The Nibelungenlied: The Lay of the Nibelungs (Oxford World's Classics) (8 page)

year, if truth be told, without ever seeing the lovely princess in all that time—she through whom much joy was to befall him thereafter, but also much grief.

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Now strange tidings neared Gunther’s land, brought by messengers sent to them there from afar, by unknown warriors who bore the Burgundians enmity. There is no denying that they were troubled when they heard of this.

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I will tell you the names of their foes: they were Liudeger, a powerful, proud prince from the land of the Saxons, and also King Liudegast of Denmark. They gathered together proud strangers in great numbers for their campaign. Their messengers had

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arrived in Gunther’s land, sent there by his antagonists. Then those strangers were asked what tidings they had brought. The messengers were soon told to go before the king at court.

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He greeted them with great courtesy, saying: ‘Welcome. I have not heard who has sent you here—let that be told,’ said the noble king. Then they were greatly afraid of grim Gunther’s mood.

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‘If you will allow us, King, to tell you the tidings we bring you here, then we shall not remain silent. We will name to you the lords who have sent us here: Liudegast and Liudeger want to invade your land. You have merited their wrath. Indeed, we have clearly heard

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that both those lords bear great enmity towards you. They want to bring their armies on an expedition to Worms on the Rhine. Many knights will come to their aid—take my word for it. The campaign

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is bound to take place within twelve weeks. If you have any good allies who can help you defend your castles and your land, let that soon be shown. Helmets and shield-rims
*
in great numbers will be hewn to pieces here by my lords. Or, if you wish to come to an

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agreement with them, then send a message to them, and then those numerous bands of your mighty enemies, intent on causing you heartfelt suffering, will not ride so near you and cause many worthy knights to perish.’

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‘Now wait a while,’ said the worthy king, ‘until I have thought further on this. I’ll tell you my intentions then. If I have any loyal followers, I must not keep this from them. I must make complaint to my allies about these grave tidings.’

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Gunther, that most powerful king, was more than a little distressed. He kept this matter secret in his heart. He ordered Hagen and others of his vassals to be sent for, and also asked that Gernot be fetched from court immediately.

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Then all the best to be found there arrived. Gunther said: ‘They want to invade our land with mighty forces—you must not take this lightly!’

Gernot, a bold and gallant knight, answered: ‘We shall put a stop

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to that with swords! Only the doomed will die then—let them lie dead. I shall not forget my honour on that account. Let our enemies be bade welcome!’

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Then Hagen of Tronege said: ‘That does not seem good to me. Liudegast and Liudeger are full of arrogance. We cannot send for our forces in such a short time.’ The bold warrior added: ‘Why don’t you tell Sivrit about this?’

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They ordered lodgings to be found for the messengers in the town. No matter how hostile they were towards them, powerful Gunther asked that they be given the best of care—that was only right and proper—until he had found what allies would stand by him in this. Yet the king was greatly troubled by these anxieties. Then a most

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gallant knight who could have no knowledge of what had happened to him saw him in a sad mood—he asked King Gunther to tell him of the tidings.

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‘I wonder greatly,’ said Sivrit then, ‘that the joyful bearing you have maintained for a long time now amongst us is so altered.’

Gunther, that most gallant knight, answered: ‘Indeed I cannot tell

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everybody the sorrows I must secretly bear in my heart. It is only to constant friends that one should lament the sorrows of one’s heart.’

Sivrit’s complexion turned pale and then red at this. He said to

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the king: ‘I’ve never refused you anything. I shall help you to dispel all your troubles. If you are looking for allies, then I shall be one of them, and trust I can fulfil my promises honourably, to the end of my days.’

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‘Now God reward you, Sir Sivrit—I like the sound of those words, and even if your courage never comes to my aid, I am still pleased to hear that you hold me so dear. If I live a while longer, you will be well rewarded for this. I will tell you why I am so sad. From my enemies’

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messengers I have heard that they want to campaign against me with their armies here. No knights ever did that before to us here in these lands.’

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‘Let that be of little concern to you,’ Sivrit replied, ‘and rest easy. Do as I ask: let me win honour and gain for you, and ask your knights to come to your aid also. Even if your mighty enemies had thirty

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thousand knights helping them, I would take them on if I had only a thousand. Depend on me for that.’

King Gunther answered: ‘I shall be forever indebted to you for this.’

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‘In that case order a thousand of your men to be brought to me, since I have only twelve of my warriors with me—then I will defend your land. Sivrit’s hands will always serve you loyally. Hagen,

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and also Ortwin, must help us, and Dancwart and Sindolt, your dear warriors. Valiant Volker must also ride with us. He must carry the banner—I know none better. And let the messengers ride home

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to their lords’ lands. Let them be told that they shall see us soon, and that our castles shall then be left in peace.’

The king then sent for both his kinsmen and vassals. Liudeger’s

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messengers then came to court. They were delighted that they were to go home. Then worthy King Gunther offered them rich gifts and gave them his escort—they were in high spirits at that. ‘Now tell my

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mighty enemies’, said Gunther then, ‘that their forces may as well stay at home, but if they wish to invade my lands, they will meet with hardship, unless I run out of allies.’

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Rich gifts were then brought before the messengers; Gunther had ample store of those to give them. Liudeger’s men did not dare refuse them. When they had taken their leave, they departed joyfully.

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When the messengers had arrived in Denmark and King Liudegast had heard what news they had brought from the Rhine, there is no denying that he was angry at the Burgundians’ great arrogance, when he was told of it. The messengers said that the

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Burgundians had bold men in great numbers. Moreover, they had seen a warrior standing amongst them who was called Sivrit, a hero from the Netherlands. Liudegast was far from pleased when he heard those tidings. When the men of Denmark heard this, they then

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hastened to assemble even more allies, until Sir Liudegast had gathered from amongst his bold men twenty thousand knights for his campaign.

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Then King Liudeger of Saxony also sent out for more men, until they had forty thousand and more, with whom they wanted to ride into Burgundy. By then, back at home here, King Gunther had also sent for allies, together with his kinsmen and his brothers’

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vassals, whom they wished to lead into battle, along with Hagen’s warriors, of whom the heroes had need. Knights were afterwards fated to meet with death by this.

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They made preparations for the campaign. When they were about to set off, valiant Volker was charged with carrying the banner when they rode from Worms across the Rhine. Hagen of Tronege was made captain of the troops. Sindolt and Hunolt also rode with

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them, men well able to earn Gunther’s gold. Dancwart, Hagen’s brother, and Ortwin, too, could claim honourable places in the expedition.

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‘Sir King, stay at home here,’ said Sivrit then, ‘since your warriors want to follow me. Remain among the ladies and be of high spirits. I am fully confident of preserving both your honour and your possessions.

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As for those who wanted to attack you here in Worms on the Rhine,
I shall guard against that—they may as well stay at home. We shall ride so close to their lands that their pride will be turned into sorrow.’

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From the Rhine they rode through Hessen with their heroes, towards the land of the Saxons; there battle was afterwards done. With pillage and fire they laid waste to the land, to the grief of the two princes when they learned of it. They came to the border;

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the squires drew away.
*

Sivrit, that most mighty warrior, asked: ‘Who is now to guard our retinue here?’ Never did a mounted charge cause greater harm to the Saxons.

They said: ‘Let bold Dancwart guard the young folk
*
on the roads—he is a valiant knight. That way we shall lose all the fewer at the hands of Liudeger’s men. Let him and Ortwin have charge of the rearguard here.’

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‘In that case I will ride ahead myself,’ said Sivrit the warrior, ‘and will be the vanguard, on the lookout for our foes until I find out for certain where those warriors are.’ Then fair Siglint’s son was quickly armed. He commended the army to Hagen as he set off, and to

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Gernot, that valiant man. Then he rode off alone into the land of the Saxons. Hence many helmet-straps were to be hewn to pieces by him that day.

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He saw the huge army that lay encamped on the plain, out of all proportion to the numbers of his allies—there were a good forty thousand of them, or even more. Sivrit, in high spirits, was delighted to see that.

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They, for their part, also had a warrior who had come out on the watch for the enemy there—he was armed to the teeth. Lord Sivrit saw him, and the bold man also saw Sivrit. Each eyed the other with hostility. I’ll tell you who it was who kept watch there: a bright shield

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of gold lay by his hand—it was King Liudegast! He was guarding his army. Sivrit, that most noble stranger, galloped magnificently up to him. Now Sir Liudegast had also caught sight of his foe. They

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both dug their spurs into their chargers’ sides. They lowered their lances, aiming to hit their opponents’ shields with all their power. That gave the powerful king great cause for concern. After the collision

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the chargers carried the two powerful princes past one another, as if blown by the wind. With their reins they wheeled the horses away in most knightly fashion. The two fierce men tried their fortunes with swords.
*
Then Lord Sivrit struck such a blow that all the plain

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resounded. From Liudegast’s helmet the flame-red sparks flew up then, as if out of great fires, at that blow from the hero’s hands. Each met his match in the other. Sir Liudegast, for his part, struck great

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numbers of fierce blows against Sivrit. Both their shields bore a heavy burden because of their valour. Thirty of Liudegast’s men were on patrol nearby, but before they could come to him, Sivrit, however, had won the victory by striking three mighty wounds through the

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king’s shining breastplate, good though it was. The sword’s blades brought forth blood from his wounds. King Liudegast was devastated. He

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asked that he might be allowed to live and offered Sivrit his lands,
*
telling him he was called Liudegast. Then his warriors arrived—they had clearly seen what had taken place between those two lookouts.

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Sivrit wanted to lead Liudegast away, but then he was charged at by thirty of his men. The hero’s hands then defended his powerful hostage with violent blows. Thereafter that most gallant warrior caused even more damage. Full of valour, he slew those thirty. He allowed

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one of them to live. He rode back fast enough to tell tidings of what had happened there. They could see the truth of it by his red helmet.

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The men of Denmark were most sorely grieved when they were told that their lord was taken prisoner. They told his brother of this. He began to go berserk, raging with anger because of the wrong that had been done him.

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The warrior Liudegast was led away, overcome by Sivrit’s strength, to Gunther’s men. Sivrit handed him over to Hagen. When they were told that it was the king of the Danes they were not unduly sorry. They told the Burgundians to bind their banners. ‘On,

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now!’ said Sivrit. ‘More is to be done here before the day ends, if I live so long. Comely women in the land of the Saxons, great numbers of them, will grieve over this. You heroes from the Rhine, look to me.

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I can give you good escort into Liudeger’s army, and then you will see helmets hewn by worthy heroes’ hands. Before we turn back, they will make sorrow’s acquaintance.’

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Gernot and his men hastened to their chargers. Lord Volker, that mighty minstrel, quickly hoisted the banner—he rode at the head of the company. The retinue were also proudly prepared for battle.

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Yet they led with them no more than nine thousand men, as well as twelve warriors.
*
The dust then flew up from the roads! Over the land they rode. Their shield-rims were seen to shine splendidly in great numbers there.

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By then the Saxons had also arrived with their companies, with good sharp swords, as I have since heard tell. Those swords cut hard in the heroes’ hands. They were intent on defending their castles and land against the foreigners.

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The captain of his lords’ companies, Hagen, then led his army forwards. Sivrit had also arrived with the men he had brought with him from the Netherlands. Great numbers of bloody hands were in the onslaught that day. Sindolt and Hunolt, and also Gernot, slew

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heroes in great numbers in that attack, before the Saxons had fully grasped how valiant they were. That gave cause for noble women in great numbers to weep in time to come.