Freawaru
Encyclopedia
Freawaru, introduced in l. 2020 of the poem Beowulf
, is the daughter of King Hroðgar
and Queen Wealhþeow
.
Freawaru is a freoðuwebbe or "peaceweaver" (an important concept in the poem) who is married to Ingeld
, King of the Heaðobard
s and son of Froda . This marriage was created as a means of ending a feud between the two kingdoms (due to the murder of Froda by the Danes). It was an unsuccessful attempt to end the feud. An old warrior
urged the Heaðobards to revenge, and Beowulf
predicts to Hygelac
that Ingeld will turn against his father-in-law Hroðgar. In a version given in the Danish chronicle Gesta Danorum
(see below), the old warrior appears as Starkad
, and he succeeded in making Ingeld divorce his bride and in turning him against her family.
(book 6), Freawaru also appears, but unnamed. Froda and Ingeld are rendered as Danish kings, in conflict with the Saxons, and Freawaru is a Saxon princess.
The Danish king Frotho (Froda) was killed through treachery by a Saxon named Swerting
(Swertingus). Frotho's son Ingeld (Ingellus) lived a wanton life and married one of Swerting's daughters. This angered Starkad
so much that he enlisted at the Swedish king Halfdan
's (Haldanus) court instead. As Ingeld continued his sinful life and did not do his duty to avenge his father, Starkad appeared during a banquet that Ingeld had with the sons of Swerting, his father's slayer. Starkad strongly admonished Ingeld and humiliated his queen who tried to calm Starkad with kindness and her costly ribbon. Starkad succeeded in exciting Ingeld to kill Swerting's sons and to divorce his Saxon bride.
Beowulf
Beowulf , but modern scholars agree in naming it after the hero whose life is its subject." of an Old English heroic epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative long lines, set in Scandinavia, commonly cited as one of the most important works of Anglo-Saxon literature.It survives in a single...
, is the daughter of King Hroðgar
Hroðgar
Hroðgar, King Hroþgar, "Hrothgar", Hróarr, Hroar, Roar, Roas or Ro was a legendary Danish king, living in the early 6th century....
and Queen Wealhþeow
Wealhþeow
Wealhþēow is a legendary queen of the Danes in the Old English poem, Beowulf, first introduced in line 612.-Character overview:She is the Wulfing queen of the Danes. She is married to Hroðgar, the Danish king and is the mother of sons Hreðric and Hroðmund and also of daughter Freawaru. The meaning...
.
Freawaru is a freoðuwebbe or "peaceweaver" (an important concept in the poem) who is married to Ingeld
Ingeld
Ingeld or Ingjald was a legendary warrior who appears in early English and Norse legends. Ingeld was so well-known that, in 797, Alcuin wrote a letter to Bishop Higbald of Lindisfarne questioning the monks' interest in heroic legends with: 'Quid enim Hinieldus cum Christo?' - What has Ingeld to...
, King of the Heaðobard
Heaðobard
The Heaðobards were possibly a branch of the Langobards, and their name may be preserved in toponym Bardengau, in Mecklenburg, Germany....
s and son of Froda . This marriage was created as a means of ending a feud between the two kingdoms (due to the murder of Froda by the Danes). It was an unsuccessful attempt to end the feud. An old warrior
Starkad
Starkad, Old Norse: Starkaðr or Störkuðr, Latin: Starcaterus, and during the late Middle Ages, also known as Starkodder, was a legendary hero in Norse mythology....
urged the Heaðobards to revenge, and Beowulf
Beowulf (hero)
Beowulf is a legendary Geatish hero and later turned king in the epic poem named after him, one of the oldest surviving pieces of literature in the English language.-Etymology and origins of the character:...
predicts to Hygelac
Hygelac
Hygelac was a king of the Geats according to the poem Beowulf. He was the son of Hrethel and had brothers Herebeald and Hæthcyn. His sister was married to Ecgtheow and had the son Beowulf. Hygelac was married to Hygd and they had the son Heardred, and an unnamed daughter who married Eofor...
that Ingeld will turn against his father-in-law Hroðgar. In a version given in the Danish chronicle Gesta Danorum
Gesta Danorum
Gesta Danorum is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th century author Saxo Grammaticus . It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark and is an essential source for the nation's early history...
(see below), the old warrior appears as Starkad
Starkad
Starkad, Old Norse: Starkaðr or Störkuðr, Latin: Starcaterus, and during the late Middle Ages, also known as Starkodder, was a legendary hero in Norse mythology....
, and he succeeded in making Ingeld divorce his bride and in turning him against her family.
Scandinavian sources
In Gesta DanorumGesta Danorum
Gesta Danorum is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th century author Saxo Grammaticus . It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark and is an essential source for the nation's early history...
(book 6), Freawaru also appears, but unnamed. Froda and Ingeld are rendered as Danish kings, in conflict with the Saxons, and Freawaru is a Saxon princess.
The Danish king Frotho (Froda) was killed through treachery by a Saxon named Swerting
Swerting
Swerting was one of the Saxon ancestors of king Aella of Deira.He may be identical with the Swerting briefly mentioned in Beowulf, where he had the son or son-in-law Hrethel, who was the maternal grandfather of the hero Beowulf.-The Heaðobard tradition:A Swerting of the same timeframe also...
(Swertingus). Frotho's son Ingeld (Ingellus) lived a wanton life and married one of Swerting's daughters. This angered Starkad
Starkad
Starkad, Old Norse: Starkaðr or Störkuðr, Latin: Starcaterus, and during the late Middle Ages, also known as Starkodder, was a legendary hero in Norse mythology....
so much that he enlisted at the Swedish king Halfdan
Halfdan
Halfdan was a late 5th and early 6th century legendary Danish king of the Scylding lineage, the son of king named Fróði in many accounts, noted mainly as the father to the two kings who succeeded him in the rule of Denmark, kings named Hroðgar and Halga in the Old English poem Beowulf and named...
's (Haldanus) court instead. As Ingeld continued his sinful life and did not do his duty to avenge his father, Starkad appeared during a banquet that Ingeld had with the sons of Swerting, his father's slayer. Starkad strongly admonished Ingeld and humiliated his queen who tried to calm Starkad with kindness and her costly ribbon. Starkad succeeded in exciting Ingeld to kill Swerting's sons and to divorce his Saxon bride.