BoAr: FNQ: Hereward IV

http://boar.org.uk/ariwxo3FNQsupIV.htm Latest edit 31 Aug 2008.

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De Gestis Herwardi Saxonis.

IV.

Qualiter quendam tyrannum, vicerit, et quomodo insignem ipsius gladium acceperit.

Dehinc ad quendam regulum Cornubiæ, Alef vocabulo, Herwardus perrexit, ubi unum nefandissimum virum et valde superbum invenit, Ulcus Ferreus nomine, promereri sibi jam diu expectans ob fortitudinem mirificam reguli pulcherrimam filiam. Hic ergo in duabus gentibus Scottorum et Pictorum ex illorum cognatione bellator fortissimus habebatur et quasi secundus illi ex omnibus gentibus non fuerit. Ubicumque enim commanebat, multi ad eum quasi ad spectaculum confluebant magnanimitates ejus et opera audituri ; ex quibus libenter e falso in multis aures tundebat audientium nullum hominem sibi nec duos aut tres comparans. Illo autem hoc sæpe ante regales et ipsum regulum faciente, quodam tempore Anglorum gentem nimis exprobrabat absque virtute virium esse, et in bello nil valere, confirmando se ex multis uno impetu quadam vice tres occidisse. Ad quod indignans Herwardus deridendo coram omnibus illi respondit : Quoniam illos viros quos a te dicis interfectos in mente tua concepisti, et ex corde tuo illos non a matre natos genuisti, dignum est ut uno ictu oris interfecti sint ; unde sponsa ejus futura, filia memorati regis, in nimio cachinno soluta est. Quod factum tyranno nimis grave erat, unde statim cominans Herwardo intulit : Vere meis propriis ex manibus nunc interfectus jaceres, ni solum domini præsentia obesset. Cum Herwardus : Vide ne miles robustissimus, ut jactitas, juvenem dolo præveniat. Alioquin si prosecutus absque dolo fueris quem dicis, me semper præparatum reperies, ut gloriosior, si venerit, fiat triumphus. Ipse vero hujus verborum non immemor, forte in nemore quodam vicino domini prædicti Herwardum armis vacuum offendit. En, inquit continuo tyrannus, tempus optatum adest de inimico ulciscendi, etc. Hodie ex crinium tuorum munere in cachinno vel in dolore illa solvetur, quæ olim ex verborum tuorum pertinacia gavisa, cæsariem tuam laudabat et faciem et responsionis arrogantiam. Ad quod subjugens Herwardus dixit : Nudum opprimere, armis et viribus valde consitum, inclito gloria non est, sed tamen si accumbam, horæ unius spatium virtus si tibi adest cedat, presbitero res meas ad erogandas pauperibus traditurus, et illico reversurus. Et concessit conjurans et fidem accipiens ne alicui patefaceret. Qui abiens, armis munivit se. Idcirco namque sic exorsus est fari ad eum. Mox autem e vestigio Herwardus reversus, ad primum judicationis signum, tyranni in femora fixit jaculum, et pariter congressi diu sese ictibus cædebant. Juvenis ergo semper conferendo et inferendo ictus subterfugiebat, et inclinabat ac reclinabat se, sæpe improvisos et occultos interjaciens ictus. Ut autem magnanimitatem juvenis ille vir execrandus percepit, manibus nitebatur eum comprehendere quia fortior illo erat et nimis statura prolixior. At semper Herwardus subterfugiebat quousque inclinato illo et a tergo minus cauto, illi gladium in inguine subtus loricam infixit. Qui sentiens sibi in sanguine madens imminere mortem, ait ; Heu ! heu! ecce robustissimus, in fortitudine confisus incautus a puero prudente obrutus jaceo! O utinam spatam præ manibus, quam sero meæ sponsæ futuræ tradidi, si diva mecum fortuna fuisset, unde tantos oppressi, mihi adesset, uno ictu semianimis saltem vindicaturus, quam a quodam tyranno dimicando accepi. Præterea pueri domus strepitum armorum audientes, cucurrerunt illuc, et domino suo interim rem patefecerunt, qui armatos illuc dissociare eos misit, juvenis necem timens, et venientes, morte præventum, quem non estimabant, invenerunt. Qua de re denique Herwardo comprehenso, quia gener reguli jam ille nefandus vir dicebatur, et ad illum eum perduxerunt. Confestim ergo omnis illa infesta natio consurgere in eum voluerunt, robustissimum illorum dolo fuisse interfectum asserentes. At iras eorum ipse regulus, ut juvenis salvaretur, compescens, eum in custodiam misit, de eo quasi judicaturus quid fieret. Filia vero ejus in eventu valde exhilarata, formidolosum hominem et incompositum membris quam nimium verita, Herwardo plurimum provide in custodia ministravit, et in fine datis muneribus ac prædicto ense sibi tradito clam discedere fecit, rogans immemor sui ne fieret, ac illum non absque signis ac etiam indiciis ad regis Hiberniæ filium misit, per literas mandans qualiter ab eo inimicus ejus interfectus est.

The Exploits of Hereward the Saxon

IV.

How he overcame a certain tyrant, and took his famous sword.

From this place Hereward went to a certain Prince of Cornwall, called Alef ¹, where he found a most wicked and very haughty man, Ulcus Ferreus (Iron Sore) by name, who had now for a long time been expecting, because of his wonderful courage, to win the very fair daughter of the Prince. This man in the two nations of the Scots and Picts ², from his relationship to them, was esteemed a very brave warrior, as though there could be none to compare with him in any nation. For wherever he was staying, many used to flock to him, as to some great sight, for the sake of hearing of his achievements ; and he used readily, though untruly, to din these into the ears of his hearers, boasting that no one man, nor any two or three, could be a match for him. But as he often did this before the members of the royal family and before the Prince himself, he was one day grossly abusing the nation of the English as being without the virtue of strength, and worth nothing in war, declaring that he had with one blow killed three men out of a number, on a certain occasion. Indignant at this, Hereward in derision before them all answered him : “Since you have imagined in your mind those three men who you declare were slain by you, and have begotten those sons not of a mother but of your own heart, it is quite right they should be slain by one blow of your mouth.” At this his future wife, the daughter of the aforesaid King, was dissolved in laughter. This gave great offence to the tyrant, so that he forthwith threatened Hereward, “In truth you should soon lie slain by my own hands, save only for the presence of the lord.” To whom Hereward replied “See that so sturdy a knight as you boast yourself to be does not use craft against a young man. Otherwise if you shall without craft pursue him of whom you speak, you will always find me ready, so that your triumph, if it comes, may be the more glorious.” He then, mindful of his words, by chance met with Hereward, when he was unarmed in a neighbouring grove of the lord’s aforesaid. “Lo,” said the tyrant at once, “now is the wished for time for avenging myself on my enemy. To-day from a gift of your hair, she shall be dissolved in laughter or in sorrow, who once was pleased at the insolence of your words, and praised your head of hair, and face, and the arrogance of your reply.” To which Hereward answered, “For one well provided with arms and strength to crush the helpless, is no glory to a man of renown ; but yet if I fall, let your generosity, if you have any, grant me the space of one hour, that I may give my property to the priest to bestow upon the poor, and then I will come back.” And he assented with an oath, and took his promise to reveal the affair to nobody. So he departed and armed himself ; for it was on that account that he began to speak to him. Hereward then having soon returned, at the first signal of onset pierced his javelin into the tyrant’s thighs, and struggling together for a time they smote one another. Then the young man ever by advance and attack avoided the blows, and kept falling back and retreating often inflicting blows not expected or open. But when the execrable man saw the spirit of the youth, he strove to grasp him with his hands for he was stronger and much taller. But ever Hereward avoided him, until, as he was bending down and rather incautious Hereward thrust his sword into his groin just beneath his breast-plate. Whereupon he, drenched in blood, feeling that death was at hand, said “Alas! alas! see how I, so very strong, trusting in my strength, from lack of caution lie overthrown by a crafty boy! Oh if that blade were now at hand, which I lately handed to my future spouse, with which I overcame such mighty men, if fortune befriended me, with one blow half-dead as I am I would at least avenge myself, - that blade which I received from fighting with a certain tyrant.” Thereupon the boys of the house, hearing the noise of arms ran to the spot and meanwhile told the affair to their lord, who sent armed men thither to separate them, fearing the young man’s death ; and when they came they found, to their surprise the tyrant dead. Upon this Hereward was apprehended, because that execrable man was already spoken of as the prince’s son-in-law, and they took him to the prince. Then immediately the whole of that hostile nation wished to rise against him, declaring that their mightiest man had been slain by trickery. But the prince himself, that the young man might be saved, restrained their wrath, and kept him in custody, as though intending to decide what should be done with him. But his daughter, greatly delighted at what had happened, as she excessively dreaded that terrible and misshapen man, with great care ministered to Hereward in custody, and in the end, having presented him with gifts and the aforesaid sword which had been delivered to her, caused him to depart in secret desiring him to remember her, and sent him not without marks and tokens to the son of the king of Ireland, informing him by a letter how her enemy had been slain by him.

Commentary.

How the details of this story came to Hugh Candidus, unless by way of Hereward and Leofric Deacon would be hard to explain.

1. ↑ As a word, Alef seems more related to Middle Eastern alphabets than to a man’s name. However, The Lincolnshire Domesday Book (Morris 13,33), mentions a 1065 owner called Allef, translated as Aleifr, at Maidenwell (TF3279), on the Wolds, south of Louth. It would thus appear to be a Scandinavian personal name, though it calls the Welsh name, Aled to mind.

At this time, although Cornwall had for many years, been more or less in the sphere of influence of Wessex, it was not yet a county of England but still in the hands of the original, British people. If we can accept the general veracity of the present text, Hereward’s very open presence there is evidence of Cornwall’s independence from England in 1057. How far there were pockets of Scandinavian settlement, as in Ireland and Scotland, for example, is not clear. It is possible that this ‘prince’ was a Norwegian, representing the spread of settlement from Orkney, through the Irish Sea, along the trade route of the European Atlantic seaboard. The Irish connection could then have been with the people of Scandinavian descent on the east coast of Ireland.

Variation in the extent of the Cornish language.

(Thanks to Wikimedia Commons)

There is however, a hint in Chapter VI, that the court of the ‘Cornish prince’ was of the post-Roman Brythonic, Cornish (Kernewek) culture. The map shows the boundaries of the use of the Cornish language at various dates. In 1057 it will not have been further west than that of 1300 so the Cornish culture was present in Hereward’s time. The mid-twentieth century English counties dated generally from the tenth and early eleventh centuries so it is likely that the modern county boundary was drawn to separate England from Cornwall; effectively on the basis of the linguistic difference. Except in the north, the 1300 line on the map is only a few miles from the county boundary so it is reasonable to think that the cultural boundary will have approximated to the latter in Hereward’s time.

2. ↑ The Picts were the aboriginal inhabitants of Britain north of the Forth and Clyde. Very little of their ephemeral culture has survived so the extent to which they were of the same Brythonic culture as those further south is still debated. The term ‘Scott’ seems like ‘Viking’, originally applied to raiders or pirates. The difference was in their being Celtic Hibernians, while the Vikings came to Britain later and were Scandinavians. The earliest writings about north-west Europe come from Greek travellers, who came with Mediterranean traders to collect tin and similar British products. Ιt is from the Greek word Κελτοι, (Keltoi) that we first learn of the Celts, who then lived also in central Europe. Though it is more speculative, it seems that the Greek σκοτιασ, (scotias), one who keeps to the dark (Liddell Scott), is a likely origin for the name. This entered Latin and part at least, of Hibernia (Ireland) came to be called Scotia, a name which was transferred to northern Britain with the Dal Riadic people. For an example of such an early Greek traveller see Pytheas of Massilia.

Map of Dál Riata at its height, c. 580–600.

Pictish regions are marked in yellow.

(Thanks to Wikimedia Commons)

Under pressure from within Hibernia (Ireland), the kingdom of Dal Riad contracted territorially in Ireland and expanded into north-west Britain from Argyll. Later, others Gaels gave their name to Galloway. In the end, the Scotts gave their name to the country which was inhabited by five cultural groups; the Picts, the Britons of the south, the Hibernian Scotts, the Angles who took over from some of the British in the south-east and the Norwegians in the far north. These arrived last of all and some of the territory they occupied was formally added to the country of Scotland only in 1472.

The stories in this and the following group of chapters draw attention to the ready links along the Atlantic coastal trade route around 1060. The sea was the highway; we should not be surprised to find that some of the centres of cultural and economic activity like Iona, Whithorn, St. David’s and Penwith were in the far west of Britain. In 1057, Hereward was part of it.

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