THE MIRACLE A True Story and festivity that went on all night.    "Many people started to say it was time for the legends about the Marble King and the Red Apple Tree to be fulfilled."    Mr Kleopas' face took on a sad, wistful expression.    "`What are these legends about, Mr Kleopas?' I asked.    "After the Seljuks had won the Battle of Manzikert in Asia Minor in 1071 and the countdown had begun for the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire, the Greeks in Asia Minor created the legend of the Red Apple Tree with the unerring instinct of a people that could foresee the forthcoming disaster.    "According to the legend, the Turks, after laying siege to Constantinople in every way they could think of, would overcome those defending the city and start to take over its command. But at that very moment, by divine intervention, the Turks were put to flight and pursued as far as Monodendri - known as the Red Apple Tree.    "Later, after the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, the last Byzantine Emperor, Constantinos Paleologos, disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Many people said he had died in the battle at the Romanus Gate (Topkapi) and that the Sultan had ordered a search for his body amongst the corpses lying there, but without success. The Emperor's body was never found; instead they buried a headless corpse thought to be that of Constantinos Paleologos because it was wearing sandals decorated in gold with the eagles that were the royal emblem.    "All of this contributed to the legend of the Marble King, which says the Emperor Constantinos Paleologos was not killed in battle but was turned to marble and hidden behind the Sealed Door in the Church of St Sophia until the day when the Lord's angel will bring him back to life and hand him his sword so that he can chase the Turkish conquerors away to the Red Apple Tree. Even today, many people still say that as they approach the Sealed Door they can hear hymns and chanting coming from behind it, telling of the legend of the Marble King. These legends have withstood the test of time and have been passed down from generation to generation over the centuries. Greece's great national poet, Kostis Palamas, included them in the stark verses of his poem entitled 'The King's Flute':    "A King of Marble, and I shall awake    From the mystic and unfound tomb which will close me,    I shall emerge, unlocking the founded Gate of Gold,    And will run, who conquered the kaliphs and hunted the tzars,    And far, near the Apple of Gold, I will draw my breath."*    "The people created not only traditions, prophecies and legends in order to maintain their faith and hopes for freedom in their patrimonial lands, but also a kind of folk poetry which has expressed the feelings of the Greeks everywhere for centuries.    "According to folklore, which became a popular song with a number of variations, when Constantinople fell to the Turks in 1453 a monk at the Monastery Church of Zoodochos Pigis, known as the Baloukliotissa, heard the news that the city had fallen while he was frying fish near the holy water. It seemed to him so unlikely that he said he would believe it only if the fish he was cooking came back to life. At that very moment the fish did come back to life and leapt into the church's holy water. Tradition has it that the fish will finally be fried only * Translated by Frederic Will Copyright © 1967 University of Nebraska Press 83 and 84 Leonidas Koumakis THE MIRACLE A True Story If you prefer a hard copy of the book, please send an email to HEC-Books@hec.greece.org Previous Page | Initial Page | Site Map | Next Page (85th of 204) © For Internet 2001 HEC and Leonidas Koumakis. Updated on 19 June 2001.