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• 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.

XXIX.

BEOWULF TELLS HYGELAC OF HROTHGAR: ALSO OF FREAWARU HIS DAUGHTER.

• WENT his ways then the hard one, and he with his hand-shoal,
• Himself over the sand the sea-plain a-treading,
• The warths wide away; shone the world’s candle,
• The sun slop’d from the southward; so dreed they their journey,
• And went their ways stoutly unto where the earls’ refuge,
• The banesman of Ongentheow all in his burgs there,
• The young king of war, the good, as they heard it,
• Was dealing the rings. Aright unto Hygelac
• Was Beowulf’s speeding made knowen full swiftly,
• That there into the house-place that hedge of the warriors,
• His mate of the linden-board, living was come,
• Hale from the battle-play home to him house-ward.
• Then rathe was beroomed, as the rich one was bidding,
• For the guests a-foot going the floor all within-ward.
• Then sat in the face of him he from the fight sav’d,
• Kinsman by kinsman, whenas his man-lord
• In fair-sounding speech had greeted the faithful
• With mightyful words. With mead-skinking turned
• Through the high house adown the daughter of Hæreth:
• The people she loved: the wine-bucket bare she
• To the hands of the men. But now fell to Hygelac
• His very house-fellow in that hall the high
• To question full fairly, for wit-lust to-brake him,
• Of what like were the journeys the Sea-Geats had wended:
• How befell you the sea-lode, O Beowulf lief,
• When thou on a sudden bethoughtst thee afar
• Over the salt water the strife to be seeking,
• The battle in Hart? or for Hrothgar forsooth
• The wide-kenned woe some whit didst thou mend,
• For that mighty of lords? I therefore the moodcare
• In woe-wellings seethed; trow’d not in the wending
• Of thee the lief man. A long while did I pray thee
• That thou the death-guest there should greet not a whit;
• Wouldst let those same South-Danes their own selves to settle
• The war-tide with Grendel. Now to God say I thank
• That thee, and thee sound, now may I see.
• Out then spake Beowulf, Ecgtheow’s bairn:
• All undark it is, O Hygelac lord,
• That meeting the mighty, to a many of men;
• Of what like was the meeting of Grendel and me
• On that field of the deed, where he many a deal
• For the Victory-Scyldings of sorrow had framed,
• And misery for ever; but all that I awreaked,
• So that needeth not boast any kinsman of Grendel
• Any one upon earth of that uproar of dawn-dusk,
• Nay not who lives longest of that kindred the loathly
• Encompass’d of fenland. Thither first did I come
• Unto that ring-hall Hrothgar to greet;
• Soon unto me the great Healfdene’s son,
• So soon as my heart he was wotting forsooth,
• Right against his own son a settle there showed.
• All that throng was in joy, nor life-long saw I ever
• Under vault of the heavens amidst any hall-sitters
• More mirth of the mead. There the mighty Queen whiles,
• Peace-sib of the folk, went all over the floor,
• To the young sons bade heart up; oft she there the ring-wreath
• Gave unto a man ere to settle she wended.
• At whiles fore the doughty the daughter of Hrothgar
• To the earls at the end the ale-bucket bore;
• E’en she whom Freawaru the floor-sitters thereat
• Heard I to name; where she the nail’d treasure
• Gave to the warriors. She was behight then
• Youngling and gold-dight to the glad son of Froda.
• This hath seemed fair to the friend of the Scyldings,
• The herd of the realm, and good rede he accounts it,
• That he with that wife of death-feuds a deal
• And of strifes should allay. Oft unseldom eachwhere
• After a lord’s fall e’en but for a little
• Bows down the bane-spear, though doughty the bride be.