Tale XXVII: How Ludwig and Hartmut Met the Hegelings

Asleep still left he lying / all his faithful men.
He and his father Ludwig, / the twain, to go were seen,
And, gazing from the window, / they saw the throngs below them.
Quickly then said Hartmut: / “Too near our castle-walls methinks they show them.

“I ween they are not pilgrims, / in truth, my father dear;
More like it is that Wâ-te / and all his men draw near.
He from Sturmland cometh, / the lord of Ortland bringing;
The men I see are like them, / as I know from the flag that they to the breeze are flinging.

“I see a brown silk pennon, / that comes from Karadé;
Before that flag is lowered, / many will rue the day.
On it a head is blazoned,— / as red as gold it glitters:
Guests so bold and warlike / we well can spare; their sight the day embitters.

“The Moorland king is bringing / full twenty thousand men,
Knights as strong and daring / as any I have seen;
To win from us great honor / methinks they now are craving.
There comes another banner, / that o’er yet other knights its folds is waving.

“It is the flag of Horant, / the knight from the Danish land;
I see with him Lord Fru-te, / I know both him and his band.
And hither, too, from Waleis, / many foemen leading,
Morunc now comes riding; / he, for the morning’s fight, o’er the sands is speeding.

“I see another banner, / on it a chevron red,
With sharpened spears within it; / for this shall many bleed.
Ortwin it is who bears it, / from Ortland hither faring:
Erewhile we slew his father; / no kindly thought to us he now is bearing.

“There floats another banner, / whiter than any swan;
Blazons bright and golden / you well may see thereon.
It is our mother Hilda / who sends it o’er the water;
The hatred of the Hegelings / will soon be known by me who stole her daughter.

“There I see uplifted / a flag outspreading wide;
Of sky-blue silk ’tis woven. / The truth I will not hide;
Herwic bears this banner, / he in the Sealands dwelling.
Sea-leaves are shown upon it; / he soon on us his wrath will here be telling.

“There Irold, too, is coming,— / this that I say is true,—
From Friesland leading many, / as well indeed I know,
With fighting men from Holstein, / warriors brave and daring.
A stormy fight is nearing; / now in our castle all must arms be wearing.”

Then cried Hartmut loudly: / “Up, my faithful men!
If to these guests so warlike, / who ’neath our walls are seen,
It may not now be granted / to ride so boldly near us,
Then, before the gateway, / with sword-blows we must greet them, and bravely bear us.”

Then from their beds upsprang they / all who yet did lie;
At once, to bring their war-gear, / loudly did they cry.
The call to guard their master / gladly they were hearing;
Forty hundred warriors / showed themselves, their shining armor wearing.

Ludwig and Hartmut with him / armed themselves for fight:
To the sad and homeless maidens / this was a sorry sight;
These within the castle / uneasy hearts were keeping;
They said to one another: / “Let him who smiled before this day be weeping!”

Quickly came Queen Gerlind, / old King Ludwig’s wife;
She said: “What will you, Hartmut? / Would you lose your life,
With that of all your kinsmen / who here our lot are sharing?
The foe will surely slay you, / if to leave the castle-walls you now be daring.”

The well-born knight then answered: / “Mother, stay within;
You may not give your teaching / to me or to my men.
Spare your words for women; / they mayhap will listen,
While they sit at sewing, / making their silks with gold and gems to glisten.

“Now, mother, let us see you / send Gu-drun to wash,
As you did before, with her maidens, / where the billows dash.
You weened they all were friendless, / and had no kindred living;
You yet may see, ere nightfall, / what thanks to us our guests will yet be giving.”

Then spake his devilish mother: / “I did it for your sake,
Thinking her will to bridle. / My bidding kindly take;
Strongly built is the castle, / let now the gates be fastened;
They then will gain but little / who on their toilsome way have hither hastened.

“Full well you know it, Hartmut, / you bear the maiden’s hate,
For you have slain her kinsmen: / your watch you must not bate.
It is not friends or kinsfolk / who at our gates are knocking;
The proud and warlike Hegelings, / twenty to one of us, come hither flocking.

“Of this bethink you further, / my well-belovéd son:
Bread we have in the castle / and wine for every one;
Food will not be lacking / if here for a year we are staying;
But if on the field you are taken, / our foes will you from bondage ne’er be freeing.”

Then to him spake further / old King Ludwig’s wife:
“Ever guard your honor, / but do not lose your life.
Bid men to shoot with longbows / at the loop-holes standing;
So shall wounds be given, / for which their friends at home will tears be spending.

“Let slings with ropes be fitted; / we then will meet the foe
By hurling rocks upon them: / knights we have enow.
Before with these new-comers / you your swords are crossing,
Stones will I and my maidens / bring in aprons white, on them to be tossing.”

Angrily spake Hartmut: / “Lady, get you gone!
Why do you seek to lead me? / Is not my mind my own?
Before my foes shall find me / within my castle hiding,
Outside I would die far sooner, / in fight with Hilda’s men, against me riding.”

Then to him said, weeping, / old King Ludwig’s wife:
“I gave to you this warning / that you might spare your life,
And guard yourself the better. / Whoe’er is seen this morning
Beneath your banner fighting, / rich gifts from us shall he be fairly earning.

“Now arm ourselves,” cried Gerlind, / “stand by my son in fight;
Strike from your foemen’s helmets / a glowing, fiery light.
Be always near your master, / to help him ever striving;
Fitly these guests to welcome, / deep be the wounds that you to them are giving.”

Then to his men said Hartmut: / “My mother’s words are true;
If you to me are faithful, / and strive your best to do,
And this day, in the struggle, / to give your help are ready,
When fathers shall have fallen, / a friend I’ll be to sons bereft and needy.”

A thousand and a hundred / within King Ludwig’s halls
Now were all well-weaponed. / Before from out the walls
Went any thro’ the gateways, / they left the stronghold guarded;
Still within it posted, / five hundred warriors brave the castle warded.

On four gates of the castle / the bolts were backward thrown:
Ne’er had they been opened / to a single spur alone.
Then with the youthful Hartmut, / outgoing at his bidding,
All with helmets fastened, / went thirty hundred followers boldly riding.

The hour of strife drew nearer. / He of the Sturmisch land,
Wâ-te, his horn was blowing; / and loud across the sand,
For thirty miles or over, / men the blast were hearing;
The fighters of the Hegelings, / to flock to Hilda’s flag, their arms were wearing.

Once again he blew it: / at this should all take heed,
That every knight among them / then should mount his steed,
And each his men should gather / to ride as they were bidden.
A knight so old as Wâ-te, / and yet so brave, to the fight had never ridden.

The third time that he blew it, / he such a blast did make
That all the land was shaken, / and the sea a sound gave back;
Almost from Ludwig’s castle / the corner-stones were falling:
To raise Queen Hilda’s banner / Wâ-te to Horant then was loudly calling.

They feared old Wâ-te sorely, / none dared to speak aloud;
A horse was e’en heard neighing. / Upon the roof now stood
Herwic’s well-belovéd, / and saw the warriors daring,
Onward proudly riding, / to wage the fight with Hartmut, nothing fearing.

Hartmut rode to meet them; / he and all his men,
Bearing well their weapons, / to leave the gates were seen.
Those from the windows gazing / saw the helmets glisten
Of friends as well as foemen. / Hartmut not alone to the fight did hasten.

To all four sides of the castle / the foes their banners bore;
Bright in hue like silver / was the armor that they wore;
The bosses of their bucklers / were seen to glitter brightly.
Much was Wâ-te dreaded; / no lion grim and wild were feared more rightly.

The fighters from the Moorland / were seen apart to ride,
And heavy shafts were hurling; / splinters were scattered wide.
When with the Norman foemen / soon the fight did thicken,
Sharply from their weapons / and from their breastplates fiery sparks were stricken.

The warriors from Denmark / near to the castle rode.
There the mighty Irold / six thousand fighters good
Up to the walls was leading, / an onslaught to be making:
Brave and daring were they; / sore ill from them erelong was Ludwig taking.

Elsewhere, riding boldly, / Ortwin his followers led,
No less than eighty hundred; / sorrow and woe they made
For many of the Normans, / and all the land they harried.
Gerlind and Ortrun weeping, / watching the fight from the roof, together tarried.

Then came Herwic also, / betrothed to fair Gu-drun;
Through him full many a woman / must come to sorrow soon,
When, for his heart’s belovéd, / he to the fight was springing.
Beneath the heavy weapons / were heard the clattering helmets loudly ringing.

Now came the aged Wâ-te, / with warriors not a few;
Grim was he and fearless, / as soon they all well knew.
His spear not yet he lowered / as he to the walls came riding:
Sad was the sight to Gerlind, / but other were the thoughts Gu-drun was hiding.

Then came the Norman Hartmut, / riding before his men.
E’en had he been Kaiser, / never would he be seen
To bear himself more proudly. / In the sun was seen to glisten
All his shining armor. / His boldness on the field not yet did lessen.

When he was seen by Ortwin, / the lord of Ortland’s throne,
He said: “Will any tell us, / to whom this knight is known,
Who is the daring fighter / now against us turning?
He shows as bold a bearing / as if to win a kingdom he were yearning.”

Then said one among them: / “’Tis Hartmut whom you see;
There indeed is a warrior! / a daring knight is he.
The selfsame foeman is he / who erstwhile slew your father.
Where’er the strife is raging, / a bolder man than he there’s not another.”

Angrily spake Ortwin: / “Me for his wrongs he owes,
And must atone full dearly / before from here he goes.
The ills that he has done us / must he be soon undoing;
Gerlind cannot help him / that he from hence may e’er alive be going.”

Down upon young Ortwin / Hartmut riding bore.
Altho’ he did not know him, / deep he plunged his spur;
His horse sprang forward widely, / against brave Ortwin driven.
Both their spears were lowered; / fire on their armor flashed from spear-strokes given.

No thrust against the other / did either leave undone:
The war-horse then of Ortwin / was on his haunches thrown;
Soon, too, the steed did stagger / whereon was Hartmut seated;
They could not bear the onset / of kings who rushed together, to madness heated.

High upreared the horses; / a mighty clang arose
From clash of kingly sword-blades. / Thanks were due to those
Who the fight thus opened, / as knights beseemeth ever.
Brave were both and fearless; / to shrink from one another thought they never.

On both sides came their followers, / lowering their spears,
And bringing death to many; / each his foeman nears,
And in the shock of the onset / heavy wounds was giving.
All of them were faithful, / and well for a worthy name they now were striving.

A thousand ’gainst a thousand, / now the strife began
Of Hartmut’s men with Wâ-te’s, / each man against his man.
Soon by the lord of Sturmland / were they so badly treated
That whoso now came near him / never a second time with him was mated.

Now were thickly mingled / of foes ten thousand men,
Among King Herwic’s warriors; / they came in anger keen.
Their mood it was so stubborn / that rather than be flying
Far from the field of fighting, / they on the ground would first in death be lying.

A knight indeed was Herwic; / what daring deeds he did!
Earnest was he in fighting, / that so the lovely maid
Might be to him the kinder. / But how could he be dreaming
The boon could e’er befall him, / that the eyes of fair Gu-drun on him were beaming?

Ludwig, king of the Normans, / and they of the Danish land,
Now had met together. / Ludwig bore in hand
His strong and heavy weapon; / lordly was his bearing,
Yet he with all his followers / to come too far without the walls was daring.

There, with his men from Holstein, / Fru-te, brave and bold,
Slew full many a foeman; / of this could much be told.
Now, too, from the land of Waleis, / Morunc, many slaying,
Before King Ludwig’s castle / made rich the earth with the dead he low was laying.

Irold, the youthful champion, / a knight both true and good,
Slashed thro’ foemen’s armor, / shedding their hot life-blood.
Under Hilda’s banner / was Wâ-te’s kinsman fighting;
Many in death grew paler / as Horant thinned the crowd he fast was smiting.

Now the young King Hartmut / and Ortwin met again.
Thicker then than snow-flakes / blown by the wind are seen,
The sword-strokes of the warriors / upon each other lighted:
Thus it was that Hartmut / once more by Ortwin on the field was greeted.

Gu-drun’s young brother, Ortwin, / was bold and brave enow,
But Hartmut through his helmet / smote him a heavy blow;
Over his shining breastplate / soon the blood was streaming:
The followers of Ortwin / sadly saw the flow, its brightness dimming.

Great was the crush and uproar; / hand to hand they fought;
Many wounds were gaping / thro’ rings of steel well-wrought;
Many a head had fallen / beneath the sword-strokes given:
Death was like a robber, / that from their kin the dearest friends had riven.

Now saw the Danish Horant / that Ortwin from his foe
A bloody wound had taken; / then Horant bade them show
Who ’twas that thus had wounded / his master loved so dearly.
Hartmut at this was laughing, / for both upon the field had met too nearly.

Ortwin himself then answered: / “’Tis Hartmut this has done.”
Then Hilda’s banner was given / by Horant to one of his own;
Thinking thus the foeman / he could harm the better,
And gain himself much honor: / now he sought his foe with boldness greater.

Hartmut heard around him / a loud and stormy din.
On many of his warriors / streams of blood were seen
Fast from wounds out-welling; / down to their feet ’twas flowing.
Then cried Hartmut boldly: / “For this shall you atone, and this be ruing.”

Now he turned him quickly / where Horant met his sight;
Then might one be seeing, / so brave were both in fight,
How from their ringed armor / sparks of fire were flying;
Blunted were the sword-blades / which they on each other’s helmets fast were plying.

Hartmut wounded Horant, / even as he had done
Not long before to Ortwin; / a ruddy stream full soon
Ran from out his armor, / at Hartmut’s hand forth welling.
Strong indeed was his foeman; / who now to win his lands could hope be feeling?

Then in bitter struggle / many, on either side,
Saw their bucklers shattered, / tho’ strong and often tried;
Beaten were they and broken / by sword-strokes quickly given
By each upon the other. / Well to guard himself had Hartmut striven.

Now the friends of Ortwin, / and those of Horant, too,
Away from the field did lead them; / and care did they bestow
To bind their wounds wide-gaping; / no time for this they wasted.
Then again to the war-field / the knights both rode; once more to the strife they hasted.

We now must leave them fighting / as bravely as they will.
Who the day was winning, / or whom his foe did kill,
Before King Ludwig’s castle, / none could yet be saying.
Grimly strove the Normans; / their foes, not less, for fame were strength outlaying.

Of all that there befell them / none may ever tell;
But ’tis not yet forgotten / that many a knight there fell.
On every side were sword-blades / heard together ringing;
Foemen all were mingled, / the slow with those who quick in fight were springing.

Wâ-te stood not idle, / that can I well believe.
He bade farewell to many, / nor longer let them live;
Cut down by him in the struggle, / were they before him lying.
Fain were Hartmut’s kinsmen / to wreak their wrath for friends who there were dying.

Now came Herwic nearer, / so the tale is told,
And led against King Ludwig / many a champion bold.
He saw that aged warrior / his weapons bravely bearing,
Where he with all his liegemen, / a wondrous host of foes beat down, unsparing.

Herwic called out loudly: / “Can any one now tell
Who is that fighting graybeard, / who all his foes doth fell?
Deepest wounds for many / there his hand is hewing,
With bravery so fearless: / women in tears will this erelong be ruing.”

When this was heard by Ludwig, / outspoke that Norman foe:
“Who in the midst of battle / seeks my name to know?
I bear the name of Ludwig: / for Normandy I’m fighting;
Could I but meet my foemen, / them indeed would I be sorely smiting.”

Then spake to him King Herwic: / “This thou well dost earn:
Seeing thou art Ludwig, / with hate for thee I burn.
For us, upon the sand-drifts, / many knights thou wast slaying:
Thou slewest Hettel also; / a warrior brave was he, beyond all saying.

“Still further thou hast wronged us, / before thy day was done:
For this we still are mourning. / I for my loss have known
Heart-heaviness and sorrow: / thou hast my lady stolen
From me upon the Wulpensand; / and many knights for her in death have fallen.

“I bear the name of Herwic: / thou hast taken my hoped-for wife,
And again to me must give her; / else to give his life,
With that of many a liegeman, / must one of us be willing.”
Then King Ludwig answered: / “Too boldly thou in my land in threats art dealing.

“Thy name, and this thy warning, / thou hast no need to tell;
There yet are many others / from whom I took, as well,
Their goods and eke their kinsmen. / To trust my word be ready,
In this I will not falter; / thou nevermore may’st hope to kiss thy lady.”

When they thus had spoken, / the kings no more did rest,
But sprang upon each other. / If either got the best,
To hold it was not easy; / youths were forward pushing
Under both the standards, / and daring knights to help their lords were rushing.

A fearless king was Herwic, / and long and bravely fought;
But quickly Hartmut’s father / the youthful Herwic smote,
Till he began to stagger / ’neath blows by Ludwig given,
Who gladly would have slain him, / or would from out his lands his foe have driven.

If Herwic’s faithful followers / so near him had not been,
And given help so quickly, / never could he, I ween,
Have freed himself from Ludwig, / or left the field yet living;
So well that aged warrior / to make young Herwic dread him now was striving.

But help to him was granted, / his life he did not lose;
And, neither stunned nor wounded, / he from his fall arose.
Then to the roof quick turning, / his eyes he now was raising,
To see if, ’mongst the ladies, / his heart’s beloved had on his fall been gazing.