Summary of the Thidrekssaga

• Note that the saga says that Diether was with Attile for twenty years; not Dietrich.

King Dietrich von Bern came to king Attila in Soest when he fled his realm for his uncle king Ermenrik. In Soest his brotherRitter postulates Diether may be his son Diether was with him. Diether was one winter old when he came to Soest, and spent twenty winters with Attila, and he was a great knight.

King Attila had two sons, Erp and Ortwin. These three boys were of the same age and they loved one another so much they were rarely separated. Queen Erka loved her sons very much, as well as her foster Diether, and so did king Attila.

• Note that it is Erka, and not Attila, who decides to send out their sons. Also, she apparently has a following independent of Attila's.

One day king Dietrich von Bern went to the hall where Erka livedApparently the queen has her own hall; see also 343 with her women, and the queen received him well, offered him wine, and asked him what she could do for him. And again she asked: Why do you come? Do you have any business to discuss with us? Or do you have any new tidings?

But Dietrich was full of grief, and water flowed from his eyeshe cried, and he responded: My lady, I have no new tidings, only old ones. I remember how I left my kingdom, my good town of Bern and the wealthy Ravenna, and many other cities, and how it drove me into the mercy and protection of king Attila. And it’s been twenty years now.

Queen Erka replied: You have been in our realm for a long time and given us aid. Therefore, if you want to try to retake it, it is fitting that the Huns give you an army to help you. And I would like to be the firstto offer you help, so I will send my twon sons Erp and Ortwin and a thousand knights, and I will also ask king Attila to send you help as well. And Dietrich thanked the queen.

Now queen Erka took her cloak and went to the hall where king Attila satapparently they have separate halls, and king Dietrich followed her. When she arrived the king Attila offered her a golden bowl with wine, and asked her to sit on his throne with him, and asked her if she has any business to discuss.

Queen Erka replied: Lord, I do have business. King Dietrich wants to go back to his lands and take revenge, if he gets help from you. King Dietrich has been in Hunnenland for a long time and has suffered many perilsfor your sake, battles and duels, and has won many lands for you. So pay him back by giving him an army from your lands to reconquer his realm.

Then king Attila answered angrily, and he didn't like being asked to do so. He said: If king Dietrich wants help, why doesn't he ask me? Or is he so proud that he doesn't want our help unless we offer it?

The queen replied: King Dietrich can discuss this himself, but I spoke instead of him because we believed that you would more readily accept than if he had asked alone. But I will give him mynot our! sons Erp and Ortwin and a thousand kinghts, and now you can tell us what you will give him.

Then king Attila said: What you said is true, and it is fitting that we offer him help now. Since you have given him your two sons and a thousand knights, I will give him margrave Rodinger and two thousand knights.

Then king Dietrich said to king Attila: It went as I thought, that queen Erka's help would be of benefit to me, and I will take your offer with many thanks and gladness, and may God reward you.

Now this army prepared all winter, and nothing was forged in Hunnenland but swords and spears, helms and armour, shields and saddles, and all other things knights need when they go on an expedition. And in early spring the army gathered in Soest.

And when that army was ready it happened that king Attila's sons Erp and Ortwin, and Diether with them as well as other young knights, sat in a garden, and queen Erka came to them and said: My dear sons, I want to arm you for your expedition with king Dietrich.

And she had armour brought to them, light as silver and hard as steel and inlaid with red gold, and helmets shining like swords, and all the nails had red gold on them, and two thick shields, and they were red with a golden banner with pole on them; and that they did not have an animal or bird on them was because they weren't yet of age to have received their knighthoods.

Then queen Erka said crying: Now I have prepared you for battle, my sons, and I have never seen two king's sons bear better arms. Now, be brave, and although I hope you will return safely, it is more important to me that you'll be called brave men and good warriors when you've been to battle.

Now she called her foster son Diether and threw her arms around his neck and kissed him, and said: My dear foster son Diether, see here my sons Erp and Ortwin who I have prepared for war. The three of you love each other much and always help one another in games; now do the same on this expedition.

Diether replied: My lady, your two sons and me are ready for battle, and may God help me to bring your sons back safe, but when they fall in battle, I, too, will not come home. You will not hear that they are dead while I am alive. And the queen said she hoped he would keep his promise. Then she had steel armour brought, and a helmet, and a red shield with a golden lion on it.

And now the three boys were aremed, and it is said in ancient sagasprobably meant in general, and not referring to a specific saga that nobody ever saw three king's sons armed thusly, with more gold and precious stones.

• The three parts of the army are announced. Dietrich's, Attila's under Rodinger, and Erka's under her sons and Diether. Apparently Attila's and Erka's men will form different groups.

Now Soest was filled with sounds of weapons, and shouts, and neighing of horses. The entire town was so full of men that no one could pass through, and no one could hear anyone unless they were close to them.

Now king Attila went up into a tower and called loudly: Hear me, men, and be quiet, and hear my commands. And the town fell silent.

Then the king said: Now a great army has gathered here, and now you must go as I will tell you. King Dietrich will travel alone with his army, and my man margrave Rodinger will go with another part of the knights that I have given to king Dietrich, and all the other men will follow my sons and young Diether. And all did as king Attile had commanded.

Now margrave Rodinger rode forth from Soest with his army. And Erp and Ortwin mounted, and in their following were duke Nudung of Walkaburg, who bore Dietrich's bannerpresumably because of Diether's presence in this group?, and Wolfhart and Helfrich, both Dietrich's relativesHelfrich's relation is not mentioned anywhere else, and the details of Wolfhart's are unclear..

And when the latter mounted queen Erka said: Good friend Helfrich, guard my sons well, and let them ride beside you when the armies meet. And Helfrich said: I swear by God, I won't come home from this war if I lose your sons. And queen Erka thanked him.

Now duke Nudung rode from Soest, and next Diether, and then Erp and Ortwin and the good knight Helfrich, then Wolfhart, and then all their warriors. Now king Dietrich mounted his horse Falke, and master Hildebrand bore his banner and went before king Dietrich, and then Wildeber and the warriors who followed Dietrich's banneri.e. the personal retainers Dietrich brought with him on his flight. And in these three groups there were no less than ten thousand knightswhich would give Dietrich 7,000 knights; seems rather too much to me and a great lot of other people.

Now they traveled over the roads with their armies, and there is nothing to say about their travel.

When king Dietrich had traveled with his army for a while he called two of his men and told them to travel to king Ermenrik as quickly as possible, day and night, and tell him that king Dietrich, and his brother Diether, were coming home to Amelungenland with a great army, and when king Ermenrik wanted to defend him self, they should meet at GransportAccording to Ritter the Gänsefürtchen where the Mosel runs into the Rhine at Koblenz.

And these two men rode away and didn't find Ermenrik until they came to Rome. And they delivered the message, and berated Ermenrik for his faithless grabbing of Dietrich's realm, and warned the army was already on its way.

Then king Ermenrik had two good horses brought, and two good men's cloaks, and gave them to the messengers, and told them to ride back and thanked them for warning him, because he wasn't afraid of the Hunnish army as long as it didn't catch him unprepared. And with this message he sent the messengers back.

But king Ermenrik sent messengers over all his realm to gather all of his warriors, young or old, who could carry weapons and had the courage to fight. And three days and three nights passed.

And when that time was up sixteen thousand knights had gathered in Rome, ready for battle, and their chief was duke Witig Wieland's son of Fritila, and the army was equipped with strong horn bowsthe same as jarl Hornboge's name and black helmets and white armour.

Then Witig said to king Ermenrik: All my men have come here, and I've never brought together a larger army in less time, and they are willing to fight the Huns, but I myself will not fight Dietrich von Bern or his brother Diether, but I must stillor: will otherwise? do as you tell me.

And now Rome was filled with calls and shouts throughout the city, and weapons clanging, and horses neighing, and all the streets were full with warriors.

Then king Ermenrik went on to the highest tower and said: My good friend Sibich, you will carry my banner and my personal guard, and no less than six thousand warriors. And when you get to the battle, you shall stand against Dietrich von Bern, and your men will attack his men, and it would be best if you carried his sword in your hand when the battle ends.

Then he said: My good relative ReinaldTheir exact relation is unknown, you will be duke over five thousand knights, and you will lead them against the Huns, and my nephews Dietrich and Diether should be killed in this battle.

And now hear, my good friend Witig, my best duke, you shall have six thousand knights and you should not return in defeat. I would like to see Dietrich and Diether killed in this battle, and do not let king Attila's sons get away with their lives. May God grant you victory, and may you have great fame from this war.

Then Witig replied that he was quite ready to fight the Huns and Attila's sons, but he would not harm king Dietrich when it was in his power. Now they blew all their horns, mounted on their hroses, and rode with shouts and calls and horns from the city.

They followed the road northward over the mountains, and did not stop until they came to Gransport, and there they saw king Dietrich and his army on the northern side of the river. Then the AmelungenErmenrik's army erected their tents on the south side of the river, but the Huns on the north side, and thus they spent the night.

This night master Hildebrand was king Dietrich's watchman, and when everyone was asleep he rode down to the river, alone and stealthily, until he found a ford in the river. He rode through the river, but before he found itdon't know what that means; from 328 it becomes clear he crossed the river a man rode to him, and the night was so dark that neither saw the other until they were on top of one another.

Master Hildebrand saidVon der Hagen gives this first line to Reinald Who are you, man, and why do you ride so fiercely?

ReinaldVon der Hagen: Hildebrand replied: I do not need to tell you my name, since you ride alone, like I do, but I do not have to ask for your name, because I know it, even though we haven't seen each other for twenty winters.Von der Hagen adds: The man said You are master Hildebrand, king Dietrich's follower.

Then Hildebrand replied: You are right, I am truly Hildebrand, king Dietrich's best friend, and I will never hide that. And welcome to you, my friend Reinald, please tell me news about your army.

Reinald said: The first piece of news is, that king Ermenrik's army is led by duke Witig, your good friend, and the next Sibich, your great enemy, and I can also tell you that I rode away so silently that everybody thinks I'm still in bed, but I wanted to ride to king Dietrich and tell him all this if I hadn't met you, and I truly wish that he will do well, even though I will lead my men against him, but I do not want to hide from Dietrich whatever he desires to know.

Now they rode up the riverunclear. Upstream? and talked, and the moon rose and made the night so clear they could see both armies. Then Hildebrand said: Where is Sibich's army and tent? He is our worst enemy, and I'd like to do something bad to him, unless you prevent it. And Reinald replied: You can see a large tent with three golden knots on the pole. The tent belongs to king Ermenrik, and Sibich sleeps there. I will not prevent you from doing him harm, but you won't be able to, since a large army lies around it.

Then Hildebrand said: And where is our dear friend Witig with his people? And Reinald replied: You can see a green tent with a large silver knot on the pole. Witig sleeps there, and many Amelungen who have sworn to cleave many a Hunnish helmet tomorrow.

Then Hildebrand asked: And whose is the black tent? And Reinald said: That is mine, and my men sleep there. Then Hildebrand said: ou did well, to show me how you divided your army. Now come with me up the river, where our tents are, and I will tell you our division. And they did that.

And as they rode up from the river, five men rode towards them; they were Amelungen from Sibich's following. They assumed that thesetwo riders must be Hunnish spies, and drew their swords and wanted to kill them.

Then Hildebrand drew his sword and rode to them. And Reinald ordered them not to come towards them, because this manHildebrand is my man.

But they thought they recognised master Hildebrand, and one of them hit his helmet hatthis is apparently a thing so that it broke in two, but the helmet itself was unscathed. Then master Hildebrand beheaded him, but they were separated because Reinald did not want them to fight on. Now Reinald and Hildebrand rode on to their destination, while the patrol went its way.

Now Hildebrand and Reinald came to the river bank opposite theHunnish army, and Hildebrand said: You can see a tent with five poles, and golden knots on every one, that is king Dietrich's tent. And on the right you can see a tent of red silk with nine poles and nine golden knots, and that is king Attila's tent, where his sons and Diether sleep. And to the right of king Dietrich's tent you can see a green tent, which is margrave Rodinger's, who wants to aid king Dietrich nd Diether. Now I have told you how our tents are ordered. And Sibich will find out that king Dietrich will lead his banner mostly against him, oh yes he will.

Then Reinald said: Sibich has also decided to fight against king Dietrich. But I will lead my banner against margrave Rodinger, because the Huns who follow him are not our friends. But Witig, your friend, will attack Diether and Attila's sons, although he is loath to fight against Diether because he is king Dietrich's brother, but it must be done.

And now they separated, and wished each other safe travel.

Hildebrand rode back through the ford. But when Reinald came to his tent he found there Sibich with many of his men, ready for battle. He had heard about Hildebrand's mission and wanted to ride after him and kill him.

Then Reinald said: If you want to kill my good friend Hildebrand I can get no fewer men than you have in a short time, and then you'll have to fight me rather than him, and you'll have many fewer men before you catch up with him. And it is more likely than not that he will ride his way, whether you pursue him or notlikely means: he will kill the lot of you even if I don't.

Then Sibich replied: Reinald, do you want to become king Ermenrik's enemy, who made me chief of this campaign? Do you want to help our enemies?

Reinald said: I don't want to become king Ermenrik's enemy. Instead, I will fight for him, even though I fight against my relatives and friends, but I will not let you kill Hildebrand while he rides alone. You will have plenty of opportunity to kill him before the day is over, and when he leads his men I will not prevent anyone from riding against him. But it could be that he defends himself. And these words stopped Sibich and his men from riding after Hildebrand.

But Hildebrand rode to king Dietrich's tent and told him all he had learned that night. And the king said he had done well, as before.

And when light came king Dietrich rose and had his horns blown, and then Diether did the same, as did margrave Rodinger. And now all rose and armed themselves. And when they had mounted master Hildebrand rode in front with king Dietrich's banner pole in his hands, and close behind him king Dietrich with all his men. And they rode to the same ford that Hildebrand had used during the night.

And when the Amelungen saw this, Sibich had king Ermenrik's horns blown, and Witig and Reinald did the same, and all their men armed themselves. Witig mounted his horse Schimming and was ready to fight; and so too Reinald with his army.

Walther of Waskastein bore king Ermenrik's banner in his hand, this banner had the outer part in black like a raven's, and the next part gold, and the third one green as grass, and seventy golden bells were sewn into this banner, so that one could hear it throughout the entire army as soon as the banner was moved or touched by the wind. And behind him came Sibich with his men.

And when king Dietrich saw king Ermenrik's banner and knew Sibich followed it, he called on master Hildebrand to carry his banner that way; and this banner was made of white silk, and had a golden lion with a crown, and no fewer than seventy bells hung from it; queen Erka had had this banner made and gave it to king Dietrich. So these two armies rode to one another.

Then rode Reinald with his troupe; and his banner was red silk like blood, and on the tip of the pole were three golden knots. And he led his army against margrave Rodinger.

Then rode Witig with his army, and his banner was carried by the strong Runga - no giant was found with equal strength - and this banner was black, and a white hammer, tongues, and anvil on it. Against him rode duke Nudung, and he bore a white banner with a golden lion, and this banner queen Erka had given to Diether. And after him rode Diether and Erp and Ortwin, Attila's sons, and the good knight Helfrich. Their shoes were covered with red gold so that they had a glow as if of fire.

Now the six army groups met. Dietrich rode in front on his good stallion Falke with his sword Eckisax, and killed men and horses on both sides, and before him rode master Hildebrand carrying his banner and slaying men with his free hand, and their companion Wildeber followed them, and many Amelungen from Sibich's army fell.

Then king Dietrich called loudly: You have fought against the Reussen and Wilkinenmen, and we were usually victorious, but in this battle we fight for our lands and realm, so let's win great fame by reconquering it.

Now king Dietrich rode in the middle of Sibich's army and slew man and horse, and when he had come in the middle he went back by another way, and he was much feared. And by another route Wildeber rode through the Amelungen army, and no man held against him.

Walther of Waskastein saw how much damage Wildeber was doing to the Amelungen, and how they fled for him, and rode against him and hit him with his spear in the breast so that it exited between the shoulder blades. And Wildeber struck off the spear's shaft and struck Walther's thigh in the saddle, and pierced the armour and his sword got stuck in the saddle, and both fell dead from their horsesIt is unclear to me why Walther would die instantly of this wound..

When Sibich saw that his banner had fallen, and the strong Walther with it, he turned his horse and fled, and his men with him. But king Dietrich and his men pursued the fugitives for a long time and killed them all day long, and it took quite a while before he returned.

Witig saw that Sibich fled, and knew the Amelungen would lose if the same happened elsewhere. Therefore he pressed the attack and rode against duke Nudung, who had killed many men. Quickly a fight ensued, which ended when Witig hacked the banner pole in two with his sword and the banner fell to the ground. And then he gave Nudung a blow on the neck that pierced the armour so that head and body fell to the ground.

And the three young men saw this, and Ortwin said to Helfrich: Do you see how that evil dog Witig kills duke Nudung? Let's ride to him and not let him get away.

Then Ortwin bravely rode against Witig, and Helfrich with him, and against them came the strong Runga, and a fight broke out, and before it ended Ortwin and Helfrich fell dead on the ground.

And when Erp and Diether saw that the rode forward and Diether and Runga fought with great bravery, and Diether hit Runga on the helmet and went through helmet and head to the shoulders, so that Runga fell dead. But in the mean time Witig had killed Erp, and when Diether saw that both his friends were dead, he rode against Witig and wanted to either lose his life or avenge his foster brothers, and hit Witig hard and often.

But Witig said: Aren't you Diether, king Dietrich's brother? I know you, now ride elsewhere, because for his sake I will not harm you, so go fight other men.

But Diether replied: God knows, since you killed Erp and Ortwin, you vile dog, I'll take revenge for them. and one of us will die. And again he hit Witig as strongly as he could.

Witig said: God knows I hate to do this, for your brother Dietrich's sake. Then Diether hit Witig on his helmet, but the helmet was so hard that his steel could not penetrate it, and the sword sprang from the helmet down along the saddle bow and hit the head of his horse, and thus Schimming, Witig's war stallion, died.

Now Witig said, when he stood on the ground: Great necessity forces me to do something I'd rather not do. And now Witig took his sword Mimung in both hands and hit Diether in the back so that armour and body were rent apart and he fell to the ground in two pieces. And now the battle continued, and Witig killed many men, but also lost many men from the Amelungen.

The good knight Wolfhart fought with great courage all day, and he carried margrave Rodinger's banner and had ridden far into the Amelung army. And margrave Rodinger followed him. In the same way Reinald rode into the Hun army and killed many men. Now he saw what great damage Wolfhart his relative did, and his men wanted to flee from Rodinger and Wolfhart. So he rode against them and hit his relative Wolfhart in the breast with his spear, so that it exited through the shoulder blades and he fell dead from his horse.

Margrave Rodinger was close by and took the banner pole and carried his banner himself, and attacked Reinald's banner bearer and beheaded him and also cut the banner pole so that the banner fell to the ground. When Reinald's men saw their banner fall and Sibich had fled they fled as well, and when Reinald saw that he went after them.

Then one of Dietrich's followers rode after the king and called: Good lord Dietrich, turn back, that vile dog Witig has killed first duke Nudung, then Ortwin and Erp, then Helfrich, and now your brother Diether. Go back, my lord, and avenge them.

Then king Dietrich said: What have I done that God grants me such an evil day? No weapon hit me today, and I have no wounds, but the princes are dead and so is Diether. I can never return to Hunnenland now. I will avenge them or be killed myself.

Then he turned his stallion Falke, spurred him on, and his entire army followed him, and he rode so quickly that nobody could keep up with him, and he was so angry that fire came forth from his mouth, and nobody dared to stand against him.

And when Witig saw that he fled, like the other menunclear which ones are meant. He had taken Diether's horse and fled to the Mosel river, but king Dietrich rode after him. And he called to Witig: You evil dog, wait for me, I'll avenge my brother and you won't live much longer. If you have the courage to stand against one man, wait for me.

But Witig pretended he hadn't heard Dietrich, and continued his flight. Dietrich called again, and now Witig replied: I killed your brother out of necessity, and did it only to stay alive, and if I can pay you back with silver and gold I will.

But still he fled as quickly as his horse could go, but Dietrich came after him. And thus Witig rode into the lakeaccording to Ritter the lake where the Mosel flows into the Rhine, and Dietrich had come very close. In this moment Witig sank into the lake, and king Dietrich threw a spear at him, and the spear shaft struck the river mouth, and stayed there until this day, and anyone who goes there may see it.

Now king Dietrich rode back to the battlefield, and he saw how many of his relatives and friends had fallen. And he went to where his brother Diether lay, and said: There you lay, Diether, and I rue what has been done to you. And Dietrich took Diether's shield and threw it away, because it was all hacked up and useless.

And then he went to where the princes lay, and he said: My dear princes, losing you is the gravest harm I could have had, because how can I now return to Soest? I'd rather be severely wounded if you had been healthy.

Then king Dietrich went awayfrom the bodies, I suppose, and all his men had now come to him, and he said: Listen, margrave Rodinger, now bring my greetings to king Attila and queen Erka, and tell them that I will not come back to Hunnenland now that king Attila has lost so many warriors for my sake.

The margrave replied, and many other chiefs with him: Don't do that. It often happens in war that leaders lose their best warriors and still win the battle, as has happened here. So recognised you were victorious here even though you lost the princes. We will ask queen Erka to be content with that, even though she has lost her sons, and we will all make sure that king Attila won't be less of a friend to you than he was before.

Dietrich said he would never return as matters stood now, because he had promised queen Erka to return her sons, but had not kept his promise. But then all chiefs and knights went to king Dietrich and said: Good lord Dietrich, come back with us to Hunnenland, we will support you before king Attila and queen Erka. But if you do not want to return, then we will follow you to reconquer your realm, and we will fight against king Ermenrik, and we will never return until you have your realm back.

King Dietrich replied: I truly do not wish to lead king Attila's army any more, now that I have lost his two sons, and I would prefer to go home with you.

And now the entire army turned back and rode on the roads that brought them back to Hunnenland to king Attila in Soest.

When king Dietrich came to Soest he went into a cooking housea small house separate from the main structure meant for baking bread and other food that required fire and refused to see king Attila and queen Erka.

But margrave Rodinger went into Attila's hall and greeted him. And Attila asked for news, and whether they had won, and if king Dietrich had survived.

And margrave Rodinger replied: King Dietrich is alive and the Huns have won, but still it was an evil dau, since we lost your sons Erp and Ortwin. Then queen Erka cried, and almost all who were in that hall. And king Attila asked: Who else of the Huns fell along with my sons?

And Rodinger replied: Many good warriors, young Diether von Bern, and your good fried Helfrich, and duke Nudung, and Wildeber, and many other good men and chiefs, but the Amelungen lost half as many men, and those who live had to flee.

Then king Attila said, and he was courageous under these tidings: Now it happened as before, those who are fated will fall, and good weapons and strength do not help when you have to die. And we have seen that in this expedition, because Erp and Ortwin and Diether all had the best weapons, but still they all lie dead. And then he asked: But where is my good friend king Dietrich?

Someone replied: In a cooking house sit king Dietrich and master Hildebrand, and they put down their weapons and do not want to come under your eyes, my lord, so bad they feel about losing the princes.

Then king Attila said: Two of my knights, go there and ask my friend king Dietrich to come inside. He should still be close to me, despite all that has happened.

The two knights went to where king Dietrich sat, and gave him the message. But king Dietrich replied that his mood was so heavy and sad that he did not want to meet other people. And the knights went back to king Attila and told him what had happened.

Then queen Erka rose crying, and went to king Dietrich followed by her ladies. And when she entered the cooking house she said: Good king Dietrich, how did my sons fight before they died?

And king Dietrich said with great sorrow: My lady, they were good warriors, and fought well, and did not want to be separated from one another.

Then she went to him, put her hands around his neck, and kissed him, and said: My good friend, now come with me to king Attila's hall, and be welcome and glad. It has often happened that men fell in battle, and those who survive must still take care of themselves. It helps nothing to bewail the deadcheck translation. Now come with me.

Now king Dietrich rose and went after queen Erka into the hall. And when he came before king Attila the king rose, welcomed Dietrich, and kissed him, and offered him a seat on the high table. And king Dietrich accepted, and he stayed with king Attila for a long time, and their friendship was no less than it had been.

Two winters after the battle of Gransport queen Erka fell ill, and she knew she did not have long to live. And one day she sent a message to king Dietrich to come to her. And he did so.

And Dietrich said that it would be a great loss for Hunnenland if the illness would take her, and he would have lost his best friendfeminine. Queen Erka said: Dear Dietrich, you have always been my and king Attila's best friend. It could be that my illness separates us, and therefore I want to give you fifteen marks of red gold in a beaker, and a purple cloak for your festive garb. And also lady Herrat, my relative, you should marry her.

Then king Dietrich replied: Good lady, your illness is dangerous, but may God cure you. You have shown great friendship to me, but it will be worse for King Attila; he would rather lost most of Hunnenland than miss a wife like you. And so full of sorrow was Dietrich that he wept like a child, could not say more, and went out.

Then Erka asked: And where is master Hildebrand. Here am I, he said, and went to her, and she took her best gold ring from her hand and said they should separate as friends, and stay friends when we meet again. And Hildebrand thanked here, started to cry as well, and all who were there with him.

Then Erka had her knights call king Attila, and he went to her, and she said: Great king Attila, it could happen that we are separated and you become a widower. But you won't stay one for long, and you should take a good, worthy woman. But, good king Attila, do not take a wife from Niflungenland and Aldrian's family, because if you do you will pay for it, and great harm will come to you and your children if you do so.

And when she had said that she turned away from him and passed away.

And when it became known that queen Erka had died all people in Hunnenland wailed and cried, and all said, that a woman as good as she had never come to Hunnenland, and that no one had done as much good for as many people as queen Erka, and that no one had cried for more people than she had.

King Attila had queen Erka's body buried beneath the town wall, and over her grave stood king Attila and king Dietrich and all best men in Soest, and they again bewailed her death.