The Topoi Depicting the Ruler-Saint and the Warrior-Saint in the South-Slavic Literature of the 13th Century

Abstract

This article discusses one aspect of the depiction of rulers’ sainthood in early Serbian and Old Bulgarian literature: the saints’ martial feats, which are most often displayed as victories over other religions through the power of Christ’s weapon, the Holy Cross. The post mortem miracles attributed to these ruler-saints create the image of the warrior saint descending to Earth to aid in battle.