Gifts presented to the Polish-Lithuanian king Stephen Báthory upon his entry in Riga city (13 March 1582)

• Anglų kalba / English
• Vokiečių kalba / German

ENPolish–Lithuanian king Stephen Báthory and his retinue reached the out skirts of Riga on 12 March 1582. In the last few miles on the ice-covered Daugava river they were greeted and accompanied by a cavalry unit of approx. 200 burgh ers of Riga. The guard of honor, consisting of City guard units in full armour, was lined along the entire way to the market square, while others waited on the walls. The king then proceeded to his lodgings in the castle, while courtiers and militia were accomodated in less “royal” citizens’ apartments. On the following day, the king entered the city through a triumphal arch specially made for the purpose with inscription on the front praising the king’s “restraining of Muscovites” and that on the back expressing hope in the ensuing “golden times” to the citizens. In the market square a stage was set up for celebratory fireworks. Customary to the occasion, gifts were presented and banquets were held that would celebrate the king’s triumph over Muscovites and his becoming the new sovereign of Riga City. Although the king’s triumphal entry in Riga attracted great interest among the contemporaries, the gift-giving is reported only in two Polish accounts – letters by envoy of Danzig to Riga Daniel Hermann and Royal Secretary J. Pietrowski – both in similar wording [...]. The reports, albeit far from being exhaustive, certainly were true and can be verified with recently discovered account kept in the Latvian State Historical Archive. The account outlines a few memorable episodes of the gift-giving process and lists the items presented to the King, state officials, and members of the king’s household. Along with the transcript of this account, the current publication offers preliminary analysis of gifts and their receivers. It, however, does not elaborate on the performative praxis of the gift-giving, and their communicative roles.Although the analysed gift-giving was rooted in a tradition of ancient origins, which has numerous evidences in the late medieval and early modern Livonian history, the present analysis is a rare contribution to our knowledge of the gift-giving practice during a princely entry. [...]. [Extract, p. 142-143.]