Graustark

The history of Graustark, down to the end of the nineteenth century had been written by an American, George Barr McCutcheon. His books, indeed read like a romance, as histories sometimes do. It will be remembered that Prince Ganlook of Graustark went to war some time in 1885 with Axphain, in order to defend the border from unwarranted aggressions. His forces were defeated, he was captured and killed, and the country was asked to pay a heavy indemnity. When, at the end of fifteen years, Graustark was unable to pay this indemnity, Prince Bolaroz of Axphain offered to grant an extension of time if the Princess Yetive of Graustark would marry his son, for whom she had a deep aversion. Such alliances are not unusual in Europe. But there had been romantic passages between the Princess and a young American which interfered with this arrangement. The details are told in McCutcheon’s history.

It is sufficient to say that the Princess Yetive and her American Prince Consort were much more friendly to Illyria and Ruritania than to the other States. The army of Graustark numbered about seventy thousand men at the time of the Great War. The arm of Axphain, since the annexation of Dawsbergen two years earlier, numbers considerably over a hundred thousand men. Corinthia, which only the antagonism between Austria and Russia had saved from extinction, might put in the field fifty thousand more. The resources of Grünewald are, as I have said, conjectural. But the three probably could not combine successfully against Graustark, because they themselves would be crushed between Illyria and Ruritania; and by the same token, they could not crush either Illyria or Ruritania because of Graustark. This remarkable illustration of the balance of power suggested the conclusion that, unless there is extreme provocation from without, peace will be preserved among all these States. But there were always grave possibilities in such a situation.

This small Duchy is located high in the mountains in eastern Europe. Many of the settlement is built in places where they built castles of the Teutonic Order, which is still off of older towns. In a country in the last two decades developing large industries and engineers from the German-speaking countries build factories here. Graustark is described as a mountainous country with an area of approximately 800 square miles (2,000 km2); there is at least one reference in the books that fixes its location as somewhere in the Carpathian Mountains near Romania. Graustark always had especially tense relations with its nearest neighbor, Ruritania. The Duchy had a historical claim to the territory of the Ruritanian, however sharply Ruritania disouted these demands.

The country speaks German and most of the inhabitants are descendants of German immigrants, relatives of Transylvania Saxons who settled in the country since the Middle Ages. The vast majority of the population is Lutheran confession.

"If these people live in such a place, why, it is to be found, of course. Any railroad guide-book can locate this land of mystery. There are so many infernal little kingdoms and principalities over here that it would take a lifetime to get ’em all straightened out in one’s head. To-morrow morning We will go to one of the big railway stations and make inquiries. We’ll locate Graustark and then we’ll go over and pluck the flower that grows there. ... he mentally vowed that before he was a day older he would find Graustark on the map and would stock his negligent brain with all that history and the encyclopedia had to say of the unknown land. Her uncle laughed, and, to Lorry’s disappointment, obeyed the young lady’s command.... Graustark was a small principality away off to the east, and Edelweiss was a city of some seventy-five thousand inhabitants, according to the postal guidebook. The Americans could learn no more there, so they went to Baedecker’s office. Here they found a great map, and, after diligent and almost microscopic search, succeeded in discovering the principality of Graustark.

"They walked about the quaint town for an hour or two, examining the buildings, the people and the soldiery with deep interest. From the head of the main street — Castle Avenue, — they could plainly see the royal palace, nearly a mile away. Its towers and turrets, gray and gaunt, ran up among the green tree-tops and were outlined plainly against the yellow hills. Countless houses studded the steep mountain slope, and many people were discerned walking and riding along the narrow, ledge-like streets which wound toward the summit, far up in the clouds. Clearly and distinctly could be seen the grim monastery, perched at the very pinnacle of the mountain, several miles away. Up there it looked bleak and cold and uninviting, in great contrast to the loveliness and warmth of the valley. Down below the grass was moist and soft, trees were approaching the stage where yellow and red tints mingle with the rich green, flowers were blooming, the land was redolent of the sweet fragrance of autumn, the atmosphere warm, clear and invigorating. It was paradise surmounted by desolation, drear and deadening.

"Once in the heart of Graustark, however, the traveler is charmed into dreams of peace and happiness and — paradise. The peasants and the poets sing in one voice and accord, their psalm being of neverending love. Down in the lowlands and up in the hills, the simple worker of the soil rejoices that he lives in Graustark; in the towns and villages the humble merchant and his thrifty customer unite to sing the song of peace and contentment; in the palaces of the noble the same patriotism warms its heart with thoughts of Graustark, the ancient. Prince and pauper strike hands for the love of the land, while outside the great, heartless world goes rumbling on without a thought of the rare little principality among the eastern mountains.

"In point of area, Graustark is but a mite in the great galaxy of nations. Glancing over the map of the world, one is almost sure to miss the infinitesimal patch of green that marks its location. One could not be blamed if he regarded the spot as a typographical or topographical illusion. Yet the people of this quaint little land hold in their hearts a love and a confidence that is not surpassed by any of the lordly monarchs who measure their patriotism by miles and millions. The Graustarkians are a sturdy, courageous race. From the faraway century when they fought themselves clear of the Tartar yoke, to this very hour, they have been warriors of might and valor. The boundaries of their tiny domain were kept inviolate for hundreds of years, and but one victorious foe had come down to lay siege to Edelweiss, the capital. Axphain, a powerful principality in the north, had conquered Graustark in the latter part of the nineteenth century, but only after a bitter war in which starvation and famine proved far more destructive than the arms of the victors. The treaty of peace and the indemnity that fell to the lot of vanquished Graustark have been discoursed upon at length in at least one history.

"Those who have followed that history must know, of course, that the reigning princess, Yetive, was married to a young American at the very tag-end of the nineteenth century. This admirable couple met in quite romantic fashion while the young sovereign was traveling incognito through the United States of America. The American, a splendid fellow named Lorry, was so persistent in the subsequent attack upon her heart, that all ancestral prejudices were swept away and she became his bride with the full consent of her entranced subjects. The manner in which he wooed and won this young and adorable ruler forms a very attractive chapter in romance, although unmentioned in history."

Graustark is a fictional country in Eastern Europe used as a setting for several novels by George Barr McCutcheon. Graustark's neighbors, which also figure in the stories, are Axphain to the north and Dawsbergen to the south.