Hero-Myths & Legends of the British Race
The little band of Geats, in their shining war-gear, strode along the
stone-paved street, their ring-mail sounding as they went, until they
reached the door of Heorot; and there, setting down their broad
shields and their keen spears against the wall, they prepared to enter
as peaceful guests the great hall of King Hrothgar. Wulfgar, one of
Hrothgar's nobles, met them at the door and asked whence such a
splendid band of warlike strangers, so well armed and so worthily
equipped, had come. Their heroic bearing betokened some noble
enterprise. Beowulf answered: "We are Hygelac's chosen friends and
companions, and I am Beowulf. To King Hrothgar, thy master, will I
tell mine errand, if the son of Healfdene will allow us to approach
him."
Wulfgar, impressed by the words and bearing of the hero, replied: "I
will announce thy coming to my lord, and bring back his answer"; and
then made his way up the hall to the high seat where Hrothgar sat on
the dais amidst his bodyguard of picked champions. Bowing
respectfully, he said:
"Here are come travelling over the sea-expanse,
Journeying from afar, heroes of Geatland.
Beowulf is the name of their chief warrior.
This is their prayer, my lord, that they may speak with thee;
Do not thou give them a hasty refusal!
Do not deny them the gladness of converse!
They in their war-gear seem worthy of men's respect.
Noble their chieftain seems, he who the warriors
Hither has guided."
At these words the aged king aroused himself from the sad reverie into
which he had fallen and answered: "I knew him as a boy. Beowulf is the
son of Ecgtheow, who wedded the daughter of the Geat King Hrethel. His
fame has come hither before him; seafarers have told me that he has
the might of thirty men in his hand-grip. Great joy it is to know of
his coming, for he may save us from the terror of Grendel. If he
succeeds in this, great treasures will I bestow upon him. Hasten;
bring in hither Beowulf and his kindred thanes, and bid them welcome
to the Danish folk!"
Wulfgar hurried down the hall to the place where Beowulf stood with
his little band; he led them gladly to the high seat, so that they
stood opposite to Hrothgar, who looked keenly at the well-equipped
troop, and kindly at its leader. A striking figure was Beowulf as he
stood there in his gleaming ring-mail, with the mighty sword by his
side. It was, however, but a minute that Hrothgar looked in silence,
for with respectful greeting Beowulf spoke:
"Hail to thee, Hrothgar King! Beowulf am I,
Hygelac's kinsman and loyal companion.
Great deeds of valour wrought I in my youth.
To me in my native land Grendel's ill-doing
Came as an oft-heard tale told by our sailors.
They say that this bright hall, noblest of buildings,
Standeth to every man idle and useless
After the evening-light fails in the heavens.
Thus, Hrothgar, ancient king, all my friends urged me,
Warriors and prudent thanes, that I should seek thee,
Since they themselves had known my might in battle.
Now I will beg of thee, lord of the glorious Danes,
Prince of the Scylding race, Folk-lord most friendly,
Warden of warriors, only one boon.
Do not deny it me, since I have come from far;
I with my men alone, this troop of heroes good,
Would without help from thee cleanse thy great hall!
Oft have I also heard that the fierce monster
Through his mad recklessness scorns to use weapons;
Therefore will I forego (so may King Hygelac,
My friendly lord and king, find in me pleasure)
That I should bear my sword and my broad yellow shield
Into the conflict: with my hand-grip alone
I 'gainst the foe will strive, and struggle for my life--
He shall endure God's doom whom death shall bear away.
I know that he thinketh in this hall of conflict
Fearless to eat me, if he can compass it,
As he has oft devoured heroes of Denmark.
Then thou wilt not need my head to hide away,
Grendel will have me all mangled and gory;
Away will he carry, if death then shall take me,
My body with gore stained will he think to feast on,
On his lone track will bear it and joyously eat it,
And mark with my life-blood his lair in the moorland;
Nor more for my welfare wilt thou need to care then.
Send thou to Hygelac, if strife shall take me,
That best of byrnies which my breast guardeth,
Brightest of war-weeds, the work of Smith Weland,
Left me by Hrethel. Ever Wyrd has her way."
The aged King Hrothgar, who had listened attentively while the hero
spoke of his plans and of his possible fate, now greeted him saying:
"Thou hast sought my court for honour and for friendship's sake, O
Beowulf: thou hast remembered the ancient alliance between Ecgtheow,
thy father, and myself, when I shielded him, a fugitive, from the
wrath of the Wilfings, paid them the due wergild for his crime, and
took his oath of loyalty to myself. Long ago that time is; Ecgtheow is
dead, and I am old and in misery. It were too long now to tell of all
the woe that Grendel has wrought, but this I may say, that many a
hero has boasted of the great valour he would display in strife with
the monster, and has awaited his coming in this hall; in the morning
there has been no trace of each hero but the dark blood-stains on
benches and tables. How many times has that happened! But sit down now
to the banquet and tell thy plans, if such be thy will."
Thereupon room was made for the Geat warriors on the long benches, and
Beowulf sat in the place of honour opposite to the king: great respect
was shown to him, and all men looked with wonder on this mighty hero,
whose courage led him to hazard this terrible combat. Great carved
horns of ale were borne to Beowulf and his men, savoury meat was
placed before them, and while they ate and drank the minstrels played
and sang to the harp the deeds of men of old. The mirth of the feast
was redoubled now men hoped that a deliverer had come indeed.
The Quarrel
Among all the Danes who were rejoicing over Beowulf's coming there was
one whose heart was sad and his brow gloomy--one thane whom jealousy
urged to hate any man more distinguished than himself. Hunferth, King
Hrothgar's orator and speech-maker, from his official post at
Hrothgar's feet watched Beowulf with scornful and jealous eyes. He
waited until a pause came in the clamour of the feast, and suddenly
spoke, coldly and contemptuously: "Art thou that Beowulf who strove
against Breca, the son of Beanstan, when ye two held a swimming
contest in the ocean and risked your lives in the deep waters? In vain
all your friends urged you to forbear--ye would go on the hazardous
journey; ye plunged in, buffeting the wintry waves through the
rising storm. Seven days and nights ye toiled, but Breca overcame
thee: he had greater strength and courage. Him the ocean bore to
shore, and thence he sought his native land, and the fair city where
he ruled as lord and chieftain. Fully he performed his boast against
thee. So I now look for a worse issue for thee, for thou wilt find
Grendel fiercer in battle than was Breca, if thou darest await him
this night."
Beowulf's brow flushed with anger as he replied haughtily: "Much hast
thou spoken, friend Hunferth, concerning Breca and our swimming
contest; but belike thou art drunken, for wrongly hast thou told the
tale. A youthful folly of ours it was, when we two boasted and
challenged each other to risk our lives in the ocean; that indeed we
did. Naked swords we bore in our hands as we swam, to defend ourselves
against the sea-monsters, and we floated together, neither
outdistancing the other, for five days, when a storm drove us apart.
Cold were the surging waves, bitter the north wind, rough was the
swelling flood, under the darkening shades of night. Yet this was not
the worst: the sea-monsters, excited by the raging tempest, rushed at
me with their deadly tusks and bore me to the abyss. Well was it then
for me that I wore my well-woven ring-mail, and had my keen sword in
hand; with point and edge I fought the deadly beasts, and killed them.
Many a time the hosts of monsters bore me to the ocean-bottom, but I
slew numbers among them, and thus we battled all the night, until in
the morning came light from the east, and I could see the windy cliffs
along the shore, and the bodies of the slain sea-beasts floating on
the surge. Nine there were of them, for Wyrd is gracious to the man
who is valiant and unafraid. Never have I heard of a sterner
conflict, nor a more unhappy warrior lost in the waters; yet I saved
my life, and landed on the shores of Finland. Breca wrought not so
mightily as I, nor have I heard of such warlike deeds on thy part,
even though thou, O Hunferth, didst murder thy brothers and nearest
kinsmen.
"Truly I say to thee, O son of Ecglaf bold,
Grendel the grisly fiend ne'er dared have wrought
So many miseries, such shame and anguish dire,
To thy lord, Hrothgar old, in his bright Heorot,
Hadst thou shown valiant mood, sturdy and battle-fierce,
As thou now boastest."
Very wroth was Hunferth over the reminder of his former wrongdoing and
the implied accusation of cowardice, but he had brought it on himself
by his unwise belittling of Beowulf's feat, and the applause of both
Danes and Geats showed him that he dared no further attack the
champion; he had to endure in silence Beowulf's boast that he and his
Geats would that night await Grendel in the hall, and surprise him
terribly, since the fiend had ceased to expect any resistance from the
warlike Danes. The feast continued, with laughter and melody, with
song and boast, until the door from the women's bower, in the upper
end of the hall, opened suddenly, and Hrothgar's wife, the fair and
gracious Queen Wealhtheow, entered. The tumult lulled for a short
space, and the queen, pouring mead into a goblet, presented it to her
husband; joyfully he received and drank it. Then she poured mead or
ale for each man, and in due course came to Beowulf, as to the guest
of honour. Gratefully Wealhtheow greeted the lordly hero, and thanked
him for the friendship which brought him to Denmark to risk his life
against Grendel. Beowulf, rising respectfully and taking the cup from
the queen's hand, said with dignity:
"This I considered well when I the ocean sought,
Sailed in the sea-vessel with my brave warriors,
That I alone would win thy folk's deliverance,
Or in the fight would fall fast in the demon's grip.
Needs must I now perform knightly deeds in this hall,
Or here must meet my doom in darksome night."
Well pleased, Queen Wealhtheow went to sit beside her lord, where her
gracious smile cheered the assembly. Then the clamour of the feast was
renewed, until Hrothgar at length gave the signal for retiring.
Indeed, it was necessary to leave Heorot when darkness fell, for the
fiend came each night when sunlight faded. So the whole assembly
arose, each man bade his comrades "Good night," and the Danes
dispersed; but Hrothgar addressed Beowulf half joyfully, half sadly,
saying:
"Never before have I since I held spear and shield
Given o'er to any man this mighty Danish hall,
Save now to thee alone. Keep thou and well defend
This best of banquet-halls. Show forth thy hero-strength,
Call up thy bravery, watch for the enemy!
Thou shalt not lack gifts of worth if thou alive remain
Winner in this dire strife."