5 - Beyond Good and Evil: Apocalyptic Vision without Judgment in the Nibelungenlied. An Essay

Summary

IN THE FIFTEENTH Âventiure of the post-Nibelungenlied epic, Kudrun, the heroine of the same name, daughter of the Hegeling monarchs Hetel and Hilde, is kidnapped by a jilted suitor, Hartmut of Ormanie, despite the fact that Kudrun has become engaged to Herwig of Seeland. Hetel and Herwig, supported by yet a third—albeit equally unsuccessful—suitor and hitherto adversary of Hetel, Siegfried von Morland, set off in pursuit of Kudrun. While Hetel tends to appear at this juncture as the somewhat hapless sovereign and father-protector, his old “Haudegen” (warhorse), Wate, emerges as the de facto leader of the Hegeling force. Wate knows “‘ir rehte wazzerstrâze’” (“the sea-route they [the Normans] will have to take”) and responds promptly to Hetel's query, “‘wâ solte ich hie kiele hân?’” (837, 1; “Where can I find ships here?”):

… “sîn mac wol werden rât.

got tuot mit gewalte † als ez umbe in stât. †

jâ weiz ich hie vil nâhen bî uns in dem lande

wol sibenzic guoter kiele; die stênt mit guoter spîse ûf einem sande.

Die hânt pilgerîne gefüeret ûf den sê.

die müezen wir gewinnen, swie ez uns dar nâch ergê.

si suln gedulticlîchen ûf dem sande erbîten,

unz wir mit unsern vînden uns versüenen oder … gestrîten.” (838–39)

[“There may be a solution to this, for God acts in powerful ways, as is his nature. I know that seventy ships can be found in this country. They are on a beach not far from here and are full of provisions. They are being used by pilgrims in their journey across the sea. We must requisition them, regardless of the consequences. The pilgrims will just have to wait patiently on the beach until we have either made peace with our enemies or (defeated them) in battle.”]

The Hegelings, particularly Wate (but he is not alone), display a remarkable degree of callousness toward the three thousand pilgrims, whose ships, along with more than five hundred of their number, are requisitioned. As Wate states, “‘swie ez uns dar nâch ergê’” (“whatever may subsequently befall us”/“regardless of the consequences”), they have to procure the ships. He appears to employ some deception when encountering the pilgrims, intimating that he (only) wishes to purchase any provisions they might be ready to sell (840, 3).