PLAERDEMAVIDA
By the great mercy of God, Plaerdemavida was saved from the
shipwreck and taken to the city of Tunis, to the house of a
fisherman's daughter, as was related previously. Then, after two
years had passed the fisherman's daughter took a husband near
that city. And while they held Plaerdemavida captive there, she
always lived very honestly, working gold and silk as the maidens
of Greece are accustomed to doing. It happened one day that her
mistress went to the city of Montagata, and left Plaerdemavida to
watch the house. She had gone to the city to make some
purchases, and while she was there she went to talk to the king's
daughter, and she told her:
"My lady, I've been told that you are planning to marry, and that
you are supplying yourself with blouses embroidered with gold and
silk and other things proper for maidens. I have a young slave
who is able to do what I have taught her from the time she was an
infant: to embroider all manner of things as befits young women.
Here are some samples of what she can do. If you want her, I
will give her to you for one hundred doubloons, even though I
will be losing all the training I have given her."
The princess, seeing the samples, wanted her very much, and she
said that she would be happy to give her the one hundred
doubloons. The Moor said:
"I'll be glad to give her to you for that price, on one
condition: you must tell her that I have loaned her to you for
two months, because if she guessed that I had sold her, she would
be so sad that she would fall into despair."
Plaerdemavida was placed in her hands and she came to love the
princess very much. It happened a short time later that the city
was attacked, and the Moors took many Christians prisoner. Among
the men they captured was a soldier who had been an oarsman on
Tirant's galley when it was lost. Plaerdemavida recognized him,
and she said:
"Aren't you one of the Christians who were on Tirant's galley
when it went down at sea?"
"My lady," said the man "it's true: I was there, and I nearly
drowned. I reached the shore half dead, and afterward I was
beaten, and bought and sold. I went through great trials in
those days."
"What can you tell me about Tirant?" said Plaerdemavida. "Where
did he die?"
"By the Virgin Mary!" said the prisoner. "He is very much alive.
He's right here. He's the commander, and he's using all his
might to conquer this land."
He also told her that Lord Agramunt was wounded, and then she
asked him:
"What became of Plaerdemavida?"
"That maiden you're asking about," said the prisoner, "it's
believed that she died in the sea, and our captain has grieved
deeply over her."
When she heard the news she ordered all the prisoners to flee.
Hearing that Tirant was alive and so near, she also wanted very
much to escape, but considering how Tirant had conquered so much
of the Barbary Coast, and thinking of the victories that were
told about the Christian captain, she was very happy. For she
had known nothing about him and believed that he had drowned in
the sea. She fell to her knees, raised her clasped hands to
heaven and gave thanks and praise to God Our Lord for the great
success He had given to Tirant and to the new Christianity, for
he was making war on the enemies of Jesus Christ so bravely. She
became very hopeful that soon she would be out of captivity, and
all the suffering she had gone through up to then seemed to be
nothing to her: the thought that she would see Tirant consoled
her that much.
On the day her mistress had to go and talk to the captains, she
disguised herself so well that no one would recognize her. When
the lady was before the captain, she was accompanied by fifty
maidens, but Tirant would not listen to her and he sent her to
his cousin, Lord Agramunt. And if he had replied badly to the
ambassadors, he gave an even worse reply to the lady. Hopeless,
they went back, crying and lamenting loudly. All that night, men
as well as women did not cease their wailing and sighing.
In the morning Plaerdemavida told her mistress and the honorable
men of the city that if they would give her liberty to go out,
she would talk to the captain, and would tell him such things
that he would do anything she wished. They agreed that she
should go, because they had lost all hope and had only that one
day left. That day Plaerdemavida dressed as a Moor, and painted
her eyes so that she would not be recognized. She took thirty
well dressed maidens with her. At noon they left the city and
went to the camp, and there they saw Tirant at the door of his
tent. When he saw them coming he sent word that they should go
to Lord Agramunt, and that he could do nothing since he had
turned all his power over to him. Plaerdemavida answered:
"Tell the captain that he should not refuse to see us, and even
less to speak to us, because if that captain did such a thing he
would be cruel and unjust. Since he is a knight and we are
maidens, in accordance with the order of chivalry he must aid us,
and give us his advice and his support."
The chamberlain immediately took the reply back to the captain:
"Upon my word, my lord, there is a maiden with those Moors who is
very gracious. She speaks the Christian tongue most beautifully.
And if your grace would like to do me a very great favor for the
services I have performed for you, when we take the city I beg
you to make her a Christian and to give her to me for a wife."
"Have them all come here," said the captain.
When they stood before him, they made a deep bow to him.
Plaerdemavida, smiling, said:
"My captain, your generous heart cannot fail to act according to
its custom. Your nobility is full of mercy, and you must forget
the great crime of the ignorant inhabitants of this city, who
will fold their hands and kneel down and kiss your feet, begging
you for mercy. Look, virtuous captain, I speak with the spirit
of prophecy. Do you remember that fortunate day when you were
given the honor of chivalry in that prosperous court of the King
of England? And the singular battles you fought at that time and
won with great honor, with no trickery? What should I say of
Philippe, son of the King of France? In your great wisdom you
made him King of Sicily, and now he possesses the daughter, the
kingdom, and the crown. And when that blessed lord, who is of
greater excellence than anyone in the world, the Emperor of
Constantinople, heard of your fame, he had you come to the city
of Constantinople. His high Majesty made you his captain, and
you showed the Turkish enemies your strength and power,
conquering them time and time again. I am a Moor who speaks by
prophecy, and my heart cries tears of blood for those worthy
knights, because now they are as good as dead. Cry, miserable
people and lament the fact that Tirant lo Blanc has forgotten
you! And it does not surprise me that he does not remember you,
for he has forgotten a lady (I won't say who she is, but I can
call her the greatest and best in all Christendom) in order to
conquer this cursed land."
Tirant was quite astonished when he heard these words, and he
begged her to tell how she knew so much.
"Oh Tirant, how little mercy you are showing. Go on pursuing
those fleeing kings so that you can have all of Barbary in your
lap, and let us live in blessed peace. Aren't you that prince of
the line of Roca Salada who went into battle that pleasant night
in the castle of Malvei with that most serene princess, the
beautiful Carmesina? And if my heart hasn't gone mad or I
haven't lost all my senses, it seems to me that I heard tell that
Her Highness let you into her chambers at a very late hour. She
put her father's crown--that of the Greek Empire--on your head,
and accepted you as her universal lord, with the help of a sad
maiden named Plaerdemavida. You have given so little thought to
either of them, it's as if you'd never known them. Her Highness,
with you forgetting about her, is more dead than alive in the
Monastery of Santa Clara, always calling out the name of Tirant
in whom she has placed all her hope. Oh, Tirant! How you have
shed all kindness. You know full well that the Turks have
overrun all of Greece, that all they have left to do is take the
city of Constantinople and seize the emperor, his wife and the
grieving princess."
When Tirant heard the maiden say these things, he heaved a sigh
from the depths of his heart as he remembered the lady he loved
more than anyone in the world. He was so stricken that he fell
to the ground, senseless. When everyone saw their captain lying
there, his eyes filled with tears, they thought he had delivered
up his spirit to God and his body to the ground.
The doctors came and said:
"Our captain must be very ill. He looks as though he is near
death."
King Escariano quickly had the maiden seized and her hands
tightly bound. When Plaerdemavida saw herself treated so badly,
she angrily said:
"Let me go to the captain. I nourished him from my breast before
you ever heard of him. Let me use the remedies I know, because I
can see that these ignorant doctors don't know how to help him."
The maiden quickly sat on the ground, unfastened her robes and
the blouse she was wearing down past her bosom, uncovering her
breasts.
She took Tirant's body, placed it in her lap, and lay his head on
her breasts. When the maiden saw Tirant open his eyes and sigh
deeply, she was very happy, and she said:
"Captain, my lord, for a long time you have been fighting us
night and day. I don't want your grace to suffer such terrible
hardships when I can free you from them. Begin with me. I am
right here, a defenseless maiden, and your sword is very sharp.
Now you can use your strong hand and bathe your sword with the
blood of someone who, after God, wants to serve only you."
Tirant answered as well as he could:
"Maiden, it seems to me that you are like the bee that carries
honey in its mouth and a stinger in its tail. I have heard
things from you that have left me astonished. I want very much
to know how news about that most serene princess has reached you.
Tell me, I beg you, and you can count on this: In consideration
of Her Majesty, I will do such things for you that you will all
leave here highly satisfied."
Plaerdemavida was very happy at the captain's reply. While they
were talking, Lord Agramunt came into the tent in a rage, with a
bare sword in his hand. He had been misinformed by King
Escariano about how Tirant had fallen into a faint in the
maiden's arms. When he saw Tirant in her lap and without
noticing his captain's condition, with a fierce face and a
terrible voice, he cried:
"What is this poisonous woman doing here, this devil-worshipper?
How can you all stand by, seeing how she's killed him, and not
behead her? Since the rest of you won't do it, I will."
He grabbed her by the hair and jerked back her head. And he put
his sword by her neck to take away her life. When Tirant saw the
sword so close to the maiden, and heard her cry, he seized the
sword with his hands. Lord Agramunt, feeling the sword against
something hard, thought it was the maiden's neck. So he slashed
as hard as he could, and put a large gash in Tirant's hands. And
according to the doctors Tirant was very fortunate that he was
not badly injured.
When Tirant saw that his cousin had shown him so little honor, he
became very angry. King Escariano made Lord Agramunt leave, and
Lord Agramunt lowered his eyes and became very ashamed. Then he
bowed deeply to the king and to Tirant, and left the tent. And
his humility and shame went a long way toward cooling Tirant's
anger and making him feel pity instead.
Then Tirant turned toward the maiden and asked her very kindly if
she had been a captive in Constantinople, and he asked who had
told her so many things about the princess. She quickly got up,
and falling to her knees, she said:
"What is this, captain! Have you lost your memory entirely?
There is a great deal of truth in the fact that where there is no
love there can be no remembrance. What! Aren't I poor,
miserable Plaerdemavida who, for your lordship, endured so much
pain and misery, and finally captivity?"
Tirant's eyes flew open with recognition at once, and he would
not allow her to say another word, realizing full well at this
moment that she was Plaerdemavida. He knelt to the ground before
her, and embraced her and kissed her many times over.
After they had embraced for a good while, Tirant ordered a
beautiful platform placed at the door of the tent, covered
entirely with brocade cloth above, and with satin on the sides
and floor. Plaerdemavida was seated at the top step of the
platform, and covered with a mantle of crimson brocade lined with
ermine--one belonging to Tirant that he had ordered put on her
since she had completely torn her robes. The lady of the city
was made to sit on the top step, and her maidens below, on the
satin cloths. In this situation it seemed that Plaerdemavida was
indeed a queen.
Tirant had taken the head-dress off her head, and now her hair
hung loose over her shoulders. He paid her such great honor that
everyone thought Tirant was going to take her as his wife. He
had a proclamation read throughout the entire camp that everyone
should come and kiss Plaerdemavida's hand, under penalty of
death. Then he had another proclamation made that everyone in
the city, men and women, were pardoned, and that each of them
could live under any law they wished, and that no one in the camp
should dare harm anyone from the city. Afterward he had many
dishes prepared, and held a general banquet so that everyone
could come who wished. And the most singular celebration ever
held in a camp took place there, lasting eight days.
Plaerdemavida begged the lady of the city to be baptized, and she
answered that she would do it. Then Tirant asked her if she
would marry Melquisedic. Plaerdemavida also pleaded with her,
and the others insisted so much that she consented. And the
wedding was held with great celebrations.
Tirant often spent his time talking to Plaerdemavida. One day,
while they were talking about the princess and the emperor,
Plaerdemavida scolded him, and asked him why he did not forget
about conquering Barbary and help the emperor and his daughter.
Tirant answered that he wanted to know for certain what the
situation was in the empire before he moved. He begged
Plaerdemavida to tell him what had happened to her after she was
swept over the side of the galley. With tears in her eyes,
Plaerdemavida said:
"I beg you, lord Tirant, don't make me talk about it. Whenever I
think about it I would rather die a hundred deaths than go on
living."
When Tirant heard her speaking so painfully, he said:
"Rejoice, valiant maiden. I promise you, by the lady who has
been the cause of your misfortune, that I will repay you. I will
mix your blood with that of Roca Salada, and you will be reckoned
among the women of Brittany, among whom you are certain to have
the title of queen."
There was a long argument between Tirant and this maiden about
the marriage he had decided upon, which was between her and Lord
Agramunt. He gave her many different reasons, citing very holy
authorities, so that Plaerdemavida finally submitted to Tirant's
will, and replied in a few words:
"Your servant is here, Lord Tirant. Do with me according to your
will."
Tirant took a beautiful chain from his neck and placed it around
Plaerdemavida's neck as a sign of her future marriage. He had
brocade brought, and dressed her like a queen. Then Tirant sent
for Lord Agramunt, and he begged him at length not to refuse what
he would tell him, since he had already made a promise. Lord
Agramunt answered him:
"Lord Tirant, I am astonished that you would plead with me about
anything. Just by commanding me you are doing me a great favor."
Tirant said:
"Cousin, I have decided to make you King of Fez and Bogia, and to
give Plaerdemavida to you as your wife. You know how indebted
all of us are to her for the work she has done for us. She is a
maiden of great discretion who has lead a virtuous life, and it
will be very good for both of you."
Lord Agramunt answered:
"Cousin and lord, I had no thought of taking a wife, but it is
too much grace and honor for your lordship to entreat me to do a
thing that I should beg you for. I kiss your hand and your
feet."
Tirant would not allow it. Instead he took him by the arm,
lifted him up, and kissed him on the mouth. Afterward he thanked
him, both for the kingdoms and for the new wife.
Tirant felt more satisfied at having arranged this marriage than
by all of his conquests in Barbary. He quickly had Lady
Montagata's palace decorated with beautiful gold and silk cloth,
and he had all the musicians from that area come, with every kind
of instrument that could be found. Then he had many dainties and
special wines brought to insure the success of the celebration.
Plaerdemavida was very richly dressed, and her presence and
appearance showed that she was a queen. She was taken to the
great hall where King Escariano and Tirant were, with many other
barons and knights, along with the wife of King Escariano and
many other ladies of rank. After the wedding vows were exchanged
there was a great celebration with dances of different types and
very singular foods.
While the celebrations lasted, Tirant had the table prepared for
everyone who wished to eat, and for a week there was a great
abundance of everything.