61 pages • 2-hour read
Nibelungenlied
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Chapters 28-32Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 28 Summary: “How the Burgundians Arrived in Hungary”
Dietrich’s vassal, Hildebrand, tells him of the Burgundians’ arrival. Though dismayed, Dietrich rides out to greet the visitors and tell them to be on their guard since “Kriemhild still weeps bitterly for the hero of Nibelungland” (214). Gunther, Gernot, and Dietrich discuss Kriemhild’s behavior and temperament.
The Burgundians arrive at court, and the Huns scrutinize Hagen since “numerous questions were asked at court regarding [him]” (215). Kriemhild welcomes her guests with “perfidy in her heart” (216) and only kisses Giselher. Hagen picks up on her coldness and tightens his helmet. Kriemhild viciously asks him what he has to give her, and Hagen responds by saying that, as a knight, he has nothing to give. She presses him further by asking where the Nibelung treasure is located, and Hagen says that it is at the bottom of the Rhine where she cannot get it: “I have brought you nothing and be damned to you” (216). Angered, Kriemhild orders the Burgundians to surrender their weapons to her, but Hagen refuses to do so.
Kriemhild realizes that someone warned the Burgundians and threatens to punish whoever is responsible. Dietrich admits that he issued the warning and calls her a “she-devil” (216). Kriemhild withdraws.
Chapter 29 Summary: “How Kriemhild Upbraided Hagen and He Did Not Rise to Meet Her”
Sitting outside Kriemhild’s palace, Hagen forms a brotherly alliance with Volker. Meanwhile, the Huns stare at the two warriors “as though they were strange beasts” (219). A sobbing Kriemhild watches the two from her window. Etzel’s men ask her why she laments after recently being happy, and she pleads with them to kill Hagen. She readies 400 knights for the task but orders them to wait until she publicly upbraids Hagen and causes him to arrogantly admit to his actions.
Hagen and Volker watch Kriemhild and her men descend from her palace. Hagen begs Volker to stand with him against Kriemhild, and Volker promises, “Fear shall not make me desert you by yielding so much as one foot as long as I remain alive” (220). Volker suggests that they stand as Kriemhild walks past (as is custom), but Hagen refuses.
Hagen sits and purposely pulls out Siegfried’s sword, Balmung, as Kriemhild walks past. She directly asks why Hagen killed Siegfried, and he responds, “How dearly he had to pay for lady Kriemhild’s maligning of fair Brunhild” (221).
Kriemhild orders her men to avenge her late husband’s death, but they cower at the sight of Hagen and Volker. Volker advises Hagen to join Gunther and the others at court, where the Burgundians will be safe. The Burgundians receive a warm welcome from Etzel.
Chapter 30 Summary: “How Hagen and Volker Kept Watch”
The Burgundians head to bed but are accosted by Hunnish knights. Hagen advises them to wait until morning if they are looking to fight. The guests are led to a hall full of splendid quilts. Giselher despairs at the thought of being murdered by his beloved sister, but Hagen vows to keep watch until morning. Volker volunteers to help, and “the two together drew on their shining shield, went outside the building, took his stand before the door, and loyally kept watch over the guests” (226). Volker plays violin “till he [lulls] many a careworn man to sleep” (227).
Kriemhild’s men attempt to infiltrate the building but are again intimidated by Hagen and Volker. Volker wishes to speak to the Huns, but Hagen forbids it since it would involve abandoning their posts. Kriemhild learns of her men’s failure and begins to devise a new scheme.
Chapter 31 Summary: “How They Went to Church”
Hagen awakens the Burgundians to attend church. They begin to put on fine clothes, which angers him. He tells the others to arm themselves and pray for mercy, advising that they “lay your shields at your feet and pay back any incivilities with deep wounds that let the life out” (231). The Burgundians enter the church while Hagen and Volker keep watch. Etzel passes by and asks why they are armed, and Hagen replies that it is a Burgundian custom.
After mass, many knights participate in a bohort. Hagen announces that he will join and “show the knights and ladies [the Burgundians’] skill on horseback” (233). Volker also participates and drives a spear through his opponent, killing him. The Huns seek retribution, but Etzel stops them from attacking and proclaims the death an accident.
Kriemhild seeks Dietrich’s counsel, but he refuses to help. She instead turns to Etzel’s brother, Bloedelin, and offers him “castles and lands to match” (235). Bloedelin agrees to “start an uproar” (235) and deliver Hagen to her as a prisoner.
Etzel asks the Burgundians to take his son Ortlieb back to Burgundy with them, to train him to be a powerful warrior. Hagen refuses.
Chapter 32 Summary: “How Dancwart Slew Bloedelin”
That night, Bloedelin and his stalwarts enter Dancwart’s quarters. Dancwart greets Bloedelin amicably, but the latter asserts, “You have no cause to bid me welcome […] my coming means the end of you” (238). Dancwart insists that he was not involved in Siegfried’s death, but Bloedelin refuses to listen. He refers to the Burgundians as “wretched foreigners” (238) and orders them to defend themselves.
Dancwart decapitates Bloedelin, and a brutal fight ensues. News of Bloedelin’s death reaches more of Etzel’s warriors; 2,000 or more Huns arm themselves and vanquish Dancwart’s squires before Etzel even realizes that his brother died. Dancwart fights his way through the Huns, wishing aloud that he had a messenger to send to Hagen. A nearby Hun mocks him by saying that they will use his corpse as a message. The lone Burgundian continues to hack away at his foes as he rushes towards court.
Chapters 28-32 Analysis
When the Burgundians reunite with Kriemhild, it is almost as if they are meeting another person. Kriemhild shows affection to Giselher, her favorite brother, but her overall character at this point is cold and exacting. She publicly chastises Hagen, asking him where he placed her treasure and imploring, “Why did you do the deed for which you have earned my hatred?” (221). Furthermore, she tries to make the Burgundians vulnerable by surrendering their weapons upon entry into Etzel’s hall. From Chapter 28 onward, it becomes clear that Kriemhild’s grief transformed her into a ruthless woman who not only deviates from the medieval Germanic ideal for womanhood but that for a moral person.
While Kriemhild plots her revenge, Etzel remains oblivious. He fails to recognize why his wife invited her kinsmen to the festival, and thus treats it as just that rather than a ruse. He shows the Burgundians benevolence and promotes merrymaking, leading the poet to assert that “never did a host sit among his guests so festively” (224). Etzel’s obliviousness is best exemplified in Chapter 31, when the Burgundians attend church. Etzel asks, “How is it that I see my friends with their helmets on? I protest I am very sorry if anyone has wronged them. I shall be glad to make amends to them in whatever way they please, if someone has vexed their spirits” (231). When Hagen tells Etzel that attending church in armor is a Burgundian custom, the latter takes it as truth as he is unable to fathom the idea that the Burgundians are actually arming themselves against his wife.
At Etzel’s behest, the Burgundians are treated with hospitality. However, Kriemhild sends Etzel’s brother, Bloedelin, to break the rules of hospitality and, subsequently, chivalry. Killing guests within the confines of their quarters is an unchivalrous act, and Bloedelin—motivated by promises of “castles, and lands to match” (235)—sees no issue in committing it since he holds property to be more important than personal honor (in contrast to Hagen). Bloedelin’s attack on Dancwart spells the end for chivalry and civility within Etzel’s court.
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