Anglo-Saxon and Norse Poems/XIII

by Nora Kershaw Chadwick

THE BATTLE OF THE GOTHS AND THE HUNS

1 Long ago, according to the story, Humli ruled the Huns, Gizurr the Gautar, Angantýr the Goths, Valdarr the Danes, and Kíarr the Valar, while Alrekr the Bold ruled the English nation.

 

2 Hlöðr was born in the land of the Huns in a holy forest, with cutlass and with sword, with ample coat of mail, with treasure-decked helmet, with keen blade, and with well-trained steed.

 

3 Hlöðr, Heiðrekr's heir, rode from the east, till he came to Árheimar, to the court where the Goths dwell, to demand his inheritance. There Angantýr was holding Heiðrekr's funeral feast.

 

4 Outside the lofty hall he met a man who had arrived late, and thereupon addressed him:

‘Enter, sir, the high hall and bid Angantýr hold parley with me.’

 

He entered and stood before Angantýr's table and saluted the King, saying:

5 ‘Thy base-born brother Hlöðr, Heiðrekr's heir, has come hither. Very mighty is the man as he sits on his steed. It is his wish that he may speak with thee forthwith, O King.’

 

6 A clamour arose in the hall. They stood up with the hero; everyone was anxious to hear what Hlöðr had said and the answer which Angantýr would give.

 

Then Angantýr spoke:

‘Thou art welcome, Hlöðr, my brother; enter and take part in our least. Let us first drink mead in honour of our father's memory, and to the glory of us all with full ceremony.’

Hlöðr replied:

‘We are come hither for a different purpose than to fill our stomachs.’

 

Then he said:

7 ‘I will have half of all that Heiðrekr owned—of his tools and weapons, his undivided hoard, cows and calves and the murmuring handmill, slavewoman and bondman, and their children with them.

 

8 I will have half the noble forest which is called Myrkviðr, the holy tombs which stand among the people of the Goths, the beautiful stones which stand at Danpr’s abode, the raiment of battle which Heðdrekr owned, his lands and liegemen and his glittering treasures.’

 

Angantýr replied:

9 ‘The gleaming-white shield will be cloven, my brother, and cold spear will clash with spear, and many a man will sink to the grass before I will divide Tyrfing in two, or give thee the half of the patrimony, thou child of Humli.

 

10 ‘I offer thee, my kinsman, beautiful goblets, cattle and abundance of jewels, whatsoever thou most desirest. Twelve hundred men will give thee, twelve hundred steeds will I give thee, twelve hundred squires will I give thee, such as bear the shield.

 

11 ‘I will give to every man a bounteous gift, finer than

anything that he had before; I will give to each man a maiden as a gift, and round every maiden's throat I will clasp a necklace.

 

12 ‘As thou sittest I will encase thee in silver, and as thou walkest I will cover thee with rings of gold so that they will roll in all directions, and thereby shalt thou have a thin part of the Gothic nation under thine own sway.’

 

Gizurr, a liegeman from the Grýtingar, King Heiðrekr’s foster-father, was then with King Angantýr. He was a very old man at that time. And when he heard King Angantýr's offer, he thought that he was offering too much, and said:

 

13 ‘This is indeed an offer for a bondwoman's child, for a bondwoman's child, even though his father was a king. When the prince divided his inheritance the illegitimate son was sitting on the mound.’

 

Hlöðr now grew very angry at being called the child of a bondwoman and an illegitimate son, if he accepted his brother's offer; so he departed at once with all his men and returned home to King Humli, his mother's father, in the land of the Huns. And he told Humli that Angantýr his brother had not granted him an equal share. King Humli enquired as to all that had passed between them, and was very angry that Hlöðr, the son of his daughter, should be called the son of a bondmaid, and he said:

 

14 ‘We will stay at home for the winter and take our joy of life. We will quaff the costly draughts and we will hold council together. We will instruct the Huns to prepare the weapons of war which we shall bravely carry to battle.

 

15 ‘Nobly will we array a host of warriors, O Hlöðr, and manfully will we offer battle, with troops from the age of twelve years, with steeds from the age of two years—even thus shall the host of the Huns be assembled.’

 

That winter King Humli and Hlöðr remained quiet; but

the following spring they collected such a large army that the land of the Huns was swept bare of fighting men....And there were five ‘thousand’ in each legion, each thousand containing thirteen ‘hundreds,’ and each ‘hundred’ four times forty men; and these legions were thirty-three in number.

When these troops had assembled, they rode through the forest which was called Myrkviðr, and which separated the land of the Huns from that of the Goths. And when they emerged from the forest, they came upon a thickly inhabited country with level fields; and in these plains there was a fair fortress. It was under the command of Hervör, the sister of Angantýr and Hlöðr, and Ormarr her foster-father was with her. They had been appointed to defend the land against the host of the Huns, and they had a large army there.

It happened one morning at sunrise that as Hervör was standing on the summit of a tower over the gate of the fortress, she looked southwards towards the forest, and saw clouds of dust arising from a great body of horse, by which the sun was hidden for a long time. Next she saw a gleam beneath the dust, as though she were gazing on a mass of gold—fair shields overlaid with gold, gilded helmets and white corslets. Then she perceived that it was the host of the Huns coming on in vast numbers. She descended hastily and called her trumpeter, and bade him sound the assembly.

Then said Hervör: ‘Take your weapons and arm for battle and do thou, Ormarr, ride against the Huns and offer them battle before the Southern Gate.’ Ormarr replied:

16 ‘I will certainly take my shield, and ride with the troops of the Goths to give battle.’

Then Ormarr rode out of the fortress against the Huns. He called loudly, bidding them ride up to the fort, saying: ‘Outside the gate of the fortress, in the plains to the south—there will I offer you battle.’...But the host of the Huns was far superior in numbers, so that Hervör’s troops began to suffer heavy losses; and in the end Hervör fell, and a great part of her army round about her.

And when Ormarr saw her fall, he fled with all those who still survived....And when he came into the presence of King Angantýr, he cried:

17 I am come from the south, and this is the news which I have to offer. The whole of the woodland and forest of Myrkviðr is ablaze and all the land of the Goths is drenched with the blood of men.

 

18 ‘I have certain knowledge that thy sister, King Heiðrekr's

daughter..., has fallen lifeless. The Huns have laid her low, and many of your warriors with her.

 

19 ‘More readily did she make ready for battle than to talk with a wooer or to take her seat at the bridal feast.’

 

When King Angantýr heard that he drew back his lips, and it was some time before he spoke. Then he said:

‘In no brotherly wise hast thou been treated, my noble sister!’

Then he surveyed his retinue, and his band of men was but small; then he said:

 

20 ‘When we were drinking mead we were a great host, but now when we should be many our numbers are few.

 

21 ‘I do not see a single man in my host who, even if I were to beg him and offer him a rich reward, would take his shield and ride to seek out the host of the Huns.’

 

Gizurr the old said:

22 I will not ask a single ounce or ringing piece of gold; yet I will take my shield and ride to challenge the troops of the Huns to battle.’

 

Gizurr armed himself with good weapons and leapt on his horse as if he had been a young man. Then he cried to the King:

23 ‘Where shall I challenge the Huns to battle?'’

 

King Angantýr replied:

24 ‘Challenge them to battle at Dylgja and on Dúnheiðr and on all the mountains of Jössurr, where the Goths have often given battle, and gained a glorious victory to their renown.’

 

Then Gizurr rode away until he came to the host of the Huns. He rode just within earshot, and then called loudly, crying:

25 ‘Your host is panic-stricken, your leader is doomed; the standards are raised against you; Othin is wroth with you!

 

26 I challenge you to battle at Dylgja, and on Dúnheiðr, under the mountains of Jössurr. May every battlefield be covered with your corpses, and may Othin let the javelin fly according to my words!'’

 

When Hlöðr heard Gizurr's words, he cried:

27 ‘Lay hold on Gizurr, Angantýr's man, who has come from Árheimar.’

 

King Humli said:

28 We must not injure heralds who travel unattended.'

 

...Then Gizurr struck spurs into his horse and rode back to King Angantýr and went up to him and saluted him. The King asked him if he had parleyed with the Huns.

 

Gizurr replied:

‘I spoke with them and I challenged them to meet us on the battlefield of Dúnheiðr and in the valleys of Dylgja.’

 

Angantýr asked how big the army of the Huns was. Gizurr replied: ‘Great is their host.

29 There are in all six “legions” of warriors, and in every “legion” five “thousands,” in every “thousand” thirteen “hundreds,” and in every “hundred” a quadruple number of men.’

 

Next day they began the battle; and they fought together the whole day, and at evening they went to their quarters. They continued fighting for eight days.... There fell Hlöðr and King Humli, and then the Huns took to flight....Angantýr then went to search among the slain, and found his brother Höör, Then he cried:

 

30 ‘I offered thee unstinted wealth, my brother, riches and vast treasure to the limit of thy desires; but now thou hast won by thy warfare neither shining rings nor territory.

 

31 ‘A curse has been laid upon us, my brother; I have brought about thy death. This will never be forgotten.—Evil is the decree of the Norns.’

 

Angantýr ruled Reiðgotaland as king for a long time. He was powerful and munificent and a great warrior, and lines of kings are sprung from him.