A Germanic Epic in Latin for Christians?

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  1. The Poem of Walter (Waltharius)
    • Its Place in Early Germanic Heroic Poetry: Beowulf and Other Poems
    • Its Form: The Verse of Classical Epic (1456 Dactylic Hexameters)
    • Uncertainty about Its Date
      1. Manuscript Evidence (Earliest Fragment ca. 975)
      2. Early Ninth Century (Charlemagne and the Carolingians)
      3. Late Ninth Century
      4. Mid Tenth Century (Ottonian Period, Composed ca. 925-930)
    • Uncertainty about Its Authorship
      1. Gerald (author of 22-verse preface), Associated with Erchambold (Bishop of Strasbourg, 965-991?)
      2. Jacob Grimm (1838) and Ekkehard I of St. Gall (900-973), "Life of Waltharius the Strong-Armed"
  2. Germanic Features
    • Language
      1. Words: e.g., wantus (Latinization of a Germanic Word for Glove) in 1426
      2. Names
        • Hagen, Old High German [=OHG] *hagan-dorn ("hawthorn"), and Latin paliurus ("hawthorn") in 1351; "thorny Hagen" in 1421
        • Walter as Faunus, a Forest Spirit, in 763: OHG walt-herr ("forest lord")
    • Tradition
      1. Myth: "Wayland's work" in 965; perhaps Walter's bird-like qualities in 803-804
      2. Oral Tradition and Variation: "Kimo, whom some say is Scaramund" in 688
      3. Knowledge of Germanic Past
        • Ethnography: Nibelung Franks ("Franci nebulones") in 555
        • Antiquarianism: Weapon in 919, Cup in 308-309
      4. Knowledge of Germanic Social Structures, Practices, and Values
        • Drinking (Discussed in Tacitus, Germania 22-23 [A.D. 98])
        • Bands of Retainers/Followers (Called comitatus in Tacitus)
        • Gold Rings in 403-407, 613-614, and Elsewhere
        • Pride in Glory and Greed for Wealth
  3. Classical Features
    • Lines and Phrases: Only Twelve Entire Lines from Vergil, but Many Phrases
    • Similes, e.g., Numidian Bear in 1337-1345 (Aeneid 10.707) and Oak in 827-828 (Aeneid 6.180)
    • The Gods: Bacchus, Mars, Phoebus, Fortuna, Orcus
    • Customs: Walter Wreathed in Laurel in 210
    • Trojan Origins: Hagen in 28, Werinhard in 737
  4. Christian Features
    • Numerology: Forty in 428-429 (Jesus in Wilderness) and the Twelve Followers of Gunther
    • Personification in 779
    • Brothers in 1
    • Sign of Cross and Sacrament of Wine in 224-230
    • Celibacy in 426-427 and 545-547
    • Prayers for Support of God in 552-553 and 1161-1167
    • Repenting of Pride and Trusting in Providence in 702-704
    • The Timorous Hildegund: a Monastic Invention?
  5. Syncretism
    • Three
      1. Christian Trinity in Gerald's Prologue
      2. Classical division of Geographical Areas into Three Parts
        • Europe, Africa, Asia
        • Caesar: "Gaul is a whole divided into three parts..."
      3. Germanic Reality: The Three Divisions of Charlemagne's Empire
      4. The Three Warriors and the Sacrament of Wine
    • Arguments against Marriage
      1. Germanic [found in Tacitus, Germania 31]
      2. Christian [we will see them in Heloise]
    • The Escape from Attila's Palace
      1. Germanic in 322-323: Fate of Palace in Old Norse Lay about Attila (Atlakviða)
      2. Classical in 358 and elsewhere: Fate of Troy in Vergil's Aeneid
      3. Christian Disapproval of Excess in 290: "extravagance reigned"
    • The Ending
      1. Germanic: Battlefield Boasting in Epics
      2. Christian: Possible Christian Meaning
        • Exodus 21.22-25 "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth"
        • Mark 9.42-48 (the foot mentioned in 1402) "if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off"
        • Matthew 5.30 "if your right hand causes your downfall, cut it off and fling it away"
  6. Conflict between Germanic and Christian Values
    • Riches
      1. Importance of Riches to the Germanic comitatus
        • Walter's Acquisition of Wealth: a Wrong Against his Lord?
        • Walter's Attachment to His Wealth in 561-563 and 1215-1218
      2. Hagen's and Gunther's Reactions to Walter's Return
      3. Hagen's Homily against Greed in 857-877--and the Poet's Comment in 1404
    • Friendship and Feud in 700-701
    • Duty to One's Lord vs. Friendship
      1. The Obligatory Loyalty of a Retainer (Tacitus, Germania 14)
      2. Hagen's Decision in 1366 to Enter Battle
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