha's ruling over the land dispute, but in a departure 0:21:20.920 --> 0:21:25.200 from the myth, Act two decides to develop the backgrounds 0:21:25.240 --> 0:21:28.439 of the men in the conflict and deepen all of 0:21:28.480 --> 0:21:32.800 the characters. This involves a love triangle in which a 0:21:32.880 --> 0:21:36.600 classically conniving woman feigns interest in one of the men 0:21:37.040 --> 0:21:41.280 to make the other jealous. All is eventually resolved, and 0:21:41.400 --> 0:21:45.840 Act three depicts a Midsummer Night's dream esque double wedding 0:21:46.119 --> 0:21:50.760 between all the lovers and Labusha and Schmissul, before Labusha 0:21:50.840 --> 0:21:54.359 has her prophecy of Prague, a reminder to all of 0:21:54.400 --> 0:21:58.040 the hopeful witches out there that, no matter how powerful 0:21:58.119 --> 0:22:01.400 you are, you may end up in only two thirds 0:22:01.480 --> 0:22:05.040 of your own opera in favor of some random men 0:22:05.200 --> 0:22:24.760 in a land dispute. Noble Blood is a production of 0:22:24.840 --> 0:22:28.000 I Heart Radio and Grim and Mild from Aaron Mankey. 0:22:28.440 --> 0:22:32.560 Noble Blood is hosted by me Danis Shwartz. Additional writing 0:22:32.600 --> 0:22:36.840 and researching done by Hannah Johnston, hannah's Wick, Mira Hayward, 0:22:36.960 --> 0:22:40.639 Courtney Sunder, and Laurie Goodman. The show is produced by 0:22:40.720 --> 0:22:45.719 rema Il Kali, with supervising producer Josh Thane and executive 0:22:45.760 --> 0:22:50.000 producers Aaron Mankey, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. For more 0:22:50.040 --> 0:22:53.800 podcasts from I Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, 0:22:54.040 --> 0:22:57.159 Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows