Lenkijos karaliaus ir Lietuvos didžiojo kunigaikščio Aleksandro laidotuvių Vilniuje ceremonialas

ENIn the last summer, 500 years turned since the death of King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander Jagielonian. He died at 4 o’clock in the morning of August 19, 1506, in Vilnius Lower Castle. He is the only common sovereign of Poland and Lithuania buried in the Lithuanian capital and the only Lithuanian Grand Duke whose grave is known and can be visited in the Royal Crypt under the St. Kazimieras’ Chapel of Vilnius Cathedral. Aleksander was buried almost two month later on October 11 of the same year. For two months, his body, most likely with coronation wear and supplied with insignias, laid in the hall of Vilnius castle. Burial-service took place every day. This time span was designed for proper preparation for sovereign’s funeral. The funeral ceremonial lasted for three days. The body of deceased sovereign was buried on the first day. A solemn Mass took place in the same cathedral on the second day. On the third day, a solemn procession with flags, trimmed horses and litter including a group of four persons, representing the sovereign (as if the deceased himself was present for the last offering), visited five Vilnius churches. In each of the churches, a Mass was celebrated and material offerings made. At the end of the ceremony, a spear was broken. This had to symbolize the end of the worldly throne.The ceremonial of Alexander’s funeral was comparable with the ceremonials of funerals of kings of Poland and grand dukes of Lithuania held in Krakow. Yet this was a European ceremonial inherited from the funeral customs of the West and Central European monarchs (procession, persons representing the deceased, etc. common for the funerals of emperors, kings and dukes) rather than Polish. The time span between the death of Alexander and his burial also matched the lengthening interval between sovereign’s death and burial. The funeral was not prepared in haste. Notwithstanding that Alexander’s funeral took place in Vilnius, i.e. capital of GDL (Grand Duchy of Lithuania), he was buried as a king with royal cerecloth because king’s status was superior to that of grand duke’s. The fact that sceptre and apple of rule were not put into the coffin with the crown and sword can be regarded as a specific feature of funeral in Vilnius. Another difference was that Alexander’s funeral lasted for 3 days instead of 1 or 2 days as in Krakow. The successive funerals in the capital of Poland would also last for three days. Moreover, Alexander was buried in a special royal crypt set up 70 years earlier than the Royal crypt in Krakow.