Famous Men of the Middle Ages · Intro, part 2 · Unit 1: Gods and heroes of the Teutons
2. The Nibelungs, part 1: Siegfried and Brunhilda
Goal: Your child can tell the first half of the Nibelung story: who Siegfried was, how he won the treasure, and how he helped King Gunther win Brunhilda.
You'll need
- The book, open to this chapter
- A map of Europe and the Mediterranean (a free online map or a globe)
- Paper and colored pencils
What's in the book
The Nibelungs, sections I to III: an unknown poet of the twelfth century wrote down the old stories in the Nibelungenlied. Siegfried comes to Worms to win Princess Kriemhilda. Hagen tells how he won the Nibelung treasure, the sword Balmung and the cap of darkness, and how dragon's blood made his skin like horn. Siegfried beats the Saxons and Danes, then, invisible, helps Gunther win the contests with Brunhilda, queen of Iceland.
The lesson, step by step
Set the scene
Find the Rhine again. Point to Worms, a city on the Rhine in Germany, and to the Netherlands where the Rhine reaches the sea. Then find Iceland, far to the northwest.
SayThis is not history. It is a great old poem of the Germans, full of dwarfs, dragons and magic. But it tells us what the people of the Middle Ages loved to hear.
Read the chapter
Read from the start of The Nibelungs to the double wedding at Worms. The story begins:
In the grand old city of Worms, in Burgundy, there lived long ago the princess Kriemhilda.
Explain two words if needed: a hoard is a hidden treasure; to woo is to try to win someone as a husband or wife.
Tell it back
Prompts:
- How did Siegfried get the Nibelung treasure, the sword and the cap of darkness?
- Why could no sword wound him?
- What three contests did a knight have to win against Brunhilda?
- How did Siegfried help Gunther win?
Talk it over
Ask:
- Was it fair for Siegfried to help Gunther in secret? What might happen if Brunhilda found out?
- The book says whoever owned the treasure "was followed by a curse." Keep that in mind for next time.
Remember it
Read what Kriemhilda said when Siegfried came home a hero:
Welcome, Sir Siegfried, welcome; we thank you one and all.
SaySiegfried, Kriemhilda, Gunther, Brunhilda, Hagen. Write the five names with one word about each.
Extra (optional)
Draw Siegfried and the dragon, or Brunhilda hurling her huge stone. The book says it took twelve men to lift it.
Afterwards
Ask your child to tell the story of the cap of darkness to someone else in the family.
Tip
The book mentions that Wagner's operas are based on these legends. If your child likes music, a few minutes of Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" is a fun follow-up.
Answers to the book's problems
Siegfried divided the hoard for two princes; they quarreled and attacked him, and he killed them, then beat the dwarf Alberich and took the cap of darkness. He had bathed in a dragon's blood, which turned his skin to horn. The contests were leaping, hurling the spear and pitching the stone. Wearing the cap of darkness, he stood unseen beside Gunther and did the work for him.
Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.