Hroðgar - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Hroðgar, King Hroþgar, "Hrothgar", Hróarr, Hroar', Roar, Roas or Ro was a legendary Danish king, living in the early 6th century.

A Danish king Hroðgar appears in the Anglo-Saxon

Anglo-Saxons

Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...

epic

Epic poetry

An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...

s Beowulf
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...

and Widsith
Widsith
Widsith is an Old English poem of 144 lines that appears to date from the 9th century, drawing on earlier oral traditions of Anglo-Saxon tale singing. The only text of the fragment is copied in the Exeter Book, a manuscript of Old English poetry compiled in the late 10th century containing...

, and also in Norse saga

Norse saga

The sagas are stories about ancient Scandinavian and Germanic history, about early Viking voyages, the battles that took place during the voyages, about migration to Iceland and of feuds between Icelandic families...

s, Norse poems, and medieval Danish chronicles. In both Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian tradition, Hroðgar is a Scylding

Scylding

Old English Scylding and Old Norse Skjöldung , meaning in both languages "People of Scyld/Skjöld" refers to members of a legendary royal family of Danes and sometimes to their people. The name is explained in many text by the descent of this family from an eponymous king Scyld/Skjöld...

, the son of Healfdene, the brother of Halga

Halga

Halga, Helgi, Helghe or Helgo was a legendary Danish king living in the early 6th century. His name would in his own language have been *Hailaga ....

, and the uncle of Hroðulf. Moreover, in both traditions, the mentioned characters were the contemporaries of the Swedish king Eadgils

Eadgils

Eadgils, Adils, Aðils, Adillus, Aðísl at Uppsölum, Athisl, Athislus or Adhel was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century....

; and both traditions also mention a feud with men named Froda and 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...

. The consensus view is that Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian traditions describe the same person.

Names

Hroðgar, Healfdene, and other names used above are Anglo-Saxon forms. In non-Anglo-Saxon sources, the names of all these characters appear in more or less corresponding Old Icelandic, Old Danish, or Latinized versions. Hroðgar's name would in Proto-Norse have been *Hrōþigaizaz (famous spear, i.e. Roger
Roger
Roger is primarily a common first name of English, French and Catalan usage, from the Germanic elements hrod and ger meaning "famous with the spear." The Latin form of the name is Rogerius, as used by a few medieval figures.The name Roger was transmitted to England by the Normans after the...

). It should be noted, however, that the corresponding Old Norse name Hróarr and its variations are not derived from *Hrōþigaizaz, but from the very close names *Hrōþiwarjaz (famous defender) or *Hrōþiharjaz (famous warrior). However, these two names which resulted in Hróarr in Scandinavia, did not have any corresponding Anglo-Saxon form, and so Hroðgar was their closest equivalent.

Anglo-Saxon poems

Hroðgar appears in two Anglo-Saxon poems

Anglo-Saxon literature

Old English literature encompasses literature written in Old English in Anglo-Saxon England, in the period from the 7th century to the Norman Conquest of 1066. These works include genres such as epic poetry, hagiography, sermons, Bible translations, legal works, chronicles, riddles, and others...

, Beowulf
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...

and Widsith
Widsith
Widsith is an Old English poem of 144 lines that appears to date from the 9th century, drawing on earlier oral traditions of Anglo-Saxon tale singing. The only text of the fragment is copied in the Exeter Book, a manuscript of Old English poetry compiled in the late 10th century containing...

. Beowulf gives the fuller account of Hroðgar and how the Geat

Geat

Geats , and sometimes Goths) were a North Germanic tribe inhabiting what is now Götaland in modern Sweden...

ish hero 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:...

visited him to free his people of the trollish creature Grendel

Grendel

Grendel is one of three antagonists, along with Grendel's mother and the dragon, in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf . Grendel is usually depicted as a monster, though this is the subject of scholarly debate. In the poem, Grendel is feared by all but Beowulf.-Story:The poem Beowulf is contained in...

. Widsith only mentions Hroðgar, Heorot

Heorot

Heorot is a mead hall described in the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf as "the foremost of halls under heaven." It served as a palace for King Hroðgar, a legendary Danish king of the sixth century. Heorot means "Hall of the Hart"...

, his nephew Hroðulf and their enemy Ingeld

Ingeld

, but can complete Beowulf in some cases where Beowulf does not give enough information. This is notably the case concerning the ending of his feud with Ingeld.

Beowulf

In the epic poem Beowulf
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...

, Hroðgar is mentioned as the builder of the great hall Heorot

Heorot

, and ruler of Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

when the Geatish hero Beowulf arrives to defeat the monster Grendel

Grendel

.

When Hroðgar is first introduced in Beowulf, it is explained that he was the second of four children of King Healfdene: he had an older brother, Heorogar

Heorogar

Heorogar was a Danish king who appears in the Old English poem Beowulf as the eldest son of Healfdene , and the brother of Hroðgar , and Halga...

, who was king before him; a younger brother Halga

Halga

Halga, Helgi, Helghe or Helgo was a legendary Danish king living in the early 6th century. His name would in his own language have been *Hailaga ....

; and a sister, who was married to the king of Sweden. The sister is not named in the manuscript and most scholars agree this is a scribal error, but suggested names are Signy and Yrsa

Yrsa

Yrsa, Yrse, Yrs or Urse was a tragic heroine of Scandinavian legend.She appears in several versions relating to her husband, the Swedish king Eadgils, and/or to her father and rapist/lover/husband Halga and their son Hroðulf...

.

The poem further tells that Hroðgar was "given victory in war" and so his kinsmen eagerly followed him. He is both honest and generous: "He broke no oaths, dealt out rings, treasures at his table". When Beowulf leads his men to Denmark, he speaks of Hroðgar to both a coast-guard and to Hroðgar's herald: he calls Hroðgar a "famed king", "famed warrior", and "protector of the Scylding

Scylding

s" (the ruling clan

Norse clans

The Scandinavian clan or ætt was a social group based on common descent or on the formal acceptance into the group at a þing.-History:...

), and describes him as "old and good." The poet emphasizes that the Danes "did not find fault" with Hroðgar, "for that was a good King". When Beowulf defeats Grendel, Hroðgar rewards Beowulf and his men with great treasures, showing his gratitude and open-handedness. The poet says that Hroðgar is so generous that "no man could fault him, who wished to speak the truth."

Hroðgar was married to a woman named 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...

, who was a Helming, probably defining her as a relative of Helm, the ruler of the Wulfings. When Hroðgar welcomes Beowulf, he recalls his friendship with Beowulf's family. He met Beowulf's father Ecgþeow

Ecgþeow

Ecgþeow or Edgetho or Ecgtheow is a character in the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf. He is not mentioned outside the Beowulf manuscript, and it is not known whether he was based on a real person. He belonged to a probably Swedish family called the Waegmundings...

"when I first ruled the Danes" after the death of Heorogar; he laments Heorogar's fall ("He was better than I!") and recalls how he settled Ecgþeow's blood feud

Blood Feud

"Blood Feud" is the twenty-second and final episode of The Simpsons second season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on July 11, 1991. In the episode, Mr. Burns falls ill and desperately needs a blood transfusion. Homer discovers Bart has Burns' rare blood type and urges...

with the Wulfings. Hroðgar thanks God for Beowulf's arrival and victory over Grendel, and swears to love Beowulf like a son.

The poem introduces Hroðulf (Hrólfr Kraki in Scandinavian sources) as Hroðgar's supporter and right-hand man; and we learn that Hroðulf is Hroðgar's nephew and that "each was true to the other". The common piece of information that Hroðgar's younger brother Halga

Halga

Halga, Helgi, Helghe or Helgo was a legendary Danish king living in the early 6th century. His name would in his own language have been *Hailaga ....

is Hroðulf's father comes from Scandinavian sources (see below), where Halga was unaware that Yrsa

Yrsa

was his own daughter and either raped or seduced her. Yrsa herself was tragically also the result of Halga raping a woman.

Wealhþeow has borne Hroðgar two sons, Hreðric and Hroðmund, and Hroðulf is to be regent if Hroðgar dies before his sons are grown. (Since Hroðgar is an old man at this time—he tells Beowulf he has been king for "fifty winters"—and Wealhþeow's two sons are not yet grown, it seems likely that Wealhþeow is much younger than Hroðgar, and may not be his first wife.)

Hroðgar is plunged into gloom and near-despair after Grendel's mother

Grendel's mother

Grendel's mother is one of three antagonists in the work of Old English literature of anonymous authorship, Beowulf . She is never given a name in the text....

attacks the hall and kills Hroðgar's best friend and closest advisor; but when Beowulf advises him not to despair, and that "it is better to avenge our friends than to mourn overmuch", Hroðgar leaps to his feet and thanks God for Beowulf's wise words, and leads the Danes and Geats out to attack the small lake (mere

Mere (lake)

Mere in English refers to a lake that is broad in relation to its depth, e.g. Martin Mere. A significant effect of its shallow depth is that for all or most of the time, it has no thermocline.- Etymology :...

) where Grendel's mother lives.

After Beowulf defeats Grendel's mother, Hroðgar rewards him again, and then preaches a sermon in which he warns Beowulf to beware of arrogance and forgetfulness of God.

Beowulf takes his leave of Hroðgar to return home, and Hroðgar embraces him and weeps that they will not meet again (because Hroðgar is a very old man). This is Hroðgar's last appearance in the poem.

When Beowulf reports on his adventure to his lord 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...

, he mentions that Hroðgar also had a daughter, Freawaru

Freawaru

Freawaru, introduced in l. 2020 of the poem Beowulf, is the daughter of King Hroðgar and Queen Wealhþeow.Freawaru is a freoðuwebbe or "peaceweaver" who is married to Ingeld, King of the Heaðobards and son of Froda . This marriage was created as a means of ending a feud between the two kingdoms...

; it is not clear whether Freawaru was also the daughter of Wealhþeow or was born of an earlier marriage. Since the Danes were in conflict with 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, whose king Froda had been killed in a war with the Danes, Hroðgar sent Freawaru to marry Froda's son Ingeld

Ingeld

, in an unsuccessful attempt to end the feud.

Beowulf predicts to Hygelac that Ingeld will turn against his father-in-law Hroðgar. Earlier in the poem, the poet tells us that the hall Heorot was eventually destroyed by fire, see quote (Gummere's translation):

Sele hlīfade

hēah and horn-gēap: heaðo-wylma bād,

lāðan līges; ne wæs hit lenge þā gēn

þæt se ecg-hete āðum-swerian

æfter wæl-nīðe wæcnan scolde.

....there towered the hall,

high, gabled wide, the hot surge waiting

of furious flame. Nor far was that day

when father and son-in-law stood in feud

for warfare and hatred that woke again.

It is tempting to interpret the new war with Ingeld as leading to the burning of the hall of Heorot, but the poem separates the two events (by a ne wæs hit lenge þā meaning "nor far way was that day when", in Gummere's translation). According to Widsith (see below), Hroðgar and Hroðulf defeat Ingeld, and if Scandinavian tradition (see the more detailed discussion below) is to be trusted Hroðgar himself is killed by a relative, or by the king of Sweden, but he is avenged by his younger brother Halga. Halga dies in a Viking expedition; Hroðulf succeeds him and rises in fame, and according to Hroðulf's own saga and other sources, Hroðulf's cousin and/or brother-in-law Heoroweard

Heoroweard

Heoroweard is a character who appears in Beowulf and also in Norse legends, where he is named Hjörvarðr or Hiartuar. If he existed in real life, his name would have been Proto-Norse *Heruwarduz....

slays Hroðulf (is this the event referred to as the burning of Heorot?). Heoroweard himself dies in that battle, and according to two sources, this happens only a few hours later, as an act of vengeance by a man loyal to Hroðulf, called Wigg. This is the kin-slaying end of the Scylding dynasty.

Widsith

Whereas Beowulf never dwells on the outcome of the battle with Ingeld, the possibly older poem Widsith
Widsith
Widsith is an Old English poem of 144 lines that appears to date from the 9th century, drawing on earlier oral traditions of Anglo-Saxon tale singing. The only text of the fragment is copied in the Exeter Book, a manuscript of Old English poetry compiled in the late 10th century containing...

refers to Hroðgar and Hroðulf defeating Ingeld at Heorot

Heorot

Hroþwulf ond Hroðgar heoldon lengest

sibbe ætsomne suhtorfædran,

siþþan hy forwræcon wicinga cynn

ond Ingeldes ord forbigdan,

forheowan æt Heorote Heaðobeardna þrym.

Hroðulf and Hroðgar held the longest

peace together, uncle and nephew,

since they repulsed the Viking-kin

hewn at Heorot

Heorot

Heaðobard

The Heaðobards were possibly a branch of the Langobards, and their name may be preserved in toponym Bardengau, in Mecklenburg, Germany....

's army.

and Ingeld

Ingeld

to the spear-point made bow,

This piece suggests that the conflict between the Scyldings Hroðgar and Hroðulf on one side, and the Heaðobards Froda and Ingeld on the other, was well-known in Anglo-Saxon England. This conflict also appears in Scandinavian sources, but in the Norse tradition the Heaðobards had apparently been forgotten and the conflict is instead rendered as a family feud (see Gesta Danorum, Hrólf Kraki's saga and Skjöldunga saga, below, for more information). The Norse sources also deal with the defeat of Ingeld and/or Froda.

Scandinavian sources

In the Scandinavian sources, consisting of Norse saga

Norse saga

s, Icelandic poems and Danish chronicles, Hroðgar also appears as a Danish king of the Scylding

Scylding

dynasty. He remains the son of Healfdene and the elder brother of Halga

Halga

Halga, Helgi, Helghe or Helgo was a legendary Danish king living in the early 6th century. His name would in his own language have been *Hailaga ....

. Moreover, he is still the uncle of Hroðulf. The Scandinavian sources also agree with Beowulf by making Hroðgar contemporary with the Swedish king Eadgils

Eadgils

Eadgils, Adils, Aðils, Adillus, Aðísl at Uppsölum, Athisl, Athislus or Adhel was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century....

. These agreements with Beowulf are remarkable considering the fact that these sources were composed from oral tradition

Oral tradition

Oral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...

700 to 800 years after the events described, and 300 to 400 years later than Beowulf and Widsith
Widsith
Widsith is an Old English poem of 144 lines that appears to date from the 9th century, drawing on earlier oral traditions of Anglo-Saxon tale singing. The only text of the fragment is copied in the Exeter Book, a manuscript of Old English poetry compiled in the late 10th century containing...

.

There are also notable differences. 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 Ingeld

Ingeld

and Froda also appear in Scandinavian tradition, but their tribe, 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, had long been forgotten, and instead the tribal feud was rendered as a family feud. Their relationship as father and son had also been reversed in some sources, and so either Ingeld or Froda is given as the brother of Healfdene. Ingeld or Froda murdered Healfdene, but was himself killed in revenge by Hroðgar and Halga. Moreover, in Scandinavian tradition, Hroðgar is a minor character in comparison to his nephew Hroðulf. Such differences indicate that Beowulf and Scandinavian sources represent separate traditions.

The names of Hroðgar and others appear in the form they had in Old Icelandic or Latinized Old Danish at the time the stories were put to paper, and not in their Old English, or more "authentic" Proto-Norse forms.

It has been the matter of some debate whether the hero Beowulf

Beowulf (hero)

could have the same origin as Hroðulf's berserker

Berserker

Berserkers were Norse warriors who are reported in the Old Norse literature to have fought in a nearly uncontrollable, trance-like fury, a characteristic which later gave rise to the English word berserk. Berserkers are attested in numerous Old Norse sources...

Bödvar Bjarki

Bödvar Bjarki , meaning 'Warlike Little-Bear', is the hero appearing in tales of Hrólf Kraki in the Saga of Hrólf Kraki, in the Latin epitome to the lost Skjöldunga saga, and as Biarco in Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum...

, who appears in Scandinavian sources.

Among these sources, it is the most famous one, the Hrólfr Kraki's saga which is most different from Beowulf, and a notable difference is that Hroðgar leaves the rule of Denmark to his younger brother Halga and moves to Northumbria

Northumbria

Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...

. The focus is consequently on the Hrólfr Kraki's saga when a scholar questions the comparison of Hroðgar and other characters from Beowulf with counterparts in Scandinavian tradition. Scandinavian sources have added some information that appear in Beowulf studies, without having any founding in the work itself, such as the information that Halga was, or probably was, Hroðulf's father. Another example is the existence of a woman named Yrsa

Yrsa

, who, however, has been transposed to a role she never had in any source texts, that of Hroðgar's sister.

Norse sagas and poems

In Icelandic sources, Hroðgar, Halga and Hroðulf appear under the Old Icelandic forms of their names; that is, as Hróarr, Helgi and Hrólfr, the last one with the epithet Kraki. In the case of the Skjöldunga saga ("Saga of the Scyldings") only a Latin summary has survived, and so their names are Latinized. The Icelandic sources can be divided into two groups: the Hrólfr Kraki's saga on the one hand, and the Skjöldunga saga and Bjarkarímur on the other. Both groups tell a version of Hroðgar and Halga's feud with Froda (Fróði) and Ingeld (Ingjaldr). However, whereas the Hrólfr Kraki's saga make Froda the brother of Healfdene, the Skjöldunga saga and Bjarkarímur make Ingeld the brother of Healfdene. Hrólfr Kraki's saga also disagrees with all the other works by moving Hroðgar from the throne of Denmark to Northumbria

Northumbria

Hrólfr Kraki's saga

Hrólfr Kraki's saga
Hrólfs saga kraka
Hrólfs saga kraka, the Saga of King Hrolf kraki, is a late legendary saga on the adventures of Hrólfr Kraki and his clan, the Skjöldungs. The events can be dated to the late 5th century and the 6th century. It is believed to have been written in the period c. 1230 - c. 1450...

relates that Halfdan has three children, Hróarr, Helgi, and the daughter Signý, who is married to Sævil Jarl. Halfdan has a brother named Fróði

Fróði

Fróði is the name of a number of legendary Danish kings in various texts including Beowulf, Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda and his Ynglinga saga, Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum, and the Grottasöngr. A Danish king by this name also appears as a minor character in the Middle High German epic Die...

and both of them rule a kingdom, but Halfdan is good-natured and friendly, whereas Fróði is savage. Fróði attacks and kills Halfdan and makes himself the king of a united Denmark. He then sets out to neutralize his nephews Hróarr and Helgi. However, the two brothers survive on an island, protected by a man called Vivil; and after some adventure they avenge their father by killing Fróði.

Hróarr is presented as "meek and blithe", and he is completely removed from ruling the kingdom, leaving the rule to his brother Helgi. Instead he joins Norðri, the king of Northumberland

Northumberland

Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...

, where he marries Ögn, the king's daughter. As recompense for Hróarr's share of the Danish kingdom, Helgi gives him a golden ring.

Sævil Jarl's son Hrókr (Hróarr and Helgi's nephew) becomes jealous that he has not inherited anything from his grandfather Halfdan; he goes to his uncle Helgi to claim his inheritance. Helgi refuses to give him a third of Denmark, and so instead he goes to Northumbria to claim the golden ring. He asks Hróarr if he at least could have a look at the ring, whereupon he takes the ring and throws it into the water. Hróarr naturally becomes angry, and cuts off Hrókr's feet and sends him back to his ships. Hrókr cannot live with this, and so he returns with a large army and slays Hróarr. Helgi avenges his brother by also cutting off Hrókr's arms. Hróarr's son Agnar retrieves the ring by diving in the water, which gives him great glory. Agnar is said to have become greater than his father, and much talked of in the old sagas.

Helgi attacks Sweden to retrieve Yrsa, his daughter and lover, but is killed by Aðils, the king of Sweden. He is succeeded by Hrólfr Kraki, his son by Yrsa.

Although it agrees with all the other Scandinavian sources in telling the story of Halga's incestuous relationship with his daughter Yrsa, it disagrees with all of them and with Beowulf by removing Hroðgar altogether as the king of Denmark. Instead, his place is taken by his brother Halga, and Hroðgar is sent to Northumberland

Northumberland

, where he marries Ögn, the daughter of a positively fictive king Norðri who is named after Northumberland (Norðimbraland). Opinion is divided on whether there is any connection between Hroðgar's wife Wealhþeow

Wealhþeow

in Beowulf and his wife Ögn in Hrólfr Kraki's saga; it has been suggested that Ögn shows that Wealhþeow and her family (the Helmings) were Anglo-Saxon. Another difference is the fact that Hroðgar's sons Hreðric and Hroðmund

Hreðric and Hroðmund

Hreðric and Hroðmund were the sons of the Danish king Hroðgar, and his queen Wealhþeow, in the Old English epic Beowulf. They are only mentioned in passing, and there seems to be some foreshadowing in Beowulf that their cousin, Halga's son Hroðulf, i.e...

do not appear in the Scandinavian tradition, but correspond to Agnar, in Hrólfr Kraki's saga.

Skjöldunga saga and Bjarkarímur

The Skjöldunga saga
Skjöldunga saga
The Skjöldunga saga was a Norse saga on the legendary Danish dynasty of the Skjöldungs, the same dynasty featured in the Old English poem Beowulf...

and Bjarkarímur
Bjarkarímur
Bjarkarímur is a 15th century Icelandic rímur cycle on the Skjöldungs , and retells among other things the adventures of Hróarr and his brother Helgi , and those of Böðvarr Bjarki...

tell a similar version to that of the Hrólfr Kraki's saga, but with several striking differences. Ingeld

Ingeld

(Ingjaldus) of Beowulf reappears, but it is Ingeld who is the father of Froda (Frodo), and unlike in Hrólf Kraki's saga, Ingeld takes Froda's place as the half-brother of Healfdene (Haldan).

The sources relate that Haldan has a half-brother named Ingjaldus and a queen Sigrith with whom he has three children: the sons Roas and Helgo and the daughter Signy.

Ingjaldus is jealous of his half-brother Haldan and so he attacks and kills him, and then marries Sigrith. Ingjaldus and Sigrith then have two sons named Rærecus and Frodo. Their half-sister Signy stays with her mother until she is married to Sævil, the jarl of Zealand. Ingjaldus, who is worried that his nephews will want revenge, tries to find them and kill them, but Roas and Helgo survive by hiding on an island near Skåne. When they are old enough, they avenge their father by killing Ingjaldus.

The two brothers both become kings of Denmark, and Roas marries the daughter of the king of England. When Helgo's son Rolfo (whom Helgo begat with his own daughter Yrsa) is eight years old, Helgo dies and Rolfo succeeds him. Not much later, Roas is killed by his half-brothers Rærecus and Frodo, whereupon Rolfo becomes the sole king of Denmark.

This version agrees with all other versions of the legend of Hroðgar (Roas) and Halga (Helgo) by making them sons of Healfdene (Haldan) and by presenting Hroðgar as the uncle of Hroðulf (Rolfo). It agrees with Beowulf and Hrólfr Kraki's saga by mentioning that they had a sister, and by dealing with their feud with Froda (Frodo) and Ingeld

Ingeld

(Ingjaldus), although there is a role reversal by making Ingeld the father of Froda instead of the other way round. It agrees with the other Scandinavian versions by treating Halga's incestuous relationship with his own daughter Yrsa. Moreover, it agrees with all other versions, except for Hrólfr Kraki's saga, by presenting Hroðgar as a king of Denmark, although it agrees with Hrólfr Kraki's saga by marrying Hroðgar to an Anglo-Saxon woman. Another agreement with Hrólfr Kraki's saga is the information that their sister was married to a Sævil Jarl, and that they had to hide on an island fleeing their kin-slaying uncle, before they could kill him and avenge their father.

Hversu Noregr byggdist

The Old Norse

Old Norse

Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....

genealogy work Hversu Noregr byggdist
Hversu Noregr byggdist
Hversu Noregr byggðist is an account of the origin of various legendary Norwegian lineages, which survives only in the Flatey Book. It traces the descendants of the primeval Finnish ruler Fornjót down to Nór, who is here the eponym and first great king of Norway, and then gives details of the...

tells that Hróarr had a son named Valdar

Valdar

Valdar was the name of one or several legendary Danish kings.-Hervarar saga:The Hervarar saga tells that Ivar Vidfamne made Valdar the viceroy of Denmark and gave him his daughter Alfhild. When Valdar died, his son Randver became the king of Denmark, while his son Harald Wartooth became the king of...

, the father of Harald the Old

Harald the Old

Harald the Old only appears by name in Hversu Noregr byggdist, but his father, sons and their descendants played a central role in the politics of Scandinavian legends.-Hversu Noregr byggdist:...

, the father of Halfdan the Valiant

Halfdan the Valiant

Halfdan the Valiant was the legendary father of Ivar Vidfamne according to Hervarar saga, the Ynglinga saga, Njal's Saga and Hversu Noregr byggdist. The genealogical work Hversu Noregr byggdist gives his father as Harald the Old, his grandfather as Valdar and his great-grandfather as Hróarr...

, the father of Ivar Vidfamne

Ivar Vidfamne

Ivar Vidfamne was a Danish and Swedish king hailing from Scania. He may have died c. 700. According to the Heimskringla and the Hervarar saga, Ivar was also the king of Norway, Denmark, Saxony and parts of England.- Ivar in the Sagas :He began as king of Scania and conquered Sweden by defeating...

, who was the maternal grandfather of Harald Wartooth

Harald Wartooth

Harald Wartooth or Harold Hiltertooth was a legendary king of Sweden, Denmark, Norway and the historical northern German province of Wendland, in the 8th and 9th century...

. Harald fell at the Battle of the Brávellir

Battle of the Brávellir

The Battle of Brávellir or the Battle of Bråvalla was a legendary battle that is described in the Norse sagas as taking place on the Brávellir between Sigurd Ring, king of Sweden and the Geats of West Götaland, and his uncle Harald Wartooth, king of Denmark and the Geats of East...

against his nephew Sigurd Ring

Sigurd Ring

Sigurd Hring was a Swedish and Danish king mentioned in many old Scandinavian legends. According to Bósa saga ok Herrauds, there was once a saga on Sigurd Hring, but this saga is now lost...

, a king of Sweden and the father of Ragnar Lodbrok

Ragnar Lodbrok

Ragnar Lodbrok was a Norse legendary hero from the Viking Age who was thoroughly reshaped in Old Norse poetry and legendary sagas.-Life as recorded in the sagas:...

.

This account is not about presenting the life of Hroðgar, but in presenting how Harald Fairhair was descended from kings and heroes in Scandinavian legend. The only reason for assuming that Hróarr is the same as Hroðgar, the Scylding, is the fact that only Hroðgar would be a personage of old so famous so as not to need any further identification than his name. However, the Skjöldunga saga
Skjöldunga saga
The Skjöldunga saga was a Norse saga on the legendary Danish dynasty of the Skjöldungs, the same dynasty featured in the Old English poem Beowulf...

tells that a Valdar disputed that Rörek, the cousin of Halga

Halga

Halga, Helgi, Helghe or Helgo was a legendary Danish king living in the early 6th century. His name would in his own language have been *Hailaga ....

succeeded Hroðulf (Hrólfr Kraki) as the king of the Daner

Daner

The Danes were a North Germanic tribe residing in modern day Denmark. They are mentioned in the 6th century in Jordanes' Getica, by Procopius, and by Gregory of Tours....

. After the war, Rörek took Zealand, while Valdar took Skåne. If based on the same tradition as Hversu Noregr byggdist, Valdar had the right to claim the throne being the son of the former king Hroðgar.

Danish medieval chronicles

In the Chronicon Lethrense
Chronicon Lethrense
Chronicon Lethrense is a small Danish medieval work from the 12th century, written in Latin.-Themes:...

, Annales Lundenses and 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...

(12th century works of Danish history, written in Latin), King Hroðgar is mentioned by the Old Danish form of the name Ro or Roe. His father Healfdene appears as Haldan or Haldanus, while his brother Halga

Halga

Halga, Helgi, Helghe or Helgo was a legendary Danish king living in the early 6th century. His name would in his own language have been *Hailaga ....

appears as Helghe or Helgo. Hroðulf appears with an epithet as Roluo Krage or Rolf Krage. Their Swedish enemy, King Eadgils

Eadgils

Eadgils, Adils, Aðils, Adillus, Aðísl at Uppsölum, Athisl, Athislus or Adhel was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century....

, appears as Athislus or Athisl (the Chronicon Lethrense calls him Hakon.)

The only Danish work that retains traditions of the feud with Ingeld and Froda is the Gesta Danorum.

Chronicon Lethrense and Annales Lundenses

The Chronicon Lethrense
Chronicon Lethrense
Chronicon Lethrense is a small Danish medieval work from the 12th century, written in Latin.-Themes:...

and the included Annales Lundenses report that Ro and Helghe were the sons of Haldan, who died of old age. The two brothers shared the rule, Ro taking the land and Helghe the water. They also tell that Ro founded and gave his name to the market town of Roskilde

Roskilde

Roskilde is the main city in Roskilde Municipality, Denmark on the island of Zealand. It is an ancient city, dating from the Viking Age and is a member of the Most Ancient European Towns Network....

and that he was buried in Lejre

Lejre

Lejre is a town with a population of 2,343 and a municipality on the island of Zealand in east Denmark. It belongs to Region Sjælland. The town's Old Norse name was Hleiðra. The municipality has an area of 240 km² and a total population of ca. 26,603 . Its mayor is Mette Touborg, representing the...

. However, before Ro's nephew Rolf Krage (Hroðulf), who was Helghe's son by his own daughter Yrse

Yrsa

, could ascend the throne, the rule of Denmark was given to a dog, on the orders of the Swedish king Hakon/Athisl (that is, Eadgils

Eadgils

Eadgils, Adils, Aðils, Adillus, Aðísl at Uppsölum, Athisl, Athislus or Adhel was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century....

).

The Chronicon Lethrense and the Annales Lundenses agree with Beowulf in presenting Hroðgar (Ro) and his brother Halga (Helghe) as the sons of Healfdene (Haldan). They do not, however, contain a character description as Beowulf does; nor do they mention his spouse or his children. However, they introduce a sharing of power between Hroðgar and Halga where Halga only had power over the fleet. It is interesting to note that Hroðgar is reported as founding the town of Roskilde, which coincides with the information in Beowulf that he built Heorot. The information that Hroðulf (Rolf) was the result of an incestuous relationship between Halga and his daughter Yrse only appears in Scandinavian tradition. Like Beowulf, the Annales Lundenses makes Hroðgar the contemporary of Eadgils

Eadgils

Eadgils, Adils, Aðils, Adillus, Aðísl at Uppsölum, Athisl, Athislus or Adhel was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century....

(Athisl), whereas the Chronicon Lethrense calls the Swedish king Hakon.

Gesta Danorum

The 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...

(book 2), by Saxo Grammaticus

Saxo Grammaticus

Saxo Grammaticus also known as Saxo cognomine Longus was a Danish historian, thought to have been a secular clerk or secretary to Absalon, Archbishop of Lund, foremost advisor to Valdemar I of Denmark. He is the author of the first full history of Denmark.- Life :The Jutland Chronicle gives...

, contains roughly the same information as Beowulf, the Chronicon Lethrense and the Annales Lundenses: that is, that Ro was the son of Haldanus and the brother of Helgo, and the uncle of his successor Roluo Krage (Hroðulf). It is only said about Ro that he was "short and spare", that he founded the town of Roskilde

Roskilde

Roskilde is the main city in Roskilde Municipality, Denmark on the island of Zealand. It is an ancient city, dating from the Viking Age and is a member of the Most Ancient European Towns Network....

, and that when their father Haldanus died of old age, he shared the rule of the kingdom with his brother Helgo, Ro taking the land and Helgo the water.

Ro could not defend his kingdom against the Swedish king Hothbrodd

Hothbrodd

Hothbrodd was a legendary Norse hero, details of whose life appear in several related variations.In the legends of the Ylfing Helgi Hundingsbane, he was the son of king Granmar of Södermanland, and he was killed by Helgi....

, who was not happy with warring in the East but wished to test his strength against the Danes (Oliver Elton

Oliver Elton

Oliver Elton was an English literary scholar whose works include A Survey of English Literature in six volumes, criticism, biography, and translations from several languages including Icelandic and Russian...

's translation):

Ro was, however, avenged by his brother Helgo, who then promptly went east and died in shame (because he discovered that he had fathered Roluo Krake with his own daughter Urse

Yrsa

.) Roluo succeeded his father and uncle to the Danish throne.

The Gesta Danorum also agrees with Beowulf in presenting Hroðgar (Ro) and Halga (Helgo) as brothers and the sons of Healfdene (Haldanus). Moroever, like the Chronicon Lethrense and the Annales Lundenses, it presents Hroðulf (Roluo) as the son of Halga and his own daughter. A striking difference is that the Swedish king Eadgils

Eadgils

Eadgils, Adils, Aðils, Adillus, Aðísl at Uppsölum, Athisl, Athislus or Adhel was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century....

(Athisl) is pushed forward a generation, and instead Saxo introduces Hroðgar's killer Hothbrodd

Hothbrodd

as the father of Eadgils, a place that other sources give to Ohthere

Ohthere

Ohthere, Ohtere , Óttarr, Óttarr vendilkráka or Ottar Vendelkråka was a semi-legendary king of Sweden who would have lived during the 6th century and belonged to the house of Scylfings...

. A similar piece of information is also found in the Chronicon Lethrense and the Annales Lundenses, where Halga had to kill a man named Hodbrod to win all of Denmark. However, Saxo also adds the god Höðr

Höðr

Höðr is the brother of Baldr in Norse mythology. Guided by Loki he shot the mistletoe missile which was to slay the otherwise invulnerable Baldr....

as the brother of Eadgils

Eadgils

Eadgils, Adils, Aðils, Adillus, Aðísl at Uppsölum, Athisl, Athislus or Adhel was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century....

in order to present a euhemerized version of the Baldr myth, later.

The tradition of the feud with 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 Ingeld and Froda appears twice in the Gesta Danorum. The first time it tells of the feud is Book 2, where Ingeld (called Ingild) appears with the son Agnar. In this version, Ingeld's son was about to marry Hroðulf's sister Rute, but a fight broke out and Agnar died in a duel with Bödvar Bjarki

Bödvar Bjarki

(called Biarco).

The second time it tells of Froda and Ingeld is in Book 7, but here Hroðgar is replaced by a Harald and Halga by a Haldanus. It is the Scandinavian version of the feud, similar to the one told in the Skjöldunga saga, Bjarkarímur and Hrólfr Kraki's saga, where the Heaðobards are forgotten and the feud with Froda and Ingeld has become a family feud. The main plot is that Ingeld had the sons Frodo (Froda) and Harald (corresponds to Healfdene). The relationship between Ingeld and Froda was thus reversed, a reversal also found in the Skjöldunga saga and in the Bjarkarímur. Froda killed his brother and tried to get rid of his nephews Harald (corresponds to Hroðgar) and Haldanus (corresponds to Halga). After some adventures, the two brothers burnt their uncle to death inside his house and avenged their father.

Comments

With the exception of Hversu Noregr byggdist, where he is only a name in a list, three elements are common to all of the accounts: he was the son of a Danish king Healfdene, the brother of Halga, and he was the uncle of Hroðulf. Apart from that, the Scandinavian tradition is unanimous in dwelling on the incestuous relationship between Halga and his daughter Yrsa which resulted in Hroðulf, a story which was either not presented in Beowulf or was not known to the poet. The Danish sources (Chronicon Lethrense, Annales Lundenses, Gesta Danorum) all agree with Beowulf by making Hroðgar the king of Denmark. The Icelandic (Skjöldunga saga, Bjarkarímur, Hrólf Kraki's saga) all agree with Beowulf by mentioning that they had a sister, and by mentioning their feud with Froda and Ingeld, albeit with alterations. What is unique to the Icelandic versions are the adventures of Hroðgar and Halga before one of the two brothers could become king.

The similarities between Beowulf and the mentioned Scandinavian sources are by far not the only ones. Other personalities mentioned in Beowulf appear in the stories before and after dealing with Hroðgar, but for more, see origins for Beowulf and Hrólf Kraki

Origins for Beowulf and Hrólf Kraki

Beowulf and Hrólf Kraki are two well-known characters in the myths and sagas of ancient England and Scandinavia respectively.Both are supposed to have lived sometime around 450–550 AD, and much has been discussed over the years regarding their origins....

In film

Due to his central position in the Beowulf saga, Hroðgar appears in a number of dramatic and literary works based on the story. He was played by Sven Wollter

Sven Wollter

Sven Wollter is a Swedish actor. He was born and grew up in Gothenburg.Sven Wollter is an actor in Sweden and has starred in many films such as, The Man on the Roof, The Man from Majorca, Änglagård and Jerusalem, based on the novel by Selma Lagerlöf...

in The 13th Warrior
The 13th Warrior
The 13th Warrior is a 1999 historical fiction action film starring Antonio Banderas as Ahmad ibn Fadlan and Vladimir Kulich as Buliwyf; it is based on the novel Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton. It was directed by John McTiernan and an uncredited Crichton.The 13th Warrior is regarded as a...

(1999), Oliver Cotton

Oliver Cotton

Oliver Cotton is an English actor, known for his work on stage, TV and film.After training at the Drama Centre London, he has worked extensively at the Royal National Theatre playing in many productions including The Royal Hunt of the Sun, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Much Ado About...

in Beowulf
Beowulf (1999 film)
Beowulf is a 1999 film loosely based on the Old English epic poem Beowulf. Unlike most film adaptations of the poem, this version is a science-fiction/fantasy film that, according to one film critic, "takes place in a post-apocalyptic, techno-feudal future that owes more to Mad Max than Beowulf."...

(a sci-fi/fantasy adaptation filmed in 1999), Stellan Skarsgård

Stellan Skarsgård

Stellan John Skarsgård is a Swedish actor, known internationally for his film roles in Angels & Demons, Breaking the Waves, The Hunt for Red October, Ronin, Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist,...

in Beowulf & Grendel
Beowulf & Grendel
Beowulf & Grendel is a 2005 film loosely based on the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf. Filmed in Iceland and directed by Sturla Gunnarsson, it stars Gerard Butler as Beowulf, Stellan Skarsgård as Hrothgar, Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson as Grendel and Sarah Polley as the witch Selma...

(2005).

He also appears in the 2007 version

Beowulf (2007 film)

Beowulf is a 2007 American animated fantasy film written by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary inspired by the Old English epic poem of the same name. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the film was created through a motion capture process similar to the technique he used in The Polar Express...

, and is played by Anthony Hopkins

Anthony Hopkins

Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...

. The role of his character in the film, where he is portrayed as hedonistic, somewhat slovenly, and otherwise flawed, is far different from that in the poem, where he is a well-respected and honourable king.

Additionally, the king of the dwarves in Christopher Paolini

Christopher Paolini

Christopher Paolini is an American author. He is best known as the author of the Inheritance Cycle, which consists of the books Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr, and Inheritance...

's Inheritance cycle

Inheritance Cycle

The Inheritance Cycle is a series of fantasy novels by Christopher Paolini. It was previously titled the Inheritance Trilogy until Paolini's announcement on October 30, 2007 that there would be a fourth book...

is named Hrothgar, a nod to the original character.

On television

Hroðgar can be seen in the Star Trek: Voyager

Star Trek: Voyager

Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...

episode Heroes and Demons, when The Doctor

Doctor (Star Trek)

The Doctor, an Emergency Medical Hologram Mark I , is a fictional character from the television series Star Trek: Voyager, played by actor Robert Picardo...

visits a Beowulf

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...

scenario on the holodeck

Holodeck

A holodeck, in the fictional Star Trek universe, is a simulated reality facility located on starships and starbases. The first use of a "holodeck" by that name in the Star Trek universe was in the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, "Encounter at Farpoint", although a conceptually...

to rescue Ensign Harry Kim

Harry Kim (Star Trek)

Ensign Harry S. L. Kim, played by Garrett Wang, is a character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. He serves as the USS Voyagers operations officer.-Depiction:...

In video games

Hroðgar is an important NPC

Non-player character

A non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...

in Grendel's Cave

Grendel's Cave

Grendel's Cave is a real-time browser-based role-playing video game. It is published by Grendel Enterprises and runs exclusively on the Internet. It is based on Anglo-Saxon mythology and Beowulf, and is set in the historical medieval period. It is considered both an artistic depiction of Grendel...

, an online, browser-based role-playing video game

Role-playing video game

Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...

, based on Beowulf. Players in the game go before Hroðgar and sing of deeds in exchange for gold rings.

Hrothgar is an important adventurer in the role-playing game Icewind Dale

Icewind Dale

Icewind Dale is a computer role-playing game developed for Windows by Black Isle Studios and published by Interplay Entertainment. Released on June 30, 2000, it takes place in the Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms campaign setting, and is based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition...

.

In World Of Warcraft

World of Warcraft

World of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game by Blizzard Entertainment. It is the fourth released game set in the fantasy Warcraft universe, which was first introduced by Warcraft: Orcs & Humans in 1994...

, there is an island off the coast of the northernmost continent of the game called Hrothgar's Landing, which is populated by a race of giant Viking-like humanoids known as the Vrykul.

High Hrothgar is an area in the video game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a role-playing video game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It is the fifth installment in The Elder Scrolls action role-playing video game series, following The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion...

, wherein reside the Greybeards who hold the secrets of Dragon Shouts.

Sources

Kluge, Friedrich (1896). "Der Beowulf und die Hrolfs Saga Kraka." Englische Studien 22, pp. 144–45.
Nerman, Birger
Birger Nerman
Birger Nerman was a Swedish archaeologist, professor, and author.-Background:Birger Nerman belonged to a bourgeois family Nerman from Vimmerby. He was the son of Janne Nerman , the bookseller in Norrköping, and his wife Anna Ida Nordberg...

(1925). "Det svenska rikets uppkomst".
"Sidelights on Teutonic History During the Migration Period", Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1911; pp. 82 ff.
Beowulf:
Beowulf read aloud in Old English
- Modern English translation by Francis Barton Gummere
- Modern English translation by John Lesslie Hall
  John Lesslie Hall
  John Lesslie Hall , also known as J. Lesslie Hall, was an American literary scholar and poet known for his translation of Beowulf....
- Ringler, Dick. Beowulf: A New Translation For Oral Delivery, May 2005. Searchable text with full audio available, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries.
- Several different Modern English translations
Widsith:
- Widsith, A Verse Translation by Douglas B. Killings
- Widsith, a translation by Bella Millett
Chronicon Lethrense and Annales Lundense:
- Chronicon Lethrense and Annales Lundenses in translation by Peter Tunstall
- The same translation at Northvegr
Book 2 of Gesta Danorum at the Online Medieval & Classical library
Book 7 of Gesta Danorum at the Online Medieval & Classical library
The Relation of the Hrolfs Saga Kraka and the Bjarkarimur to Beowulf by Olson, 1916, at Project Gutenberg
Hrólf Kraki's saga in English translation at Northvegr

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