Praefectus Praetorio
R.I.P. Brother of the Quill
Chapter 26 April 19-20, 2018 Our Route is Clear!
That evening Barbara made a bunch of phone calls. First a courtesy call to Harold Antonio. She told him of their progress and the strong evidence of provenance. He was again effusive with praise without being over the top. She said they were headed next to Split and he asked where they were staying. Barbara answered a little hesitantly since it was his money paying for the 5-star accommodations. However, he expressed total approval, saying he knew the hotel and it would be perfect for her team. He wished them the best of luck.
Next, she called Windar. He was genuinely overjoyed at the news. He said, “I never doubted you, Dr. Moore. You deserve all the credit for a great discovery.”
“Thank you, Dean. Now, just for fun, we’ll find the Treasure and be famous AND rich.”
“You realize most of the value will be claimed by the Croatian government.”
“Spoilsport!”
“If anyone can solve this historical mystery, it’s you, Barbara! Let me know when I can alert the press!”
“Will do.”
Her last call was to be to Geoffrey. For some reason, Barbara didn’t call him that night. She was tired from the long van ride and the large and tasty dinner made her a bit fuzzy. “I’ll call the dear, tomorrow,” she thought, sending off a good night text which drew an almost instantaneous response, “Good Night Gentle Friend.”
Next day, April 20th, the team gathered at 1:30 for a late lunch in a private room in the grand dining room of the City Hotel.
As they were working on their desserts, Dr. Moore got the meeting going.
“It really seems we have all the pieces of the puzzle in hand. We just need to put them together.”
“David, I understand you’ve made some discoveries while looking at the environs of the palace and in looking into Diocletian himself.”
“Yes, Professor. Just outside of Split is Solin. Its Roman name was Salona and it was made capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia 300 years before Diocletian began construction of his palace in 293 CE. Therefore, there are extensive records and remains in the region. What I found interesting was the there was a major Roman road going inland from Split/Salona to the hilly regions and the Roman Fortress of Delminium. From there the course of the roads is less clear, but definitely onward to what is now Serbia and the Danube. Delminium is now called Tomislavgrad after the first King of Croatia (Tomislav who became king in 925; of course, Tomislavgrad is now in Bosnia. Go figure!) I stumbled across reference to a medieval monastery in Županjac (the Medieval Croatian name for Tomislavgrad).”
“That is excellent. The pieces are coming together. Anything new on Diocletian?”
“Not much, most of his history is widely known. But it is clear he had a soft spot in his heart for Split even before he decided to retire there. He made several trips as Emperor and was known to wander the hills above Salona alone. And his family’s home was believed to be in the hills near the Roman road to Delminium.”
“The town was Delminium to the Romans, Županjac to the medieval Croatians and Tomislavgrad in modern times?” asked Barbara
“And also, Duvno, which might be a Dalmatian name. The surrounding area is often called that and the town was called that from 1945 to 1990. There are few places in the Balkans that haven’t had their names changed several times by the newest conqueror. No wonder some researchers get confused,” commented David.
“Susan, what about Brother Nickolas?”
“I have found several references in the late 12th century to Nicklas, son of a goatherd who joined an “Abbey Frances.” And in the early 13th, a manuscript mentioning a brother Nikola, who was a respected chronicler. Both were in reference to the Dalmatian part of Bosnia. The abbey is not clearly stated, but seems to be associated with a place called, surprise! Duvno. He comes across in both as a dedicated, if somewhat unorthodox, monk. They are hard to tie directly to the manuscript, but certainly indicate the possibility of its authenticity and tie to this area.”
“Finally, a mid 14th century manuscript references a brother Nickolas, a historian, but for a location is gives Tavelić, which matches no places here.”
“That’s a great job, Susan. In a moment you’ll see that it means even more than you think.” Barbara was very pleased.
Henry couldn’t wait longer. “I got the survey data, satellite data and every ground penetrating radar available for this area, and it is very good!”
“The Roman road that David discovered is shown on land surveys and clearly visible on satellite. It winds up to the hills above Split/Salona and continues to that town of Tomislavgrad. Then it splits into several trade routes including a main one through Sarajevo and on to the Danube. It would have been a perfect route for Frederick to leave the march and visit Split!”
“Fantastic,” cried Barb. “We have proof that Barbarossa’s visit to Split could be historical and not just a legend! Messa, what do you have?”
“I think you will like much, mon professeure. L'empereur Issac II did not think the best of L'empereur Frederick. He writes very disparagingly of him to his envoy at the Hungarian Court. Isaac especially was disdainful of Victorinus. He says that having a peasant goatherd as his prime advisor shows Barbarossa to be a fool.”
“Isaac sounds like a conceited prick. That’s par for the course for emperors. No love lost with Frederick?”
“No, and Isaac tried to back out of his agreement to allow the crusaders through his territory. He was only compelled by force of arms to fulfill his obligations,” chimed in Susan. “His correspondence with Heinrich der Löwe, is dripping with hatred by both for Frederick. But they left no fuming pistol in writing as you Americans say.”
“’Smoking Gun.’ He was a weak emperor. In 1195, his brother deposed and blinded him and threw in in prison,” said Barb.
“But he came back the throne in 1202, blind, in time to hand over the keys to the city to the Fourth Crusade. He was a loser.” Susan said, holding an “L” on her forehead and everyone laughed.
“However, I save the best news for the end,” chirped Messa looking like the cat that has swallowed the canary. “In their frequent communications, there was a petite note sent from Isaac to Frederick in August of 1189. It was addressed to Frederick in a town in Croatia. Isaac used the old Roman/Byzantine name, Delminium.”
There was a moment of silence as the importance of this information sunk in.
“Oh my God, Messa! I could kiss you,” blurted out Dr. Moore without thinking. David looked at her with astonishment and Messa with another emotion, but the others were too excited to notice.
“Figuratively,” Barbara stumbled to say, blushing. But no one heard, they all were up, congratulating Messaline on her wonderful find.
“Team, Team,” said Professor Moore, getting their attention. This means we can place Frederick I Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor on the road to Split just as told in the manuscript, near Brother Nickolas’ monastery, and at the same time. Provenance is now complete from this end!”
All cheered.
“Now I can add my finds and wrap this all up.” The team took their chairs again and listened attentively to their professor.
“Our previous research showed no monasteries in this area of Bosnia or Croatia. It appeared that we had reached a dead end there. However, I worked through some old records of the dioceses of Mostar and found a reference to a Franciscan monastery in its territory. The challenge here is that once a monastery is destroyed or abandoned, it drops off the records. Fortunately, a famous person can change that. Nikola Tavelić was a Franciscan missionary who died a famous martyr's death in Jerusalem on November 14, 1391. He was a Croatian friar who spent some time at the monastery in Županjac. As a result, there is a Basilica there named for him.”
“Susan, that mid 14th century manuscript you found referencing a brother Nickolas, a historian, was saying he was at Tavelić’s monastery in Županjac. One and the same!”
“I knew that was important, I just didn’t know how,” crowed Susan.
“Unfortunately, the Ottomans conquered that area in 1477 and it remained under their control until 1878 when Austria-Hungary occupied Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Berlin Congress. Sometime during this period, the Christian monastery was destroyed and not a trace of the buildings was left.”
A silence of deep disappointment suddenly fell.
“You mean we can never learn more about friar Nickolas? It’s all gone forever,” asked Susan with a lump in her throat. She hated research dead-ends. All the others felt the same. Nickolas had become a real person to them and they looked forward to knowing more about him.
“I didn’t say that,” said Dr. Moore in a soothing voice. I only said the monastery was destroyed. Most of the library and abbey documents were saved and are now housed…” she paused with a actor’s (or a teacher’s) knack for the dramatic, “in the Franciscan Seminary in Sinj, Croatia. About 20 kilometers from Split, up that old Roman Road, David and Henry!”
“We head out tomorrow for Split, ladies and gentlemen. Treasure calls!”
That evening Barbara made a bunch of phone calls. First a courtesy call to Harold Antonio. She told him of their progress and the strong evidence of provenance. He was again effusive with praise without being over the top. She said they were headed next to Split and he asked where they were staying. Barbara answered a little hesitantly since it was his money paying for the 5-star accommodations. However, he expressed total approval, saying he knew the hotel and it would be perfect for her team. He wished them the best of luck.
Next, she called Windar. He was genuinely overjoyed at the news. He said, “I never doubted you, Dr. Moore. You deserve all the credit for a great discovery.”
“Thank you, Dean. Now, just for fun, we’ll find the Treasure and be famous AND rich.”
“You realize most of the value will be claimed by the Croatian government.”
“Spoilsport!”
“If anyone can solve this historical mystery, it’s you, Barbara! Let me know when I can alert the press!”
“Will do.”
Her last call was to be to Geoffrey. For some reason, Barbara didn’t call him that night. She was tired from the long van ride and the large and tasty dinner made her a bit fuzzy. “I’ll call the dear, tomorrow,” she thought, sending off a good night text which drew an almost instantaneous response, “Good Night Gentle Friend.”
Next day, April 20th, the team gathered at 1:30 for a late lunch in a private room in the grand dining room of the City Hotel.
As they were working on their desserts, Dr. Moore got the meeting going.
“It really seems we have all the pieces of the puzzle in hand. We just need to put them together.”
“David, I understand you’ve made some discoveries while looking at the environs of the palace and in looking into Diocletian himself.”
“Yes, Professor. Just outside of Split is Solin. Its Roman name was Salona and it was made capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia 300 years before Diocletian began construction of his palace in 293 CE. Therefore, there are extensive records and remains in the region. What I found interesting was the there was a major Roman road going inland from Split/Salona to the hilly regions and the Roman Fortress of Delminium. From there the course of the roads is less clear, but definitely onward to what is now Serbia and the Danube. Delminium is now called Tomislavgrad after the first King of Croatia (Tomislav who became king in 925; of course, Tomislavgrad is now in Bosnia. Go figure!) I stumbled across reference to a medieval monastery in Županjac (the Medieval Croatian name for Tomislavgrad).”
“That is excellent. The pieces are coming together. Anything new on Diocletian?”
“Not much, most of his history is widely known. But it is clear he had a soft spot in his heart for Split even before he decided to retire there. He made several trips as Emperor and was known to wander the hills above Salona alone. And his family’s home was believed to be in the hills near the Roman road to Delminium.”
“The town was Delminium to the Romans, Županjac to the medieval Croatians and Tomislavgrad in modern times?” asked Barbara
“And also, Duvno, which might be a Dalmatian name. The surrounding area is often called that and the town was called that from 1945 to 1990. There are few places in the Balkans that haven’t had their names changed several times by the newest conqueror. No wonder some researchers get confused,” commented David.
“Susan, what about Brother Nickolas?”
“I have found several references in the late 12th century to Nicklas, son of a goatherd who joined an “Abbey Frances.” And in the early 13th, a manuscript mentioning a brother Nikola, who was a respected chronicler. Both were in reference to the Dalmatian part of Bosnia. The abbey is not clearly stated, but seems to be associated with a place called, surprise! Duvno. He comes across in both as a dedicated, if somewhat unorthodox, monk. They are hard to tie directly to the manuscript, but certainly indicate the possibility of its authenticity and tie to this area.”
“Finally, a mid 14th century manuscript references a brother Nickolas, a historian, but for a location is gives Tavelić, which matches no places here.”
“That’s a great job, Susan. In a moment you’ll see that it means even more than you think.” Barbara was very pleased.
Henry couldn’t wait longer. “I got the survey data, satellite data and every ground penetrating radar available for this area, and it is very good!”
“The Roman road that David discovered is shown on land surveys and clearly visible on satellite. It winds up to the hills above Split/Salona and continues to that town of Tomislavgrad. Then it splits into several trade routes including a main one through Sarajevo and on to the Danube. It would have been a perfect route for Frederick to leave the march and visit Split!”
“Fantastic,” cried Barb. “We have proof that Barbarossa’s visit to Split could be historical and not just a legend! Messa, what do you have?”
“I think you will like much, mon professeure. L'empereur Issac II did not think the best of L'empereur Frederick. He writes very disparagingly of him to his envoy at the Hungarian Court. Isaac especially was disdainful of Victorinus. He says that having a peasant goatherd as his prime advisor shows Barbarossa to be a fool.”
“Isaac sounds like a conceited prick. That’s par for the course for emperors. No love lost with Frederick?”
“No, and Isaac tried to back out of his agreement to allow the crusaders through his territory. He was only compelled by force of arms to fulfill his obligations,” chimed in Susan. “His correspondence with Heinrich der Löwe, is dripping with hatred by both for Frederick. But they left no fuming pistol in writing as you Americans say.”
“’Smoking Gun.’ He was a weak emperor. In 1195, his brother deposed and blinded him and threw in in prison,” said Barb.
“But he came back the throne in 1202, blind, in time to hand over the keys to the city to the Fourth Crusade. He was a loser.” Susan said, holding an “L” on her forehead and everyone laughed.
“However, I save the best news for the end,” chirped Messa looking like the cat that has swallowed the canary. “In their frequent communications, there was a petite note sent from Isaac to Frederick in August of 1189. It was addressed to Frederick in a town in Croatia. Isaac used the old Roman/Byzantine name, Delminium.”
There was a moment of silence as the importance of this information sunk in.
“Oh my God, Messa! I could kiss you,” blurted out Dr. Moore without thinking. David looked at her with astonishment and Messa with another emotion, but the others were too excited to notice.
“Figuratively,” Barbara stumbled to say, blushing. But no one heard, they all were up, congratulating Messaline on her wonderful find.
“Team, Team,” said Professor Moore, getting their attention. This means we can place Frederick I Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor on the road to Split just as told in the manuscript, near Brother Nickolas’ monastery, and at the same time. Provenance is now complete from this end!”
All cheered.
“Now I can add my finds and wrap this all up.” The team took their chairs again and listened attentively to their professor.
“Our previous research showed no monasteries in this area of Bosnia or Croatia. It appeared that we had reached a dead end there. However, I worked through some old records of the dioceses of Mostar and found a reference to a Franciscan monastery in its territory. The challenge here is that once a monastery is destroyed or abandoned, it drops off the records. Fortunately, a famous person can change that. Nikola Tavelić was a Franciscan missionary who died a famous martyr's death in Jerusalem on November 14, 1391. He was a Croatian friar who spent some time at the monastery in Županjac. As a result, there is a Basilica there named for him.”
“Susan, that mid 14th century manuscript you found referencing a brother Nickolas, a historian, was saying he was at Tavelić’s monastery in Županjac. One and the same!”
“I knew that was important, I just didn’t know how,” crowed Susan.
“Unfortunately, the Ottomans conquered that area in 1477 and it remained under their control until 1878 when Austria-Hungary occupied Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Berlin Congress. Sometime during this period, the Christian monastery was destroyed and not a trace of the buildings was left.”
A silence of deep disappointment suddenly fell.
“You mean we can never learn more about friar Nickolas? It’s all gone forever,” asked Susan with a lump in her throat. She hated research dead-ends. All the others felt the same. Nickolas had become a real person to them and they looked forward to knowing more about him.
“I didn’t say that,” said Dr. Moore in a soothing voice. I only said the monastery was destroyed. Most of the library and abbey documents were saved and are now housed…” she paused with a actor’s (or a teacher’s) knack for the dramatic, “in the Franciscan Seminary in Sinj, Croatia. About 20 kilometers from Split, up that old Roman Road, David and Henry!”
“We head out tomorrow for Split, ladies and gentlemen. Treasure calls!”
...
