The Online Library of Liberty

A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.

• Argument
• The Story of Beowulf
• I.: And First of the Kindred of Hrothgar.
• II.: Concerning Hrothgar, and How He Built the House Called Hart. Also Grendel Is Told Of.
• III.: How Grendel Fell Upon Hart and Wasted It.
• IV.: Now Comes Beowulf Ecgtheow’s Son to the Land of the Danes, and the Wall-warden Speaketh With Him.
• V.: Here Beowulf Makes Answer to the Land-warden, Who Showeth Him the Way to the King’s Abode.
• VI.: Beowulf and the Geats Come Into Hart.
• VII.: Beowulf Speaketh With Hrothgar, and Telleth How He Will Meet Grendel.
• VIII.: Hrothgar Answereth Beowulf and Biddeth Him Sit to the Feast.
• IX.: Unferth Contendeth In Words With Beowulf.
• X.: Beowulf Makes an End of His Tale of the Swimming. Wealhtheow, Hrothgar’s Queen, Greets Him; and Hrothgar Delivers to Him the Warding of the Hall.
• XI.: Now Is Beowulf Left In the Hall Alone With His Men.
• XII.: Grendel Cometh Into Hart: of the Strife Betwixt Him and Beowulf.
• XIII.: Beowulf Hath the Victory: Grendel Is Hurt Deadly and Leaveth Hand and Arm In the Hall.
• XIV.: The Danes Rejoice; They Go to Look On the Slot of Grendel, and Come Back to Hart, and On the Way Make Merry With Racing and the Telling of Tales.
• XV.: King Hrothgar and His Thanes Look On the Arm of Grendel. Converse Betwixt Hrothgar and Beowulf Concerning the Battle.
• XVI.: Hrothgar Giveth Gifts to Beowulf.
• XVII.: They Feast In Hart. the Gleeman Sings of Finn and Hengest.
• XVIII.: The Ending of the Tale of Finn.
• XIX.: More Gifts Are Given to Beowulf. the Brising Collar Told Of.
• XX.: Grendel’s Dam Breaks Into Hart and Bears Off Aeschere.
• XXI.: Hrothgar Laments the Slaying of Aeschere, and Tells of Grendel’s Mother and Her Den.
• XXII.: They Follow Grendel’s Dam to Her Lair.
• XXIII.: Beowulf Reacheth the Mere-bottom In a Day’s While, and Contends With Grendel’s Dam.
• XXIV.: Beowulf Slayeth Grendel’s Dam, Smiteth Off Grendel’s Head, and Cometh Back With His Thanes to Hart.
• XXV.: Converse of Hrothgar With Beowulf.
• XXVI.: More Converse of Hrothgar and Beowulf: the Geats Make Them Ready For Departure.
• XXVII.: Beowulf Bids Hrothgar Farewell: the Geats Fare to Ship.
• XXVIII.: Beowulf Comes Back to His Land. of the Tale of Thrytho.
• XXIX.: Beowulf Tells Hygelac of Hrothgar: Also of Freawaru His Daughter.
• XXX.: Beowulf Forebodes Ill From the Wedding of Freawaru: He Tells of Grendel and His Dam.
• XXXI.: Beowulf Gives Hrothgar’s Gifts to Hygelac, and By Him Is Rewarded. of the Death of Hygelac and of Heardred His Son, and How Beowulf Is King of the Geats: the Worm Is First Told Of.
• XXXII.: How the Worm Came to the Howe, and How He Was Robbed of a Cup; and How He Fell On the Folk.
• XXXIII.: The Worm Burns Beowulf’s House, and Beowulf Gets Ready to Go Against Him. Beowulf’s Early Deeds In Battle With the Hetware Told Of.
• XXXIV.: Beowulf Goes Against the Worm. He Tells of Herebeald and HÆthcyn.
• XXXV.: Beowulf Tells of Past Feuds, and Bids Farewell to His Fellows. He Falls On the Worm, and the Battle of Them Begins.
• XXXVI.: Wiglaf Son of Weohstan Goes to the Help of Beowulf: NÆgling, Beowulf’s Sword, Is Broken On the Worm.
• XXXVII.: They Two Slay the Worm. Beowulf Is Wounded Deadly: He Biddeth Wiglaf Bear Out the Treasure.
• XXXVIII.: Beowulf Beholdeth the Treasure and Passeth Away.
• XXXIX.: Wiglaf Casteth Shame On Those Fleers.
• Xl.: Wiglaf Sendeth Tiding to the Host: the Words of the Messenger.
• Xli.: More Words of the Messenger. How He Fears the Swedes When They Wot of Beowulf Dead.
• Xlii.: They Go to Look On the Field of Deed.
• Xliii.: of the Burial of Beowulf.

XIX.

MORE GIFTS ARE GIVEN TO BEOWULF. THE BRISING COLLAR TOLD OF.

• BORNE to him then the cup was, and therewith friendly bidding
• In words was put forth; and gold about wounden
• All blithely they bade him bear; arm-gearings twain,
• Rail and rings, the most greatest of fashion of neck-rings
• Of them that on earth I have ever heard tell of:
• Not one under heaven wrought better was heard of
• Midst the hoard-gems of heroes, since bore away Hama
• To the bright burg and brave the neck-gear of the Brisings,
• The gem and the gem-chest: from the foeman’s guile fled he
• Of Eormenric then, and chose rede everlasting.
• That ring Hygelac had, e’en he of the Geat-folk,
• The grandson of Swerting, the last time of all times
• When he under the war-sign his treasure defended,
• The slaughter-prey warded. Him weird bore away
• Sithence he for pride-sake the war-woe abided,
• The feud with the Frisians; the fretwork he flitted,
• The gem-stones much worthy, all over the waves’ cup.
• The King the full mighty cring’d under the shield;
• Into grasp of the Franks the King’s life was gotten
• With the gear of the breast and the ring altogether;
• It was worser war-wolves then reft gear from the slain
• After the war-shearing; there the Geats’ war-folk
• Held the house of the dead men. The Hall took the voices;
• Spake out then Wealhtheow; before the host said she:
• Brook thou this roundel, lief Beowulf, henceforth,
• Dear youth, with all hail, and this rail be thou using,
• These gems of folk-treasures, and thrive thou well ever;
• Thy might then make manifest! Be to these lads here
• Kind of lore, and for that will I look to thy guerdon.
• Thou hast won by thy faring, that far and near henceforth,
• Through wide time to come, men will give thee the worship,
• As widely as ever the sea winds about
• The windy land-walls. Be the while thou art living
• An atheling wealthy, and well do I will thee
• Of good of the treasures; be thou to my son
• In deed ever friendly, and uphold thy joyance!
• Lo! each of the earls here to the other is trusty,
• And mild of his mood and to man-lord full faithful,
• Kind friends all the thanes are, the folk ever yare.
• Ye well drunk of folk-grooms, now do ye my biddings.
• To her settle then far’d she; was the feast of the choicest,
• The men drank the wine nothing wotting of weird,
• The grim shaping of old, e’en as forth it had gone
• To a many of earls; sithence came the even,
• And Hrothgar departed to his chamber on high,
• The rich to his rest; and aright the house warded
• Earls untold of number, as oft did they erewhile.
• The bench-boards they bar’d them, and there they spread over
• With beds and with bolsters. Of the beerskinkers one
• Who fain was and fey bow’d adown to his floorrest.
• At their heads then they rested their rounds of the battle,
• Their board-woods bright-shining. There on the bench was,
• Over the atheling, easy to look on
• The battle-steep war-helm, the byrny be-ringed,
• The wood of the onset, all-glorious. Their wont was
• That oft and oft were they all yare for the war-tide,
• Both at home and in hosting, were it one were it either,
• And for every such tide as their liege lord unto
• The need were befallen: right good was that folk.