At eight in the morning on April 25, Kasper Doenhoff, a courtier in charge of opening curtains in the royal bedchamber and greeting the monarch, did not hear a response. Unable to see at a distance he approached Sigismund whose face was paralyzed from a stroke. Hours later he briefly recovered his speech and murmured "there is no cure against the will of death". The paralysis worsened and on April 27 Urszula Meyerin acted as spokeswoman, speaking on behalf of the mumbling king. Prince Ladislaus arrived on the same day. On April 28, Sigismund's bed was surrounded by his courtiers and the Jesuit priests, who performed exorcism-like prayers. It was his wish that the court be witness to his demise, as interpreted in the words "vanitas vanitatis", Latin for 'all is vanity'.