Northvegr - Waltharius

another. Unlucky Scaramund, soon to die, flew off, brandishing two spears with wide blades in his hand. When he saw Walter entirely undisturbed by fear and standing fixed in the same place, he gnashed his teeth and spoke thus as the horse-haired crest on his helm shook: "In what do you trust? What is your source of hope? I am not seeking treasure now nor any of your things, but I am asking for the stolen life of my relative."¹ Walter then said: "If you convince me that I made first trial of combat, or if for some reason I rightfully deserve to suffer these things, then without delay let your spear bore through me!"

He had not yet finished speaking when suddenly Scaramund hurled one of his two spears at him and then immediately the other. The most celebrated hero dodged one of these and shook the second from his shield. Then Scaramund unsheathing his sharp-edged sword rushed at the youth, intending to split his forehead open. Galloping on the back of his horse and nearing Walter, he could not plant a balanced wound upon his head but slammed his hilt against Walter's helm—it sprang away with a ringing sound as it shot fire into the air. But he could not turn his haughty steed, before Walter had fixed a spear-blow under his chin and lifted him off his high seat and cut off his head with his own sword² even as he tried to talk—making kindred blood flow together.³

When haughty Gunther saw this man die, he began to encourage his raging comrades to renew the fight: "Let's attack him and give him no chance to rest, until he grows tired and fails. Then, beaten, he will return the treasure and will pay the penalty for bloodshed."

Behold! Third, Werinhard goes and provokes battle—a man born from as long a line of descendants as any. O famous man, lover of skill⁴ , and your kinsman, Pandarus, you who once when ordered to disrupt the treaty sent your arrow spinning into the midst of the Achaeans!⁵ This man spurned the spear and carried a bow and quiver, troubling Walter from afar with arrows shot in unfair warfare. Still that manly youth stood facing him, holding the circle of his seven-layered shield before him and continually evading the oncoming shots through his foresight, for now he would jump aside, now turn his shield into the wind⁶ and strike away the arrows—none of them touched him.

After Pandarides⁷ saw he had spent his arrows in vain, soon in anger he brought out his sword and finally, flying forward, cast these words from his mouth: "Well, clever fellow, if you mocked my air-borne shots, perhaps you will now receive a blow from my whirling sword hand." To him⁸ as he smiled Walter began: "Now for a long time I have been waiting to engage in combat on fair footing.⁹ Hurry up! For my part there will be no delay!"

He had spoken and with all his body he strove and hurled the iron. The spear flying through the air unlocked the horse's breast—the steed rose up and whipped the air with its hooves; and, unseating the rider, collapsed over top of him. The youth¹⁰ ran up and snatched his sword from him by force. Knocking off his helm, the hero seized his blonde hair and addressed him as he was making one prayer¹¹ after another: "A little while ago you were not casting such words into the air." This he said and left him, a body severed from its head.¹²

Still the three corpses seen there did not frighten Gunther in his insanity. He bade another to hurry to death in turn. Behold! Fourth, Ekivrid born of the Saxon lands,¹³ made trial of battle—he who on account of killing some nobleman had fled from home as an exile. A painted chestnut horse carried this man. When he saw Walter ready for war, he said: "Tell me whether a material body gives you vigor,¹⁴ or if you are a deception made by airy shapes, you cursed fellow! To me at least you seem to be a faun, an inhabitant of the woods."

Walter laughed and gave this response: "The Celtic tongue¹⁵ proves you were born of that race to whom nature granted to surpass all others at sport. But if you come nearer and my hand touches you, you will be able to tell the Saxons later that today you saw the phantasm of a faun in Vosges."

"Well, I will try to discover what you are," said Ekivrid, and then he forcefully cast his iron-tipped cornel-wood. It flashed out of his throwing strap,¹⁶ but the stout shield shattered it. Walter in turn replied as he threw his spear: "A sylvan faun sends you this gift. See whether my spear is more penetrating."

The shaft split the wood covered with bull hide and ripping his shirt lodged in his lung. Unlucky Ekivrid rolled over and coughed up a stream of blood. Behold how, while fleeing death, he met it just the same.¹⁷ The youth drove off his horse behind him onto the grass.

Then, fifth, Hadawart, deceived by his own inflated breast, demanded that Gunther promise him Walter's shield. Soon advancing he threw his spear aside for his comrades to hold and boldly trusted vainly in his sword alone. When he saw that the corpses lying there had blocked the whole path and that the horse could not go that way, he leapt off and prepared to proceed by foot. Walter stood there fierce in arms and praised the man since he offered a chance to fight fairly. Then Hadawart told him: "You wily trickster and snake guilty of deception! You always hide your limbs in scaly covering and, like an adder coiled up into a circle, escape so many weapons without even a scratch for a wound! And you strangely evade poisoned arrows! Do you think you will cleverly avoid this blow that my right hand now sends with sure aim as I stand nearby? No such man is the author of this weapon or wound. Hear my advice; put down your painted shield! My lot seeks this, and the king's pledge promises it too. But I don't want you to hurt it since it pleases my eyes. Otherwise, though you take the nourishing light from me,¹⁸ more of my comrades and my blood-kin are here who, even if you play the bird and take to wing,¹⁹ will never let you get away unharmed."

But the warrior, not at all frightened, spoke this in return: "As for the rest I say nothing, but as for the shield I am anxious to protect it. For its good service I am its debtor—believe me. It has often put itself in the way of my enemies and received wounds itself in place of me. And you yourself see how useful it has been to me today, since you would, perhaps, not be speaking with Walter, if it were not here. O, right hand, take care to strike down my enemy with the utmost strength so that he may not snatch away the towers of my wall!²⁰ O, left hand, earnestly grip the handle of my shield and keep your fingers fixed like glue around the ivory. Do not lose the burden which you have carried over so many long paths from the lofty seats of the Avars!"²¹

The other then said: "You act against your will, if you willingly refuse. Not only will you give up the shield but also your horse along with the girl and the gold. Then finally will you pay the penalty of torture for your crimes." This he said and stripped his well-known sword from its sheath. Springing from different directions they ran together. The Vosges was dumbstruck at the lightining strikes of their blows. They were lofty in spirit and grand arms—this one trusting a sword,²² this one fierce and tall with his spear. They mixed much in battle with forceful strength. Not so does the black holm-oak resound when stricken by the ax as their did their helms clatter and their shields rebound. The Franks looked on in wonder because the hero Walter was not yet worn out, though no rest or space of time was given him.

This fellow from Wörms, now thinking he could get away with it, leapt up in a boiling rage and raised his sword, calling out that he would end the war with this blow. But the foresightful youth intercepted him in mid-swing with a whack of his spear and made him drop the blade in surprise. From a distance the sword could be seen gleaming in the bushes. When he saw he had been despoiled of his friendly sword, he wanted to quickly flee and go to the thicket. Alpharides,²³ relying on his feet and fresh youth, followed saying: "Where are you fleeing to? Come get my shield!²⁴ So he spoke and swiftly lifted his spear in both hands and struck. The man fell, his great shield clanging about him. Nor was the youth slow. He stepped on his neck and, prying away the shield, stabbed through him into the earth. The man rolled back his eyes and breathed his spirit out into the air.

The sixth was Patavrid. Hagen's sister had brought him into the light, and, when he saw him going forth, his uncle called to him shouting, begging, and trying to turn him away from this pursuit: "Where are you rushing off to? Look at Death! How he grins! Stop! Behold! The Fates are gathering your last threads. Oh, my dear nephew, your mind deceives you. Quit this! In short, you are no match for Walter's strength." Still the unlucky fellow went on his way spurning all this advice, for he burned in his veins, lusting to seize glory.

Sadly Hagen drew a long sigh from his breast and poured these words into the air:²⁵ "O Maelstrom of the World, Insatiate Hunger to Have, Whirpool of Greed, Heart

1 Notice the reference again to thievery, but now Walter is the thief, and he is stealing life.

2 Kimo seems to have dropped his sword when it rebounded from Walter's helm, and so Walter picked it up.

3 Kimo or Scaramund is Camalo's nephew, so they have “kindred blood”.

4 The poet means, of course, the skill of archery.

5 The poet makes another explicit connection of his epic to the Greco-Roman epic tradition by having Werinhard be descended from Homer's Pandarus; compare with the mention of Hagen's Trojan blood (line 28). These lines recall Vergil's direct address to Pandarus (Verg. Aen . 5.322, 495), and Pandarus also plays a part in the so-called Latin Homer ( Homerus Latinus 346 ff.) and is there, as in the Aeneid and Waltharius , addressed in apostrophe (at line 449) by the poet. Pandarus was the chief archer of the Trojans in the Iliad , but because of his truce-breaking shot, which the poet here alludes to, he is often seen as a rogue. The poet of the Waltharius clearly intended to create an unflattering parallel between Werinhard and his ancestor.

6 The poet uses auster ("south wind"), it seems, for wind in general. Compare Servius' notes on Vergil's similar use of the word at On the Aeneid 1.9 and 3.70.

7 That is, "descendent of Pandarus." This is the same kind of patronymic as Alpharides ("son of Alphere") for Walter.

8 For "olli" an archaic form of "illi" ("to him" or "to that man"), compare Vergil Aeneid 1.254, 12.829, and Servius On the Aeneid 1.254.

9 Literally this is "just weight", refering metaphorically to a balance scale.

10 As often, here Walter is called "iuvenis" ("the youth").

11 The Latin "preces" (“prayer”) can also mean "pleas".

12 Walter's lack of mercy, particularly since his opponent was possibly praying or at least begging for mercy, is thoroughly un-Christian. The chilling touch of the scene is reminiscent of Aeneas' killing of Turnus who is described as "precantem" ("pleaing" or "begging", Vergil Aeneid 12.930), but here Walter has no moral justification like Pallas' belt.

13 It is unclear whether this means Saxony on the continent or Saxon holdings in Britain.

14 The Latin verb here "vegetat" and the rest of this speech indicate a etymological pun on Walter's name, which is from the same root as German "der Wald" ("the forest"). Compare the puns on Hagen's name which means “thorn bush” (lines 1351 and 1421). See Morgan (1972) "Walter the Wood-Sprite" Medium Aevum 41: 16-19, for a discussion of the poet's etymological plays.

15 Langosch says: "'Celtica lingua' ist nicht sicher zu deuten, meint wohl Kauderwelsch." ("'Celtic tongue' is not clear, perhaps it mean Kauderwelsch." By Kauderwelsch Langosch means a sort of confused mismash of Celtic and Germanic languages, a vulgar dialect. Morgan (see above note) suggests that it may have to do not with his language so much as as his wit—therefore, meaning "Clever tongue." Morgan suggests that Walter acknowledging Ekivrid's riddling, ridiculing etymology on Walter's name.

16 Compare Vergil Aeneid (9.665, and the note by Servius On the Aeneid 9.662) for the “throwing strap”.

17 Evidently this means simply that Ekivrid did not plan to die but to kill Walter. Compare Vergil Aeneid 11.881.

18 This may be another instance of the topos of thievery with Walter as the thief of life.

19 Perhaps this is another riddling reference to “Walter the wood-sprite", since woodland spirits might change into birds.

20 This invocation of his right hand recalls the godless Mezentius' invocation of his hand in the Aeneid (10.773-6). Mezentius' impiety and his later downfall make this an unfavorable parallel—Walter should be addressing God! It is this same right hand that has brought him so much glory which will be cut off in the final battle, perhaps evoking Mark 9:42: "And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off..."

21 The invocation of his left hand has a similar impious connotation, and also Walter's strong attachment to his shield, a material possession, is not in keeping with a Christian hero. Furthermore, the poet's choice of Avars as the name for the Huns here could be because of a punning connection with avaritia ("avarice" or "greed")—see below at line 1404.

22 Compare Vergil Aeneid 12.788.

23 This patronymic epithet meaning "son of Alphere" is part of the poet's nod toward pagan epic—Vergil calls Aeneas "Anchisiades" ("son of Anchises" Aen . 5.407). Compare with Pandarides above (737).

24 Kratz (1984) translates this "Pick up your shield!" but the Latin "Accipe scutum!" gives no indication of whose shield. Moreover, since Hadawart attacked Walter specifically to take his shield, it seems far more poignant to have Walter mock him by saying "Come, take it!" The taunt fits well the tone of the exchanges between opponents throughout the combat sequence. Of course, this does present Walter in an unfavorable light, but we have already noted failings in his character from a Christian standpoint—notably his invocation of his right and left hands, not God, to save him.

25 Kratz (1984) here says: "This speech is central to the design of the Waltharius . Hagen equates the desire for praise, which motivates Batavrid, with the sin of avarice. The death of Batavrid will provide Hagen's motivation for fighting Walter; and Hagen will reject Walter's offer of treasure in order to perform a 'memorable deed.'" Note that the whole of the plot can be seen as illustrating the vice of avarice, since Walter steals two chests of treasure and the armor and helmet of Attila (263-4) for his journey. This is not in accord with the exhortation of Good Works in the Psychomachia (613) or Christ to his apostles (Luke 9:3, 10:4, 22:35), both of whom say not even to take a purse on one's journey.