Сборник самых известных английских легенд. Уровень 1. Сборник

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      Beowulf[24]

      Once, long ago[25], the Danish land owned a mighty monarch, Scyld Scefing[26], the founder of a great dynasty, the Scyldings[27]. This famous king Scyld had come to Denmark in a mysterious manner, since no man knew whence he sprang. As a babe he drifted to the Danish shore in a vessel loaded with treasures; but no man was with him, and there was no token to show his kindred and race. When Scyld grew up he increased the power of Denmark and enlarged its borders; his fame spread far and wide among men. He and his warriors sailed far over the sea, conquered many tribes and forced them to pay tribute to him. His glory shone undimmed until the day when, full of years and honours, he died.

      When Scyld died, his men took his body to the shore of the ocean where, in the harbour, stood Scyld’s ship, ready for a journey across the ocean. They laid him on the deck of the ship. Then they brought there many treasures, also his weapons and armour, and put a golden banner high over his head. Then, with sad hearts, they let the ocean carry him away. Nobody ever knew what happened to that ship. The sorrowing people restored Scyld to the mysterious ocean from which he had come to them.

      After Scyld, his grandson ruled the fierce vikings. The descendants of Scyld ruled and prospered till the days of his great-grandson Hrothgar[28].

      Hrothgar was a mighty warrior and conqueror, who won glory in battle, and whose fame spread wide among men, so that nobly born warriors, his kinsmen, were glad to serve as his bodyguard and to fight for him loyally in strife. He was very successful in war and his warriors obeyed him gladly; they received much tribute, and soon his groups of warriors grew into a large and mighty army.

      Then Hrothgar decided to build a great hall, the greatest and tallest and most beautiful in the world, in which he could hold feasts[29] and banquets, and could entertain his warriors and thanes[30], and visitors from afar. He sent orders to many tribes to come and help to build the hall. They came and very quickly the banquet hall was ready. So King Hrothgar constructed the great hall Heorot[31] for his people. In it he, his wife, and his warriors spent their time singing and celebrating. At the first grand feast that Hrothgar held in the great banquet hall, he gave many precious gifts of rings and jewels and other things to his thanes and warriors. The musicians played their harps, the bards sang, and there was plenty of the best food and wine on the tables. Thus Hrothgar and his men lived a joyful and happy life until a cruel stranger appeared among them.

      What happened? Day by day[32] the feasting continued, until its noise and the festal joy of its revellers aroused a mighty enemy. Grendel[33] was a terrible troll-like monster, a man-eater, powerful, evil and cruel. This monstrous being, half-man, half-fiend, dwelt in the fens near the hill on which Heorot stood. Terrible was he, dangerous to men, of extraordinary strength, human in shape but gigantic of stature, covered with a green horny skin, on which the sword would not bite. His race, all sea-monsters, giants, goblins[34], and evil demons, were offspring of Cain[35].

      Grendel was pained by the noise. He did not like people and he did not like the merry life in the banquet hall. Grendel was one of mankind’s most bitter enemies[36]; his hatred of the joyous shouts from Heorot, and his determination to stop the feasting grew on. One night he went to the hall to see what the king and his men did there. The door was open and he saw a company of thanes and warriors sitting at the tables or lying on the floor, and all of them were asleep after the feast. Grendel attacked the hall and killed and devoured thirty of Hrothgar’s warriors while they were sleeping. But Grendel did not touch the throne of Hrothgar, for it was protected by a powerful god.

      When dawn broke, and the Danes[37] from their dwellings around the hall entered Heorot, great was the lamentation, and dire the dismay, for thirty noble champions had vanished, and the blood-stained tracks of the monster showed but too well the fate that had overtaken them. Hrothgar’s grief was profound, for he had lost thirty of his dearly loved bodyguards, and he himself was too old to wage a conflict[38] against the foe – a foe who repeated night by night his awful deeds.

      The people were looking at the tracks of the terrible stranger on the floor of the hall. They knew that it was Grendel. “He will come again and again,” they said. “We are not safe here now.” Hrothgar and his people, helpless against Grendel’s attacks, abandoned Heorot. No champion would face the monster, and the Danes, in despair, deserted the glorious hall of which they had been so proud. Many of the thanes were frightened, and ran away and hid themselves in places where they thought the monster could not find them.

      There were now fewer men in the banquet hall. And when Grendel came again one night, there was a very long struggle, but Grendel was a demon and had the strength of a demon. And so he killed some of the men and again ran away with them to the moor and devoured them.

      Hrothgar could do nothing. The monster came now not only to the banquet hall, but to the houses of the people, and soon many houses were empty. And Grendel continued to kill.

      The deeds of Grendel became known in all the countries of that time. Far and wide[39] spread the tidings of this terrible oppression, and many champions came from afar[40] to offer King Hrothgar their aid, but none was heroic enough to conquer the monster, and many mighty warriors lost their lives in a vain struggle against Grendel. At length[41] even these bold adventurers ceased to come; Grendel remained master of Heorot, he came often at night to the hall and slept there, and the Danes settled down in misery under the bondage of a perpetual nightly terror, while Hrothgar grew old in helpless longing for strength to rescue his people from their foe.

      Twelve long years passed and there was great sorrow in the land. Hrothgar wanted to give Grendel much gold to end the war between them, but the monster refused. The banquet hall was empty now at night and there were no more feasts there. Those who had to cross the moors were in great danger, for Grendel watched for them, and caught and killed many. Many strong and brave men often sat in council[42] with Hrothgar to decide what to do.

      Beowulf, a young warrior who lived in a land far from the Danes, heard of Hrothgar’s troubles and left his homeland to help Hrothgar.

      When Beowulf with his men came to Hrothgar, he said: “O great king! We have heard about the terrible monster that comes in the dark nights and destroys your people. Perhaps I can help you to overcome this demon.”

      “I knew you when you were a child,” said Hrothgar. “Your father was a brave warrior. Now his son has come for a friendly purpose. Your fame has come hither before you; seafarers have told me that you have the might of thirty men in your hand-grip. Great joy it is to know of your coming. If you succeed in killing Grendel, great treasures will I bestow upon you.”

      Beowulf said, “I know that this monster does not use any weapons, so I shall fight with him with my hands, without armour. If he kills me, he will take my body to his home. Then I ask you to send my armour back to my country.”

      The aged King Hrothgar, who had listened attentively while the hero spoke of his

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