Mythical Geography: Kingdom of Prester John

Kingdom of Prester John

[ History | Maps | References ]

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The History

[ Beginnings | Excerpts from PJ letter | Historical basis | Move to Africa ]

In the 1130s, under the leadership of Imad ad-din Zengi, Turkish power became a serious threat to the Crusader kingdoms in the Holy Land. This caused these kingdoms to seek aid from Western Europe, and around 1145, Hugh, Bishop of Jabala, was sent to meet Pope Eugenius to ask for help. Otto von Freisingen, Bishop of Freising, recorded in his Historia de Duabus Civitatibus (1158) that Hugh told the Pope about Prester John, a Christian priest and king whose kingdom was in the extreme Orient, beyond Persia and Armenia. Prester John was supposed to be a descendent of the Magi and a possessor of great wealth. It appears that Hugh talked to the Pope about Prester John because rumors had been circulating in Europe that he was going to come to the rescue of the Crusader kingdoms and Hugh wasn't to emphasize that this would not happen as Prester John was cut off from the Middle East by the Tigris River.

In 1165, a (forged) letter allegedly from Prester John was delivered to Emperor Manuel Comnenus of Byzantium. Manuel forwarded the letter to Emperor Frederic Babarous of the Holy Roman Empire. The forgery was quite clever, for the forger had obviously read Otto von Freisingen's report and he repeated many of the same stores and further played upon the hopes and fears of the Europeans vis-à-vis the infidel Turks. The letter caused a sensation and not only were copies circulated widely, but excepts were even put to song.

Excerpts from letter

"...I, Prester john, who reign supreme, surpass in virtue, riches and power all creatures under heaven. Seventy kings are our tributaries. I am a zealous Christian and universally protect the Christians of our empire, supporting them by our alms. We have determined to visit the sepulchre of our Lord with a very large army, in accordance with the glory of our majesty to humble and chastise the enemies of the cross of Christ and to exalt his blessed name."

"For gold, silver, precious stones, animals of every kind and the number of our people, we believe there is not our equal under heaven."

"If again thou askest how it is that the Creator of all having made us the most superpotential and most glorious over all mortals-does not give us a higher dignity or more excellent name than that of Priest (Prester), let not thy wisdom be surprised on this account, for this is the reason. We have many ecclesiastics in our retinue of more dignified name and office in the Church, and of more considerable standing than ours in the divine service. For our house-steward is a patriarch and king; our cup-bearer is an archbishop and king; our chamberlain is a bishop and king; our archimandrite, that is chief pastor or master of the horse, is a king and abbot. Whereof our highness has not seen it repugnant to call himself by the same name and to distinguish himself by the order of which our court is full. And if we have chosen to be called by a lower name and inferior rank, it springs from humility."

The only official response to the letter was that Pole Alexander III sent out a Papal emissary in 1177 with a letter for Prester John, carried by his physician, Magister Philippos, but nothing was ever heard of what became of him. Years later, in the mid-thirteenth century when Asia was opened again to Europeans by the ascendancy of the Tartars, the great search began to find this Prester John, a search which was very important opening up Asia and re-establishing ties with China. Though he was never found, his legend continued throughout the middle ages, with Kings and Popes sending off letters at different times seeking his help and dreams of his riches filling the heads of many.

Historical basis to the legend

The Khitai were a tribe that had ruled much of China in the late 10th century as the Liao Dynasty. As their dynasty collapsed, in 1124, a body of the imperial family escaped to Central Asia, where they established a new empire over the Turkish tribes, called Kara-Khitai (or "Black Cathay"--Black being a term of honor at the time). In 1141, in their expansion to the west, they met the eastward reaching kingdom of the Seljuk Turks of Persia. In a battle fought Sept. 8-9, 1141, at Qatawan (Katvan), near Samarkand, Yeh-lü Ta-Shih (or Yeliutashi), ruler of the empire of Kara-Khitai, defeated Sultan Sanjar, the Seljuk Turk ruler of Persia.

Reports of this great victory over the Turks reached the Crusader kingdoms soon thereafter and included was the rumor that Yeliutashi was a Christian. This appears to be somewhat unlikely, with the Kara-Khitai perhaps being confused with the Keraits, a Christian-Nestorian tribe from central Asia.

Prester John's move to Africa

By the 14th century, all searches for Prester John and his kingdom in Asia had turned up empty. Rather than give up on this hopeful and glamorous legend, however, Europeans decided that they must have been looking in the wrong region and they turned their eyes on the interior of Africa. This was spurred by the fact that there was an actual Christian kingdom there, the Nestorian kingdom of Abyssinia or Ethiopia. Mysterious Abyssinian pilgrims sometimes visited the Holy Land, though their kingdom was rumored to be bordered by inaccessible mountains. What better place to put the Kingdom of Prester John? Eastern Africa was sometimes conflated in European thinking with the "Indies," and so here must be that great Christian King in the East. The Portuguese sent several expeditions to make contact with this kingdom and the reports which came back further confirmed the belief that finally Prester John had been found. Thus the venerable legend moved to a new continent, and it was in Africa that Prester John's Kingdom was thought to lie when the earliest printed maps made their appearance. The legend eventually passed from common belief, but not before leaving a few maps illustrating this wonderful myth.

A Selection of Maps

Abraham Ortelius. "Presbiteri Johannis, sive, Abissinorum Imperii Descriptio." From The Perergon. Antwerp: Plantin, 1579-1603. 14 3/4 x 17 1/4. Line engraving by Jan Wierix. Original hand color. Old wear and small worm-holes along centerfold, skillfully repaired. Small break of surface in bottom corner at old fold. Old manuscript ink notations on side margins, with faint line extending from note at left into map. Still, overall very strong and attractive appearance. French text on verso. Koeman, III, 69-70.

The Perergon, Ortelius' atlas of ancient geography must be regarded as a personal work. In the Theatrum he used the works of other cartographers, but he drew the originals for this series to illustrate and clarify the history of classical civilizations. Being a collector of coins, the subject was very dear to his heart. The maps for The Perergon were usually found as a supplement to the larger, modern maps found in the Theatrum Orbis Terrarum.

This map showing the Kingdom of Prester John relates the story of a Christian King who, tradition held, was a powerful ruler deep in Africa. At the time of the Crusades there was hope that by joining forces with this king the Europeans could crush of the Mohammedan powers. Originally the legend had it that Prester (or Priest) John ruled in Asia, but as the search for his kingdom there turned up empty, hope of this potential ally was transferred to another relatively unknown area, central Africa. This placement of Prester John's kingdom in Africa was spurred in part by the existence of Nestorian Christians in Ethiopia, who were soon identified with the subjects of the mythical Prester John. In Ortelius' day the search for this mythical kingdom was still used to justify expeditions along the coast and into Africa. The map shows from the Mediterranean to the Mountains of the Moon.

The decorations on this beautiful map are some of the most satisfying among the works of Ortelius: elephants in the interior, whales, a warship with lateen sails, and two magnificent cartouches are part of the great appeal. For its historic interest and decorative appeal, this is a gem of the age of exploration and discovery. $2,200

Jodocus Hondius. "Abissinorum Sive Pretiosi Joannis Imperiu." Amsterdam: J. Hondius, 1606. 13 1/2 x 19 1/4. Engraving. Full original hand color. Top right corner of margin missing, else full margins. A few small burn spots and margin repairs. Darkened. Latin text on back. Koeman, Me 15, 125.

As early as 1122 there were stories of Prester John, who was supposed to be a Tartar chief converted to Christianity, whose kingdom was immeasurably rich. His help was sought by the Crusaders to liberate Jerusalem, and in general to help the Christian Europeans against the infidels. His existence was generally accepted by all. The Pope, on several occasions, sent out emissaries and letters to him. Marco Polo in part was looking for Prester John, and Polo reported that John had in fact existed, but had been slain by Genghis Khan in "the greatest battle that ever was seen." Searches for Prester John led to the re-establishment of ties with China and were very important in the opening of Asia.

Once it was clear that Prester John was not to be found anywhere in Asia, he found his way to Abyssinia, or central Africa. This was the current notion in the late sixteenth century, and remnants of this belief were still about after the turn of the century. This map is entitled 'Prester John's Empire,' but no specific indication is given of his kingdom on the map. A geographic myth that does appear is that of the mountains of the Moon ("Lunae Montes") and the source of the Nile is shown in two lakes in southern Africa. It would not be until the eighteenth century that this Ptolemaic misconception was finally eradicated from the map. $900

References

Sabine Baring-Gould. Curious Myths of the Middle Ages. Edited by Edward Hardy. New York, 1994.
L Sprague De Camp & Willy Ley. Lands Beyond. New York: 1993.
E. Denison Ross, "Prester John and the Empire of Ethiopia." Pp. 174ff. In Arthur P. Newton. Travel and Travellers of the Middle Ages. London & New York, 1930.
Elaine Sanceau. The Land of Prester John. New York, 1944.
Robert Silverberg. The Realm of Prester John. New York, 1972.