Vita Wenceslai (Legenda Gumpoldi)
The Snare of Brotherly Envy
Dolezlaus's conspiracy against Wenceslaus is intercepted by God, yet his brother's envy intensifies into a feigned brotherly love that conceals hidden weapons and murderous intent.
Since the mad German Dolezlaus burned with desire to acquire the kingdom by whatever means he could, through many kinds of cunning snares directed against the holy man of God, his journey to Rome is intercepted, and the profane people's daily conspiracy thickens in the hiding places of their homes, furtive and secret, while his very brother's envy, with the devil supplying fuel, is inflamed more and more. Yet by no means could all their cruelty, bent on the hidden death of the most holy man, hasten the blessed future day of the trophy before God's predesignation. But the brother, impatient enough to atone for his crime toward him, judged that other frauds against his murder ought not to be pursued any longer, but rather one crime more fitting — winged, as it were — to be hastened by himself, more cautiously devised. For with everyone's weapons craftily hidden by the folding of their garments, and with feigned peace, love is pretended under a brotherly gaze as if it were true — love that is shown more by the opportunity it seeks for harming.
Read the original Latin
Quoniam vesano germani Dolezlawi regni desiderio quoquo modo posset acquirendi, per multimodas insidiarum versutias in sanctum dei exardescente, iter Romae tendendum intercipitur, profanae gentis cotidiana conspiracio domiciliorum latibulis furtive densatur, ipsiusque fratris invidia magis magisque, diabolo fomitem praebente, accenditur. Nequaquam tamen omnium saevitia in sanctissimi viri occultam necem coniuratorum beatam futuri diem trophaei ante dei praesignationem — accelerare valuerunt. Frater autem sceleris in eum luendi satis impatiens, ceteras fraudes in eius caedem non debere visum est diutius prosecuturum, verum unam alis aptiorem nefas potius maturari a se cautius inventam delegit. Nam cunctorum armis vestium contractura dolose latentibus, simulataque pace, amor sub fraterno obtutu quasi verus fingitur, qui magis nocendi facultate quaerenda monstratur.
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