The occurrences and events of which are gathered for the most part from circumstances which have transpired during our time;

the rest being ancient chronicles. 

The whole composed, illustrated and arranged

by François de Belleforest of Comminges 

Printed in Lyons,

By Benoist Rigaud

MDLXXVI

By authority of the King.

[translated by Anne McConnell, 2009

Saint Michael’s College] 

[190] PREFACE

Woeful state of those who reign.

      When I reflect on covetousness and consider all its occurrences, guises and circumstances, I know of no man who would not prefer to live contentedly and privately, free of responsibility, than to be feared and honored while also bearing everyone’s burdens on his shoulders, serving the whims of the people, [191] living always in fear (subject to a thousand threats), and more often than not – just when he believes fortune is the slave of his desires – finding himself under attack. And yet, desirous of fragile and worldly glory, men are willing to pay for such misery and calamity with their souls.  They waste the treasures of their conscience, which is no longer moved by the murder, treason, fraud or villainy they commit, as long as the way is made open for them to attain the lamentable ambition of ruling over an entire people.

Cicero, Paradox. 
 
 

Tarquin the elder slain in Rome. 

Servius Tullius killed by his son-in-law. 
 

Rome ruled by sedition, and why. 
 
 
 

Many gained the throne of the Empire through murder.

Selim caused his father Bayezid to be killed. 

Suleiman had his sun Mustafa strangled. 
 

Rustem Pasha corrupted by the Jews. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Great misfortunes of our time. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

God slow to anger but nevertheless vengeful. See Plutarch’s treatise on the vengeance of God.

      But let us leave aside the Turks as Barbarians whose throne is generally taken by spilling the blood of those who are the closest by kinship and marriage, and let us consider the same sort of tragedies enacted during the time of our forefathers in Scotland and England.  How amicably did those close relatives cherish each other!  If you did not have their histories at hand; if your memory of them [195] were not so fresh; if a King had not met an untimely death; if the worst of tyrants did not covet lands and dominions of their sovereigns to which they have no right; if children did not conspire in the death of their fathers or women in the demise of their husbands; if all this were not known to nearly everyone, I would discourse at length upon it.  But since these things are so clear, the truth so apparent, the people surfeited by such treachery, I will pass over them in order to pursue my purpose, which is to demonstrate that if a brother causes the death of one who has been so close to him, vengeance follows close behind.  But what vengeance? The most heroic, the most carefully contrived and bravely executed that one could imagine; to serve as a warning to traitors that – though the punishment for their crimes be deferred – they may be assured that they shall never escape the mighty and vengeful hand of God, who, though slow to anger, does not fail in the end to reveal the dreadful signs of his wrath to [196] those who, heedless of their duty, spill innocent blood and betray the leaders to whom they owe all obedience, honor and reverence.

Amleth, who later

became King of Denmark, avenged the death of his father

Horwendille, slain by his brother Fengon; and other events in his chronicle.

Chronicle the Third

The author’s satisfaction with this work

      I care not for the ingratitude of our times, which abandons without recompense those who serve the public, honor their country through their work and diligence and bring fame to France, for I consider myself more than satisfied with the contentment and great freedom of thought I enjoy. I am appreciated by members of the nobility for whom I work with so little respite, cherished by knowledgeable persons since I admire them and pay them the homage their worthiness deserves, and honored by the common people (although I do not seek their opinion since I do not [199] deem it sufficient to contribute to the renown of an illustrious man).  Thus I consider myself quite fortunate to have attained the felicity of knowing that there are few men who disdain to read my works.  This is the greatest pleasure I have, and the most abundant treasure in my coffers; and I am more content with those riches than if, unknown and obscure, I enjoyed the greatest treasures of Asia.

Cruelty of the Danes.

At present Jutland is Diethmarsen. 

Horwendille King and pirate. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Collere King of Norway. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Horwendille slays King Collere

      His great fame troubled the heart of Collere, the King of Norway, who was angered that Horwendille surpassed him in feats of arms and dimmed the glory he had already [202] gained in combat on the seas: for it was honor more than riches that incited those Barbaric princes to overpower each other, without regard for the fact that they might die at the hand of some valiant man.  This stout-hearted King challenged Horwendille to hand-to-hand combat. He accepted, and it was agreed that the one who was vanquished would lose all the riches contained in his ship, and the victor would provide a decent burial to the warrior killed in combat; for death was the price paid and the retribution brought upon the one who lost the battle.

      In short, the King (though he was valiant, courageous and able) was finally vanquished and killed by the Dane, who then erected a tomb and gave him funeral rites worthy of a King, following the customs and superstitions of their time; and according to the agreement made before the combat began, he stripped the King’s ships of their plunder, after putting [203] to death the deceased King’s sister – a brave woman and valiant warrior.

Amleth son of King Horwendille.

He who lays hold of the possessions of others has no thought of the divine. 

Fengon slays his brother Horwendille.

      When Fengon had secretly won over a few men, he believed he was strong enough to carry out his plot, so he fell upon his brother and killed him one day at a banquet.  His treachery was equaled by his cunning, since he was able to justify himself before his subjects for such an abominable murder, despite the fact that before he laid bloody and murderous hands on his brother he had defiled the fraternal bed with incest, abusing the wife of the brother whose honor he was duty-bound to defend while he sought and brought about his ruin.  And so it is that once a man allows himself to become a great sinner by indulging in a vice and hateful crime, he is not troubled by giving in to worse and more abominable ones.

Slander more honored at court than truth.

If a man is deceived by a woman, it is due to his own foolishness.

      I do not wish to mock women, since there are many others who endeavor to disparage them, abusing all women for the errors of a few. I will say that either nature should have deprived men of the idea of consorting with women or it should have given them a humor temperate enough to withstand the afflictions women bring upon them without complaining too often or too harshly, since [209] it is their own foolishness that oppresses them. For if woman is as imperfect a creature as they describe, and if they know she is as untamable a beast as they say, why are they so foolish as to pursue her and so witless and doltish as to trust her blandishments?

David acts the fool before king Achis. I Kings 21. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

What it is to play the fool at court.

      And thus Brutus and Amleth (to whom you may add King David who feigned madness among the petty Kings of Palestine to preserve his life) serve as a lesson to those who, displeased with some lofty person, lack sufficient power to prevail or avenge the wrong done them. Now when I speak of taking revenge against a nobleman who has done a great wrong, [212] I mean a lord who is not a sovereign against whom one must not rebel, nor weave any treacherous plots, nor conspire in any way against his life.  He who desires to pursue such a course must adjust all his words and actions to the pleasure of the man he wishes to deceive: he must praise his actions and be seen to prize him above all others, contrary to everything which is in his mind; for he is truly playing the fool who, in order to conceal his plans, must dissemble and kiss the hand of a man whom he would like to see one hundred feet beneath the ground.

Man’s nature corrupt. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Trick to uncover Amleth’s deceit. 

Corruptors of youth in the courts of the great. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Another trick to deceive Amleth.

      The fools, as I said, reckoned there was little sense in this, but the quick-witted men and those with good judgment began to suspect the truth, and deemed that beneath that madness lay hidden a great guile that could one day be prejudicial to their Prince. They claimed that behind his rudeness and simplicity a great and cunning wisdom was hidden, and that the light of a great wit lay beneath the darkness of his disguised subtlety.  For this reason they counseled the King to try to devise some way to strip off the disguise and reveal the young man’s trickery. They could contrive no better ruse to trap him than to put him in the company of a beautiful woman in some secret place, so that she might try to win him with [214] her most wanton and enticing caresses.  Any young man, especially one who was brought up in a life of ease, is naturally carried away by the pleasures of the flesh, and he throws himself greedily into the enjoyment of whatever thing of beauty is bestowed upon him. Hence it is nearly impossible to keep such a passion secret or to prevent its discovery through guile or the slightest diligence, or to flee it, whatever stratagem he might use to lessen its mischief. And so, if he were offered the opportunity to enjoy in secret the keenest of worldly pleasures, it would be impossible for him to resist the strength and power of fleshly desires.

      A few courtiers were deputized to bring the Prince to a remote place in the woods and to offer him a woman in order to induce him to defile himself with her kisses and caresses.  Such deceits are quite frequent in [215] our time, not to prove that great men are out of their senses, but to deprive them of strength, virtue and wisdom by using blood-sucking and devilish succubi produced by their attendants and ministers of corruption.

      The poor Prince might have been in danger of succumbing to this lure if a gentleman who had been brought up with Amleth while Horwendille was alive had not proved himself to be moved more by their childhood friendship than by affection for the power of a tyrant who sought ways to ensnare the son in traps like the one in which the father had ended his days.  He accompanied the courtiers appointed to carry out the betrayal with the intention of informing the Prince of what he must do rather than participating in laying traps for him or betraying him, realizing that the slightest hint of good sense from Amleth would suffice to bring about his death.  With gestures, he was able to make Amleth understand the peril [216] he would face if he responded in any way to the dainty caresses and tenderness of the Lady sent by his uncle.  This astonished the Prince, who was moved by the young woman’s beauty, but she also assured him of the betrayal, for she had loved him since childhood, and would have been greatly afflicted by his downfall and misfortune, though she did not wish to let him go without possessing the man she loved more than herself. The young lord succeeded in deceiving the courtiers, and the girl maintained that he had made no move to ravish her, whatever he might have said to the contrary; hence all were certain that he was truly mad and that his brain had no faculty whatever capable of reasonable understanding. 

      Among Fengon’s friends there was one above all others who suspected trickery and cunning on the part of the counterfeit madman. For this reason, he declared that it was impossible for such a cunning and witty fellow as he, who could play the lunatic so well, to be unmasked by [217] ordinary and easily-exposed tricks. It was necessary to devise some more deceitful and subtle trap of such enticing artifice and strong appeal that Amleth would not be able to make use of his customary deceptions. To this purpose, he claimed to know a way to carry out their plan and make Amleth entrap himself and reveal his deepest thoughts. He explained that King Fengon must pretend to leave on a voyage to conduct affairs of great importance.  Meanwhile, Amleth would be closeted with his mother in a chamber in which someone would be hidden unbeknownst to either of them, in order to hear their conversation and observe how they would conspire together to carry out the intentions of that sage fool and sly fellow. He assured the King that if there were anything at all wise or resolute in the youth’s mind, he would [218] reveal it to his mother without fear, and he would commit his opinions and thoughts to the trust and loyalty of the woman who had borne him in her womb and brought him up so diligently. That same courtier offered to be the spy and to serve as witness to the discourse between mother and son, lest he be seen as a man who gave advice but refused to be the one to serve his Prince by carrying it out.

Cruel action taken by Amleth against the man who would have betrayed him. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Repentance of Queen Geruthe. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Admirable chastity of Princess Rinde.

      After he had discovered the snare and punished the one who had devised it, he returned to seek out the Queen, who was troubled and weeping at the thought of her lost hope.  For whatever sin she had committed, she was nonetheless greatly grieved to see that the only son she had was nothing more than the object of mockery, and that one and all reproached his folly, which [220] she had seen with her own eyes.  This stung her conscience, for she judged that the Gods had brought this retribution upon her because she had lain incestuously with the tyrant who had murdered her husband and who would use any means whatever to end his nephew’s life. She blamed her behavior on the natural rashness which is commonly the guide of women who enjoy the pleasures of the body, pleasures which bedim the course of reason and make them unaware of what might come of their heedlessness and grievous inconstancy. She thought upon how such short-lived pleasure sufficed to cause her to repent forever and curse the hour when such fickle fancies had taken possession of her mind and blinded her so much that she rejected the integrity required of a gentlewoman of her station and disdained the sacred precepts of the noblewomen from whom she descended, both by blood and by merit. She called to mind the renown and great praise [221] the Danes had given Rinde, King Rothere’s daughter, the most virtuous woman of her time, and so modest that she would not hear of marriage to any Prince or Lord.  She surpassed all the gentlewomen of her country in virtue, just as she surpassed them in beauty, gentle bearing and goodness. 

      As the Queen grieved, Amleth entered, and once more inspected all the corners of the chamber as if he were as suspicious of his mother as he was of the others.  When he was certain that they were alone, he spoke rationally to her.

      “What treachery is this, O most infamous of all the women who have ever prostituted themselves to the will of some [222] loathsome lecher? Under the pretense of feigned grief you concealed the vilest and most hateful crime that can be imagined or committed.  What confidence can I have in you when, like some lascivious whore of unbridled wantonness, you pursue with open arms that cruel and traitorous tyrant who is my father’s murderer, and incestuously embrace the usurper of your faithful husband‘s lawful marriage-bed? You make wanton mockery of the one who sired the wretched son you see before you, deprived of all solace and (if the Gods do not soon favor him with a means of escape) taken into a captivity unworthy of the rank he holds, his noble lineage and the illustrious family of his ancestors and forefathers.  Is it fitting that a Queen, the daughter of a King, yield to bestial appetites, and that, just as a mare who couples with a stallion that has vanquished her first mate, you wait upon the will of a loathsome King [223] who did away with a better and more valiant man than he?  When he slew Horwendille, he destroyed the glory and honor of the Danes, who are undone and without strength, courage or valor since the day the splendor of chivalry was extinguished by the cruelest and most knavish villain on earth. I do not desire to consider him my kinsman, and cannot look upon him as an uncle, nor upon you as a beloved mother.  He has failed to honor the kinship which should have joined us more closely than mere marriage, and you could not honorably consent to become the wife of your husband’s cruel enemy without raising suspicion that you connived in his murder.

        “Ah, Queen Geruthe! Only bitches consort with more than one and desire to cohabit and couple with many males.  It is wantonness alone that wiped from your soul the memory of the valor and virtues of the good King your husband and my father.  It is [224] unbridled desire that led Rorique’s daughter to embrace cruel Fengon without regard for the shade of Horwendille, who in no way deserved to be treated so harshly, slain so traitorously or betrayed by his wife in so cowardly a way – a wife he had treated well, and for whom he had once stripped Norway of its riches and its brave men in order to swell Rorique’s treasury and make Geruthe the wife of the most valiant Prince of Europe. It is unworthy of a woman – let alone a Princess in whom all kindness, courtesy, compassion and good will should shine – to abandon her beloved progeny to danger and leave him in the bloody, murderous hands of a villainous traitor.  Even the fiercest beasts are not so base, for lions, tigers, lynxes and leopards fight to defend their young, and birds employ beak, claws and wings to resist those who would steal their [225] nestlings.  But you put me in harm’s way and lay me open to death rather than defend me.  Did you not betray me when, fully acquainted with the tyrant’s harshness and aware of his intentions to eradicate the kinsman and the very image of his brother, you neither thought nor deigned to find a way to keep your child from harm in Sweden or Norway or even to risk sending him to the English rather than to lay him open as the prey of your besotted adulterer?

      “Do not take offense, madam if, carried away by pain, I speak to you so harshly and if I pay you less respect than duty demands; for since you have forgotten me and wiped away the memory of my father the deceased King, you should not be amazed that I too go beyond the bounds of consideration.  Observe the distress into which I have fallen and the misfortune brought upon me by my fate and your extreme inconstancy and lack of wisdom.  I am forced to play the fool, to adopt the behavior of a madman in order to save my life, while I should be [226] training myself in the use of arms, seeking adventure, and endeavoring to make myself known as the true son of valiant and virtuous King Horwendille. Not without just cause and good reason do my actions, countenance and words proclaim the fool. Everyone must believe I am devoid of sense and understanding, since I am sure that he who killed his own brother without compunction – now accustomed to murder and beguiled by the idea of governing alone with no one to control him, his evil deeds and his treasonous acts – will scarcely hesitate to pursue without mercy the last remnant of the blood of the brother whom he himself slaughtered. Hence it is best to feign lunacy and sacrifice what nature has bestowed on me.  I must hide the clear and blessed light of intelligence beneath a shadow, as the sun hides its fierce light behind some great cloud in the heat of summer.

Against a traitor cunning must be used. 
 
 
 
 
 

We must deplore our own misdeeds, not the sins of others. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Geruthe’s reply to Amleth.

      “Therefore do not weep, madam, at the thought of my madness, but bemoan the sin you have committed and grieve for the infamy that has besmirched the renown and honor that once brought glory to Queen Geruthe; for it is not the offences of others which should prick our conscience, rather we must deplore our own misdeeds and greatest follies. I urge you, upon everything you hold dear in life, to make sure that neither the King nor any other be informed of this; and leave the rest to me, for I hope to carry out my plan successfully.”

      Although the Queen felt deeply wounded, and despite the fact that Amleth had stricken her where she was most vulnerable, she put out of her mind all the ill will she might have felt at being thus chided and rebuked, and was instead touched by a great joy, recognizing the generous spirit of her son and anticipating what could come from [229] such great wisdom.  On the one hand, she dared not raise her eyes to look at him when she called her offense to mind; but on the other, she would willingly have embraced her son in gratitude for his wise admonitions, which were so effective that they instantly quenched the flames of lust which had attached her to Fengon, instilling in her anew the memory of the virtues of her legitimate husband, for whom she grieved in her heart, as she beheld the vivid image of his virtue and wisdom in this young man who exhibited the noble courage of his father.  Thus vanquished by virtuous passion and weeping copiously, she fixed her gaze on Amleth for some while, as if lost in deep contemplation and overcome by great astonishment, after which she embraced him as lovingly as any virtuous mother might kiss and caress the fruit of her womb, and spoke to him thus:

      [230] “My son, I know I have wronged you in accepting marriage with Fengon, the cruel tyrant and assassin of your father my faithful husband; but when you consider the insufficiency of my means of resistance, the treachery of those in the Palace (for no reliance can be placed on courtiers who owe their positions to Fengon), and the power Fengon was prepared to wield if I had refused an alliance with him, you will forgive me rather than accuse me of wanton lust or inconstancy.  You will no longer do me the injustice of suspecting that Geruthe would ever connive in the death of her husband, for I swear to you by the great majesty of the Gods that if it had been in my power to resist the tyrant, and if I could have saved the life of my lord and husband by spilling my own blood, I would gladly have done so, just as I have since put obstacles in the way of his shortening yours; for if your life is snatched away, I no longer desire [231] to remain in this world.  Since I now know you are of sound mind, I am better able to see that there are ways to avenge your father’s death.  Nevertheless, my son and dear companion, if you have compassion for yourself and respect for your father’s memory, and if you wish to serve a woman who does not deserve to be your mother, I beg you to take care in the management of this affair. Be neither hasty nor too eager in your undertakings.  Do not go beyond the bounds of reason in carrying out your intentions.  You can see that there is scarcely any man on whom you may rely, nor is there a woman to whom I would dare reveal a single secret, for it would be immediately repeated to your enemy, who only pretends to love me in order to enjoy my bed.  But he is wary and fears what I might do for you; and he is not so foolish that he can be easily persuaded that you are mad or witless.

Guimon burned his lord Gevare. 

A traitor and perjurer deserves no one’s loyalty. 
 

Glory is the reward of the virtuous. 

Kings are images of the Gods. 
 

Honor flees from cowards and knaves, and they come to naught. 
 
 
 

Misery of those who live a life of infamy.

      “Madam,” replied Amleth, “I will take you at your word, and will enquire no further into your affairs; [233] but I pray you, for the love you owe your royal blood, to have no more regard for that lecher, my enemy, whom I will put to death though all the demons stand guard around him.  His courtiers will be powerless to prevent me from dispatching the King, and will themselves accompany him in death, since they were the corrupt accessories to his treason, assassination and cruel plot.  It is reasonable that, just as they traitorously put their Prince to death, they should pay the price of their felony with equal but more righteous deceit. 

      “You know, madam, how Hothere your grandfather and the father of good King Rorique, when he had defeated Guimon, had him burned alive because the cruel scoundrel had previously treated Gevare his lord in the same way, after capturing him treasonously at night.  And there is no one who does not know that [234] traitors and perjurers deserve neither fealty nor trust from anyone, and that pacts made with an assassin should be considered mere cobwebs which have no more substance than if they had not been agreed upon at all.  When I raise my hand against Fengon, I will commit neither treason nor treachery, since he is in no way my King or master.  Thus I will punish him as my vassal, who has deceitfully offended against his lord and sovereign Prince.  And since glory is the reward of the virtuous and honor is the recompense of those who remain faithful to their rightful prince, why should censure not fall upon traitors and ignominious death upon those who dare to lay a violent hand upon sacred Kings who are the friends and companions of the Gods and who represent their majesty and likeness?

      “In short, since glory is the crown of virtue and the reward of constancy, and [235] since it does not consort with misery, flees cowardice and forsakes debased and beaten souls, it must be that either a glorious death will be my end or, sword in hand and laden with triumph and victory, I will strip away the life of those who now make mine so wretched, and who have cast a pall over the bright rays of the merit I have received from the lineage and illustrious memory of my forbears.

      “What good is there in living if shame and infamy are the pestilences that torment our conscience, and knavery hinders the most valiant enterprise and diverts the mind from the laudable desire for honor and praise which endure forever? I know that it is foolish to pick a fruit before its season and to endeavor to enjoy the possession of something when that enjoyment is perhaps not deserved; but I expect to do so well, and I place so much hope in destiny – which has guided my actions [236] thus far – that I will not die without taking revenge on my enemy.  He himself will be the instrument of his own ruin, and will guide me in carrying out what I would not have dared undertake alone.”

      Almost any story other than this tale of a massacre told by Amleth would have been more believable, but Fengon was not reassured, and he still suspected that the fool would play some nasty trick on him.  He would have killed him gladly, but he feared his elder, King Rorique, and he dared not offend the fool’s mother the Queen, who loved and cherished her son despite her anguish at seeing him so senseless.  And so, desiring to be done with it, he attempted to enlist the aid of a foreigner, and made the King of the English the instrument of his intent to murder the counterfeit imbecile, preferring that his friend besmirch his name by committing such an evil act rather than to become infamous himself for such great cruelty.

      Amleth, upon hearing that he was to be sent to the English King in Great Britain, suspected at once the reason for this voyage.  Speaking with the Queen, he asked her to [238] show no sign of displeasure at his departure, but rather to appear joyful, as if relieved of the presence of a son who, though she loved him, caused her nearly to die of grief when she beheld him in such a piteous state and deprived of all reason.  He also begged the Queen to hang tapestries in the great hall after his departure, securing them with nails to the wall.  He asked her to keep the pieces of wood he had sharpened when he told everyone he was making arrows to avenge his father’s death.  Finally, he advised that after a year had passed, she should celebrate his obsequies and funeral rites. He assured her that she would see him return at that same time, and in such a way that she would be content and more than satisfied with his voyage.

Kings of the past more cordial.

Kings of Persia allowed no one to see them.

Majesty of the Ethiopian King. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Amleth’s clever reply.

      When they arrived in Great Britain, the messengers came before the King and gave him the letters from their master.  The King, after reading their contents, kept them secret and awaited the opportunity to carry out Fengon’s desires.  In the meantime, he treated the Danes quite graciously and honored them with an invitation to sit at his table.  Of course, at that time, Kings were not as superstitious as they are now, [240] and did not hold their persons so dear, and were not so frugal in their friendships as they are at present, when petty Kings and Lords of little consequence are as difficult to approach as were the ancient Monarchs of Persia, and resemble the great King of Ethiopia, who does not allow his face to be looked upon and covers it with a veil.

      While the messengers were making merry among the English, cunning Amleth, far from frolicking with the others, refused to touch any meat or drink served at the Royal table, to the astonishment of the guests, who were shocked to see a young foreigner take no account of the exquisite food and delicious drink offered at the banquet.  He rejected them all as unclean things, vile of taste and poorly prepared.  The [241] King, who still kept his thoughts to himself, had his guests shown to their chamber, appointing one of his faithful men to hide there in order to report the words exchanged by the foreigners as they lay down to sleep.

      As soon as they had entered the chamber and the servants in charge of caring for them had left, Amleth’s companions asked him why he had disdained the food and drink served at the feast, and why he had refused to honor the table of such an illustrious King, who had received them with great honor and courtesy.  They told him he had done wrong, and that he had dishonored the one who had sent him, as if Fengon had dispatched men to Britain who feared being poisoned by such an estimable King.  The Prince, who had good reason for all that he had done, replied at once: “Do you think I wished to eat bread dipped [242] in human blood and sully my throat with rust, and consume flesh that bears the stench of rotting human bodies already putrefied and tainted, tasting of carrion long ago thrown into the well? And how do you wish me to respect a King who has the look of a slave, and a Queen who, rather than behave as a regal Consort, has done three things which mark a women of low estate and are more befitting some chambermaid than a Lady of her quality?”  Having said this, he uttered several insulting and discourteous opinions concerning the King and Queen, as well as the others who had attended the banquet and feast in honor of the Emissaries of Denmark.

Land of the Goths and Bjarmaland, Northern Kingdoms.

See the history of John & Olaf the Big. 
 
 
 
 
 

Plato in his Ion. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Acts of a mind whose reason is altered. 
 

Demons as rulers of the world. 

Devils know the past, but are ignorant of the future. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Saul causes the shade of Samuel to be brought back.

Kings I 18. 

How Magicians can divine.

      It is not for me to discourse here on the faculties of divination in man or to decide whether the Prince, from the depth of his melancholy, had received these intimations and divined what no one had ever told him; just as the Philosophers who discourse on judgment attribute the ability for such predictions to those who, influenced by Saturn, often babble things that, once their frenzy has ended, they cannot understand, though they themselves have pronounced them.  According to [244] Plato, that is why many soothsayers and clairvoyant Poets, after the violence and raging force of their frenzy has cooled, can scarcely understand what they have written even though while discoursing during their rapture, they expound so well on what they are receiving that skilled authors and promoters of these arts praise their discourse and subtle reasoning. 

      And so I will not concern myself with the belief of those who say that a mind whose reason is wholly altered can become the dwelling and home of demonical intermediaries from whom they learn the knowledge and secrets of nature and humanity. Even less do I give credence to those whom Magicians claim to be the rulers of the world and the means by which these Sorcerers boast of being able to bring about prodigious events.  Although it seems miraculous that Amleth could divine what later was proven more than true, (as I have said before) the Devil might well have [245] perfect knowledge of past events.  But I will never agree that the future is known to him – I will never commit such a serious offense, nor will I fall into so great an error.  You have only to compare predictions boldly made by means of sorcery to those which are marked by the spirit of God and pronounced by the holy Prophets, who have tasted of His wonderful knowledge and who alone have declared the marvels and secrets of the Almighty. 

      Those impostors who desire to bestow divinity upon Satan, the author of untruth, by attributing to him the veracity of what will come to pass among men, put forward as proof the story of Saul and the woman who divined by consulting spirits.  Although this is an example from the Scriptures, it is presented in order to condemn an evil man, and is by no means universal law.  Even they confess that they are able to predict not according to the universal causes of things but through signs marking [246] similar causes which are always the same; and they can conjecture upon them so as to give insight into events to come.  But since all this relies on mere conjecture, since it is based upon the paltry foundation of some absurd and belated experience, and since it stems from the speaker’s imagination, a man of good judgment, especially one who embraces the purity of doctrine and who searches only for the pure effect of truth, would be quite foolish to give credence to any one of these imitations of truth or any writings filled with falsehood.

Mohammed in his Law forbids the Magical arts. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Merlin prophet of the English. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The English King’s mother confesses that her son is a bastard. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Too great a curiosity is harmful to men.

      His companions, hearing his reply, reproached him for his madness, saying that he could offer no greater proof of insanity than to despise that which was laudable and to reject that of which everyone partook as a necessity.  They added that he had rudely forgotten himself in accusing such an excellent man as the King and disparaging a Queen and Princess who was as illustrious and wise as any that ruled in all the neighboring isles; and indeed they threatened to find a fit punishment for his rash impertinence.  But he persisted in his counterfeit madness and mocked them, saying that he had done or spoken nothing that was not right and more than true.

      The King, advised of all this by the eavesdropper, concluded that Amleth’s ambiguous words (as he responded so speedily and aptly to his companions’ inquiries concerning what he had done) marked him [248] either as an arrant fool or one of the wisest men of his time.  In order to learn the truth or falsehood of what Amleth had said, he ordered that the baker who had made the bread be brought to him, and he inquired where the grain was usually gathered and whether the field bore any sign or trace of battle or combat which would have spilled blood.  The baker replied that nearby there was a field containing the remains of men who must have been killed of old in some cruel encounter, since a mound of bones was still visible.  Because their flesh and bones had enriched the soil and made it more fertile, the wheat planted there every year was the best that could be found to serve at his table.  The King, recognizing that the truth matched the [249] words of the young Prince, inquired next where they fed the hogs that provided the meat which had been served.  He learned that having escaped from their sty, they had feasted on the putrefied body of a thief executed for his crimes and misdeeds.  At that, the English Prince was astounded, and desired to know what water had been used to brew the beer for the banquet.  When he had men dig in the brook upstream from where the water had been drawn to make their drink, swords and other rusted arms were found, and it was they that gave a bad taste to the beverage.

      It might seem here that I am telling you stories of Merlin, who they say uttered prophesies before he was one year old.  But if you examine the affair more closely, you will realize that what has already occurred is scarcely difficult to divine, although the emissaries of Satan might have assisted by giving prompt answers to the youth, since there is nothing in them but [250] natural events which were already known to exist, and there was no need to dream of what might come.

      Having made a thorough investigation of the food and drink, the King was again piqued by curiosity, and desired to know why the Danish lord had said that the King had the look of a slave; for he suspected Amleth of implying that he was of base descent and that no Prince had ever bred him.  In order to clarify this suspicion, he approached his mother, and leading her secretly to a chamber and shutting the door, he begged her to tell him on her honor to whom he owed his existence.  Confident that no one had ever discovered anything about her liaison and transgression, she swore to him that only her husband the deceased King and no other could boast of having enjoyed her embrace. But he, already persuaded by the truthful words of the Dane, threatened [251] to force his mother to tell him if she would not freely confess; and he learned that she had given herself to a slave who thereby had become the father of the King of Great Britain.

      The King was astonished and ashamed at this, and he might well have called to mind those who – considering themselves more meritorious than any other and presuming there is nothing to reproach in their houses – inquire more than is necessary and learn what they did not wish to know.  Nevertheless he disguised his anger, and holding himself in check so as not to expose his mother’s wantonness, he preferred to let a great sin go unpunished than to make himself the object of his subjects’ contempt; for they might have rejected him, unwilling to accept bastard as the ruler of such a fair country.

      Though he was vexed to learn of her disgrace, he took great pleasure in the wit and cunning of the young Prince. He sought Amleth out, inquiring of him why he had [252] blamed the Queen for three things more fitting to a slave and suggestive of servitude rather than royalty or the majesty befitting a great Princess.  The King, not content with the displeasure of learning that he was a bastard as a result of the insults with which the youth attacked the woman he loved most in this world, insisted on knowing something that was to displease him as much as his own ill fortune: the Queen his wife was the daughter of a chambermaid. Amleth brought forward as proof the often-foolish expressions of her face, which bore witness not only to the meanness of her lineage but also to a character that revealed the baseness and low birth of her parents; and in fact her mother was still held in bondage.

Amleth’s guile. 
 
 

Amleth’s guile. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Conflicting sentiments of the courtiers. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Drunkenness a common vice among Northern peoples. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Singular vengeance taken by Amleth.

      When he arrived at his uncle’s palace, in which his own funeral rites were being celebrated, he entered [254] the great hall where the ceremonies were taking place. His appearance greatly astonished everyone, since they believed him dead. Most of them had been delighted at the pleasure they knew Fengon felt at such a welcome loss.  A few were sad as they called to mind the glory of Horwendille whose victories they could not forget, no more than they could wipe any of his deeds from their memory.  These courtiers rejoiced greatly when they saw that this time, reports had been wrong, and the tyrant would not yet delight in the possessions of the true heir of Jutland.  They hoped that the Gods would restore his senses, for the good of his Country.

           Astonishment turned to laughter, as each of the guests at the funeral banquet for a man believed to be dead taunted his companion at having been so easily deceived, and derided the Prince for not having recovered any of his senses [255] during the voyage.  They asked him what had become of the men who had traveled with him to Great Britain, and showing them the two hollow staffs which he had filled with molten gold, he replied that the Englishman had given them to him to appease him for the murder of his companions.  “Here they are, are each of the men who accompanied me,” said he.

              Several of those who were already familiar with the humors of the fantastical youth quickly concluded that he had played some masterful trick on the two, and in order to save himself from peril had tossed them into the grave dug for him.  Fearing they might meet with the same fate and that they were risking some calamity, they left the Palace. This was fortunate for them in light of the devastation wrought by the Prince on this the day of his funeral, which was the last day of life for those who rejoiced in his ruin.  All were intent upon eating their fill, and since Amleth’s arrival [256] gave them even more reason to raise their glasses, the Prince played the role of cup-bearer and gentleman-in-waiting, leaving no drinking cup empty; and he did this well, for they were all so filled with wine and glutted with food that they had to lie down in the very place they had feasted, so besotted and stupefied were they from excessive drinking (which is a common vice among the Germans and other Northern peoples).

      Then Amleth saw that the time had come to strike his blow and wreak vengeance on his adversaries, and likewise to abandon the actions, gestures and dress of a madman. The opportunity had arrived, and he had only to seize it.  Looking upon those bodies numbed by wine, lying on the floor like swine, some sleeping and others vomiting the excess of wine they had too greedily swallowed, [257] he let the tapestries that hung in the hall fall upon them.  He nailed them to the floor quite easily, and at the corners he placed the sticks he had sharpened (of which I spoke earlier).  They served as stakes to which he tied the tapestries in such a way that no matter how much the drunkards tried, it was impossible for them to disentangle themselves.  He forthwith set fire to the four corners of the Royal house, so that among those in the hall not a one escaped, but atoned for his sins by fire and dried out the excess of liquor he had imbibed, every one of them dying enveloped by the inevitable heat of the flames.

Fengon slain by his nephew Amleth. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Praise of Amleth for slaying the tyrant. 
 
 
 

Vengeance is just, or should be considered so. 

David on his deathbed urges Solomon take revenge against those who had wronged him.

David’s intention in recommending such vengeance. 

Laws of Athens favor those who slay tyrants.

              Fengon, recognizing the truth of his nephew’s trickery, hearing him speak with his good sense restored, and what is more seeing the unsheathed sword in his hand raised to take his life, leapt swiftly from his bed and took hold of his nephew’s sword, nailed into its scabbard.  As he tried to unsheathe it, Amleth gave Fengon such a great blow to the nape of his neck that he [259] caused his head to fly off and fall to the floor, crying out: “These are the wages earned by men such as you – a violent death.  Go, and when you are in Hades, do not neglect to tell your brother, whom you killed so villainously, that his son ordered you to bring him this message.  Comforted by this thought, his shade will find peace among the blessed spirits and will relieve me of the obligation that compelled me to pursue this vengeance upon my own kinsman through whom I had lost what tied me to this kinship and union.” 

      A truly brave and courageous man, worthy of endless praise, who, armed with a guileful madness and cunningly feigning a wandering mind, deceived through this counterfeit folly the wisest, subtlest and craftiest men.  Thus he not only preserved his life from the attacks and ambushes of a tyrant, but he also avenged his father’s death several years after the heinous act with a new form of punishment and [260] ingeniously devised torment. This leaves men of good judgment undecided as to which is the most admirable in him: his perseverance and nobility of spirit or the wisdom he showed in planning and executing perfectly his long-delayed and premeditated plot.

      If vengeance has ever been justified, there is no doubt that the piety and affection that ties us to the memory of our unjustly-persecuted parents gives us leave to find the means to prevent treachery and outrageous treason from going unpunished.  Although David was a holy and just King, a simple, courteous and gentle man, on his deathbed he commanded his son [261] Solomon, who was to succeed him as King, to send to his grave anyone who had wronged him.  Not that this King, dying and ready to account for himself before God, was soliciting or desirous of revenge; he wished only to instruct those who came after him that when the state is wronged, the desire for revenge bears no taint of condemnation, but is instead laudable and worthy of commendation and reward.  The laws of Athens credit this, causing statues to be erected in honor of those who, avenging wrongs and offenses against the republic, bravely killed tyrants and others who troubled the peace of its citizens.

Mistrust often prevents strife.

              Amleth, observing that the people were so silent and for the most part motionless, and perceiving that they were merely seeking to learn the cause of this ruin and downfall, did not want to let any time pass.  He took advantage of the situation and approached with his followers; and when he was among the crowd of citizens, he addressed them.

[264] Amleth’s Address to the Danish People

              “People of Denmark, if there are any among you who still remember the wrong done to the mighty King Horwendille, let them not be moved at the appalling and dreadfully hideous sight of this calamity.  If any of you are commendably loyal and cherish the affection owed to your parents, and if you deem it well to remember offenses against those who brought us into the world, do not wonder upon viewing such a massacre.  Even less should you take offense as you gaze upon such a horrible ruin of men and of the most superb edifice in all the land.  For the hand which carried out this act of justice could not have done so at a lesser cost, and he had no other way to prevail but to ruin both the [265] animate and the inanimate, as a reminder of his righteous vengeance.

      Gentlemen, I can see (and am glad to know of your affectionate devotion) that your are dismayed as you look upon Fengon, mutilated and headless, whom once you acknowledged as your chief; but I pray you consider that this body is not the body of a King, but of an abominable tyrant and odious fratricide.  Oh, my fellow Danes, the scene was even more hideous when your King Horwendille was massacred by his own brother.  His brother? Call him rather the most abominable executioner under the sun. You yourselves saw Horwendille’s mutilated limbs.  You were the ones who, tearful and sighing, laid in a coffin his disfigured body, wounded in a thousand places and abused in a hundred thousand ways.  And who can doubt (since experience has taught you so) [266] that the tyrant, in bringing down your legitimate King, intended to destroy and overthrow the liberty enjoyed for so long by his compatriots?  Thus with one cruel blow Fengon not only stripped Horwendille of his life, he also unjustly deprived you of your liberty and long-held freedoms.

No reasonable man feels insulted upon receiving a kindness. 
 

Hothere King of Denmark, and  

King Balder.

      Will you be sorry to see the end of your troubles or to know that a scoundrel oppressed by the weight of his crimes is now paying for the murder committed upon the person of his brother?  Do you regret that he himself has served to avenge the harm done to Horwendille’s son, whom he wished to rob of his inheritance, depriving Denmark of a legitimate successor to the throne, putting some intruder in his place, and making captives of those whom my father had delivered from misery and servitude? And what man possessing any wit whatsoever could equate a good deed to an insult, or could deem pleasure equal to some wrong or obvious offense?  It would be extremely foolish and rash for Princes and valiant commanders to risk their lives in perils and dangers, if the only recompense and gratitude they received were the hatred and indignation of the people.  [269] What use would it have been for Hothere to slay the tyrant Balder, if instead of gratitude, the Swedes and Danes drove him away and made much of the successors of the man who sought their ruin? Who is so lacking in feeling, reason and judgment that he would lament to see treason cause its author to pay a price or treachery breed penitence in the heart of the one who instigated it? Who has ever grieved at the extermination of a murderer of innocents, or who weeps at the rightful slaughter of an evil, bloodthirsty, tyrannical usurper?

      “You are all astonished at what I have said, for you do not know who is the agent of your deliverance; and your are vexed, for you do not know whom you should thank for such a great service as the overthrow of a tyrant and the destruction of the place which was the storehouse of his villainies and a haven and refuge for all the thieves and [270] traitors of this Kingdom.  But you see before you the one who accomplished this necessary act. It is I, good sirs; I myself confess to taking vengeance for the offense against my Lord and father and for the subjection and servitude of the Province to which I am the legitimate heir and rightful successor.  I and I alone have carried out this deed in which you should have taken part and for which you should have offered me aid and support.  I alone have brought about what you could have achieved lawfully, rightfully, risking no accusation of treachery. It is true that I place my faith in your good will towards the departed Horwendille, and that I hope the memory of his virtues is still so vividly engraved in your heart that if I had needed your assistance, you would not have refused to contribute your support and wealth to your legitimate Prince.

      “But it pleased me to do this alone.  It [271] seemed best to punish the evildoers without risking the life of my friends and faithful countrymen; and I did not wish to cause others to bear the burden on their shoulders.  I made it a point of honor to attain my goal without exposing anyone to danger; and there was no one to reveal and spoil the plan I carried out with such great good fortune.  I reduced to ashes the courtiers who had been accessories to the crimes and treasons of the tyrant; but I left Fengon so that you would be the ones to punish his dead, headless carcass. When he was alive, you were not able to lay your hands on him, but now you may satisfy your anger by inflicting full punishment and vengeance upon the bones of the one who feasted on your riches and shed the blood of your brothers and friends.

      “Ah, my dear friends!  Since you know what wrong was done me, what anguish and misery I have suffered since the death of my lord the King; since you have known and felt all these things more than I, when I was still unable to comprehend completely the outrage I suffered, what good will it do me to repeat this to you?  What will be the benefit of telling such a story to those who knew it and were tormented by anger at the sight of my misfortune and adversity, and deplored the destiny that thus beset a Royal son by depriving him of his majesty, though not one of you dared reveal his sadness?

      “You know how my stepfather conspired in my death and attempted to assail me in many ways.  You know how my mother the Queen so coldly abandoned me, how my friends scorned me and my own subjects despised me.  Until today [274] I have lived burdened by grief and steeped in tears.  My entire life has been haunted by fear and suspicion; and I have awaited only the proper moment when the steely blade would put an end to my miserable life, my anguish and anxieties.

      “How many times, as I feigned to have lost my senses, have I heard you pity my misfortune and lament in secret to see me downhearted, though not one of you avenged my father’s death or punished the crimes of my incestuous uncle – my stepfather burdened by murders and massacres! Your pity heartened me, and your affectionate laments made evident your good will toward me.  You beheld the tragedy of your Prince and engraved on your heart the desire to avenge the death of one who had deserved a longer life.

      “And what heart is so hard and inflexible, or what mind so severe, cruel and rigid that it does not soften at the thought of my afflictions and [275] sorrows, or take pity on an orphan abandoned by everyone?  Whose eyes are so devoid of moisture that they cannot yet distill a few teardrops at the sight of a poor Prince assailed by his own kinsmen, betrayed by his mother, pursued by his uncle, and so overwhelmed that the people who love him have not dared to show him their love and affectionate devotion?  Ah, my friends, take pity on one whom you once nurtured, and let your heart be touched a little by the thought of my misfortunes.

      “It is for this reason, good sirs, that I played the fool and hid my intentions behind a mask of extreme madness.  This enabled me to nurture my wisdom and prudence, bringing to maturity the fruit of my revenge.  You will judge whether it was forceful enough and if it was perfectly carried out.  For in this and any matter concerning my benefit and the management of my affairs, I place my confidence in your wise advice and counsel and will yield to it.  You are the ones who will stamp out the embers of my father’s murderer and reject the ashes of the one who besmirched and violated the wife and spouse of his brother, whom he had slain; who committed crimes against his lord; who traitorously [277] assailed the majesty of his King; who unjustly enslaved his country and you its loyal citizens beneath the yoke of servitude; and who, wresting your liberty from you, had no fear of adding incest to fratricide, a crime loathed by everyone.

      “It is you as well whom duty and reason command to protect and defend Amleth, the instrument and agent of so fitting a revenge who, attentive to his honor and your reputation, took such risks in the hope that you would serve as his parents, defenders and guardians.  It is you who, in your mercy, will restore his property and his legitimate inheritance.

      “It is I who have removed the disgrace from your land and extinguished the fire that consumed your destiny.  I alone washed away the stains that blemished the Queen’s reputation.  I am the one who brought down the tyrant and his tyranny.  By thwarting the tricks of the craftiest plotter in the universe, I have put an end to his evil deeds and his deceit.  I was aggrieved by the insult [278] to my father and to my beloved country, and I have killed the one who wielded a power over you more severe than it is just or acceptable to exert over men who have led the most valiant nations on earth.

      Because of what I have done for you, it is fitting that you express your pleasure and gratitude to me for the good I have done for you and your posterity, and that you elect me King if you deem that I deserve to reign.  You see me before you, the author of your salvation, the heir to my father’s Empire, who has not wandered or strayed from his virtuous acts; neither a murderer nor a defiler of women nor a fratricide, nor a man who ever offended any but evil men; the legitimate successor to the Kingdom and the righteous avenger of a crime more grievous and punishable than all others.  I am the one to whom you owe the gifts of your restored freedom and the overthrow of the tyranny that so afflicted you.  It is I who [279] destroyed the tyrant’s yoke, who brought ruin to his reign and removed the scepter from the hands of one who abused a God-given power.  But it is you who must give recompense to those who deserve it.  You know the wage and reward due such merit, and its dispensation is in your hands. It is therefore from you that I again request the prize owed my virtue and the reward for my victory.”

      The words of the young Prince touched the hearts of the Danes and won the affection of the nobles so well that some wept with pity and others with great joy as they perceived Amleth’s wisdom and gallant spirit.  Putting an end to their sadness by common consent, they proclaimed him King of Jutland and the Chersonese, which is the same country we now call Denmark.

Remorse of the Englishman who does not wish to forsake his vow.

Death of the English King and pillage of his Isle. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Eurystheus  managing Hercules. 

Bellerophon carrying letters ordering his death.

Uriah imperiled by David.

2 Kings 11 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Haughty chastity of Hermetrude Queen of Scotland.

      I have left aside the story of that battle in the belief that it contributes little to our account, and because I do not wish to detain you for so long.  It will suffice to recount to you the demise of a wise and valiant King who – though he had taken revenge on all his enemies and uncovered all the treasonous plots devised to imperil his health and his life – became destiny’s plaything and served as an example to great men who put too much faith in the delights of this world, which are inconstant and fleeting.

      The Englishman perceived that he would not easily defeat his son-in-law the King, and he did not wish to violate the laws of hospitality; so he [282] decided to cause a foreigner to carry out the oath sworn to Fengon, without having to soil his own hands with the blood of his daughter’s husband or to taint his house with the treacherous murder of a guest.

      Reading this account, one might see in Amleth a Hercules sent here and there by Eurystheus (at Juno’s instigation) over the world, wherever there was some apparent danger, throwing him into its midst so that he would lose his life.  Or he might be a Bellerophon sent to Iobates to meet his death, or (leaving myths aside) a Uriah destined by David to serve as a target for the ire of the Barbarians.

      For the Englishman (whose wife had lately died), although he did not intend to tie himself to any woman, asked his son-in-law to travel to Scotland on his behalf.  He flattered Amleth by explaining that his uncommon discretion had led the King to prefer him to any other emissary, [283] assuring him that it was impossible that Amleth, the most subtle and circumspect man in the world, could undertake anything without bringing it to a successful end.

      Now the Queen of Scotland, a virgin of noble courage, disdained all petitions for marriage and found no man worthy of her companionship.  As a consequence of her arrogant temperament, she put to death every swain who came to woo her.

      But the Danish Prince enjoyed such good fortune that Hermetrude (for that was the name of the Scottish Queen), hearing of Amleth and his mission to beg her hand in marriage on behalf of the Englishman, forgot all her pride and abandoned her fierce disposition, with the intention of taking as her own this most accomplished Prince and depriving the English Princess of a marriage that only she herself deserved.

Marriages should be rated according to virtue and lineage rather than beauty. 
 
 
 

Beauty has ruined more than one man.

      And she, who had never been conquered by the grace, courtesy, valor or wealth of any Prince, knight or noble lord, was overcome by the mere report of the Dane and his craftiness.  Knowing that he was promised to the Englishman’s daughter, she reasoned with him:

      “I could never have expected, either from the Gods or from fortune, the deep happiness I feel when I behold here in my country the most accomplished Prince of all the [285] Northern lands.  He has earned the praise and esteem of all nations, both near and far, in consideration of his virtue, his wisdom and his good fortune, which have served him well in carrying out and accomplishing all that he set out to do.  I am deeply indebted to the English King, good sir (though in his malice he seeks neither my gain nor your good), for having honored me by sending such an excellent man to discuss a marriage between him (a man already broken by age and the mortal enemy of my people) and myself (who am as all can see); but I have no desire to ally myself with a man of such lowly birth as he, who you yourself have said is the son of a slave.

      “But on the other hand, I marvel that the son of Horwendille and the grandson of mighty King Rorique, a Prince who – with lunatic wisdom and feigned foolishness – overcame Fengon’s power and trickery and seized the [286] kingdom of this his enemy, should cheapen himself (in spite of the wisdom and skill of all his past actions) to the point that he errs so gravely in his choice of a mate for his bed. It is astonishing that a man whose nobility and fame surpass mere human ability should have stooped so low as to take to wife a woman descended from servile stock.  In vain she claims a King as father, for the baseness of her blood will always reveal the true virtues and nobility of her ancestors.

      “Can you be so ignorant, sir, that you do not know that the marital bond should not be measured by some foolish attachment to outward beauty but rather by the splendor of a woman’s virtue and the antiquity of her lineage?  She should be respected for her judgment and for the fact that the integrity of her ancestors has never been disgraced.  Outward beauty is of no consequence if perfection of mind does not enhance it, adorning what will wither in the body or disappear through some [287] accident or event of little importance.  Consider as well that such pretty trifles have deceived more than a few men by enticing them like baited traps and casting them down into an abyss of ruin, dishonor and oppression.  I am the one to whom this favor was due – I, a Queen, whose noble lineage equals the loftiest houses of Europe.  I am no one’s inferior, either in antiquity of blood, dignity of family or abundance of wealth.

      “And I am not only a Queen, but I can bestow the title of King upon the man I choose to share my bed; and I can offer him not only my caresses but also the enjoyment of a fine kingdom and an important province.  Consider, sir, how much I value an alliance with you; for though it was my custom to take a sword to any who dared to be so bold as to court me, it is to you alone that I offer [288] my kisses, my embrace, my scepter and my crown.  What man, if he were not made of marble, would refuse such a precious gift as Hermetrude and the Kingdom of Scotland?  Accept, dear King, accept this Queen who with such great love wishes you so much good, and who can give you more satisfaction in one day than all the delights and pleasures the Englishwoman could offer in a lifetime.  Although she surpasses me in beauty, her family is base and common; thus it more befitting a King such as you to choose Hermetrude – less beautiful, but noble and worthy – rather than an Englishwoman of great beauty but of unknown lineage and rank.”

Noblewomen angered when they are spurned. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Great loyalty of Amleth’s wife. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The English King’s betrayal of Amleth.

      “I am well aware, sir,” said she, “that the charms of a wanton and the lures of any shameless woman, being more enticing than the chaste embrace of a legitimate and modest wife, are more pleasurable and bewitching to the senses of young men.  But I cannot [290] accept the contempt that induced you to leave your faithful wife unjustly and without knowing of any past sins she committed.  You have formed an alliance with a woman who will one day bring about your ruin.  Although righteous jealousy and justifiable anger release me from respecting you any more than you respect me (though I do not deserve such scorn), conjugal devotion still holds more power over me than the contempt I feel when I see that a concubine has taken my place and a foreign woman enjoys the embrace of my lawful husband before my very eyes. Although such an insult is great, sir, and of a sort that has caused more than one eminent lady of old to avenge herself by bringing about the death and ruin of her husband, I will nevertheless warn you that there is a plot against you.  I beg you to [291] be watchful, since they are conspiring at nothing less than your death; and if you perish I will soon follow you.

      “There are many reasons that induce me to care for you, and they are all of great importance; but above all, I am protecting you because I feel a token of our union moving in my womb.  For this reason, you should recollect your duties and pay more respect to me than to your concubine.  I will cherish her because of the love you bear her; and I will be content if your son hates and detests her for the wrong she does his mother.  For it is impossible that any anger or turmoil of my heart can dampen the first flames of love that made me yours, and I cannot forget your past desire to court the daughter of the King of England so urgently.  Neither spite towards the thief of your heart nor my father’s anger has the power to [292] prevent me from saving you from your father-in-law, just as you once used feigned madness to thwart the schemes and treacherous machinations of your uncle Fengon, who was plotting the ruin of you and yours.”

      Were it not for this warning, the Dane and the Scottish troops who had escorted him would have lost their lives; for the English King, summoning his son-in-law with the most tender affection a friend can show to one he cherishes as himself, had laid a trap to snare Amleth and lead him a merry dance at a feast to celebrate Amleth’s nuptials with his new wife.  But Amleth arrived clad in armor beneath his clothing, as were his attendants; so the Dane escaped with a slight wound from the skirmish which cleared the way for the battle I mentioned above, in which the English King lost his life.  His country was sacked and pillaged for the [293] third time by the Barbarians of the isles and straits of Denmark.

Scania and Sjælland, Northern Provinces. 
 
 
 
 
 

Hermetrude’s betrayal of her husband. 
 

An honorable death better than a contemptible life. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Queen Hermetrude’s deceit. 
 
 

Mithridates’ wife followed her husband to war.

Zenobia a valiant Asian Queen. 
 
 
 
 
 

Hermetrude’s disloyalty.

      Since Amleth did not wish to quarrel with the son of the King from whom his family had received its elevation and noble title, he made such handsome and lavish gifts to Wiglere that he was satisfied and withdrew from the country and lands of Geruthe’s son.

      But after some time had passed, Wiglere desired to hold the entire country in thrall, spurred on by his conquest of Scania and Sjælland.  He was incited by Hermetrude (whom [294] Amleth loved more than himself), who had secret dealings with him and had promised to marry him provided that he delivered her from the man who kept her.  For these reasons, he sent to challenge Amleth and declared open war against him.

      This good and wise Prince who loved his people would have liked to find a way to avoid war; but he knew that a refusal would tarnish his honor, though acceptance would surely end his life.  The desire to preserve his life prodded him one way while honor pushed him in the other direction; but finally, recalling that no peril had ever shaken his valor and steadfastness, he preferred to choose inevitable defeat rather than relinquish the eternal glory earned by valiant men through feats of war. There is a great difference between a life without honor and an honorable death, just as glory surpasses scorn and contempt.

      But the [295] circumstance that most completely destroyed the heroic Prince was the excess of trust he placed in his wife Hermetrude and the too-passionate love he bore her.  He did not regret the wrong done to his legitimate wife, a wrong which was perhaps the cause of the misfortune that was to befall him.  He would never have believed that the woman he cherished more than all else would betray him so coldly; and he had forgotten the Englishwoman’s words when she had predicted that the other woman’s embrace would one day be the cause of his downfall. Her caresses had already robbed him of the better part of his good sense and lulled the great cunning which had brought him the admiration of the countries around the Northern Sea and all of Germany.  Indeed, the greatest regret felt by this King so enamored of his wife was the thought of being separated from the woman he cherished; and, certain of his defeat, he desired that she would either accompany him in death or – after his death – find a husband who would love her [296] as deeply as he did.  But the treacherous woman had already provided for her future nuptials, relieving her husband of the need to concern himself about her.  When she saw how downcast he was at the thought of being parted from her, she deceived him even more and encouraged him to go to his defeat by vowing to follow him wherever he went, sharing his fate be it good or ill. She promised to prove how much she surpassed the Englishwoman in love for him, declaring that any woman who feared to follow and accompany her husband in death was unfortunate indeed. If she were to be judged for her words alone, she might be the wife of a Mithridates, or Zenobia Queen of the Palmyrans, so much did she devote herself to the subject and boast of her constancy and steadfast love.

      But in the end, it was plain to see how vain were the promises of the fickle Princess and how [297] unbecoming was the Scotswoman’s marriage compared to the stern chastity she espoused before she had enjoyed a husband’s embrace.  For no sooner had Amleth arrived at his encampment than she found a way to see Wiglere; and once the battle had been waged and the unfortunate Dane had been slain, Hermetrude came with the spoils of her dead husband and put herself in the Tyrant’s hands.  He was so pleased by this desirable metamorphosis that he gave the order for the immediate celebration of a marriage bought with the blood and riches of Horwendille’s son.

Cases in which a woman is governed by our constancy.

Vices and imperfections of women. 
 
 
 
 

Saxo Grammaticus related this chronicle. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Man’s greatest victory. 
 
 

Carnal appetites have corrupted the best men on earth. 
 
 
 

Why we read histories. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

There was no barbarian who did not do some praiseworthy deed.

      But I see that I am straying from my subject, spewing unworthy things about women; but Hermetrude’s offenses have caused my words to outpace my thoughts.  Moreover, the author from whom I obtained this chronicle has nearly forced me to follow in his footsteps, because his discourse is so sincere and natural, and it seemed so true, considering the wretched fate of poor King Amleth.

      This was the end of Amleth, son of Horwendille, Prince of Jutland. If his destiny had equaled his [299] natural good qualities, I know of no ancient Greek or Roman who could claim the honor of surpassing him in valor and worth.  Though misfortune followed him in all his endeavors, he overcame the adversities of fate with the strength of his perseverance; and he leaves us a fitting example of noble courage worthy of a great Prince.  He drew confidence from the very things that seemed to lack even the shadow of hope; and would have earned esteem for all his actions were it not for one blemish that dimmed a large portion of his glory.  Thus it is true that the greatest victory a man can claim is the one that makes him the lord and master of his passions and chastens the unbridled power of the senses besotted by desire.  However strong and wise a man may be, if the pleasures of the flesh overcome him he will debase himself and bask in their delights, and he will grow foolish and witless in the pursuit of women.  Samson, the great Hercules of the Hebrews and the wisest of men was [300] burdened with the same vice, and his desire diminished his good sense.  Most of the men of our time who appear to be great, wise, valiant and prudent dance to the same tune, and provide us with pretty examples of their bravery, prudence and sanctity.

      I beg you who read this not to imitate the spider who feasts on corruption in the flowers and fruits of the garden while the bee gathers its honey from the most pleasant and sweetly perfumed flowers it can find; for a well-born man must read of lechers, drunkards, tyrants, thieves and bloodthirsty men not to follow their example or to defile his soul with such filth, but to avoid lechery, flee the disorder and excess of drunken revelry, and pursue the modesty, sobriety and courtesy that the story of Amleth commends to you.  While others reveled, he [301] remained sober; when everyone strove to gather riches, he did not equate wealth and honor, but was content to heap up virtues.  In this he may be compared to the beings he called Gods – since he had not yet received the light of the Gospel – and he shows us that among the Barbarians and those who were far removed from the knowledge of the one true God, there were some who by nature were incited to follow that which was good and to embrace virtue.  No nation, no matter how savage, has ever failed to take pleasure in doing something that seems good in order to obtain praise, which we have said is the reward of virtue and an upright life.

      It pleases me to recount these strange stories of unchristened nations, so that the virtue of those coarse people might burnish our own.  As we observe how accomplished, wise, prudent and discreet they were in the pursuit of their affairs, we will strive not to imitate them – since [302] imitation is of no importance – but to overtake them, as our Religion surpasses their superstitions and our time is purer, more subtle and valiant than the age in which they lived. 

End of the Third Chronicle