[King Richard I, the Lionheart. Source: Google search.]

Even the bravest of us loath war, and those who long for it are the most dangerous.

~~Richard I.

If Richard I really did say this, he likely didn’t see himself as particularly dangerous. But the infidels (Muslims led by Sultan Saladin) that he was fighting during the Third Crusade to ‘liberate’ the Holy Land most likely had a different idea. But that conflict is not the story I want to tell. As an aside, however, in our own times, perhaps his quote about those who long for war are indeed dangerous, somehow rings true,

Anyway…

We are moving westward now and we have just entered the famous Wachau Valley. It is a stretch of the Danube that is about twenty-two miles long. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of it’s charming towns and historic castles. There are terraced vineyards and forested slopes and ancient ruins. It is truly beautiful.

[Grape vineyards cover the hillsides in the Wachau Valley. Photo is mine.]

It’s early morning on June 6. The Program Director of our cruise ship, The Viking Gefjon is on a mic describing the important sites and providing information I had not yet researched. People are lining the railing, Smartphones in every hand, including mine. The sun is brilliant and the light against the rocky slopes is nearly blinding.

I’m waiting for a particular castle ruin. One that I did prepare myself for.

[Hinterhaus Castle, above Spitz. Photo is mine.]

The castles and ruins pass by slowly. I’m waiting for one that will be the core of the story I’m going to tell.

The Program Director, David Parker, is pointingout the odd bits of architecture and the unique churches. Suddenly, his voice changes. A castle ruin is slowly approaching on the right of the ship. It’s the Castle of Durstein.

[Castle Durnstein. Photo is mine.]

And here is the legend I find so fascinating…

On his way back to England from the Third Crusade, Richard is traveling through country that is controlled by one of his enemies, King Leopold V of Austria. The year is 1192. Richard purchases an item and without thinking, pays for it with an English coin.

Leopold V is alerted and Richard is captured and thrown into the dungeon of Castle Durstein. He is a captive of his arch enemy.

Richard languishes in the dark chamber of the prison for months.

Back in England, word has arrived that he is captive somewhere in Austria. What to do? Where is he? How can he be rescued?

A dilemma to be sure.

Then into the picture steps Richard’s faithful minstrel, known as Blondel. The minstrel traveled into the heart of Austria searching for his King. He devised a plan. He passed beneath the wall of the many castles that line the Danube in the Wachau Valley. And he sang. He sang what he knew was his King’s favorite song. At more than a few castles he was meant with silence. Until he stood below the stone walls of Durstein,

He sang the first verse…and out of the black night, out of the narrow windows of the dungeon, he heard the King’s voice singing the second verse.

Richard Lion Heart was located. Negotiations began. He was soon ransomed at an exorbitant amount. Modern estimates by historians put the ransom at fully one-third of the total amount of money in the coffers of the English crown.

Leopold V used a portion of the ransom to build the wall around Vienna.

Did all this really take place? Is this just one of those Legends of the Danube?

I don’t know, and I really don’t care. It was a very very long time ago.

And it makes for a wonderful story, the kind that makes history so fascinating.

[A sculpture of Richard I and his minstrel, Blondel. This sit alongside the road that passes beneath the castle. Richard is looking toward England. His minstrel is looking back at the ruins of the castle where he found his King.]