notes

Healfdene's son, Hrothgar, won great honor in battle, as well as at home. As a result, he became King of the Danes even though he was not the eldest son. Hrothgar built a large feasting hall that was used for celebrations and the distribution of gifts. It became the heart of King Hrothgar's kingdom and was called Heorot Hall. The hall was huge, lofty, and gabled, braced inside and out with hammered iron bands. It was lavishly furnished and decorated, with benches inlaid with gold. There were horns and tapestries hanging on the walls. Later in the poem, when Beowulf and his band of Geats arrived at the court of Hrothgar, they were asked to leave their ashen spears outside Heorot and were then led into the hall to meet the King, who was inside the hall surrounded by his Thanes. Therefore, Heorot served as a social hub and a reception room, as well as being a place of celebration and merriment. A jealous monster, named Grendel, lived in the area surrounding Heorot. He descended from the lineage of Cain, the man in the Old Testament who committed the first murder by killing his own brother out of jealousy and under the cover of darkness. Grendel resented all the happiness and celebration that occurred in the great hall. As a result, he decided to attack the Heorot. When he found a band of warriors asleep in the hall, he seized thirty of the thanes and led them towards his lair.
At dawn, Hrothgar discovered the tragedy. He saw Grendel's footsteps and realized that he had lost his attendants to this miserable monster. Although sad and enraged, he felt helpless against the evil Grendel. As a result, Grendel attacked the hall again. This time the assault and murders were more gruesome. Still there was no retaliation. Then for twelve long years, Grendel continued to attack the Danes, casting sorrow and doom on the people. His evil crimes were afflicted on young and old alike. Although Hrothgar was crushed to see Heorot abused, he still felt powerless against Grendel. His men had repeatedly begged for help from the gods and offered appropriate sacrifices to them; but no help came. In fact, it seemed liked the gods had forsaken the Danes. The terrible news of Grendel's cruel treatment of Hrothgar and the Danes reaches Geatland. Hygelac, the King of the Geats, tells his nephew, Beowulf, about Hrothgar's troubles. Beowulf, supposedly the strongest man alive, announces that he will go and help Hrothgar. After choosing fourteen brave thanes to accompany him on the journey, Beowulf sets sail. After many days, they successfully reach the land of the Danes and thank God for their safe passage.
From a cliff top, a Danish watchman spies the Geats as they arrive. When Beowulf and his men troop down the gangway, he sees that they are armed and grows frightened. Galloping on his horse and brandishing his sword, he challenges the Geats by asking, "Warriors, who are you? Why are you armed and why has your ship come here? I have been a coastguard for many years and . . . never have I seen warriors carrying their shields so openly. I have never set eyes on a more noble man than your leader. But before you set one foot further on Danish Land, I would like to know why you are here and who you are."
Beowulf tells the watchman, "We are Geats, companions of Hygelac. My father Ecgtheow was famed far and wide. We would like to meet your lord, Hrothgar, Healfdene's son, with most honorable intentions. We have come on an errand to him to end his ordeals by Grendel." The coastguard responds, "I can see your intentions are good. I will command my companions to guard your ship from foes and we will proceed". Once the ship is securely anchored and closely guarded, the Thanes, led by Beowulf, proceed to the heavily adorned hall, known as Heorot. When they approach the hall, the coast guard takes his leave; he does not dare to enter the hall, but he wishes Beowulf good luck and asks the gods to guard him in his enterprise against Grendel. Beowulf's warriors, dressed in gleaming chain mail and corselets, proceed to the hall. Once inside, they turn their shield to the wall and sit on a bench.
Wufgar, a Danish warrior, asks the Geats of their ancestry. Beowulf introduces himself and explains that they come from Hygelac and wish to speak to Hrothgar. The wise Wufgar responds, "I will ask the lord of the Danes about your request and bring back an answer." Wufgar then departs to rush to Hrothgar with the news.
Hrothgar, now old and grizzled, is surrounded by Thanes. When Wufgar tells him about Beowulf, he begs his leader to see the Geats. Hrothgar explains that he has known Beowulf as a boy, as well as his illustrious father, Ecgtheow. He accepts the Geats as loyal friends. Hrothgar explains that he has heard that Beowulf is extremely strong, having the strength of thirty men in his grip. As a result, the Danish leader is hopeful that Beowulf will be able to overcome Grendel. Hrothgar promises to reward
the Geat with great treasure if he succeeds. He ends by saying, "Tell them they are most welcome". Wufgar rushes back to the Geats. He tells Beowulf that Hrothgar welcomes them.
Beowulf follows Wufgar to meet Hrothgar. After greeting the King, Beowulf gives some of his credentials. He explains that he has just returned from slaying five monsters that were giants. He also tells of killing monsters from the depths of the oceans. Beowulf then tells of his desire to avenge Hrothgar by killing Grendel and cleansing the Heorot. He states, "I hear he spurns the use of weapon. I will grapple with him, and he whom death takes off must resign him self to the judgment of God. If battle claims me, you will not have to cover my body. But I ask you send my wat of mail to Hygelac."
After telling Beowulf about how he had helped his father, Hrothgar talks about Grendel's bloody destruction of his land. He welcomes Beowulf's help against this horrid monster. He then invites him to sit with him at their feast in Heorot Hall and tell them all about his exploits. Wealhtheow, Hrothgar's queen, welcomes Beowulf and offers him a drink. During the feast, Unferth taunts Beowulf, saying that Breca has defeated him in their swim in the open ocean. Beowulf shuts him up by explaining how he had saved Breca's life by overcoming monsters. He then promises to prove his strength in his battle with Grendel. Hrothgar and his queen bid their farewells to Beowulf and the others and retired for the night. After everyone departs from Heorot, the Geats fall asleep. Grendel, both angry and hungry, enters the hall. He grabs a sleeping warrior and devours him. Enraged by Grendel's action, Beowulf grabs and pulls the monster's outstretched arm. The two of them fight fiercely until Beowulf's great strength gets the better of Grendel. The monster tries to flee, but as he departs, Beowulf grabs his arm. Using his vice-like grip, he pulls Grendel's arm from his socket. The monster, howling with pain, runs out of Heorot towards the murky lake where he lives. The Geats try to follow him, but cannot track down the monster.
On their way back to the great hall, Beowulf's men start singing about their leader's exploits. They compare him to Sigemund, who killed a dragon but fell into the power of fiends. Upon their return, an overjoyed Hrothgar gives thanks to God for the victory over Grendel and promises to reward Beowulf with more 'earthly riches' than any man has seen. Beowulf gives God all the credit for his accomplishment. Beowulf displays Grendel's arm like a trophy. In the morning men from far and wide come to see the monster's arm. Later in the day, a great celebration feast is held in Beowulf's honor. Hrothgar presents to him Healfdene's sword, a battle banner woven with gold, a helmet and corselet adorned richly with gold, horses, and weapons. As the feasting and merriment continues, Wealhtheow presents a cup to Beowulf and personally thanks him and asks him to be a mentor and role model for her two sons. She also gives him two armlets, corselet rings, and a collar. After the feasting, everyone goes to sleep for the night. Grendel's mother, however, is rapidly approaching Heorot to gain revenge for her son. She rushes into the hall, taking the sleeping men by surprise. In her anger, she viciously grabs Aeschere, who is Hrothgar's favorite retainer. She also grabs her son's arm and then rushes out with her prisoner.
Hrothgar is awakened. When he finds that his favorite Thane has been seized, he is again miserable and begs Beowulf for help. When the Geat agrees to do his best, Hrothgar tells him that Grendel's mother stays in a murky lake and explains how to find it. Beowulf takes a few men and goes after Grendel's mother. Along the trail, they find the severed head of Aeschere. When they arrive at Grendel's lake, the water is boiling with blood and filled with serpents, dragons, and demons.
Beowulf blows the horn of battle. A demon attacks the warrior and is instantly killed by him. Beowulf jumps into the lake, and Unferth hands him his sword, called Hrunting. Grendel's mother emerges and tries to grab Beowulf; however, she cannot scratch through his armor. Beowulf tries to strike her with Unferth's sword, but it will not cut through her thick hide; in the end, he finally manages to sever her head. After she has been killed, Beowulf sees Grendel's corpse and cuts off his head as well. He then takes the treasure hidden in the monsters' lair. At Heorot, everyone anxiously waits for Beowulf's return. When they see him coming, they are overjoyed. Beowulf enters and lays down the treasure he has seized at Hrothgar's feet. The King praises Beowulf's bravery and rewards him with gold. Beowulf promises Hrothgar that he will come to his aid whenever he needs him in the future and that his sons will be treated with honor whenever they visit the Geatish court. Hrothgar thanks Beowulf for returning peace to the Land of the Danes and promises a lasting alliance between the Danes and the Geats. After returning the Hrunting to Unferth, Beowulf sets off for Geatland with his men. Before departing Geatland for Danish lands, Beowulf was not universally accepted as a brave hero. Upon his return, however, he tells Hygelac about his victories in the land of the Danes and about the many gifts bestowed on him for his bravery. Hygelac also rewards Beowulf with several gifts. Before long, everyone in Geatland has heard about his victories over the Danish monsters, and they celebrate Beowulf as a true hero.
When both Hygelac and his son die, the Geat kingdom passes to Beowulf. He rules wisely and harmoniously for fifty years and enjoys peace. Then a slave, escaping from his master's wrath, goes into a dragon's cave and steals the dragon's precious cup. The dragon is enraged at the theft; in retaliation he starts killing people and burning down buildings with his breath of fire. Despite his advancing age, Beowulf decides he must battle the dragon, convinced that he can slay the monster.
Taking the thief and a band of his own men, Beowulf goes to the dragon's cave and prepares for combat with the monster. He sadly bids farewell to his men, fearing his end may be at hand, and remembers the time when he had come to the Geatish court to live with his grandfather. Beowulf then challenges the dragon, striking at it with his ancestral sword, which is blunted by the monster's hard hide. The dragon breathes fire at Beowulf, causing him to fall down. Upon seeing their master on the ground, all of Beowulf's thanes run away except for Wiglaf, who tries to attract the dragon's attention away from his master and to himself. The dragon will not be distracted; it sinks its fangs into Beowulf's neck. Although he is in great pain, Beowulf picks up a sharp knife and strikes the dragon again, inflicting a deadly wound. But Beowulf is also mortally wounded. Before he dies, he tells Wiglaf to rummage through the dragon's cave to find the treasure; he then asks Wiglaf to bring all the gold to him before he dies. Wiglaf does exactly as he is told. When he returns with the dragon's treasure, he sprinkles some water on Beowulf to revive him. Beowulf rewards Wiglaf with his golden collar and golden helmet, which signifies that he will become the leader of the Geats. To mark his grave and to serve as a reminder of his courage, Beowulf also commands Wiglaf to build a fine barrow in his honor, overlooking the sea. After these instructions are given, Beowulf dies
All the thanes who ran away in Beowulf's time of trouble return to mourn his death. Wiglaf reminds them that "for every warrior, death is better than disgrace". He then condemns them as cowards and states that they are destined to become landless exiles. Wiglaf next follows Beowulf's instructions; he builds a large funeral pyre and makes a barrow, filled with lots of ornaments, in memory of the great warrior. Twelve of Beowulf's brave men ride around the barrow mourning and chanting elegies about their dead leader. Wiglaf himself mourns the cowardliness of the Geats; he feels certain that the Swedes will hear about their weakness and attack them. As the poem ends, Wiglaf wonders if Geat will ever be safe again without Beowulf.