the highest marshal—that is, of the duke of Saxony if he shall) be present; otherwise of him of Pappenheim, his vice-marshall; or, in his absence, of the marshall of the imperial or royal court.
31.
Inasmuch as the majesty of the holy Roman empire has to wield the laws and the government of diverse nations distinct in customs, manner of life, and in language, it is considered fitting, and, in the judgment of all wise men, expedient, that the prince electors, the columns and sides of that empire, should be instructed in the varieties of the different dialects and languages: so that they who assist the imperial sublimity in relieving the wants of very many people, and who are constituted for the sake of keeping watch, should understand, and be understood by, as many as possible. Wherefore we decree that the sons, or heirs and successors of the illustrious prince electors, namely of, the king of Bohemia, the count palatine of the Rhine, the duke of Saxony and the margrave of Brandenburg—since they are expected in all likelihood to have naturally acquired the German language, and to have been taught it from their infancy,—shall be instructed in the grammar of the Italian and Slavic tongues, beginning with the seventh year of their age; so that, before the fourteenth year of their age, they may be learned in the same according to the grace granted them by God. For this is considered not only useful, but also, from the afore-mentioned causes, highly necessary, since those languages are wont to be very much employed in the service and for the needs of the holy empire, and in them the more arduous affairs of the empire are discussed. And, with regard to the above, we lay down the following mode of procedure to be observed: it shall be left to the option of the parents to send their sons, if they have any—or their relatives whom they consider as likely to succeed themselves in their principalities,—to places where they can be taught such languages, or, in their own homes, to give them teachers, instructors, and fellow youths skilled in the same, by whose conversation and teaching alike they may become versed in those languages.
