On the Cumans Lore Books

Description

A book on the Cumans.

Text

On the Cumans

The Cumans, or the Polovtsi, or the Kipchaks, are a nomadic people originally from the steppes above the Black Sea, whence the advancing Mongolian horde had driven them out, and a great abundance of them did settle in Hungary. But many had already settled there years before and had adopted the local tongue and the Christian faith, but many were of a wild sort and cruel nature and thus there was great suffering in Hungary until the Cumans did become civilized. Although mostly baptized, they still maintain some of their barbaric ways until today, and thus to seal an agreement, the Cumans must kill a dog and bury it in the place where talks were held.

The appearance of the Cuman is unmistakable: a shaved head, a thick plait hanging from the temple, pointy moustaches, and eyes and faces slanted, like the Mongols and Tatars, with whom they are often confused. They are small of stature, well-suited for riding horses, and often they are so skilled in the saddle that it seems as if that is where they were born. They are oft armed with a bow, which they can use to shoot with great skill from the back of a horse, or with a curved sword, the scimitar, and their armour is so light, made to accommodate rapid movement. Cuman warriors should not be underestimated, for from a young age they are trained in combat and they serve as mercenaries, as evidenced by the King of Hungary and the would-be usurper of the Bohemian Crown, Sigismund Luxembourg, who assembled an entire enormous army of Cumans and who did plunder towns and villages, because there were no other fighters in Hungary who would advance with him on Bohemia.