Der Kaiser flieht vertrieben,
Flieht das eigne Land;
Das Heer ist aufgerieben,
Fliehend seine Schand.
Nur Die sind ihm geblieben,
Die er oft verkannt,
Denn streng sind, die uns lieben,
Noth hat Lieb erkannt,
Er grüßt die alten Tage
Seiner Jugendzeit,
Vergißt die alte Plage
In Vertraulichkeit.
...
Zum Fluß ist er gekommen,
Findet keine Brück,
Da wird sein Herz beklommen,
Er kann nicht zurück.
Da kommt ein Schiff mit Netzen:
"Schiffer, nimm zum Lohn,
Willst Du uns übersetzen,
Meine goldne Kron."
Der Schiffer hat genommen
Seine goldne Kron,
Doch eh' er überkommen,
War der Feind dort schon.
...
"So lieb dir ist dein Leben,
Fahr zurück an's Land,
Den Schifflohn will ich geben
Mit der eignen Hand."
Der Kaiser droht zu schlagen
Mit dem goldnen Stab,
Doch schnell zurückgetragen,
Ihn dem Schiffer gab.
Jetzt sah er, wie die Feinde
Ihn am Ufer sehn,
An Freundes Busen weinte,
Wollte schier vergehn.
...
...
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-3 of the original text.
Composition:
Text Authorship:
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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs
[Senior Associate Editor]This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 90
Word count: 367
Banished, the emperor flees,
Flees his own land;
The army has been worn down,
It flees his ignominy.
Only those are left to him
Whom he often underrated,
For severe are those who love us,
But adversity has recognized love.
He greets the old days
Of his youth,
He forgets the old vexation
In familiarity.
...
He has come to the river,
And finds no bridge.
His heart becomes anxious,
He cannot turn back.
Along comes a boat with nets:
"Boatman, receive in payment
My golden crown
If you would take us across."
The boatman took
His golden crown,
But before the emperor reached the other shore
The enemy was already there.
...
"As truly as you value your life,
Go back to the shore,
The payment for the boat journey
I shall give back with my own hand."
The emperor threatens to beat him
With the golden staff,
But, carried back quickly,
Gave the staff to the boatman.
Now he saw how the enemies
Spotted him on the shore,
Upon the bosom of his friend he wept,
Wanting to perish.
...
...
