The Complete Old English Poems

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The Complete Old English Poems Page 36

by Craig Williamson

Screeching a death-chant, following the foes. 30

  Over the boundaries swept the greatest of armies

  That the king of the Huns could muster for battle

  Among his neighbors—battle-hungry, blood-thirsty,

  Eager for combat. The relentless ones rolled on.

  The keenest of warriors advanced in waves 35

  Of ordered legions till they approached the edge

  Of the city-fortress, fierce foot soldiers

  Eager to fight an enemy in a foreign land.

  The cruel spear-men set up a camp

  At the Danube’s edge with a great clamor. 40

  They meant to ransack the Roman empire,

  Massacre the people, and carry home plunder.

  The Roman citizens discovered terror

  In the onslaught of Huns. Savage arrows

  Began to fly, flesh-bite and death-sting, 45

  Lethal battle-snakes darting through the air.

  The emperor ordered his troops to attack.

  The resolute Roman army entered the assault,

  Battle-hard, ready for the conflict.

  Their numbers were smaller than those 50

  Of the Huns, but their spirits were stronger.

  Swords clashed with shields, steel with wood,

  Blade on bone, singing a shrill war-song.

  The black raven shrieked, eager for blood.

  The army moved out, marching for its life. 55

  The trumpets blared a bright battle-call,

  Heralds of doom. Horses pawed the ground.

  Steadfast warriors headed for the strife.

  The Roman king was touched by terror

  When he saw the horde of Huns and Hrethgoths 60

  Gathered there by the river, a fierce force,

  A company of cutthroats, ready for war.

  His heart was heavy, his spirit sad—

  His valiant army was too small for victory.

  His troops made camp, close companions 65

  Preparing for the next day’s desperate battle.

  The army of warriors surrounded their prince,

  Preparing for the night’s uneasy sleep.

  Later, as the emperor slipped into dream,

  An extraordinary vision entered his mind. 70

  A strange man of supernatural beauty

  Appeared in the dream, revealing himself

  With heavenly radiance—a creature brighter,

  More beautiful than anyone under the sun.

  Suddenly the emperor sat up startled, 75

  His head protected by his hard boar-helmet.

  The mighty messenger, a heavenly herald,

  Called out as the veil of night vanished,

  And the mind’s darkness drifted away:

  “Constantine! The King of the company of angels, 80

  The Ruler of fate, Decider of destiny,

  The Lord of hosts, brings you a promise

  Of power and protection, triumph over terror.

  Fear not, though alien armies may attack you,

  Savages come at you with swords and spears, 85

  For God is your shield, your strength in battle.

  Raise up your eyes to your Ruler in heaven

  Where you will find a radiant sign,

  A token of glory, a symbol of victory.”

  The emperor was suddenly alert at the angel’s 90

  Bold bidding and laid open his heart,

  Lifting his eyes as the peace-weaver proposed.

  He saw there the glory-tree, the radiant rood,

  The cross of Christ, beautifully adorned

  With gems and jewels, gleaming with gold. 95

  The wonder-tree was inscribed with these words:

  “With this sign you will slay the perilous hordes,

  Beat back the blood-thirsty barbarians,

  Overcome the evil enemy on the battlefield.”

  Then the radiance faded, folded into night 100

  As the bright angel ascended into heaven,

  Returning home to the host of the pure.

  The king was enthralled by the holy vision—

  That cross was his hope against the hordes.

  Then Constantine, the ruler and ring-giver, 105

  Protector of peoples, pride of princes,

  Commanded a symbol made in the likeness

  Of Christ’s cross, the radiant rood,

  Just as he had seen revealed in the heavens.

  In the light of dawn, he roused his warriors 110

  And raised the standard of the tree of God,

  The cross of victory, to bear in the battle-storm

  Against the heathen hordes, the bold barbarians.

  Trumpets blared, tempers flared,

  The dark raven dreamed of devouring 115

  Combat-corpses on the battlefield.

  The dewy-feathered eagle prepared to plunder

  Flesh and sinew, arm and eye—a bloody feast.

  The savage wolf came to stalk his prey,

  Howling his hideous, unmerciful song. 120

  Battle-terror touched each warrior’s heart.

  Swords slashed, shields clashed, arrows shrieked

  From bowstring to breastbone, fierce battle-adders

  With a dangerous bite. Death rained from above.

  The barbarian hordes could not be stopped, 125

  Driven by fury and a fierce love of battle.

  The brutal army savagely attacked,

  Breaking the shield-wall, slashing with swords.

  Then the bold banner was raised, the sign of the rood.

  The war-chant shifted to a song of victory— 130

  The cross of Christ was on the battlefield.

  Gold helmets gleamed, bright spears shimmered,

  Bones were shivered, barbarian blood flowed.

  The unholy heathens dropped like flies.

  Huns and Hrethgoths fled from the field. 135

  The enemy attackers were desperate to escape

  As the war-horns trumpeted a Roman triumph,

  And Constantine raised up the sign of the cross.

  The harried aggressors were scattered everywhere.

  Battle-swords slew some, arrows others— 140

  Barbarians barely escaped with their lives.

  They kept no courage. The company was decimated.

  Some fled to the cliffs, hiding in caves,

  Some nursed deadly wounds by the Danube.

  Some went swimming in the deepest water, 145

  Carried downstream by death’s cold current.

  The Roman armies exulted in the chase,

  Relentlessly hunting the heathens down

  From dawn to dusk. Ash-spears and arrows

  Bit like battle-snakes. The enemies’ shields 150

  Were suddenly shattered, their bones broken,

  Their lives lost. Not many Huns went home.

  The sign of Christ’s victory was clear to all—

  The almighty King had granted Constantine

  Triumph over terror, victory over the vicious 155

  Barbarian hordes through the holy rood,

  The tree of glory, the cross of Christ.

  With the battle won, the king of the Romans,

  Returned home, made worthy by war.

  His army exulted over their hard victory, 160

  Enjoying the spoils they had seized in battle.

  So the people’s protector sailed home with thanes,

  Joyful soldiers shaking their war-shields

  And singing victory-songs back to the cities.

  Then the shield-commander, their lord and king, 165

  Summoned his wisest counselors together,

  Those who had studied the sacred texts

  And stored their meanings in memory’s hold,

  To ask if any of them, young or old,

  Could answer the question he put them: 170

  “What god was this whose symbol saved u
s

  From certain slaughter, whose cross kept us

  All alive, whose tree held back terror,

  Whose radiant rood has given us glory?”

  No one knew anything about that victory-sign 175

  Or could venture a guess about its meaning.

  Then the wisest of men said that the cross

  Was a sacred symbol of the King of heaven.

  When the few battle-warriors who had been baptized

  Heard this truth, their hearts rejoiced. 180

  Their spirits soared that they might offer the emperor

  The gift of the Gospel, its grace and glory,

  Explaining how the Son of God, the Shielder of souls,

  The King of kings, the Trinity triumphant,

  Was born to a pure maiden in Bethlehem— 185

  How he was tried and tormented on a gallows tree,

  Crucified on a cross like a common criminal

  Before crowds that mocked him in his misery—

  How he died and delivered the children of men

  And their suffering souls from Satan’s snare 190

  By his harrowing hell—how he granted them grace

  Through the sign of the cross, the same radiant symbol

  Revealed to Constantine in his divine dream,

  A victory-sign against the heathen hordes—

  How Christ rose from the dead on the third day 195

  And ascended into heaven, his heart’s home,

  To live forever with his Father in eternal light.

  So the faithful instructed the victorious emperor

  In the spiritual mysteries they had all been taught

  By the holy Sylvester. Then King Constantine 200

  Was converted and baptized a faithful follower

  Of Christ and kept his belief for all his days,

  Ruling according to the will of God.

  Then the battle-hard King Constantine,

  Bestower of treasures, experienced joy— 205

  A bright blessing had entered his heart.

  His hope was in heaven, his comfort in Christ.

  He lived in God’s love, making known his law

  Through the gift of the Spirit day and night.

  The war-famous king and gold-giving lord 210

  Of all the people and princes who served him

  Honored and praised his God and Guardian.

  Then King Constantine, shield of the Romans,

  Bold in battle, sure-handed with a spear,

  Learned from the scriptures with the help of scholars 215

  How the Lord of heaven had been cruelly hung

  On the gallows-tree, wracked on the rood,

  Through human deceit and inhuman hate—

  How Satan himself, that ancient enemy,

  Had seduced the Jews to condemn Christ, 220

  Torment and torture him, nail him to the cross,

  Wantonly kill the Lord of creation.

  For this heinous crime, they would all suffer

  Endless banishment, eternal damnation.

  From that day on, the story of Christ 225

  And the sign of the Cross, the sacred rood,

  Resided in Constantine’s heart, sustaining

  His spirit, so that he ordered his mother Helena

  To journey abroad with a band of soldiers

  To the land of the Jews to seek out the cross, 230

  The tree of glory, the gallows of God,

  And see if the holy cross might be hidden

  In an unmarked grave in unhallowed ground.

  Helena was not reluctant to make the journey

  To look for Christ’s cross or follow the command 235

  Of her gracious ruler, her glorious son.

  In a company of mailed warriors, the brave woman

  Set out eagerly on her longed-for journey.

  The Roman hosts hastened to the shore

  Where the sea-steeds, the wave-walkers, 240

  Were tethered and ready, straining at their ropes.

  Helena’s holy mission was known to many—

  Multitudes lined the Mediterranean shore.

  The troops advanced along the strand.

  They loaded the ships with spears and shields, 245

  Swords and mail-coats, men and women,

  And the necessary provisions for the long road.

  Then the tall ships sailed through wild waves,

  Braving the grim ocean’s battle-blows.

  The waves rose up, the sea resounded. 250

  I’ve never heard, before or after, of a braver woman

  Leading a fairer force over the ocean road.

  Anyone who watched would certainly have seen

  A wonder on the wave—a wooden horse

  With one foot, a tall back, and bright wings, 255

  Racing over a fathomless sea-road.

  Bold warriors sailed with high spirits,

  And the queen took pleasure in their company.

  They joyfully sailed the ring-prowed ships

  To a safe harbor in the land of the Greeks, 260

  Anchoring the ancient vessels there,

  Lashed to the strand. The sea-steeds awaited

  The outcome of the quest when the battle-queen

  And her mailed warriors might come boldly back

  Along eastern roads for the return voyage. 265

  In the morning sun everyone could clearly see

  Chain-mail gleaming, sharp blades glistening,

  Boar-helmets shining, the best of battle-gear.

  The spear-warriors set out from the ships,

  Surrounding their treasured, triumphant queen. 270

  The soldiers of the emperor, companies of the king,

  Marched in glory through the land of Greece,

  Resolute in their purpose to redeem the rood.

  The proud warriors carried a precious gem,

  A jewel of a queen in a strange battle-setting, 275

  The gift of their lord. The blessed Helena,

  Bold of heart, steadfast in spirit, firm in faith,

  Never forgot her son’s wish, her lord’s command,

  That she should seek the land of the Jews

  Across peaceful plains and dangerous battlefields 280

  With her stalwart soldiers. So in a short time

  These best of battle-thanes reached Jerusalem,

  A company of warriors with a noble queen.

  Then Helena commanded the wisest of Jewish

  Leaders in the city to come to a council 285

  To explain the Lord’s mysteries in the ancient laws.

  So a great gathering of scholars arrived

  From near and far, three thousand strong,

  Men who would expound on the law of Moses.

  Then the noble queen welcomed the sages 290

  And said to the host of Hebrew men:

  “I have learned through the words of the prophets,

  Their secret writings in the sacred books,

  That long ago you were honored and esteemed

  By the King of glory, dear to the Lord, 295

  Praising his words and performing his works—

  But sadly then you spurned his wisdom,

  Reviling the Redeemer, who in his grace and glory

  Might have saved you from hell’s curse,

  The torture and torment of unending flame, 300

  If you had recognized his power and purpose,

  Instead of accusing him of hateful crimes,

  Abusing and nailing him cruelly to the cross.

  You spit in the face of the Savior and Son,

  Who could wash your eyes clean of blindness 305

  With the sacred spittle and heal your hearts,

  Saving you from the darkness of devils

  And their fiery filth. You condemned to die

  The Lord himself who created life

  And conquered death—who raised up the patriarchs 
310

  From their moldering graves, their grim fates.

  In your blindness you traded light for darkness,

  Truth for lies, mercy for malice.

  You played deadly games with perjury,

  So now you are sentenced to Satan’s realm, 315

  Where no one will hear your unholy words

  Or care to comfort your everlasting pain.

  You condemned the life-giving power

  Of the eternal Light. Now dwell in darkness

  For all of your days. You live in delusion 320

  And will die in desperation. Go quickly now

  And consult among those who comprehend

  The old laws and learning for some wisdom

  So that your sages can answer my questions.”

  Then the wise ones went away sad-hearted, 325

  Haunted by anxiety, frustration, and fear.

  They searched the wisest sayings in their scriptures

  On good and evil, so they could easily answer

  The queen’s questions and satisfy her demands.

  They gathered a throng of a thousand sages 330

  Who knew the ancient laws and lore.

  This council crowded around the queen’s throne,

  Where the emperor’s kinswoman, the magnificent

  Battle-queen, was clad in gold. Helena spoke

  To the assembled hosts, a company of men: 335

  “Listen, you scholars, to the divine mystery,

  The sacred wisdom of the ancient texts.

  You have heard the holy words of the prophets

  Promising that the Lord of life would be born

  Unto you in the form of a child, a mighty Ruler, 340

  Of whom great Moses, guardian of the Israelites,

  Sang in his praise-song, saying these words:

  ‘To you shall be born one day in secret,

  A child of wonder, a boy of blessing,

  A prince of power, whose pregnant mother 345

  Will be a pure maid untouched by a man’s embrace.’

  So also King David, the wise prophet,

  Father of Solomon, lord of warriors,

  Singer of songs, said these words:

  ‘I have seen in splendor the God of creation, 350

  The Lord of victories, the Ruler of hosts.

  He has been my guardian, my glorious shepherd—

  He stands in radiance at my right hand.

  My earthly gaze shall remain on God

  Till the end of days.’ Likewise Isaiah 355

  Gave you his words, inspired by God—

  The prophet who profoundly understood the spirit

  And could see beyond his own eyes said:

  ‘I have raised a son and many children,

  Granting them each sustenance and solace, 360

  Peace and prosperity, but all of my rebellious

  Offspring have reviled me, denied and despised me.

 

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