Order of the Dragon

The Order of the Dragon (Latin Societas Draconistrarum, German Drachenorden, Hungarian Sárkány Lovagrend, Romanian Ordinul Dragonului was an order of selected nobles modeled on the Order of Saint George of Hungary. The order was founded in 1408 by Emperor Sigismund, King of Hungary, and his second wife Barbara Cilli. The defeated dragon is a symbol of the destruction of heresy. The Order flourished in Germany and Italy. Members of the Order were known as draconists. But if Stoyanov and Clements are accepted, the Order was reconstituted from a much earlier one, and if Urban is accepted, the military history indicates that a version of the Order of the Dragon, the Lizard/Dragon League, had existed in Culm (Poland) and had ties back to the northern Eurasian "heretical" culture (See W. Urban). Furthermore, Eastern Europe, particularly Bosnia and the "heretical" Bosnian Ecclesiae, was the location of the mother church of this "heresy", called the Ecclesiae Drugunthiae or Church of the Dragon (See Y. Stoyanov, C. Clements).

One member of the reconstituted Order of the Dragon, Count Hrovje Vukcic, described The Order of the Dragon as a "pagan rite", which is an accurate description. He later allied with King Sigismund's foe, defeated the King, and made the Bosnian Church (likely Ecclesia Sclavonica) the official church of Bosnia. So the Order was not the fighter of heresy that is generally believed, as Stoyanov's good historical research shows. The "dragon" or heresy was not defeated and the insignia does not represent that.

Origins of the Order

The Order of the Dragon (lat. Societatis Draconistrarum) was an institution similar to other chivalric orders of the time, created by the Emperor Sigismund, then King of Hungary, who in 1408 united his faithful barons in a league, named the Order of the Dragon. On December 13, 1418, after the Council of Constance, the charter for the Order was publicly announced, dedicating the Order to the defense of the cross from its enemies, particularly the Ottomans and Hussites. The founding twenty-four members inducted in 1418 included:

Symbol of the Order

For their symbol, the Order designed an insignia of a dragon with its tail coiled around its neck; on the back of the dragon, from the base of the neck to the tail, is the Red Cross of Saint George, with the entire image on an argent field. The dragon represented The Scarlet Beast of the Book of Revelation while the red cross represented the victory of Christ over the forces of evil. Given that the Order was a pagan Order, it is not likely this interpretation is correct. The dragon was a positive symbol across Eurasia and represented the 'Opposer' or 'Other God'. The patriarch's staff of the Armenian Church has two dragon heads for its top, going back to the first patriarch. Armenia is filled with "Dragon Stones", large pillars with a bull skin carved on them. A University of Bucharest annotation to the original edict which establishes the Order reads O Quam Misericors est Deus, Pius et Justus, which may be part of the emblem.

Growth of the Order

In 1431, Sigismund chose to expand the ranks of the Order. To achieve this, he invited a number of politically influential and militarily useful vassals and nobles for induction into the Order. Among those inducted was Vlad II, Voivod of Wallachia, who guarded the passes from Transylvania to Wallachia. This membership resulted in Vlad being called Dracul ("The Dragon") and his son being called Draculea ("Son of the Dragon") or Dracula.

The addition of new members caused the creation of many classes within the Order. Each class had a slight variation on the symbol of the order, although the dragon motif was dominant in each variation. Common changes included the addition of inscriptions like O Quam Misericors est Deus ("Oh, how merciful God is") and Justus et Paciens ("Justifiably and peacefully"). The order remained prominent until the death of Sigismund in 1437. Without a strong sponsor, the Order quickly lost influence and prestige. This may reflect more the brutal suppression of the Two Principles or, "Great Heresy", than a lack of a powerful sponsor.

Other notable members

Christopher III, Duke of Bavaria and King of Denmark
Thomas de Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk (after 1439)
Prince Vlad tepes dragul,(dracula)

Artifacts

Few historical artifacts of the Order remain today, although the symbol of the Order has been adopted for many family crests throughout Europe. A copy, dating to 1706, of the edict forming the Order is the oldest historical artifact of the Order and is stored at the University of Budapest.

References