BEOWULF AND THE TENTH CENTURY'

BEOWULF AND THE TENTH CENTURY'

by W. G. BUSSE, PhD, and R. HOLTEI, MA

UNIVERSITY OF D~~SSELDORF

Introduction s seen from a receptive and text-pragmatic approach: A literature is conditioned by its social circumstances and

embedded in a constant process of communication: this approach seems to be most suitable to cope with the analysis of the interdependence of literature and society in that it by definition explores the relationship between linguistic signs and their receivers. Moreover it deals with the basic hermeneutic problem of the dialectic of question and answer3 taking into account the historicality of both the text and the critic's own point of view. I ts aim is to scrutinize questions andlor answers, problems andlor solutions, which a certain text thematizes for an audience in a specific social situation. This does not mean that literature is nothing more than a simple copy of reality, nor that a literary text strictly determines one specific kind of reception. The same text can be understood and enjoyed in many different ways dependent on the individual receiver's interest and motivation.

This possibility of multi-interpretation involves a problem which has to be considered by any literary critic: it should be taken into account in the analysis of the different elements of the process of communication; h a t is, to distinguish between the interpretative offer incorporated in a given text and its actualiza- tion by different members of an audience in a concrete com-

'we have to thank Mr E. John of the History Department, Manchester University, for reading this paper and giving some valuable suggestions, though he cannot be held to concur with all of the views expressed.

2 ~ o r a fuller discussion cf. H. R. Jauss, Literaturgeschichte als Provokation (Frankfurt, 19701, pp. 144-207; D. Breuer, Einfiihrung in die pragrnatische Text- theorie (Miinchen, 1974); G. Kaiser, Textauslegung und gesellschaftliche Selbst- deutung (Wiesbaden 21978), chap. I: 'Zum hochmittelalterlichen Literatur- be riff'

'Cf..R. G Collingwood, The Idea 01 History (Oxford, 19461, pp. 26S74, 278- 302, and An Autobiography (London, 1970), pp. 2943; H. G. Gadamer, Wahrheit und Methode CTiibingen, 41975), pp. 351-60.

286 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

munication situation. The latter we shall probably never be able to reconstruct for most medieval texts, as almost no material describing the reception of literature by individuals or larger audiences has come down to us.

However, by means of a significant rhetorical behaviour, a specific use of linguistic signs, a text produces pragmatic signals which act as stimuli to which the receiver's understanding can respond. These signals enable the addressee to decode and to reconstruct relevant problems andlor offers for their solution discussed in a text.

Once again, we do not mean to say that literary texts present a more or less simple copy of historical reality; they give a selection of it, focusing on some aspects and leaving others out, sharpening problems and conflicts, and in so doing make a contribution to a better understanding of the social reality of their receivers. The kind of selection in a given text at the same time constitutes i ts audience: in dealing with a restricted section of society only, the text enables us to draw inferences from it as to the structure and composition of an audience in a concrete communication situation.

The basic requirement for any receptive and text-pragmatic interpretation is the exact fixing of the date of the communication situation. Only then is it possible to ascertain the potential amount of identification a text has for an audience in that the fictitious model of reality can be brought into relation to that of the receivers. The only historically certain date for fixing an equivalent communication situation for the text of Beowulf, as it is handed down to us, is the date of the compilation of the manuscript at the very end of the tenth century. The manuscript can be dated with considerable precision to c.980-1020.'

This dating of the communication situation within a period from 980 to 1020 has several far-reaching implications: above all, we wish to state explicitly that we do not think of this date as being the time of composition of Beowulf. Certain indications (two scribes, some dialect forms) point to a tradition which may

'cf. M. Forster, Die Beowulf-Handschrih (Leipzig, 1919); N. R. Ker, A Catalogue ol Manuscripts Containing Anglo-Saxon (Oxford, 19571, no. 216.

BEOWULF AND THE TENTH CENTURY 287

be described as the mouvance of the text1 : in fact we believe that the Beowulf matter was constantly adapted to changing social conditions as well as to changing demands of different audiences, and we think that it was reshaped in the later part of the tenth century and then written down in the manuscript as we have it today. We quite frankly confess that we do not know what an earlier written or oral version of Beowulf looked like; most critics, on the other hand, do indeed imply a mouvance in the text transmission from unknown original matter of the migration period to the seventh or eighth centuries, while at the same time implying by their interpretations that from these centuries to the date of the manuscript the text was transmitted without being in the least altered or adapted to changed social conditions. We think this assumption open to criticism. It does not take sufficient account of the possibility of changes in transmissionI2 nor does it consider the effects of linguistic change on the meaning of a text in general, and what seems to us sti l l more problematical is the fact that it does not sufficiently pay attention to the social changes within a period of almost two centuries and their influence on the understanding of an epic text: for an audience in the late tenth century, for example, the idea they had of a thegn might considerably differ from the one recipients had in the seventh or eighth centuries.

It is also obvious that different texts were treated with different accuracy in their transmission. The Bible or Bede's writings or even homiletic material would certainly have been more slavishly copied than secular literature. Biblical matter clearly represents an authority which establishes the unalterable doctrine of salva- tion and which therefore is always a manifestation of invariable

'For this term cf. P. Zumthor, Essai de podtique rnddi6vale (Paris, 19721, pp. 65-75; Zumthor defines medieval texts in general as essentially dynamic; each new adaptation allows a synchronic analysis in the diachronic analysis of the material. Cf. also J. Rychner, La Chanson de geste: Essai sur I'art &pique des jongleurs (Ceneve, 1955); H. R. Jauss, Alteritat und Modernitat der mittelalter- lichen Literatur (Miinchen, 19771, pp. 17-18.

2Sisam particularly emphasized the fact that copyists were even expected to modernize their originals and that this practice 'was obviously dangerous for the wording': cf. his Studies in the History of OE Literature (Oxford, 19531, pp. 29-44 (quotation on p. 361.

2 88 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNlVERSlPl LIBRARY

intentions; the understanding of secular literature, however, is always dependent on i ts adaptation to changing social and political conditions. In view of the fact that the manuscript was produced at the turn of the millennium, it is astonishing that i ts historical context has so consistently been neglected.'

The conception of a dynamic text tradition which we apply to the Beowulf matter, also defines the relevance of secondary material, i.e. historical and literary sources and linguistic evidence, used in the interpretation of the text. Of primary importance are texts and documents of a literary, religious, judicial, social, political, and economic nature which date from the same period; any other material must be used with extreme caution:

Dynamic text production implies that the preserved version of Beowulf had a communicative function for an audience which still has to be defined more precisely! In fact we believe that the text was not written down for purely antiquarian interest? The intention must have been far more ambitious, because the selection of the themes dealt with covers relevant problems of the time, discussing them and offering patterns of conduct for their solution.

This sort of text production also implies that it is futile to speculate upon the author of Beowulf, as we neither know how many authors worked on the matter of Beowulf, nor can we be sure of

'T. A. Shippey summed up the general consensus: 'virtually no one now thinks of Beowulf as post-825' (Old English Verse (London, 19721, p. 210). To our knowledge only L. L Schijcking proposed a later date of composition; cf. his Wann entstand der Beowulf? Clossen, Zweifel, Fragen', PBB, xlii (19171,347-410, esp. 406-8. But d. also N. F. Blake, The Dating of Old English Poetry', in An English Miscellany Presented to W. S. Mackie, ed. B. S. Lee (London, 19771, pp. 14-27, and p. 329 n. 1 below.

'some uneasiness about material sometimes adduced for the interpretation of Beowulf is expressed by J. Leyerle, 'Beowulf, the Hero and the King', MAE, xxxiv (19651, 97 n. 14; E. John, 'Beowulf and the Limits of Literature', New Black- friars, lii (19711, 171-7, 196-200, and 'Beowulf and the Margins of Literacy', BjRL, Ivi (1973-41, 386422, esp. 393. Hollister is even more straightforward: 'It is not sufficient to speculate as to the significance of ancient Germanic military traditions unless it can be shown that these traditions actually applied to the latesaxon thegnhood.' Cf. his Anglo-Saxon Military Institutions (Oxford, 19621, p. 75.

3 ~ e e below, p. 328f. 4 ~ h i s is a common explanation of critics for the date of the MS.


the identity of the poet of the preserved text. We therefore regard the poem as what it actually is: an anonymous version of Beowulf from the end of the tenth century, and, instead of trying to investigate an unknown author' S intentions, we shall consider the pragmatic impact of the text and i ts potentiality of identification for a contemporary audience; that is what we shall deal with in the following pages.

Pragmatic signals in Beowulf Significant text-pragmatic signals can be analysed by means

of rhetorical and linguistic criteria, that is, their elocutionary form, their disposition in the text, and their semantic content. In addition, the surrounding context and the respective speaker considerably determine the significance of their pragmatic force. In Beowulf it is mainly rhetorical repetitio of formulaic expressions that creates pragmatically significant effects concerning two different semantic text types: moral imperatives cast in the 'swa sceal'formula and the evaluation of kings expressed in the 'god cyning'-formula. The pragmatic effect of the formulas is emphasized by the fact that in most instances they are detached from the run of dramatic events, and though in some places incorporated in direct speech of the characters, their appeal is of course most authoritative when used by the narrator. Thus they effectively bridge the gap between the events related in the poem in a remote past, in gear-dagum,' showing clearly that these events have an extreme relevance for the contemporary audience. The 'swa sceal'formula:

Swa sceal geong guma gode gewyrcean, fromum feoh-gifturn on fader bearme, P a t hine on ylde eft gewunigen wil-gesqas, ponne wig cume, leode gelasten; lof-dadum sceal in magpa gehware man gepeon. (20-25)

' ~ l l references are to the edition by C. L Wrenn, fully revised by W. F. Bolton: BeowuH with the Finnesburg Fragment (London, 1973).


"Onfoh pissum fulle, freo-drihten min, sinces brytta; pu on salum wes, gold-wine gumena, ond to Geatum sprac mildum wordum, swa sceal man don; beo wi6 Ceatas glad, geofena gemyndig, nean ond feorran pu nu hafast." (1169-74)

"Swylc scolde eorl wesan, d e l i n g ar-god, swylc Aschere was!" (1328k-29)

Swa sceal man don, ponne he at gu6e gegan pence6 longsumne lof; na ymb his lif ceara6. (1534b-36)

Swa sceal mag don, nealles inwit-net d r u m bregdon dyrnum crafte, dea6 renian hond-gesteallan. Hygelace was, ni6a heardum, nefa swy6e hold ond gehwder o6rum hropra gemyndig. (2166b-71)

Swylc sceolde secg wesan, pegn at Bearfe! (2708b49a)

The 'god cyningf-formula:

Oft Scyld Scefing sceapena preaturn monegum rnagpurn meodo-setla ofteah; egsode Eorle, sy66an arest wear6 feasceaft funden; he pas frofre gebad: weox under wolcnum, weor6-myndum pah, mat him aghwylc para ymb-sittendra ofer hron-rade hyran scolde, gomban gyldan: pat was god cyning! (4-11)

Ne hie huru wine-drihten wiht ne logon, gladne Hrosgar, ac pat was god cyning. (862-63)

. . . let Bone brego-stol Biowulf healdan, Geatum wealdan; Pat was god cyning. (2389-90)

Since they are distributed throughout the text, these pragmatic signals have continuous effects and determine the relevance of themes. Apart from recommending certain patterns of conduct to the audience, they hint at the relevant problems dealt with in the text and give information about the selection of the relevant social groups. These are: kings, their followers, and their mutual relations. In addition, the important aspects of social advancement and social protection in old age are significantly pointed at.


It is obvious that these pragmatic signals are not effective eo ipso in isolation, but that the disposition and meaning of larger text units, for example the 'episodes' and 'digressions1,' reinforce the pragmatic effect of the signals. The connection between explicit pragmatic signals and the implicit pragmatic effect of dispositio is a correlative one. Moreover, they are connected with the patterns of conduct to which they refer, and these patterns are continuously exhibited: the important theme of social advancement, for example, is only twice explicitly pointed out, while it is present in a large part of the text in Beowulf's earlier career. The explicit signals are thus constantly intensified, enlarging and refining the appeal of identification to the audience. It is absolutely necessary to investigate this correlation between the explicit pragmatic signals and the text-implicit dispositional signs to analyse the subtler shades of meaning and their full pragmatic effect on the audience. As mentioned above, text- pragmatic signals stimulate the receiver to get down to the problems the text deals with and to relate the fictitious model of reality to his own in that they enable him to become involved in the imaginary world of the text and to identify himself in it.

Offers of identification in Beowulf It should be stated once more that the term 'identification' is

not used here to signify the receivers' possible identification with the characters of the text, but rather the audience's potential for reflecting and digesting the relevant problems in relation to their own. The problems dealt with in Beowulf, the means of identification provided for the receiver, can be reduced to the common underlying structure of the tension between individual behaviour and social obligation. On the surface of the text this abstract philosophical problem is treated by i ts being thematized in the social obligations of kings and their followers and by presenting a model of social rise on the basis of individual strivingfor r e n ~ w n . ~

here are, of course, implicit signals produced by repetition of themes, e.g. feuds, the importance of weapons; their impact is mainly created by constant repetition and length of description.

'some of the aspects dealt with here have been treated by other critics, though under different premises leading them to different conclusions: L. L. Schiicking, 'Das Konigsideal im Beowulf', Bulletin of the Modern Humanities


Obligations of a king: The character of Heremod is a good starting-point for the definition of kingly duties: the text defines them by using the rhetorical means of dispositional antithesis by the Heremod 'episodes' (11. 901-15, 1709b-24a). Heremod's function in Beowulf is that of an antitype not only in relation to the characters of the poem, but to good kingship in general. He fails in some of the major aspects: he does not comply with the obligation to distribute treasure to his followers (11. 1719b-20a), but rather kills them (II.1711-14a) being bolgen-mod of character. He does not come up to the expectation his people have of him (11. 904b-13a) and becomes an aldor-cearu for them, as he fails to act as a reliable protector of his people and as a wise trustee of the hoard. In consequence he loses all contact with his people becoming a dream-leas outsider, who is forced to resist hostile attacks in isolation (11. 902b-04al 1713-15,1720b-22a).

To sum up, Heremod completely fails in his pledge to utilize the financial means and physical abilities God bestowed upon him :

". . . oPPat he ana hwearf, mare peoden, mon-dreamum from, beah pe hine mihtig God magenes wynnum, eafepum stepte, ofer ealle men for6 gefremede". (1714b-18a1

The pragmatic function of the figure of Heremod is obvious: Heremod's behaviour is diametrically opposed to the programmatic claim established in lines 20-25, and he is explicitly referred to as a warning example in Hrothgar's hortative address to Beowulf :

"De pe lar be pon, gum-cyste ongit! Ic Pis gid be pe awrac wintrum f rod. (1722b-244

Research Association, iii (19291,143-54; D. Whitelock, The Audience of Beowulf (Oxford, 19511; J. Leyerle, MAE, xxxiv (19651, 89-102; J. Halverson, The World of Beowulf', ELY, xxxvi (19691, 593-608; P. G. Buchloh, 'Unity and Intention in Beowulf', in English Studies Today, ed. I. Cellini and G. Melchiori (4th ser., Rome, 19661, pp. 99-120; H. BergerIH. M Leicester, 'Social Structure as Doom: The Limits of Heroism in Beowulf', in OE Studies in Honour of lohn C. Pope, ed. R. B. Burlin and E. B. lrving (Toronto, 19741, pp. 37-79; E. John, New Blackfriars, lii (19711,171-7,196-200, and BIRL Ivi (1973-41, 388-422; B. Shik, Das Problem der 'Gefolgschaft' im Beowulf. Diss. Kiel, 1971.


In two other respects Heremod is presented as being in contrast to Beowulf: the latter does not kill his own people (11. 2179b-80a, 2741-43a1, and he uses the strength bestowed on him to better effect (11. 2180b-83a).

From the Heremod 'episodes' as well as from other instances in the text we may draw reasonably clear conclusions as to two main aspects of the obligation a king must fulfil: the one is the sensible use of his material resources, that is, treasure-giving or the conveyance of land, both either as a reward for valorous deeds and services rendered or as the basis of a contractual obligation of the follower to support his lord in his need1; the other aspect, the duty to protect the community, is one of the most important of the king's socio-political functions. In his youth he can comply with it by his own strength, whereas in his old age he has to rely on younger warriors bound to him by means of contractual agreement.

This second aspect may, of course, need some more clarifi- cation: the protective function of the king as an obligation is referred to throughout the text by respective terms for Hrothgar and Beowulf, as, for example, eorla hleo, ebel-weard, folces hyrde, helm Scyldinga, 'rices weard and the like. But it is also explicitly stated, as in lines 907-13a or 1474-81:

"Cepenc nu, se maera maga Healfdenes, snottra fengel, nu ic eom si6es fus, gold-wine gumena, hwaet wit geo spracon, gif ic aet pearfe pinre scolde aldre linnan, p a t 6u me a waere for6-gewitenum on faeder stale. Wes pu mund-bora minum mago-pegnum, hond-gesellum, gif mec hild nime;" (1474-81)

On the other hand, this obligation imposes a restriction on the king in the performance of heroic deedsfor the pursuit of personal renown. This is demonstrated exemplarily by Hrothgar, who is

o or treasure-giving cf. esp. 11. 20-25, 71-73, 384b-85, 660b-61, 946b-50, 1719b-20a, etc.; for land conveyances andtor treasure-giving as the basis of a contractual obligation of the follower cf. 11. 219(t99, 249&93a, 2633-60, 286474a, 2884-91.


able to take the proper decision according to an adequate evaluation of his abilities: though valorous in youth (11. 64-67a1 1769-72a, 2111-12, etc.), he refrains from single combat with Grendel. Nowhere in the text is he reproached for not entering the fight against Grendel in person,' but on the contrary he is explicitly evaluated as agod cyning by his own warriors (11.86243). The negative example is demonstrated by Hygelac who does not feel this restriction and thereby leads his own people for wlenco to destruction (11. 1205b-14a).

A conflict between the norm of the pursuit of individual renown and the norm of social obligation is presented in BeowuH; this conflict is paradigmatically dealt with on the social level, on which it is of far-reaching consequence: the position of the king. By Beowulf's behaviour the text demonstrates that a king's acting on the basis of accumulating the highest individual renown possible, to be /of-geornost, may lead to negative results and thereby becomes reproachable. His way of acting should be bridled by reasonable and sensible self-assessment as well as by his responsibility for others. The idea that moderate self-assessment is an essential characteristic in a king is explicitly voiced by Hrothgar who speaks of himself as a warning example; the experience of enduring superiority induces him to over-estimate himself by thinking no one his equal:

"Bebeorh pe Bone bealo-ni8, Beowulf leofa, secg betsta, ond pe pzt selre geceos, ece radas; ofer-hyda ne gym, mare cempa! Nu is pines mzgnes b lzd ane hwile; eft sona bi8 pat pec ad1 o88e ecg eafopes getwafd, o88e fyres feng o w e flodes wylm &be gripe meces &be gares fliht o w e atol yldo, o88e eagena bearhtm forsite6 ond forsworce6; semninga bi8, p z t bec, dryht-guma, dea8 oferswy8d.

' ~ r o t h ~ a r had been even better; he only lost his eminent position by becoming old and losing some of his youthful vigour (11. 1885b-87). Beowulf's criticism of the situation at the Danish court refers to the followers (11. 590- 601a) and to Hrothgafs complaints (11. 1384-851, but never to Hrothgafs not entering the fight in person: Hrothgar has need of men (mannabearl, l. 201bl, but of nothing else.


Swa ic Hring-Dena hund missera weold under wolcnum, ond hig wigge beleac manigum magpa geond pysne middan-geard, ascum ond ecgum, pat ic me anigne under swegles begong gesacan ne tealde. Hwat me pas on eple edwenden cwom, gyrn after gomene, seop6an Crendel wear6, eald-gewinna, ingenga min;" (1758-76)

As seen against the background of this admonition and against the example of Hygelac, the truly heroic presumption of Beowulf, the king, becomes obvious. He does not think the dragon his match, and there is no question of his attacking the aggressor together with his people:

Oferhogode 6a hringa fengel, pat he pone wid-flogan weorode gesohte, sidan herge; no he him pa sacce ondred, ne him pas wyrmes wig for wiht dyde, e a f d ond ellen, for6on he a r fela nearo ne6ende nida gedigde, hilde-hlemma, . . . . (2345-51a)

The reason for his presumption is the same as Hrothgats: in all his previous exploits he had been without equal; there never was any need for Hygelac to look elsewhere for a better champion, as Beowulf always wanted to be ana on orde and had always been victorious (11. 2493b-2500, 2642b-46a). He even feels obliged to give reasons for bearing weapons against the dragon, whom he would like to attack as he had attacked Grendel (11. 2518b-21), and in absolute self-confidence he excludes everyone else from fighting the dragon, as he thinks no one except himself capable of doing so:

"Gebide ge on beorge, byrnum werede, secgas on searwum, h w d e r sel mage after wal-raese wunde gedygan uncer twega. Nis p a t eower si6, ne gemet mannes, nefne min anes pat he wib aglacean eofo6o dale, eorlscype efne". (2529-35a)

The conflict between moderate self-assessment and the pursuit of individual renown becomes even more pointed in that


the narrator expressly comments on Beowulf's behaviour as being quite laudable:

strengo getruwode anes mannes; ne bit5 swylc earges siB! (2540b-41)

But at the same time it is made absolutely clear by constant repetition that this is exactly the point where criticism of Beo- wulf's behaviour has to begin: he deems no one his equal, he relies on himself alone, he explicitly disapproves of the possibility of common endeavour in times of threat (11. 2529-35a). Though a king, he is sti l l acting as an individual hero driven only by the principle of performing lof-dzdas: he has not grown into his social obligations as a king which demand that he must no longer be ana on orde,' but has to refrain from so doing in order to protect his life for the welfare of his people (11.2666b-68). This is precisely the criticism which Wiglaf implies:

"Oft sceall eorl monig anes willan wrac adreogan, swa us geworden is. Ne meahton we gelaran leofne peoden, rices hyrde rad anigne, p a t he ne grette gold-weard pone, lete hyne licgean par he longe was, wicum wunian 08 woruld-ende; heold on heah-gesceap." (3077-84a)

Beowulf keeps stubbornly to his behaviour, heold on heah- gesceap, which so profitably ensured him the praise of Hrothgar and his election as king of the Geats; but he does not realize that being king demands self-control in the pursuit of personal renown by heroic deeds. As a consequence of his behaviour there arises another threat to the community: the text ends in a long passage of collective remembrance, recalled to memory by the mounted messenger, of past feuds and wars, which had been suppressed by Beowulf's valour alone. This new danger is repeatedly thematized (11. 2910b-23a, 2999-3007a), the last time in i ts

'it should be noted that Beowulf as king is repeatedly presented as the 'lone wolf': cf. the use of an in 11.2533,2541,2643,2657,2876,3077 (see also 11.2368, 2498, which refer to his time as Hygelac's thegn).


immediate bearings on the individual member of the Ceatish people:

swylce giornor-gyd Geatisc rneowle ................... bunden-heorde song sorg-cearig. Sade geneahhe, p a t hio hyre here-geongas hearde ondrede wal-fylla worn, werudes egesan, hynbo ond haft-nyd. (315&55a)

As the criterion with which to judge the behaviour of kings, the text offers the sensible employment of goods bestowed by Cod:' both kings, Hrothgar as well as Beowulf, succumb to conceit, and there are indications that ultimately their actions are seen as being useless for the common good:

"secgab sa-libend, p a t pas sele stande, reced selesta, rinca gehwylcum idel ond ywnnyt," ( 4 1 ~ 3 a ) '

forleton eorla gestreon eorban healdan, gold on greote, par hit nu gen lifab eldum swa unnyt, swa hit aror wies. (3166-68)

The unprofitable use of material goods, as exemplified by Hrothgar's building of the splendid hall, as well as the unprofitable employment of bodily strength, as exemplified by Beowulfs single combat with the dragon, are thus considered to be signs of ofer-hygd, of conceit, and thereby allude to Heremod's lapses, despite the antithetic disposition of the characters.

It seems to us to be one of the major aspects of the text that in spite of their shortcomings both kings are not condemned dogmatically. Thus the discussion of ethical values is not presented as a choice between extreme alternatives, but rather as the problem of adequate adjustment of individual behaviour to social responsibility. Both kings are styled as god cyning by the narrator. As this is done in a pragmatically most efficient form, the potentiality of identification is greatly enhanced; the imper- fection of both kings reduces the discrepancy between ideal and

'cf. 11.71-73,1270-74a, 1714b-18a, 1724b-27,1748-52,2180b-83a. Cf. also 11.144-46a as referring to the uselessness of Hrothgafs hall.


reality, and the characters presented, though they show signs of extraordinary qualities, thereby become more lifelike, and, in fact, more human.

Obligations of followers: The text portrays only a small section of society: it focuses on the subjects of a king who are qualified by their military profession, the warriors of a lord. It is possible to reconstruct their most prominent duty as the absolute obligation to stand by their lord in his need, ztbeodnesbearfe; non-performance of this duty means loss of renown and forteiture of rights conferred.

Deodnesbearf, the need of the lord, is exemplarily dealt with in the extreme case of mortal danger for the followers' leader. The obligation to assist him in such a threat is without question carried out by Beowulf's men in his fight with Grendel: they want to protect his life, even though he seems not to be in danger of losing it (11.794b-97). The permanent readiness to fulfil their duty in their lord's need is also evident in Hrothgar'sbeod, a fact which is specially commended by the narrator (11. 1246b-50). In the concrete situation of threat by Grendel they do not seem to be obliged to enter the fight as there is no mortal danger for Hroth- gar, and the symbol of his power, the gif-stol, is unaffected (11. 168-69); in contrast, Beowulf's gif-stol is destroyed by the dragon (11. 2325b-27a).

The obligation of the follower to assist his lord if his life is in danger obviously becomes a problem during the decisive phase of the dragon fight. There seems to be a contractual basis for the duty of Beowulf's fyrd-gesteallan, a pledge previously given to help him in his need:

"lc ga t mal gernan, par we rnedu pegun, ponne we geheton ussum hlaforde in bior-sele, 6e us 6as beagas geaf, pa t we him 6a gu6-getawa gyldan woldon, gif him Pyslicu pearf gelurnpe, helrnas ond heard sweord". (2633-38a)

To deny this obligation, which is a return service for treasure and weapons received, does in fact mean that the warrior loses his


raison d'e t̂re, if he is not willing to fulfil his tasks, especially to protect his lord's life:

"Ne pynceti me gerysne, pat we rondas beren eft to earde, nemne we aror magen fane gefyllan, feorh ealgian Wedra Beodnes" (2653-56a)

As with Heremod, the negative example given by Beowulf's followers in the dragon fight is extremely useful in distinctly bringing performance and dereliction of duties home to the audience, and thus the narrator leaves no doubt as to how this failure has to be judged:

Nas Ba lang to Bon, pat tTa hild-latan holt ofgefan, tydre treow-logan, tyne ztsomne, Ba ne dorston a r daresum lacan on hyra man-dryhtnes miclan pearfe; ac hy scamiende scyldas baran, guB-gemdu, pa r se gomela Iag; (2845b51)

Though this behaviour is blameworthy and disgrace will ensue, the breach of duty is not only a moral failure but also a breach of law, and as such it has legal effects. This further underlines the fact that in Beowulf the mutual obligation of king and follower is not merely one of personal attachment and ethics, but rather one which is explicitly based on material and contractual agreement :

"bat la mag secgan, se Be wyle so8 specan, pat se mon-dryhten, se eow Ba maBmas geaf, eored-geatwe, pe ge par on standas, ponne he on ealu-bence oft gesealde heal-sittendum helm ond byrnan, peoden his pegnum, swylce he prydlicost ower feor oBBe neah findan meahte, pat he genunga guB-gewadu wratTe forwurpe, Ba hyne wig beget. Nealles folc-cyning fyrd-gesteallum gylpan porfte". (2864-74a)


"Nu sceal sinc-peg0 ond swyrd-gifu, eall del-wyn eowrum cynne lufen alicgean; lond-rihtes mot pare maeg-burge monna aghwylc idel hweorfan, syman Aelingas feorran gefricgean fleam eowerne, dom-leasan dad. Dea8 bi8 sella eorla gehwylcum ponne edwit-lif!" (2884-91)

In contrast Wiglaf s behaviour is expressly set forth as exemplary and worthy of imitation:

Feond gefyldan -4erh ellen wrax- ond hi hyne pa begen abroten hafdon, sib-Aelingas. Swylc sceolde secg wesan, pegn a t Bearfe! (270649d

It is again by means of antithetic disposition that the text presents the full range of patterns of conduct, and thus enables the audience to consider the negative and positive examples given. The negative behaviour is severely punished so that the text prevents any feeling of sympathy with the disloyal followers; on the other hand, the performance of duty would strongly appeal to the audience in so far as it is richly rewarded and thus opens up the prospect of social advancement.

Pursuit of renown as a model for social rise: Both the preceding aspects of the structure of the society presented in the text have offered indications as to the possibility of social advancement. The king's obligation to make use of his treasure by giving it to capable followers has without doubt not only the result of binding the warrior to his service, but vice versa raises the social prestige of the rewarded.' The discussion of the cowardly warriors in the dragon fight points to the same connection by i ts negative example. They had been generously equipped by their king and provided with lond-riht, the expropriation of which will simultaneously destroy their prominent social standing. Hence the society presented in Beowulf underlies the widely-held principle of evaluating the social prestige of i ts members accord-

'cf. Beowulf's sword-giving to the boat-guardian, whose social prestige is considerably increased in this way (II.1900-03a).


ing to their property. On the other hand social advancement is not only dependent upon personal or real property, but also on individual renown. The relation between these two motive powers of social rise will be discussed in the following pages.

The model presented by the text offers a most interesting possibility of identification for the audience, in so far as it reflects the social interdependence of lord and man and demonstrates the means by which promotion can be obtained for a warrior. The medium for working one's way up is authoritatively given by the narrator in his programmatic statement early in the text:

lof-dadum sceal in magpa gehware man gepeon. (24b25)

These lines strikingly correspond to the introductory statement of the narrator (11.1-31, the key-words of which lead the audience's attention in the same direction. At the very beginning, in a description of only eight lines, the brilliant career of Scyld Scefing is depicted to outline the opportunities for social rise by presenting a warrior who reaches the uppermost echelons of society and who is the first of the kings to earn the narratot's praise. Though at first destitute he succeeds in distinguishing himself by terrifying and subduing his neighbours. These martial deeds not only won him respect and renown but also material profit:

Oft Scyld Scefing sceapena preatum, monegum maegpum meodo-setla ofteah; egsode Eorle, sy66an arest wear6 feasceaft funden; he pas frofre gebad: weox under wolcnum, weor8-myndum pah, e a t him aghwylc para ymb-sittendra ofer hron-rade hyran scolde, gomban gyldan: p a t was god cyning! (441)

Thus in the very first passages1 the text offers the audience a model of social rise, in relation to which Beowulf's career is to be understood: it demonstrates the different stages of his advancement, and it is his position as Hygelac's thegn which is

' ~ r o t h ~ a f s endeavour towards stabilizing and extending his own position should also be mentioned in this context; cf. 11. 64-67a.


most prominent in this connection. But before discussing his rise in greater detail, we must return for a moment to the means by which this is achieved. As quoted above, the narrator indicates them early in the text. The /of-d~das of a warrior are, of course, his heroic exploits, but the kind of lof-daedas present in the text strongly urge us to associate them with aggressive or protective war and with their profit for the community. This is fully brought out by the Breca 'episode' and the quarrel Beowulf and Unferth have about its usefulness. While Unferth polemically calls it an adventure of do/-gilp and a sorh-sid stimulated by wlenco, from which no one could dissuade the contestants (11. 506-12), Beo- wulf is eager to prove the advantage seafarers will derive from his killing the sea-beasts (11.565-69a). It follows that heroic deeds for their own sake may not always be favourably received and judged by the community. In fact, almost all the profitable exploits mentioned in the text are actions which serve to establish or enlarge power or to beat off aggressors. In this context the Breca adventure is one of a different kind.

It may be tempting to connect this 'episode' with the opinion that the Geats had of Beowulf earlier, but while we may with some reason hesitate to do so, the fact that the starting-point of Beowulf's career is as a mere inglorious follower rather than a renowned one cannot be denied:

Hean wzes lange, swa hyne Ceata bearn godne ne tealdon, ne hyne on medo-bence micles wyrsne drihten Wedera gedon wolde; swyae wendon, pzet he sleac waere, de l ing unfrom. (2183b-88a)

It is by /of-dzdas that Beowulf acquires the fame necessary for an amelioration of his social standing. His way of acting is in accordance with the narrator's programmatic statement of II. 24b-25a and the pragmatic signal in 11.1534b-36.Though he seems to have already bettered his position when he arrives at Hroth- gar's court,' the latter's warriors praise him after his fight with

'with 11. 2183b-88a quoted above compare 11. 2188b-89a which state the edwenden; for his position when arriving at Hrothgafs court cf. 11. 247b-51a, 366b-70,407-09a.


Grendel as being worthy of the highest honours. By oral propaga- tion Beowulf's fame becomes common knowledge:

D z r wzs Beowulfes mzr6o maned; monig oft gecwae6, pzt te sub ne nor6 be szm tweonum ofer eormen-grund oper nznig under swegles begong selra nzre rond-hzbbendra, rices wyr6ra. (856b-61)

These feats of valour win him outstanding material reward,' which together with his high renown open the way to social rise and which may legitimate claims to kingship. This connection is confirmed by Hrothgar's behaviour, who is willing to adopt Beowulf (11. 946b-49a1 1175-80a, 2011-13) and considers him the best king the Geats could choose after Hygelac's death (11. 1845 b-53a).

A second stage in Beowulf's career is reached when he comes home to Hygelac's court. Hrothgar's praise and judgement of Beowulf help him to establish a similar claim to a higher social standing in the Geatish society by producing the treasure received. In conformity with the norms of society Beowulf presents the weapons and horses to his lord Hygelac:

"ac he me ma6mas geaf, sunu Healfdenes, on minne sylfes dom; 6a ic Be, beorn-cyning, bringan wylle, estum geywan. Gen is eall at 6e lissa gelong; ic lyt hafo heafod-maga, nefne Hygelac 6ec!" (2146b-51)

Beowulf attaches great importance to the fact that he did not undertake another obligation in accepting Hrothgar's treasure, that he did not change sides, that he is not a mere mercenary who hires out his service to anyone for payment, but that he is still to be regarded as a loyal supporter of Hygelac alone.2 This

'Cf. e.g. 11. 949b-56,1020-49, 1192-98a, 1866-67, 2101-04, etc. 'it should also be kept in mind that in his first speech to Hrothgar Beowulf

explicitly states that he has come as 'Higelaces mag ond magoaegn' (11. 407b48a).


behaviour is expressly approved of by the narrator and contrasted to the failure to fulfil this norm (11. 2165b-71). By delivering his treasure to Hygelac Beowulf achieves another purpose: he is placed in a powerful position which is in keeping with his valorous deeds and fame. Hygelac makes Beowulf one of the leading Geats by conveying seven thousand hides of land upon him in return:

Het Ba eorla hleo in gefetian, heaBo-rof cyning, Hre6les lafe, golde gegyrede; nas mid Geatum Ba sinc-mawum selra on sweordes had; pat he on Biowulfes bearm alegde, ond him gesealde seofan pusendo, bold ond brego-stol. Him was bam samod on Barn leodscipe lond gecynde, eard, del-riht, d r u m swiBor, side rice, pam Bar selra was. (2190-99)

These facts impressively illustrate the mutual social obligation of lord and man, cyning and begn, which the narrator effectively reinforces by thematizing the process in Beowulf's retrospective:

"lc him pa masmas, pe he me sealde, geald at guse, swa me gife6e was, leohtan sweorde; he me lond forgeaf, eard, del-wyn". (2490-93a)

Beowulf's career comes up to Hrothgafs expectations: in the end Beowulf is entitled to political power, a claim legitimated by his individual renown and his resulting possessions. His appoint- ment as king of the Geats effectively confirms the model of social advancement for the audience. This model is, however, restricted by the absolute priority of hereditary succession to a claim grounded on political power resulting from the fame of valorous deeds. It is Wealhtheow's essential function in Beowulf to advocate this maxim by safeguarding her sons' title to Hrothgafs throne, and thus she puts a brake on Beowulf's career at the Danish court. Nevertheless she presents his behaviour as an example worthy of imitation for the young warriors and her sons (11. 1170b-80a, 1219-27). Beowulf confirms the validity

BEOWULF AND THE TENTH CENTURY

of this legal conception by his own behaviour when Hygelac's succession is at issue. He refuses Hygd's offer, and as long as an heir apparent is alive, he is not willing to accept the title (11. 2369-79aI.l

This model of social rise, as it is presented in Beowulf, is valid for only a very restricted section of society. The text does not thematize social advancement from the status of a slave to that of a king, but, much more close to life and contemporary conditions, the possibilities for warriors to better their social standing within their own class. The means proposed is the performing of feats of valour, especially of those which earn the warrior fame and treasure. Sufficient property enables the owner to purchase land and privileges. The problem of social rise is again presented as underlying the tension between individual behaviour and social obligation in that the possibilities of advancement are restricted by keeping to traditional legal norms. Thus the text distinctly rejects any mere attempt at transforming power and fame into political rule against the legitimate claim of heirs apparent to the throne.

Historical transferability of the offers of identification In the preceding pages we have analysed the main offers of

identification the text of Beowulf itself provides by discussing the impact of the most important explicit and implicit text-pragmatic signals. We have isolated three interdependent problems which define the text's socio-political range of identification: the problem of good kingship; closely related to this, that of the loyal behaviour of followers; and also the problem of social rise in a warrior society. The treatment of these problems in the text presents models of conduct whose implications for a late tenth- century English audience are to be found by investigating their transferability to the socio-political conditions which define the communication situation. We leave here the traditional field of work of literary scholarship and enter that of the historian. The receptive-pragmatic approach to literature, however, essentially implies the combination of literary and historical study, and that

'cf. also his address to Wiglaf where he voices a similar claim: 11. 2729-32a.


not only at the 'margins of literacy1? Our aim is therefore to see the problems dealt with in Beowulf in relation to relevant social problems of Ethelred's reign (978-1016), which almost coincides with the period of the manuscript's c~mpilat ion.~

To begin with, the problem of good kingship is of outstanding importance in the overall political situation about the year 1000, characterized by crisis and instability. The picture of Ethelred which emerges from the account of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is in striking contrast not only in relation to what is propagated concerning kingly duties in Beowulf, but also, and this is certainly more important, in relation to his predecessors, especially Alfred, Athelstan, and Edgar. In Beowulf efficient leadership comprises protection of one's subjects and the useful employment of material resources. It is on account of the former quality that Aelfric singles out the English kings, because they had been victorious and had subdued their enemies3 On the contrary, Ethelred's reign is remembered in the various versions of the Chronicle as full of instances of inefficient leadership, treachery, and defeat during the continuous threat of invasion by Danish armies. However, Ethelred alone cannot be held responsible for all this, and it is true that there is no wholesale condemnation of him in the Chronicle. But, like any narrative source, it presents a tendentious and selective view of historical events; nevertheless it enables us to draw some inferences as to Ethelred's ability as king and military leader of the Anglo-Saxons.

Ethelred is continuously portrayed as sitting in council with the leading men of his country pondering the measures that could be taken against the invaders:

Agan se cyning pa georne to smeagenne wib his witan hwat him eallum radlicust puhte, p z t mon bissum earde gebeorghan mihte, a r he mid ealle fordon wurde. (C, D, E 1006)~

'cf. E. John, New Blackfriars, lii (1974, 172, 197 ff. 'of course we also refer to material from the reign of Cnut (1017-35). 3The OE Version of the Heptateuch, ed. S. J. Crawford (EETS 160, London,

19221, pp. 416-17. 4~nless stated otherwise, we always quote the C version of The Anglo-Saxon

Chronicle from M. Ashdown (ed.), English and Norse Documents Relating to the Reign of Ethelred the Unready (Cambridge, 19301, pp. 38-71; for all other references to the various versions of the ASC d. Thorpe's edition (RS 23, London,


To be sure, decisions were made, but they almost always proved to be unprofitable; it appears that Ethelred's ability as military leader must have seemed a total failure to his magnates. If he was with an English army or navy, then according to the Chronicle he either proved unable to hold his troops together or left his warriors alone: in 1006, after having called ealnejeodscipe to arms without profit, he is found collecting his feorm in Shrop- shire, when almost at the same time a supposedly local fyrd is defeated at the Kennet by a Danish here collecting 'mete and madmas ofer L mila . . . fram sae' (C, D, E 1006); in 1009, after again calling ealnejeodscype to arms to resist the invaders, the king, though able to intercept them with ealre fyrde, is unable to join battle because Ealdorman Eadric is supposed to have hindered the folc ready to do so, 'swa hit gyt aefre waes' (C, D, E 1009). In the same year Wulfnoth Cild rebels against the king after having been accused by a certain Brihtric, Ealdorman Eadric's brother. Wulfnoth entices twenty of the ships to him which Ethelred had ordered to be built as a measure of defence in 1008, and Brihtric, eager to "geearnian him hereword" (F 1009)~' follows after with eighty ships; but the ships are destroyed by storm, and Wulfnoth burns the rest. The Chronicle's evaluation of the king's behaviour is unambiguous:

Pa bis pus cub was to pam oberum scipum par se cyng was hu ba obre geferdon, hit was pa swilc hit eall radleas ware, and ferde se cyning him ham and pa ealdormen and 6a heahwitan, and forleton pa scipo 6us leohtlice, and pat folc pa p a t on bam scipon waron fercodon eft t o Lundene, and leton ealles peodscypes geswinc bus leohtlice forwurban. And nas se sige na betere, pe eal Angelcyn to hopode. (C, D, E 1009)

Sarcasm of the kind exhibited here by the chronicler appropri- ately characterizes a situation which may be further illustrated

1861). For a discussion of the relation between the versions and of the MSS cf. D. Whitelock, D. C. Douglas, S. I. Tucker (eds.), The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: A Revised Translation (London, 19651, pp. xi-xxxii; C. Clark, The narrative mode of The AngloSaxon Chronicle before the Conquest', in P. Clemoes and K. Hughes (eds.), England before the Conquest: Studies in primary sources presented to Dorothy Whitelock (Cambridge, 19711, pp. 215-35, discusses the literary quality of the ASC (cf. esp. pp. 224-30); the C version, as E. John pointed out to us, was almost certainly written from the depths of defeat.

'C, D, E 1009 read with minor variants, 'Brihtric . . . bohte pat he him micles wordes wyrcan sceolde.'


by Ethelred's failure to follow the English army's call to join it in 1016~; when the army is again called out, Ethelred is informed that he might be betrayed, and thus returns to London (C, D, E 1016). No wonder, then, that invading armies and harrying bands could move almost undisturbed all over ~ n ~ l a n d ? as any military action on the part of the English on a larger scale proved ineffectual and failed.3 It is with resignation that the Chronicle notes that when invading enemies

waron beeaston, ponne heold man fyrde bewestan, ond ponne hi wzron besuban, ponne was ure fyrd benorban. Donne bead man eallan witan to cynge, and man sceolde ponne rredan, hu man pisne eard werian sceolde. Ac peah mon ponne hwat radde, pat ne stod furbon anne mona8. A t nextan nas nan heafodman pat fyrde gaderian wolde, ac alc fleah swa he mast mihte; ne furbon nan scir nolde opre gelastan at nextan. (C, D, E 1010)''

Amid all his military failures Ethelred experienced success when in 1000 he ravaged nearly all of Cumberland, though even in his success he was by some misfortune not able to reach his ships, which were supposed to meet him at Chester; and, after all, the enemy's army was away, for the Chronicle bluntly states, 'And se unfribflota wzs bzes sumeres gewend to Ricardes rice' (C, D, E. F 1000).~

In the Chronicle Ethelred's campaigning is said to effect nothing but 'folces geswinc, and feos spylling and heora feonda for8byldingt (C, D, E, F 9991, to cause pzere landleode Acne hearm, pzt him naber ne dohte ne inghere ne uthere' (C, D, E 1006), and in fact proves rather to augment the distress of his

"Pa seo fyrd gesomnod was, ba ne onhagode heom barto buton pat ware, pat se cyng bar mid ware, and hi hafdon pare burhware fultum of Lundene.' The king apparently does not come, and everyone goes home: C, D, E 1016.

'Cf. the repeated statements in the ASC of the sort swa wide swa hi wolden, C, D, E 994; C, D, E, F 998; C, D, E 1001; C, D, E 1006; C, D, E 1010; etc.

3The uselessness of the English army or navy is repeatedly expressed: cf. C, D, E, F 999; C, D, E, F 1001; C, D, E, F 1006; C, D, E, F 1009; C, D, E 1016. It is of course also implicit in the many instances of supposed treason and flight from the enemies: cf. below, p. 318 f.

4Cf. a similar report of fear, C, D, E 1001. he only successful expedition of Ethelred against invading enemies is

reported for the year 1014 when he was able to surprise and defeat Cnut's still disorganized forces in Lindsey.


people than to better their situation. The inefficiency of Ethelred's policy is summed up in the Chronicle under the year 1011:

Ealle pas ungesal6a us gelumpon puruh unradas, pa t man nolde him a timan gafol beodon, oppe wi6 gefeohtan, ac ponne hi mast to yfele gedon haefdon, ponne nam mon fri6 and grit5 wi6 hi; and napelaes for eallum pissum gri6e and gafole hi ferdon sghweder flocmdum, and heregodon ure earme folc, and hi rypton, and slogon, (C, D, E 10111'

It is not only Ethelred's inability to protect his people against the invaders that characterizes the ineffectiveness of his leadership, but, what is more, the uselessness of his continuous efforts to pay invaders off by offering tribute and provisions must have been a heavy burden on his subjects. In about fifteen years, from 991 to 1014, the Chronicle notes the vast amount of 155,000 pounds paid in six instalments to various leaders of invading armies2; this must in fact have led to very heavy taxation during the last years of Ethelred's reign. The burden was further increased by the fact that each tribute was accompanied by metsung, the giving of provisions; in addition, the building of ships in 1008, 'swa feala swa naefre aer, paes 8e us bec secga8, on Angelcynne ne gewurdon on nanes cyninges daege' (C, D, E 1009), and the many instances when local communities bought peace from the enemy,3 all this must have heavily burdened the king's subjects. Incidental evidence in other texts may give us some idea of the measures taken to raise the money necessary for tribute, as when Archbishop Sigeric in 994 and Bishop Aethelric of Sher- borne had to sell estates to cope with the p r ~ b l e m , ~ or when, c.1006 to 1011, Ethelred gave six hides to a Dane called Toti because the latter had assisted the king ad reddendum tributum,

h he sentence 'oppe wi6 gefeohtan' is only in C. 'C, D, E, F 991 (10,000); C, D, E, F 994 (16,000); C, D, F 1002 (24,000), E (23,000);

C, D 1007 (36,000), E, F (30,000); C, D 1012 (48,000), E, F (8,000); C, D, E 1014 (21,000). There is no evidence in the ASC 1012 to justify Hollistefs interpretation that the tribute of 48,000 pounds 'was used for the support of mercenaries rather than the payment of tribute' (Military Institutions, p. 20); ASC clearly indicates that Thorkel demanded food and provisions for his service after the tribute had been paid to the whole army and the army had dispersed.

3ASC A 1001 (Walthamd; C, D, E, F 1004 (East Anglia); C, D, E, F 1009 (Kent); C, D, E 1013; C, D, E 1016 (London).

4~ 689, EHD, I, no. 119; d. Harmer, Writs, no. 63.


by paying him a pound of gold.' Wulfstan justly complains about the ~ n ~ y l d a , ~ and we need not wonder, then, that in 999 the Chronicle already dismisses Ethelred's policy and campaigning as feos spylling and feonda forbbylding (C, D, E, F 999) and that Wulfstan speaks of tribute paying as scandlice r ~ y d ~ y l d . ~ To be sure, the spending of money or giving of treasures is not a fact to be regularly entered in the Chronicle; but whereas Ethelred's predecessors, Athelstan and Edgar, are both remembered as being beorna beahgifa (A, B, C, D 937; A, B, C 9751, he himself seems rather to have given his favours to the wrong men, as when he endowed Pallig, who later betrayed him: 'ond eac se cyng him we1 gegifod hafde on hamon ond on golde ond seolfre' (A 1001). The financial tensions during Ethelred's reign can also be deduced from his laws, especially from the later codes4

Apart from his inability to fulfil the two basic kingly duties, Ethelred's treatment of his subjects appears to have been in keeping with the desolate moral state Wulfstan attacks in his sermon. Ethelred's foolish decree of the year 1003 that all Danes living in England should be slain on St. Brice's Day in the same year5 shows that he did not shrink from the murder of his subjects. The attempt to confiscate Aethelric's estate at Bocking on account of alleged treachery (K 704, EHD I no. 1211, the blinding of Aelfgar, Ealdorman Aelfric's son, apparently in revenge for his fathefs treason in 992 (C, D, E 9931, the murder of Aelfhelm,

1 C. Hart (ed.), The Early Charters of Eastern England (Leicester, 19661, no. IX, pp. 190 ff.; further reference to this edition will appear as ECEE. 2Sermo Lupi ad Anglos, ed. D. Whitelock (London, 19631, p. 54. 31bid. p. 59. 4See the repeated moral appeals urging his subjects to pay their dues, esp.

in 7 Atr. and 8 Atr.; the prominence which is given to the purity of the coinage leads one to suspect that some of Ethelred's subjects found their own way of supplying the necessary means: cf. 3 Atr. 8,16; 4 Atr. 5-9; 5 Atr. 26 (all references to Anglo-Saxon laws are to the edition of A. J. Robertson, Laws). See also the discussion of coinage by H. R. Loyn, The King and the Structure of Society in Late Anglo-Saxon England', History, xlii (19571, 90-2, his 'Boroughs and mints 900-1066', in R. H. M. Dolley (ed.), Anglo-Saxon Coins: Historical Studies presented to Sir Frank Stenton on the occasion of his 80th birthday (London, 19611, pp. 122-35, and his Anglo-Saxon England and the Norman Conquest (London, 19701, pp. 116 ff.

or evidence of the massacre cf. K 709, EHD, I, no. 127.


ealdorman of Deira and brother of Wulfric Spot, and the blinding of his sons Wulfheah and Ufegeat in 1006 (C, D, E 1006), and the murder of Morcar and his brother Sigeferth in 1015 (C, D, E, F 1015), make it possible to suspect Ethelred of capital crimes against his subjects. Both the murder of Aelfhelm and that of Morcar and his brother were supposedly committed by Eadric Streona, ealdorman of Mercia, and in both cases the victims were closely associated with Wulfric Spot, one of the richest thegns at the time (K 1298, EHD I no. 125), and to the king's sons Athelstan (K 722, EHD I no. 130) and Edmund, who married Sigeferth's widow against his father's will (C, D, E, F 1015). All these facts shed an unfavourable light on Ethelred and make it highly probable that he was an accomplice in these crimes.

The well-known negotiations of 1014 settled the conditions under which Ethelred could return to England after his flight to Normandy in 1013 (C, D, E 1013), and the Chronicle reports that Ethelred's leading men

cwadon p a t him nan hlaford leofra nare ponne hiora gecynda hlaford, gif he hi rihtlicor healdan wolde ponne he a r dyde. Pa sende se cyning his sunu Eadweard hider mid his ~renddracum, and het gretan ealne his leodscype, and cw& pat he him hold hlaford beon wolde, and alc para binga betan pe hi ealle ascunudon, and alc para binga forgyfen beon sceolde, pe him gedon oppe gecweden ware, wiWamiSe hi ealle anradlice butan swicdome to him gecyrdon. And man pa fulne freondscipe gefastnode mid worde and mid wedde on agpre healfe. (C, D, E, F 1014)

It seems evident, then, that Ethelred's ability as a ruler gave rise to much comment and some sort of active resistance, even if only the violation of the king's prerogatives is meant by this; but what is more important, he is only accepted on condition that he will rule his subjects more justly than he has done before. It is this yearning for justice which is also traceable in Ethelred's later law codes. Unfortunately the ordinances of 1014 concerning secular matters have not come down to us,' but we may gather some impression of what his subjects were longing for in his

'8 Atr. is said to be 'an bara geradnessa' of Ethelred and his councillors; as it deals only with Church matters, it is assumed that there was at least one code dealing with secular matters as well; cf. EHD, I, p. 448.


later years from other codes:

And witena gersednes is, pst man rihte laga upp arsere and slce unlaga geome afylle, and @et man h t e beon sghwylcne man rihtes wyr6e. (10 Atr. 3.2)'

The negotiations of 1014 and the events in 1016 reveal another important aspect of late Anglo-Saxon ideas of kingship: the king, even as incapable a ruler as Ethelred, is sacrosanct and cannot easily be got rid of. The institution of kingship has taken on theocratic features, which to a certain extent protect the Reges Dei Gratia, who symbolize it, a fact confirmed by Abbot Aelfric:

Ne msg nan man hine sylfne to cynge gedon, ac pat folc hafs cyre to ceosenne pone to cyninge pe him sylfum lica6: ac si66an he to cyninge gehalgod bi6, ponne hafs he anweald ofer pat folc, and hi ne magon his geoc of heora swuran asceacam2

This conception of kingship may have been one of the motives behind the English army's refusal to follow the atheling Edmund in 1016, who had rebelled against his father in 1015, though there may have been other reasons as we1L3 For a better understanding of the events of 1016 it seems necessary to distinguish between two kinds of fyrd and the respective authorities of command4 The kings official, an ealdorman, a high-reeve, or a reeve, being responsible for a restricted area, usually leads the local fyrd, whereas the king himself or an ealdorman especially appointed by him commands the fyrd on a supra-regional scale.' Without doubt, Edmund was in 1015 entitled to collect the local army of the Five Boroughs, because they had previously submitted to

'Cf. also 5 Atr. 1.1 and 6 Atr. 8-8.1. 2~omilies of Aelfric, ed. B. Thorpe (London, 18441, 1, p. 212. 3 ~ h e English army asked not only for Ethelred but also for the support of the

Londoners, who seem to always have withstood invading armies and only submitted to Swein in 1013 after 'eal peodscype hine hafde pa for fulne cyng' out of pure necessity (ASC C, D, E 1016; C, D, E 1013. For further evidence of their resistance see C, D, E, F 994; C, D, E 1009). Florence of Worcester gives another reason for the army's reluctance, saying that 'cum West-Saxonicis et Danis nolebant congredi Mercenses': see Military Institutions, pp. 89-91.

4Hollister makes the king's presence the criterion for the army's reluctance. 5 ~ o r local fyrds cf. ASC A 993 (=991); C, D, E, F 999; A 1001; C, D, E 1001;

C, D, E, F 1004; C, D, E, F 1006; C, D, E, F 1010 and C, D, E 1010; C, D, E 1016. Apart from the event in 1016, there are four incidents where the evidence is


him.' But when in 1016 he is supposed to have tried to unite the forces of the Five Boroughs with those of Mercia and ~ e s s e x , ~ he assumed a leadership which was beyond his authority: the king was neither present to lead the army himself nor does the atheling seem to have had his order to do so. This is fully brought out by the Chronicle's report:

Pa seo fyrd gesomnod was, tra ne onhagode heom trarto buton pat ware, pat se cyng Bar mid ware, and hi hzefdon psre burhware fultum of Lundene. (C, D, E 1016)

As the army was not entitled to fight under Edmund's command without the king's authorization, they dispersed. When the army was again called out shortly afterwards 'be fullan wite' (C, D, E 1016), the same happened again:

and man sende to tram cynge to Lundene, and bad hine pat he come ongean pa fyrde mid pam fultume tre he gegaderian mihte. (C, D, E 1016)

As the king failed again to lead the army, they again went home, and Edmund was left with his local fyrd in Northumbria. On the other hand, once Edmund had been chosen king and the submission of Wessex had been secured, there was no longer any question of refusal of fyrd service, as he was then entitled to call out supra-regional forces. The events of 1016 illustrate that Edmund's obvious attempt to transform political power into rule

inconclusive: C, D, E, F 993 and C, D, E 998 may refer to local fyrds (Lindseyt Northumbria resp. Dorsetwight), whereas in C, D, E, F 1003 and C, D, E 1010 there might have been an order of the king. In any case, there is clear evidence for the king heading the army or navy in C, D, E, F 1009 and C, D, E 1014, whereas in 992 he appointed Aelfric and others to lead the navy; in C, D, E, F 999 he called out army and navy, and again in C, D, E, F 1006 he ordered to be called out 'ealne peodscipe of Wesseaxum and of Myrcnum'.

'C, D, E, F 1015; pat folc eal him tobeah'; in 1015 Edmund married Sigeferth's widow 'ofer pzes cynges gewir and took possession of Sigeferth's and Morcaf s estates which the king had tried to seize.

21f Florence is to be trusted: see quotation above, p. 312, n. 3; we take 'Danis' in this context to refer to the Danelaw, and esp. to the Five Boroughs who had submitted to Edmund.

3~hitelock's translation of 'onhagode heom barto' as 'would satisfy them' is misleading; other entries in BT and BTS s.v. onhagian show that the meaning is 'have powef.


by taking the military initiative failed. Thus the institution of kingship turned out to be stronger than considerations of military necessity, even in a moment of extreme crisis. We have laboured this point because it has consequences for our discussion of loyalties and social rise.

Edmund's campaigns in 1016 and the successful resistance df the city of London against attacks in 994, 1009, 1013, and 1016 prove that the ~ n ~ l i s h were able to resist their enemies when under competent military leadership. During Ethelred's reign the invaders had to run several times against the stiff opposition of local English armies, but never against that of the king, as, for example, in 991 against ~~rhtnoth , ' ealdorman of Essex, at Maldon and in 1004 against Ulfketel and the East Angles at Thetford. It is small wonder, then, that Edgar's peaceful reign is particularly highly praised among Ethelred's contemporaries and that the submission of the cyningas ondeorlas to him is repeatedly referred to during Ethelred's reign.2

To sum up, during the reign of Ethelred English policy was indeed dominated by the problem of ineffective leadership on account of the king's weakness and unprofitable decisions, but positive models of conduct were provided by men like Byrht- noth, Ulfketel, and the Londoners, which enabled contemporaries to observe the tradition established by famous kings iuch as Alfred, Athelstan, and Edgar. In other words, the political and

'E. John, War and Society in the Tenth Century: The Maldon Campaign', TRHS, 5th ser. xxvii (1977), 173-95, discusses the evidence for Byrhtnoth's having been ealdorman of Northumbria, not Essex; probably the ealdormen of ~ercia, East Anglia and the earl of Northumbria were all half-kings and lords of other ealdormen: cf. esp. 181,187-8,193-5.

2 ~ h e quotation appears in a passage in alliterative prose in the ASC D, E, F 959 (F 9581, which is said by Whitelock to be 'in the style of Archbishop Wulf- stan of York' and to be influenced by Aelfric (EHD, I, p. 225, n. 4); cf. Aelfric's translation of judges (see above, p. 306, n. 3). The story of the six resp. eight kings submitting to Edgar appears in the ASC D, E, F972; it is repeated by Aelfric in his Life of St. Swithin (EHD, I, no. 239 G). In the anonvmous life of St. Oswald , . Edgar is said to have been feared by 'non solum insularurn principes et tyranni, sed etiam reges plurimarum gentium' (Vita Sancti Oswaldi, ed. J. Raine, RS 71, London, 1879,1, p. 425); the life of St. Dunstan notes that Edgar began to 'reges et tyrannos circumquaque sibi subicere' (Memorials of St. Dunstan, ed. W. Stubbs, RS 63, London, 1874, p. 37). With some reservations as to the date of the entries in the ASC, all sources are contemporary.


social situation of the late tenth-century provided people of the time with examples for both effective and ineffective leadership, a fact which is of eminent important for the determination of the transferability of the problems dealt with in Beowulf.

Thus the problem of good kingship, as it is presented in Beowulf, was not only transferable into a contemporary communication situation as an abstract intellectual consideration of ideal and reality, but as afoil to the concrete experience of past and present events and the resulting political situation. Effective kingship, as depicted in Beowulf by the career of Scyld Scefing and the long peaceful reign of Beowulf, was part of the common knowledge just as much as the urgent problem of weak leadership resulting from Ethelred's unsuccessful policy. Hrothgar's helplessness against Grendel's attacks, Heremod's crimes which make him a threat to the community, and the disastrous consequences of Beowulf's single combat against the dragon, were easily transferable into contemporary political and social conditions and deal with problems that immediately concerned the Anglo-Saxons of the late tenth century. Even the more hidden features of Beowulf, such as the problem of the usefulness of feats of valour or problems concerning the succession to the throne, are of primary importance at the time. Nevertheless, the problem of the king's social obligation to protect the community is without doubt the offer of identification which enabled a contemporary audience most easily to bring the society presented in Beowulf into relation with i ts own.

Apart from the obligations of a king, Beowulf extensively deals with those of a lord's followers; as we have seen, loyalty to his lord on account of their mutual interdependence was the most prominent of a follower's duties, especially when the lord was in military need. The fulfilment of this obligation is another problem which is of outstanding importance during Ethelred's reign. Though the military obligation of the Anglo-Saxons is still a matter of some dispute among historians,' it is becoming more

h he best comprehensive study is that of Hollister; cf. also E. John, Land Tenure in Early England (Leicester, 19601, and his Orbis Britanniae (Leicester, 1966); H. G. Richardson and G. 0. Sayles, The Governance of Medieval England (Edinburgh, 19741, pp. 42-61.


and more obvious, as charter studies are intensified, that the normal obligation to serve in the fyrd-be it local or supra- regional-arises from land tenure. The 'body of evidence indi- cating that all able-bodied freemen owed military service' is not as large as Hollister would like to have it,' but it may well be that the fyrd owing service from land tenure was in times of threat supplemented by all the freemen, and there is evidence enough to show that mercenaries were employed as well. It is, however, with the fyrd service founded on land tenure that we are mainly concerned here. The charters for land conveyances and other documents as well leave no doubt that the landed thegn's -

military service was based on a territorial obligation. In one of the law codes Ethelred urges his subjects to attend diligently to the three common burdens: And burhbota and bricbota aginne man georne on aghwilcon ende and fyrdunga eac and scipfyrdunga ealswa, a ponne neod sy, swa swa man gerade for gemanelicre neode. (6 Atr. 32.3)'

Apart from performing bridge and fortress work, to serve one's lord in expeditionis necessitatem? whenever the need for military service arises, is one of the services from which not even the Church's lands are exempt. Indeed, these common burdens are generally accepted and in Ethelred's time have already acquired somewhat of a tradition. In one of his charters we read that the land conveyed is not free from 'ipsis seruitiis quibus insistere quosque monet communis utilitas regni', and in another that the land conveyed is free from everything 'nisi ab expedicione sicut ab antiquis constitutum est'? Furthermore, the normal late

' ~ i l i t a r ~ Institutions, p. 25; cf. ibid. p. 30, with regard to the ASC: 'In all of these passages we are given reason to assume that the great fyrd was active, but in none of them can we be absolutely certain.' The other evidence cited refers to cities and boroughs; one should perhaps draw a clear distinction between a fyrd to be recruited from a town and that from the land around it because of the different recruitment regulations prevailing. Though there is some evidence for citizens owning estates, charter studies may one day pro- vide us with documentary proof for the distinction proposed.

'cf. 5 Atr. 26.1 and 2 Cn. 10. 3B 1135; for a discussion see John, Land Tenure, pp. 80-139 (edition of the

charter ibid. pp. 162-7). 4 ~ . Hart (ed.), The Early Charters of Northern England and the North Midlands

(Leicester, 19751, nos. XXXI, p. 219 and XXXIII, p. 232; further reference to this edition will appear as ECNE.


Anglo-Saxon recruitment system is connected with land in that the five-hide unit serves as 'a fiscal and military unit', with some variation in some regions such as the Danelaw and ~ e n t ? Every five hides or a number of bovates and carucates in the Danelaw had to supply one warrior for the king's or the local fyrd. What may be inferred from the charters is summed up in a later docu- ment, the Rectitudines Singularum Personarum, which also mentions other military services such as soweard, heafodweard, and fyrdweard :

Degenlagu is, pat he sy his bocrihtes wyr8e and pat he 8reo 8inc of his lande do: fyrdfareld and burhbote and brycgeweorc.2

Neglect of fyrd service entails a punishment: 5 Atr. 28 states that to desert an army led by the king is done at the risk of the deserter's life or his wergeld, whereas another manuscript reads 'him sylfum and ealre his aret; the same manuscript says that the forfeiture amounts to 120 shillings, if any other army is deserted. 6 Atr. 35 again claims the forfeiture of the deserter's ar, and 2 Cn. 77 (102s23) is still in the same vein:

And 8e man 6e fleo fram his hlaforde & fram his geferan for his yrh8e, sy hit on scypfyrde, sy hit on landfyrde, bolie he ealles &s 8e he age and his agenes feores, and fo se hlaford to 8am ahton and to his lande 8e he him a r sealde. And gyf he bocland habbe, ga Pat pam cingce to handa.

The fulfilment of one's military obligation is at the core of the problem of loyalty to one's lord. It is not surprising then, that exhortations to loyalty figure prominently in Ethelred's later codes :

And uton anne cynehlaford holdlice healdan and lif and land samod ealle werian, swa we1 swa we betst magon, and God almihtigne inweardre heortan fultumes biddan. (5 Atr. 3513

Loyalty is one of Wulfstan's favourite themes in his Sermo Lupi

' ~ i l i t a r ~ Institutions, pp. 38-58 (quotation on p. 40). '~ectitudines 1, ed. Liebermann, Cesetze, p. 444; EHD, 11, no. 172. 3 ~ a r t of the clause is repeated in 6 Atr. 1, 8 Atr. 44.1, and in 9 Atr. Expl. The

Latin text of 7 Atr. 1 reads 'ut omnes regi suo pareant, sicut antecessores sui melius fecerunt, et cum eo pariter defendant regnum suum'.


a d Anglos, and he threatens traitors with divine punishment in his homilies:

manslagan and rnanswican and pa, pa heora hlaford forlata8, par him mast neod by8 on folces neode, and wordlagan and wedlogan b e d ealle gode la8e, buton hi hit gebetan for gode and for worulde.'

But when we come to the actual application of the laws, we again find Ethelred unable to live up to his treason and desertion are a regular accompaniment of the English struggle against the invaders. The Chronicle alone, which certainly mentions only the major events of disloyalty, supplies us with a considerable l ist of examples. One of the notorious traitors of the time was Aelfric, ealdorman of Hampshire, who warned the enemy and deserted from the army in 992 (C, D, E 992) and again 'teah $a fort5 his ealdan wrencas' (C, D, E, F 1003) in 1003 by feigning to be ill and therefore unable to lead the fyrd. In 993 the leaders of the army, Fraena, Godwine, and Frythegyt, deserted, which led to general desertion (C, D, E, F 9931, a pattern the English army seems to have followed several times within one year in 998 (C, D, E 998). In 1001 Pallig leaves the fyrd only to join the Danish forces with the ships entrusted to him, although he had given pledges to Ethelred and 'eac se cyng him we1 gegifod haefde on hamon ond on golde ond seolfre' (A 1001). In 1003 the 'Frenciscan ceorl' Hugo, whom Queen Emma had made a reeve at Exeter, was responsible for the destruction of the borough (C, D, E, F 1003). In 1009 Wulfnoth Cild rebels against the king taking twenty of his ships (C, D, E, F 1009); in the same year Eadric Streona, ealdorman of Mercia, is supposed to have betrayed the English army (C, D, E 1009), and seems to have continuously changed sides in 1015 and 1016 (C, D, E, F 1015, 1016). In 1010 the East Angles left the men of Cambridgeshire alone in their fight against the enemies and Aelfmaer, abbot of

'~ulfstan, Homily LI, ed. A. Napier (Dublin, '1967l, pp. 274-5. he Promissio Regis, the Coronation Oath of Ethelred, has survived in a

translation (cf. Robertson, Laws, pp. 40-3); Ethelred promised among other things p a t ic behate and bebeode on eallum dornum riht and mildheortnisse' (art. 31.


St. Augustine's, Canterbury, let them enter the town in 1011 (C, D, E, F 1010,1011).

The banishment of Aelfric, ealdorman of Mercia, and the forfeiture of his estates in 985,' the substitution of Aelfhelm for Earl Thored of Deira in 992: and the expropriation of Wulfgeat in 1006 may have been the legal consequences of the offences dealt with here.3 Although we have evidence that Ethelred executed forfeiture of land in various cases, the most prominent traitors of the time, however, Aelfric of Hampshire and Eadric Streona, seem to have been left ~nmoles ted .~ The reasons may be manifold, and perhaps the ealdormen were in too powerful a position for the king to take measures against them, though it might equally prove the desolate state of affairs of jurisdiction in these troubled years. When Eadric was killed in 1016, the F version of the Chronicle notes that it was done 'swyse rihtlice' (F 1017), and Florence of Worcester and the Encomium Emmae agree that it was done because King Cnut distrusted men who had fled from the war and deceived their lord with guile.5

In a tract dating from about sixty years after the events it relates, Earl Uhtred of Northumbria is reported to have refused Cnut's request t o support him against Ethelred. Though the tract may be biased in crediting Uhtred with a feeling of loyalty he perhaps never had for Ethelred, a quotation may well help to round off our presentation of the problem, showing Uhtred in complete harmony with the ideal of the loyal follower, even if not

o or Aelfric's punishment by the synodal council of Cirencester cf. K. 703, K. 1312; H. P. R Finberg, The Early Charters of the West Midlands (Leicester, '19721, nos. 141,142; ECNE, no. 67; EHD, I, no. 123.

'cf. D. Whitelock, 'The Dealings of the Kings of England with Northumbria in the Tenth and Eleventh Centuries', in P. Clernoes (ed.1, The Anglo-Saxons (London, 19591, p. 80.

'cf. ASC C, D, E W16; ECNE, p. 366 f. For another case cf. K 719, ECNE, p. 343 s.n. Leofsige.

4They kept their ealdordoms until 1016 resp. 1017. Neither Fraena nor perhaps Frythegyst seems to have been held responsible for his desertion: cf. ECNE, pp. 335-7 s.n. Frana, Frithugist.

5~ncomium Emmae Reginae, ed. A. Carnpbell (London, 19491, bk. I, p. 218; cf. ECNE, pp. 14350. See the article by E. John, 'The Encomium Emmae Reginae: A Riddle and a Solution', in BIRL lxiii (197!3-80), 58-94.


with the facts as related in the Chronicle:

'Nullius rei gratia,' inquit, 'hoc agere volo, quia nec debeo; Ethelredo regi, quarndiu vixerit, fidern se~abo. Est enirn dorninus rneus et socer, cujus dono divitias et honores satis habeo. lllius traditor nurnquarn ero."'

To conclude, inefficient leadership and disloyal behaviour of followers are qualities which shook the order of late Anglo- Saxon society to i ts foundations in that they are interdependent, a fact which was clearly realized by contemporaries:

swa hit gecweden ys: ponne se heretoga wacai5, ponne bii5 eall se here swii5e gehindrad.' (C, D, E 1003)

Without doubt, the problem of loyal behaviour to one's lord, which is presented in Beowulf; in both its positive fulfilment so profitably rewarded and in its negative failure so severely punished, is of eminent importance to a late tenth-century English audience, as it is one of the most urgent problems of their own time. Beowulf's and Wiglaf's loyal behaviour towards their respective lords paradigmatically exemplifies the positive model of conduct, whereas the treatment of the disloyal warriors after the dragon fight serves to deter from the negative. The chaotic situation, the instability and insecurity during Ethelred's reign, however, did not permit the well-ordered conditions of Beowulf, in which the just punishment of traitors is the normal consequence of the crime they committed. Thus the model of conduct presented must have had an enormous appeal of identification for a contemporary audience, in that it is strikingly inconsistent with their own situation.

The third of the analysed offers of identification in Beowulf, the model of social rise, is closely related to the reward of loyal behaviour to one's lord. The transferability of this problem in a late tenth-century communication situation presupposes the possibility of advancement in contemporary society. Although it has often been denied that mobility is a feature of Anglo- Saxon society, more recent historical study has provided

' ~ e obsessione Dunelmi, ed. 0. Arnold (R5 75, London, 18821, 1, p. 218; cf. ECNE, pp. 143-50.


considerable evidence for the possibility of advancement in late Anglo-Saxon times. The erm manic con;eption of a static type of society based on personal obligation is giving way to a prefeudal one grounded on contractual and territorial obligations, and there are even indications suggesting that rise from a lower to a higher class was not out of the ordinary1; it is of course mainly with the upper class that we are concerned here.

Charters, wills, and other documents reveal that the king, the ealdormen, and the more prominent thegns were sometimes closely related2; in fact there seems to have been a policy of politically motivated marriages which created strong affinities among the leading men of the realm in order to secure loyalties and to prevent conflicts3 Their wills, furthermore, indicate a tendency among them to strengthen their positions by leaving their estates to their equals, though the bulk often went to the Church4 Nevertheless, the thegnly class--leaving the king and the ealdormen apart-is neither exclusive nor uniform in i ts social structure. This is fully brought out by texts dealing with status; they are to be found in a manuscript compiled c.1070, but they are clearly connected with Wulfstan and his Polity, though probably not written by him5:

And gif ceorl gepeah, pat he hafde V hida fullice agenes landes, bellan and burhgeat, set1 and sundornote on cynges healle, ponne was he panon for6 pegenrihtes wyr6e.

'CePyncdo 2, Liebermann, Cesetze, pp. 456-7. The story of the shepherd becoming king is perhaps rather one of 'Godes gifa' than of realistic eventu- ality in late Anglo-Saxon society; but see the whole passage of Be sacerdan, 135-40, ed. K. Jost, Die 'Institutes of Polity' (Bern, 19591, pp. 256-7.

'AS an exemplary study which well illustrates this point d. C. Hart, 'Athelstan "Half King' and His Family', ASE, ii (19731,115-44.

'~h t red married a daughter of Ethelred, and the atheling Edmund married Sigeferth's widow; see other examples in ECNE, pp. 253380, s.n. Aethelflaed of Damerham, Ealdgyth, Ordulf I thegn, etc.

4 See esp. the wills of Wulfric Spot and of Athelstan, nos. XVll and XX in D. Whitelock, Wills (all further references are to page and line of W).

SFor the authorship see D. Bethurum, 'Six Anonymous OE Codes', IECP, xlix (1950), 449-63; d. also EHD, I, no. 51, and Jost, Polity, pp. 32-3. Article 5 of Gepynabo is quoted from the Textus Roffensis in Liebermann's ed. For a good discussion of the thegnly class see Loyn, History, xlii (19571, 87-100, and his Anglo-Saxon England, pp. 212-23.


And se pegen pe gepeah, Pat he penode cynge and his radstafne rad on his hirede, gif se ponne hafde pegn, pe him filigde, pe to cynges V hida hafde and on cyninges sele his hlaforde penode and priwa mid his arendan gefore to cynge, se moste si88an mid his fora8e his hlaford aspelian and his onspace geracan mid rihte, swa hwar swa he porfte. And gif pegen gepeah, p a t he wear8 to eorle, ponne was he sywan eorlrihtes weor8e. (Cepyndo 2, 3, 51 And la, oft hit getima8, paet peowetlingc geearna8 freotes at ceorle, and ceorl wyr8 purh eorlgife pegenlage wyr8e, and Pegn wur8 Purh cynincges gife eorldomes wyrtre. (Be sacerdan 1351

And gif ceorlisc man gepeo, Paet he habbe V hida landes to cynges utware, and hine man ofslea, forgilde man hine mid twam pusend primsa. And peah he gepeo, paet he habbe helm and byrnan and golde k t e d sweord, gif he pat land nafa8, he bi8 ceorl swa peah. (Nordleoda laga 9,101'

These theoretical texts clearly show that in late Anglo-Saxon times the structure of society was not at all regarded as being static in that they explicitly describe the qualifications which had to be fulfilled for the improvement of one's social standing. The key position on the scale of social advancement, the thegnly status, was obviously dependent on landed property of at least five hides of bocland. The individual standing of a thegn within his own class was evidently evaluated by the amount of land he possessed. ~ifferentiations can be further demonstrated from two of Ethelred's charters: one distinguishes between thegns who are styled minister and those who are miles,2 and another one differentiates between disciferi, pincernae, and mir~istri.~ These distinctions can also be proved from Ethelred's law that no one but the king himself is allowed jurisdiction over a king's thegn (3 Atr. II), and finally there is Cnut's famous differentiation between the heriot of a kyncges dzgn and that of a medemra degen, together with some further regional or political variation (2 Cn. 711.~

'cf. also ar t 5; there seem to have been thegns with less than five hides later: Military Institutions, p. 77.

ZECEE, no. X, p. 193 ff. 3 ~ ~ ~ ~ , no. XXIV, p. 187ff; for the use of this distinction in Edgar's charters cf. B

1270; ECNE, p. 182, n. 3; B 1211; ECNE, no. XXIII, p. 179 ff.; B 1297; ECEE, no. VII, p. 165 ff.

4~ichardson/~ayles argue that this distinction of the heriot dates from earlier times: cf. Governance, p. 59, n. 4; to the wills there cited could be added those of Aethelwold (W 30. 7-91, Wulfric Spot (W 46. 6-81 and Wulgeat (W 54. 18-20), which also reveal the payment of heriots comparable to those fixed in Cnut's secular code.


These facts allow us to draw the conclusion that social rise was not only theoretically possible, but actually took place during Ethelred's reign. It is, however, difficult to reconstruct the careers of individual thegns in the present state of charter studies in every detail and with the necessary accuracy, as the material has not yet been fully dealt with. In view of the fact that there is no adequate modern biography of Ethelred or Cnut, it is not surprising that the careers of, for example, Eadric Streona, Sigeferth, Morcar, or Wulfric Spot are even more obscure.' What we can present the reader with, then, is consequently a patch- work of piecemeal indications gathered from various charters and wills. A good idea of what might have happened to a pros- pering thegn can be obtained from the witness lists of charters, when, for example, Aethelmaer 'the Fat', who witnessed from 983 to 1014, is in 1006 referred to as "mines hlafordes discBen" (K 7151, whereas later in his life he occasionally signed as ealdor- man2; or when Wulfgeat 'rises gradually over the years from almost bottom to near the topt3 until he witnessed second of forty-five thegns in 1005. A typical career for a man of the higher level of the thegnly class is that of Aethelwine 'Dei amicus', son of Athelstan 'Half King', who witnessed in a low or middle position from 958 to 962, when he became ealdorman of East Anglia, heading the list of ealdormen from 983 to 9904 Though the witness lists eventually disclose changes of rank of certain persons, they do not tell us anything about the reasons, and it is only when we get to the most powerful of them that we can add further information gathered from other sources to the mere names in the lists; after all we shall not be very far wrong in

'A model for future study is the biography of Athelstan 'Half-King' by Hart, ASE, ii (19731, 115-44; the same author's short biographical notes in ECNE, pp. 253380, are of value, and we are greatly indebted to them. An essay on Wulfric Spot and further prosopographical information is in P. H. Sawyer's recent ed. of The Charters of Burton Abbey (British Academy); the papers read at a symposium for the millenary of Ethelred's accession in 1978 have now been published in the British Archaeological Research reports. At the time of writing these materials were not available to us; we owe the information to E. John.

'ECNE, p. 286. 31bid. p. 367; for other examples cf. s.n. Brihtwold thegn, Leofwine thegn,

Odda, Ordulf I, Ulfketel 'Snilling', etc. 4 ~ o r his biography cf. Hart, ASE, ii (19731,113-8.


assuming that a large group of the thegnly class did not witness at all. It is from the wills of prominent men of Ethelred's reign that we may get some indications as to the more modest beginnings of a career, although here we are on even less safe ground with regard to the identity of persons and their positions in society.

Ealdorman Aethelmaer, who died in 982, bequeathed to his 'hiredcnihtum v pund to gedule' (W 24. 331, whereas a certain Wulfwaru left for her Yeower cnihtum k lmare ond klfwerde one Wulfrice ond Wulfstane anes bendes on twentigum man- cussum goldes' (W 64.19-21). True, there is still some dispute as to the meaning of OE cniht, and while it may seem unsafeto infer anything from the evidence cited except the fact that the cnihtas got money, there are, on the other hand, strong indications which suggest that a cniht could be a warrior': we find Aelfric translating the Latin miles by cniht, and the Cambridge Thegns' Guild Statute makes the possibility of a cniht drawing a weapon liable to a penalty, the payment of which is his lord's responsibility.2 With all reservations as to the exact meaning and duties of the cnihtas mentioned in the wills, the money left to them may have helped them to attain a better social standing, as may also have been the case with Aethelwine, cniht of the atheling Athelstan, who was given that sword p e he me a r sealde' (W 60.20). Again, we know nothing as to his function as Athelstan's follower, but if he was a warrior, it may well have been a sword he won in battle and presented to his lord, who apparently was a great lover and collector of weapons.3 There can be

or a discussion of the evidence cf. Governance, pp. 55-61. We should like to propose in this connection that BeowuH 1. 535b cniht-wesende should not be translated 'as a boy', but 'as a young warrior'. Beowulf would be guilty of a pleonasm as he immediately adds that he and Breca were still on geogd- feore (11.536b-37a); compare also 1.372, where Hrothgar says that he knew him cniht-wesende, in a context which might suggest Beowulf's earlier career (11. 377-8la). A general discussion of the meanings of OE cniht is in H. Back, The Synonyms for 'Child', 'Boy', 'Girl' in Old English (Lund, 1934).

2~overnance, pp. 56-7; for the Thegns' Guild see EHD, I, no. 136. 3~thelstan left many swords to various persons, among them his brother

Edmund, to whom he bequeathed 'pas swurdes pe Offa Gng ahte', together with 'pas swurdes mid ?am pyttedan hiltan'; that Athelstan employed servants who looked after his weapons is evident from the fact that he left 'klfnobe minon swurdhwitan pas sceardan malswurdes' (W 58. 17-19, 60. 20-1).


little doubt that money or treasures bequeathed enabled the legatees to prosper and eventually to buy land, as may have happened to Wulfgar cniht who received land from Wulfric Spot, which his father had already bought for him (W 48. 6-71. The atheling Athelstan left his estate at Chalton to his father Ethelred, 'buton pam ehta hidan pe Ic Almzre minon cnihte geunnennen haebbet (W 58.13141. As the charter granting the land to Aelmaer cniht has not survived,' there is no possibility of illustrating the details, but in both instances the legatees &ay have been thegns afterwards, if the land granted was bookland. This was perhaps the case with Toti the Dane, who gave Ethelred 'in adiutorium unius libre argenti appensionem de auro purissimo ad reddendum tributum' and who 'pro premio' got six hides in return: if Toti did not yet belong to the thegnly class, this grant made him a thegn as the land given to him as a reward was exempt from all duties except the three common burden^.^ Land granted as a favour, land bought from the king or some leading man; treasures received, could eventually help a thegn to an amelioration of his position until he perhaps rose to the uppermost level within his class. The wills reveal that most of the land which did not go to the Church was left to thegns who were already among the powerful and prominent men of their class. Morcar, the thegn of the Five Boroughs, is generously remembered in Wulfric Spot's will, as are also Aelfhelm, the ealdorman of Deira, and his sons Wulfheah and ufegeat4; Sigeferth, Morcaf S brother, is left an estate by the atheling Athelstan (W 60.11-121, and the atheling's brother Edmund lronside is bequeathed all of Athel- stants estates in East Anglia and others as well. In view of the close connections between the king's sons, Athelstan and Edmund, Wulfric Spot, Sigeferth, Morcar, and Aelfhelm and his

' w e disagree with Whitelock, who is inclined to regard the three first persons named Aelmaer in the will as one and the same, though they are differentiated as Aelmaer cniht (W 58.131, as Aelmaer without distinction (W 58. 301, and as Aelmaer discden (W 60. 99). There is no evidence to support Whitelock's contention that 'the term cniht was applied only to the higher officials of the household' (W 1273; the only evidence she is able to cite is this Aelmaer discden whom she believes to be identical with Aelmaer cniht (W 170).

2 ~ ~ ~ ~ , no. IX, p. 190 ff. 3 ~ o r bookland bought see e.g. B 1040; ECNE, no. XXXII, p. 228 ff; W 56.15-20. 4 ~ o r the probability of these identifications cf. W 153,155.


sons, it might appear that they were building up a strong opposition against the king by bequeathing land to one another, which Ethelred seems to have tried to destroy by taking measures against Aelfhelm and his sons, and against Sigeferth and Morcar, though not against his son Edmund; but this is of course outside our main interest here.

Even though we have not been able to pursue a single thegn's career in detail, the outlines of social rise during Ethelred's reign should have become reasonably clear. The formulas in the charters strongly suggest that grants of land as well as purchase of land were regarded as a favour on the part of the grantor or vendor, as they almost always state that the land conveyed goes to 'meo fideli ministro . . . pro sua humilima deuocione', to 'honorabili meo rninistro', to 'meo fideli homini'.' The frequent accentuation of loyalty indicates a reward, though we have found no charter giving detailed reasons or occasions for this; they sometimes simply say that it is 'for his godra gearnunge'.2 It is nevertheless obvious that in a society which was in constant and urgent need of valiant warriors, the reason for a reward either of money or of land would often have been military merit. We catch a glimpse of a thegn's striving for renown, when the Chronicle reports that Brihtric Bohte pact he him micles wordes wyrcan sceolde' (C, D, E, F 1009); we have a later report that Uhtred, 'magnae strenuitatis juvenis et militiae aptissirnus', was more successful in performing valiant deeds and thereby gaining Ethelred's favour and generosity:

His auditis, rex Ethelredus vocato ad se juvene prafato, vivente adhuc patre Waltheow, pro merito sua strenuitatis et bello quod tam viriliter peregerat, dedit ei comitatum patris sui, adjungens etiam Eboracensium c~m i t a t um .~

'cf., in order of quotation, ECNE, nos. XXV, XXXI, XXXV, pp. 193 ff., 219 ff., 241 ff.

2 ~ . Earle, A Hand-Book of the Land-Charters and Other Saxonic Documents (Oxford, 1888), p. 238.

3 ~ e obsessione Dunelmi, p. 216. See also the fabulous story of Siward, one of Uhtred's successors to the earldom of Northumbria, who is reported to have defeated a dragon and was afterwards promoted by the Confessor, even before his victory over invading Norsemen; thus, the story continues, ancient historiae among the English have come true, that the progeny of a bear and a noble woman, will free the glorious English king from his enemies: cf. Yita et


The model of social rise presented in Beowulf can thus be shown to be transferable to the conditions of advancement in Ethelred's reign. Money, treasures, and above all landed possessions, which form the basic requirement for social prestige in both societies, are given in return for loyalty to one's lord, which implies military service. Beowulf's loyalty to Hygelac and his feats of valour are rewarded by the king establishing his thegn as the most prominent of his leading men. The behaviour pattern recommended in Beowulf must have been of great appeal in a society where military ability and loyal behaviour were qualities badly needed. The various stages of Beowulf's earlier career, which show him working his way up from a moderate cniht to a position surpassing that of an ealdorman in Ethelred's time, finally becoming king, enabled the audience to reflect on their own possibilities of advancement. Even the subtler shades of meaning of this offer of identification can be shown to be relevant for a late Anglo-Saxon audience. The importance attached to weapons as symbols of status and prestige is almost identical in both societies, in the fictitious world of the text as well as in late Anglo- Saxon England, and-pragmatically more interesting-the limits of political power and military ability, as experienced by Edmund in 1016, demonstrate the effective working of the conception of theocratic kingship, just as in Beowulf hereditary rights prove to be more powerful than legitimation by personal renown and property. In both cases the conception of kingship efficiently confines the possibility of transforming political power into rule, even if the situation demands better leadership.

Thus we have shown that the three pragmatically analysed offers of identification in Beowulf, the obligation of the king, that of his followers, and the possibility of social rise related to valorous deeds and loyalty to one's lord, were not at all meaning- less at the time of the communication situation, in that they deal with problems that those contemporaries could identify with their own, as their situation was either in keeping with or in obvious contrast to the one presented in the fictitious model of reality. These problems have been proved to be more than a mere

passio Waldevi Cornitis', in Original Lives of Anglo-Saxons, ed. J. Ciles (Caxton Society 16, London, 18541, pp. 5-9.

THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

monastic pastime; they were of vital importance at a time when political necessity set high standards for any king or follower who had to cope with the problems arising from the situation. In fact we believe that to assume antiquarian interest as the sole reason for an adaptation of the Beowulf matter about the year 1000 seriously reduces the meaning of the text; nor is it sufficient to say that there was 'a kind of revival of the heroic in the tenth century1': the problems dealt with in Beowulf go to the core of the problems of Ethelred's reign, and the audience would have greatly appreciated its contribution to their solution.

The audience As we said at the beginning, a text constitutes i ts own audience

by dealing with a restricted section of society, and this is certainly true of Beowulf. The text reduces the socio-historical reality to a fictitious society consisting almost exclusively of warriors; and it is their interests and the way they see themselves which define the meaning of the text in the communication situation. In asserting its claim to be listened to and to offer patterns of conduct it mainly addresses a group among Ethelred's subjects whose vital interests are to a large extent connected with the offers of identification. If we try to be more concrete, it is self- evident after all we have said about Ethelred's reign that we have to regard primarily the class of thegns as the addressees of Beowulf. H. R. Loyn has rightly pointed out that from Edgar to Cnut the thegns are treated as one class despite the obvious range of positions within it; there was a class sense which found its expression in the law codes and in the fixing of ~ e r ~ e l d . ~ The importance of the thegnly class in late Anglo-Saxon society can hardly be overstated; as Loyn puts it:

. . . there emerged in later Anglo-Saxon England a class bound by special legal bonds to the king and to his representative, ealdorman or earl, a class that may in its growth represent the territorialization of political power. The thegn was the typical member of such a class, and his function was twofold: he was a skilled fighting man; he was also a landholder substantially responsible for the maintenance of local peace in his community or comrnunitie~.~

'M. McC. Catch, Loyalties and Traditions (New York, 19711, p. 54. 2~oyn, History, xlii (19571, 9fi-9. 'lbid. p. 98.


It is this class that makes up the audience of Beowulf. It is self- evident that an actual communication situation with all i ts possible recipients cannot be reconstructed, as no information about the individual reception of literature has come down to us. That is why we can only give a somewhat broad description of the audience by associating the text with the thegnly class whose members could most easily transfer i ts offers of identification.

It might seem surprising that communication of literature is supposed to have been possible in such turbulent times as those of Ethelred's reign, especially so as 'it is a human enough assumption that a poem glorifying Scandinavian heroes would not be popular when their descendants were plundering the country'.' Despite this latest statement of a commonplace in Beowulf criticism, it seems highly probable that the military campaigns in these years were not a national conflict between England and Scandinavia; modern historical study has to a large extent corrected some of the major preconceptions and exaggerations concerning the effects of the Scandinavian invasions in that, in spite of all calamities, the social structure of the realm remained virtually intact. It is especially in such a situation that the pragmatic impact of the offers of identification and the models of conduct propagated in Beowulf reveal their full effect by giving expression to the most urgent problems of the time. It would, in fact, be to underestimate the potentialities of literature if we did not accept the fact that in literary texts older material may well be transformed and adapted to the demands of a contemporary audience and imbued with the latter's own view and conception of the world they live in.

'D. Pearsall, Oe and ME English Poetry (London, 19m, p. 23. At the time of writing, N. Jacobs, 'Anglo-Danish Relations, Poetic Archaism and the Date of Beowulf: A reconsideration of the evidence,' Poetica Uokyo) viii (19m, 23-43, was not available to us. Jacobs questions the traditional assumptions of literary critics who assume a feeling of national hatred between Anglo-Saxons and Danes, which is in turn supposed to have prevented a reception of Beowulf by an English audience post 825. He also deals with the proposals of Reynolds and Langenfelt to date the composition of Beowulf later than usual. Dr. Busse has now completed Old English Literature and its History: A critique of the current system of assumptions in its interpretation (to appear in 1982) in which he deals with the problems of dating OE poetry, and, by a critical hermeneutic analysis of Exodus, shows what new insights may be gained when OE poetry is seen in the historical context of the late tenth century.

BEOWULF AND THE TENTH CENTURY'

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