Famous Men of the Middle Ages | Page 8

watched the sport
from her window.
For a full year Siegfried stayed at the court of King Gunther, but never
in all that time told why he had come and never once saw Kriemhilda.
At the end of the year sudden tidings came that the Saxons and Danes,
as was their habit, were pillaging the lands of Burgundy. At the head of
a thousand Burgundian knights Siegfried conquered both Saxons and
Danes. The king of the Danes was taken prisoner and the Saxon king
surrendered.
The victorious warriors returned to Worms and the air was filled with
glad shouts of welcome. King Gunther asked Kriemhilda to welcome
Siegfried and offer him the thanks of all the land of Burgundy.
Siegfried stood before her, and she said, "Welcome, Sir Siegfried,
welcome; we thank you one and all." He bent before her and she kissed
him.
III
Far over the sea from sunny Burgundy lived Brunhilda, queen of
Iceland. Fair was she of face and strong beyond compare. If a knight
would woo and win her he must surpass her in three contests: leaping,
hurling the spear and pitching the stone. If he failed in even one, he
must forfeit his life.
King Gunther resolved to wed this strange princess and Siegfried
promised to help him. "But," said Siegfried, "if we succeed, I must
have as my wife thy sister Kriemhilda." To this Gunther agreed, and the
voyage to Iceland began.
When Gunther and his companions neared Brunhilda's palace the gates
were opened and the strangers were welcomed.
Siegfried thanked the queen for her kindness and told how Gunther had

come to Iceland in hope of winning her hand.
"If in three contests he gain the mastery," she said, "I will become his
wife. If not, both he and you who are with him must lose your lives."
Brunhilda prepared for the contests. Her shield was so thick and heavy
that four strong men were needed to bear it. Three could scarcely carry
her spear and the stone that she hurled could just be lifted by twelve.
Siegfried now helped Gunther in a wonderful way. He put on his cap of
darkness, so that no one could see him. Then he stood by Gunther's side
and did the fighting. Brunhilda threw her spear against the kings bright
shield and sparks flew from the steel. But the unseen knight dealt
Brunhilda such blows that she confessed herself conquered.
In the second and third contests she fared no better, and so she had to
become King Gunther's bride. But she said that before she would leave
Iceland she must tell all her kinsmen. Daily her kinsfolk came riding to
the castle, and soon an army had assembled.
Then Gunther and his friends feared unfair play. So Siegfried put on his
cap of darkness, stepped into a boat, and went to the Nibelung land
where Alberich the dwarf was guarding the wonderful Nibelung
treasure.
"Bring me here," he cried to the dwarf, "a thousand Nibelung knights."
At the call of the dwarf the warriors gathered around Sir Siegfried.
Then they sailed with him to Brunhilda's isle and the queen and her
kinsmen, fearing such warriors, welcomed them instead of fighting.
Soon after their arrival King Gunther and his men, Siegfried and his
Nibelungs, and Queen Brunhilda, with two thousand of her kinsmen set
sail for King Gunther's land.
As soon as they reached Worms the marriage of Gunther and Brunhilda
took place. Siegfried and Kriemhilda also were married, and after their
marriage went to Siegfried's Netherlands castle. There they lived more
happily than I can tell.

IV
Now comes the sad part of the Nibelung tale.
Brunhilda and Gunther invited Siegfried and Kriemhilda to visit them
at Worms. During the visit the two queens quarreled and Brunhilda
made Gunther angry with Siegfried. Hagen, too, began to hate Siegfried
and wished to kill him.
But Siegfried could not be wounded except in one spot on which a
falling leaf had rested when he bathed himself in the dragon's blood.
Only Kriemhilda knew where this spot was. Hagen told her to sew a
little silk cross upon Siegfried's dress to mark the spot, so that he might
defend Siegfried in a fight.
No battle was fought, but Siegfried went hunting with Gunther and
Hagen one day and they challenged him to race with them. He easily
won, but after running he was hot and thirsty and knelt to drink at a
spring. Then Hagen seized a spear and plunged it through the cross into
the hero's body. Thus the treasure of the Nibelungs brought disaster to
Siegfried.
Gunther and Hagen told Kriemhilda that robbers in the wood had slain
her husband, but she could not be deceived.
Kriemhilda determined to take vengeance on the murderers of Siegfried,
and so