with a large army, reduced it to ashes, and took Halfdan captive and put
him to death. Regin took his foster-sons, Hroar and Helgi, to the island
and placed them in the care of Vifil, in order that they might not fall
into the hands of Frothi. Vifil took them to a cave (earth-hut), where
they usually stayed at night; but in the daytime they sported in the
grove. Frothi made every effort to locate them and make away with them,
calling in witches and wise men from all over the land to tell him where
they were, but in vain. Then he called in soothsayers, who told him the
boys were not on the mainland, nor far from the court. The king
mentioned Vifil's island, and they told him to look for the boys there.
Twice he sent men to search for them, but the men failed to find them.
Then the king went himself. Vifil, who knew the king was coming, met him
on the strand as if by chance, pretending to be looking after his sheep;
and when the king bade his men seize Vifil, the old man said, "Do not
detain me, or the wolves will destroy my sheep," and cried out, "Hopp
and Ho, guard my sheep." The king asked him to whom he was calling; he
said, to his dogs. But he had told the boys before, that, when he called
out the names of his dogs, they should hide in the cave. The king failed
to find the boys and returned; but Vifil told the boys that it was not
safe for them to remain on the island and sent them to their
brother-in-law, Sævil, saying that they would some day be famous,
unless, perchance, something prevented it.
Hroar was now twelve years old and Helgi ten. The boys returned to
Sævil, but, calling themselves Hrani and Hamur, did not tell him who
they were; and as they always wore masks, their identity remained
unknown to him.
Frothi invited Sævil to a feast. Hroar and Helgi expressed a wish to
join him; but Sævil commanded them to remain at home. Nevertheless, when
Sævil and his retinue had started off, Helgi got an untamed colt, and
mounting it with his face toward the horse's tail, set out, acting all
the while very foolishly. Hroar also mounted a colt, and joined him; and
the two overtook the company. They galloped back and forth beside
Sævil's retinue, until finally Helgi's mask fell off, and then Signy
recognized him. She began to weep, and when Sævil asked her the cause of
her distress, she informed him of her discovery. Sævil tried to get the
boys to return home; but, though they now were on foot and remained in
the rear, they persisted in accompanying him on his visit to Frothi.
When they arrived at Frothi's, Frothi began to hunt for the boys, and
bade a witch, who had come to the hall, to try her skill in finding
them. She told him that they were in the hall. Then Signy threw her a
gold ring, and the witch said that what she had just stated was false.
Frothi threatened to torture her if she did not tell the truth; and she
said that unless he soon prevented it, which he would not do, the boys
would be his death. But the boys, terrified, fled to the wood. The king
ordered his men to seize them; but Regin put out the lights in the hall,
and, in the confusion that followed, those who were friendly to the boys
used the opportunity to obstruct those who would pursue them. Frothi
vowed that he would take vengeance at a more suitable time on those who
had assisted the boys, but added, "Let us now drink and feast"; and this
they did till the men lay in a drunken stupor in a heap on the floor.
Regin rode out to where the boy's were, but would not return their
salutation. In fact, he pretended to be angry. They wondered what this
meant, and followed him. Helgi thought that Regin wanted to help them,
but without violating his oath to the king. Then Regin said to himself,
so that the boys heard it, "If I had a matter to settle with the king, I
would burn this grove." They took the hint and started a fire. Sævil
came out with all his men and bade them aid the boys, and Regin took
measures to get all his men and relatives out of the hall. The king
awoke from a dream, in which the goddess of the nether world was
summoning him. He discovered the fire, and learning who had set it,
offered the boys peace on their own terms; but terms of peace were
denied. Frothi then retired from the door of the hall, hoping to escape
by an underground passage; but at the entrance stood Regin, who blocked
his progress, and he returned into the hall and perished in the flames.
His wife, Sigrith (now mentioned for the first time), the mother of
Hroar and Helgi, refused to leave the hall and perished also.
The boys thanked their brother-in-law, Sævil, and their foster-father,
Regin, and all the others who had helped them, and gave the men rich
gifts. The boys subdued the whole land and seized the late king's
possessions; and for a while the time passed without the occurrence of
anything worthy of special mention.
At this time there was a king by the name of Northri, who ruled over a
part of England. Hroar often passed long intervals at the court of
Northri, supporting him against his enemies and defending his land.
Hroar married Ögn, the daughter of Northri, shared the royal power with
his father-in-law, and after Northri's death succeeded to the throne of
Northumberland. Helgi remained at home, and, by agreement with Hroar,
became sole King of Denmark.
In Saxo's seventh book, there is another version of the same story. The
features in which it chiefly varies from the version in the _Hrólfssaga_
are as follows.
Halfdan's name has become Harald; Hroar's and Helgi's names have become
Harald and Halfdan; Earl Sævil has become Siward, King of Sweden; Signy
has become a daughter of Karl, governor of Gautland, and wife of Harald
(Frothi's brother). Envy and the quarrelsomeness of Frothi's wife and
Harald's wife cause Frothi to engage men to murder Harald. Frothi tries
to avoid suspicion of being the author of the crime, but in vain; the
people believe he is guilty. When he seeks the boys of the murdered
king, to put them out of the way, their foster-parents bind the claws of
wolves under the boys' feet and let them run about and fill a
neighboring morass and the snow-covered ground with their tracks,
whereupon the children of bond-women are put to death and the children's
bodies torn to pieces and strewn about. This is done to give the
impression that the boys have been torn to pieces by wolves. Then the
boys are concealed in a large hollow oak, where food is brought them
under the pretence that they are dogs. Dogs' names are also applied to
them. The episode with the witch is present, but other men and women
with superhuman power are not introduced. The whereabouts of the boys
begins to be bruited about, and Ragnar, their foster-father, flees with
them to Fyen. He is captured and admits that he has the boys in his
protection; but he begs the king not to injure them, calls attention to
the foulness of doing them harm, and promises, in case they make any
disturbance in the kingdom, to report the matter to the king. Frothi,
whose severity Ragnar thus transforms into mildness, spares the boys,
and for many years they live in security. When they are grown up, they
go to Seeland. Their friends urge them to avenge their father's death,
and this they promise to do. Ragnar, when he hears of this, reports it
to the king in accordance with his promise, whereupon the king proceeds
against them with an army. In desperation, the boys pretend insanity;
and, as it is considered shameful to attack people who are insane, the
king again spares them. But in the night the boys set fire to his hall,
after having stoned the queen to death; and Frothi, having hid himself
in a secret underground passage, perishes from the effects of smoke and
gas. The boys share the crown, ruling the kingdom by turns.
Before proceeding further, it would be well to have a summary of the
relations of the Danish kings concerned, up to the last stage of
development, the stage with which we are dealing; and this summary is
best supplied by quoting the following from Olrik's _Danmarks
Heltedigtning:[127]--
"Der er en fortælling, som bar banet Skjoldungsagnene vej til
manges hjærter, i vort århundrede ikke mindre end på selve
sagafortællingens tid: sagnene om de to unge kongesönner Hroar og
Helge, der må skjule sig for deres faders morder og tronraner,
farbroderen Frode, men som efter en række æventyrlige oplevelser på
den enlige holm og i selve kongsgården ser lejlighed til at
fuldföre hævnen og hæve sig på, tronen. En strålende begyndelse på
den navnkundige kongeæts mange skæbner! Det er denne fortællings
udspring, vi nu skal söge.
"Tidligst foreligger den i en norsk saga fra 12te årh., der åbner
Sakses 7de bog; men smukkest er den islandske _Hrólfssaga_. Desuden
foreligger den kort og krönikeagtig i den islandske
_Skjọldungasaga_, som lader brodermorderen hedde Ingjald og ikke
Frode.
"Med disse kilder når vi dog kun til det egenlige sagamands-område,
Norge og Island. I Danmark er fortællingen ukendt; og Sakse og
Svend Ågesön er enige on den lige modsatte overlevering: det er
Halvdan, der slår sin broder Frode eller begge sine brödre ihjel
for at vinde herredömmet alene. Det er ikke rimeligt, at den danske
overlevering skulde have dels forvansket, dels tabt den mere ægte
norske; ti fortællingen om de forfulgte kongesönner er så let at
huske som et æventyr og vil vanskelig gå i glemme, naar den först
er hört.
"Også den ældste sagnform, Beovulfkvadets, kender kampen om
herredömmet imellem Halvdan og Frode; men der er den forskel, at
den ene er konge over Danerne, den anden over Had-Barderne, og det
er imellem disse to folkestammer, striden udkæmpes. Det synes
snarest, som om Frode er falden i kampen (flere forskere opfatter
stedet således); i hvert fald tillader sammenhængen næppe, at
Halvdan kan være falden imod Frode. For så vidt står denne ældste
form nærmest ved den senere danske overlevering, fjærnere fra den
norske.
"Som Halvdans broderdrab fortælles hos Sakse og Svend Ågesön, står
det lösrevet, vi kan godt sige meningslöst. Det över ingen episk
indflydelse på, Skjoldungernes liv, og der rammer heller ikke
Halvdan eller hans æt nogen moralsk gengældelse. Med god grund
undrer Sakse sig over denne livsskæbne, at den grumme drabsmand kan
dö en fredelig död i sin alderdom; ti det er ganske mod
heltedigtningens ånd. Forklaringen derpå har vi til dels i den
ældre sagnform: broderkampen er opstået af den gamle folkekamp,
hvor Had-Barderne lå, under for Danerne; men tillige må der være
bristet en episk sammenknytning. I næste slægtled af Skjoldungætten
er det et ret gammelt sagnmotiv, at Hrörik overfalder og fælder
Hroar; ban har sikkert været opfattet som Frodes sön og hævner,
ikke blot i norsk men også i gammel dansk overlevering.
"Den særlig norske form er da bleven til, ved at man vendte
broderdrabet om. Det er en sagndannelse af ganske samme art som
den, der gjorde Hrörik til Hroars drabsmand; helteætten kom til at
stå skyldfri. Det næste trin var at udvikle denne ny situation med
Halvdansönnernes fredlöshed og deres faderhævn. Vi har en gammel
kilde, der viser, at udviklingen virkelig er gået i disse to trin.
_Grottesangen_ slutter med spådom on, at 'Yrsas sön [Rolf] skal
hævne Halvdans drab på, Frode.' Da kvadet synes digtet af en
Nordmand i 10de årh., har vi i alt fire tidsfæstede udviklingstrin
af sagnet:
"1. Danekongen Halvdan kæmper med Hadbardekongen Frode og bar
formodenlig fældet ham (_Beovulf_).
"2. Skjoldungen Halvdan kæmper med sin broder Frode on riget og
fælder ham (danske sagn).
"3. Skjoldungen Frode dræber (sin broder) Halvdan, sönnesonnen Rolf
hævner det (_Grottesangen_, 10de årh., norsk).
"4. Skjoldungen Frode overfalder sin broder Halvdan og dræber ham;
sönnerne Hroar og Helge redder livet og hævner siden deres faders
död (norsk og islandsk saga, 12te, 13de, 14de årh.).
"Ifölge dette må sagaen om Helges og Hroars barndom være opstået
mellem år 1000 (950) og år 1100, snarest nær ved den förste
tid.[128]
"Langt vigtigere end tidspunktet er dog _arten af denne
omdannelse_. Vi står her foran det störste skel, der forekommer i
heltedigtningens levnedslöb: overgangen fra den löse skare af
småsagn, der slutter sig forklarende og udfyldende omkring kvadene,
til _sagaen_, der selvstændig og i löbende sammenhæng gör rede for
heltenes liv. Netop ved Skjoldungsagnene måtte denne overgang blive
afgörende. Når Halvdans mord var det förste punkt i slægtens
historie, kunde man umulig unddrage sig fra klart og alsidig at
belyse dets fölger. Det var selvfölgeligt, at Frode også stræbte at
rydde Halvdans to sönner af vejen; således fremkom sagnene om
fosterfædre og venner, der sögte at skjule dem. For Helge og Hroar
måtte den eneste vej til deres fædrene trone gå gennem kamp; deraf
opstod da sagnet on hævn over Frode.
"Enkeite træk i denne digtning bar sagamanden natürligvis hentet
fra den overleverede rigdom af sagn. Det er allerede forlængst
indset, at væsenlige træk skyldes lån fra sagnet on _Amled_, den
unge kongesön, der redder sit liv ved foregivet vanvid, da hans
farbroder bar hævet sig på tronen ved mord på hans fader."
The chapter from which the above is taken contains about a page more.
Olrik says, "Sagnet om Helge og Hroar er dog som helhed noget ganske
andet end den specielle Amledtype." He refers by way of comparison to
the life of Sigurd the Volsung, to the myth of Romulus and Remus, and
the corresponding myth of the Greek twins of Thebes, Thessaly, and
Arcadia; and concludes thus: "Er der fremmed indflydelse ved dens födsel
[i.e., the story of Hroar's and Helgi's childhood], må den være svag og
let strejfende. Snarere må man opfatte sagnet således, at dette æmne har
en livskraft til stadig at födes på ny, hver gang den unge belt vokser
op efter faderens drab. Motivet er så nærliggende, så ubetinget
heltegyldigt, at da Skjoldungsagaerne voksede frem på folkemunde, måtte
de åbnes med denne digtning; den var stadig--så at sige--lige nödvendig
for at stemple den store helteskikkelse."
The story about the Scylding kings in its various phases (except the
first, in _Beowulf_) is found in Denmark and in the Old Norse. Among the
Danes and Norwegians (including Icelanders), therefore, we must look for
an explanation of this last stage of development. But in the north of
England were many Danes and Norwegians, and, as has already been pointed
out, the story about Bothvar Bjarki was known in England and acquired
distinct features there.[129] To England, then, we turn for an
explanation of the main features of the Hroar-Helgi story.
Furthermore, the story is due to a combination of influences. Evidence
of this is the fact that it shows unmistakable influence of the Hamlet
story, which, however, does not furnish an explanation of the story as a
whole. And the fact that the story about Hroar and Helgi was not a
native product of England and had no roots in the soil of the country,
so to speak, which tended to hold it within bounds, but was an imported
story circulating rather loosely, far from the scene of the supposed
events related, would make it peculiarly susceptible to extraneous
influences adapted to aid in its development.
The first influence to which the Hroar-Helgi story was subjected was
plainly the "exile-return" type of story, whose general characteristics
are stated by Deutschbein as follows:--
"Das Reich eines Königs, der nur einen jungen unerwachsenen Sohn
hat, wird eines Tages vom Feinde überfallen. Der Vater fällt im
blutigen Kampfe. Die Rettung des jungen Thronerben ist mit
Schwierigkeiten verbunden--häufig steht dem jungen Fürstensohn in
der äussersten Not ein getreuer Eckhart zur Seite, eine
feststehende Figur in unserm Typus. Der Königssohn wird in
Sicherheit gebracht, in der Fremde zunächst in niedriger Stellung,
meist unter angenommenem Namen, wächst er zu einem tüchtigen Recken
heran, bis zuletzt die Zeit der Heimkehr gekommen ist. Er nimmt
furchtbare Rache an den Mördern seines Vaters und gewinnt sein Erbe
zurück; wesentliche Dienste leistet ihm dabei ein oder mehrere
treue Anhänger seines Vaters, die in der Heimat zurückgeblieben
sind.
"Eine Abart dieses Typus weist einen anderen Eingang auf: statt
äusserer Feinde sind es nahe Verwandte (Oheim, Stiefvater,
Stiefbrüder), die den jungen Prinzen seines Vaters berauben und ihm
selbst nachstellen. Diese Form bezeichnen wir mit B, die Hauptform
mit A."[130]
The Hroar-Helgi story has two young princes; otherwise, it conforms
exactly to type B.
Frothi, Halfdan's brother (_Hrólfssaga_ version), attacks him with an
army and defeats and slays him. The boys are taken by Regin, their
foster-father, to a neighboring island for safety (this, however, is
being sent abroad with a limited application of the term), where they
live with a shepherd in a cave, responding, when necessary, to the names
of dogs. There they remain until they are twelve and ten years old
respectively, when they return to their sister and brother-in-law, who,
together with Regin, render the boys valuable assistance. They take
frightful vengeance on their father's slayer by setting fire to his hall
and forcing him to perish in the flames.
The third stage having been reached in the development of the
Hroar-Helgi story, in which the brother who is slain is avenged by one
of his descendants, it was easy and natural for it to fall in with the
"exile-return" type. The type is not an artificial type, it is founded
on human nature. The guileless and weak must yield to the designing and
strong. History teems with illustrations of the fact that he wears the
crown who can win it and hold it. Where a kingdom is the prize, a man is
under a mighty temptation when he sees that he can seize it by brushing
aside a weak ruler and a still weaker heir, or, the ruler being out of
the way, the young heir only. And it is natural that, the young heir
surviving, he should avenge a murdered parent, regain the crown, and not
permit the usurper to enjoy the fruits of his crime unmolested. Friends
each party would also have, actuated, if by nothing else, by
self-interest, which is bound up in the success of their chief. What the
Hroar-Helgi story in its third stage of development may have been we do
not know. We are only told that "Yrsa's son will avenge Frothi's murder
of Halfdan." But the story was well prepared for the type it was to
assume.
That the story was clearly regarded as one of this type is evident from
the fact that in Johannes Bramis' _Historia Regis Waldei_ Frodas is the
usurper of the throne which by right belongs to Waldef.[131] It is not
necessary to repeat the story; it has all the characteristics of the
"exile-return" type. As a whole, it has no connection with the
Hroar-Helgi story; and it contains the only instance known of the use of
Frothi outside the story where he originally belongs. But he is so
typically the same person, with the same unlovable characteristics, that
he can be none other than the Frothi who plays such a conspicuous part
in the history of the Scylding kings.
The use of Frothi as a typical usurper in the English Waldef story is
also a very strong indication that the story in which he has his proper
setting was current in England; otherwise, by what channel did he get
into the Waldef story?[132]
Our next question is, What stories of the "exile-return" type were
current in the portions of England in which the Hroar-Helgi story would
naturally circulate? We think, of course, immediately of _Havelok the
Dane_. Deutschbein has shown that _Havelok_ is founded on historical
events that occurred in the first half of the tenth century.[133] The
gist of the story is that an heir to the Danish throne is deprived of
his heritage, suffers deep humiliation, but finally regains his heritage
and, through marriage, the crown of Norfolk in England in addition. The
story was of a nature to make a strong appeal to the Scandinavians,
especially the Danes, in England. It achieved, in fiction, the ambition
which the Danes realized under Swen and Canute, when these sovereigns
governed both Denmark and England. It was a Danish story; it was
developed after 950, which was about the time the third stage in the
development of the Hroar-Helgi story had been reached; and it was a
creation of the Scandinavians in England, among whom the story
circulated.
Closely connected with the Havelok story is the Meriadoc story, the
first part of which, as Deutschbein has shown,[134] and in regard to
which J.D. Bruce agrees with him,[135] is based on the Havelok story.
These stories Deutschbein calls "cymrisch-skandinavische Sage" and says,
"Wir sehen, dass den Cymren und den Skandinaviern in England der
wesentliche Anteil an der Entwicklung unserer Sage zukommt."[136]
It is evident that in the Havelok and Meriadoc stories we have every
condition present for contact between them and the Hroar-Helgi story,
namely: time (after 950); place (England); people among whom all the
stories would circulate (Scandinavians, coming in contact with the
Welsh); and, in the case of the Havelok and Hroar-Helgi stories, a
popular theme dealing with Danish princes who regain a lost kingdom. The
theme would be all the more popular as the time when the Havelok story
was developed was a period of struggle on the part of the Scandinavians
in the British Isles to gain and maintain supremacy.[137] Again, the
nature of the Hroar-Helgi story was such that its development depended
wholly on invention or on contact with other stories.
The first part of the Meriadoc story, with which a comparison will be
made, is summarized by J.D. Bruce as follows:--
"In the time of Uther Pendragon, Caradoc ruled over Wales. He had a
son and a daughter by his wife, a princess of Ireland, which
country he had conquered. As old age approaches, he turns over the
government of his kingdom to his brother Griffith and devotes
himself to hunting and amusement. Wicked men persuade Griffith to
slay his brother and seize the throne. Despite the warning of a
dream, Caradoc goes hunting and is slain by hired assassins in the
forest.
"The queen dies of grief, and, to turn suspicion from himself,
Griffith has the assassins put to death. Before their execution,
however, they revealed Griffith's guilt. Caradoc's friends among
the nobles wish to get out of Griffith's power their late master's
children, who had been committed to the charge of Ivor and Morwen,
the royal huntsman and his wife. Griffith determines to kill the
children, but, touched in a measure by their appeal, does not have
them executed on the spot. He has them taken to the forest of
Arglud, where they are to be hanged. The executioners, however,
feel compassion and tie them by a slender rope, easily broken, so
that they may fall to the ground unharmed. Hearing of the
children's disappearance, Ivor sets out for the forest, accompanied
by his wife and his dog, Dolfin. To frighten the executioners away,
he kindles fires in the four quarters of the forest and throws
flesh into these fires to attract the wolves. He then hides himself
in a tree. The wolves gather and the men, afraid, conceal
themselves in the hollow of the tree to which the children had been
hanged. Ivor drives away the wolves and then begins to smoke out
the men. They promise to give up the children, if he will let them
come forth. He consents, but kills them one by one, as they are
crawling out.
"He delivers the children, who have been suspended for half a day,
and flies with them and his wife and dog to the Fleventanean
forest. Here he takes refuge in a caverned rock, called Eagle Rock,
because there were built on it the nests of four eagles who
constantly faced the four points of the compass. How Ivor and his
wife struck fire from flint, and the peculiar way in which they
cooked their food is described. One day Urien, King of Scotland,
passing through the forest, carries off the girl from her
companion, Morwen. Similarly Kay, Arthur's seneschal, carries off
the boy from Ivor. Morwen goes to Scotland to seek Orwen, the
girl; Ivor to Arthur's court to seek Meriadoc, the boy.
"The day Morwen reached Scotland, Urien and Orwen are to be
married. The latter recognizes Morwen in the throng by the wayside
and has her brought to the palace. Ivor comes with a dead stag to
Arthur's court and offers it to Kay. Meriadoc recognizes his
foster-father and springs clear over the table to greet him. Kay
receives Ivor among his attendants. Kay visits Urien and takes Ivor
and Meriadoc with him. Mutual recognitions and rejoicings.
"Arthur and Urien determine to take vengeance on Griffith, who
fortifies himself at Mount Snowdon. After a long siege he succumbs
to famine, surrenders and is executed. Meriadoc succeeds him, but
resolves to leave Urien in charge of the kingdom and go forth in
search of adventure."[138]