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Wermund

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Ancestor of the Mercian royal family For other monarchs with similar names, see Bermudo.
Wermund runs to embrace his victorious son Offa. Illustration by the Danish Lorenz Frølich in a 19th-century book.

Wermund, Vermund or Garmund is an ancestor of the Mercian royal family, a son of Wihtlaeg and father of Offa. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle makes him a grandson of Woden, but the Gesta Danorum written by Saxo Grammaticus goes no further than his father, while the Brevis Historia Regum Dacie of Sven Aggesen makes Wermund son of king Frothi hin Frokni.

According to the Gesta Danorum, his reign was long and happy, though its prosperity was eventually marred by the raids of a warlike king named Athislus, who slew Frowinus, the governor of Schleswig, in battle. Frowinus's death was avenged by his two sons, Keto and Wigo, but their conduct in fighting together against a single man was thought to constitute a national disgrace, which was only reconciled by the subsequent single combat of Offa.

It has been suggested that Athislus, though called king of the Swedes by Saxo, was really identical with the Eadgils, king of the Myrgings, mentioned in Widsith, and Frowinus and Wigo are identified with the Freawine and Wig who figure among the ancestors of the kings of Wessex in the Anglo-Saxon royal genealogies. As Eadgils was a contemporary of Ermanaric, who died about 376, his date would agree with the indication given by the genealogies which place Wermund nine generations before Penda of Mercia.

He is mentioned in lines 1958-1963 of the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf as Garmund the father of Offa of Angel and grandfather of Eomer.

...forþam Offa wæs
geofum and guðum gar-cene man,
wide geweorðod; wisdome heold
eðel sinne, þonon Eomær woc
hæleðum to helpe, Heminges mæg,
nefa Garmundes, niða cræftig.
...Hence Offa was praised
for his fighting and feeing by far-off men,
the spear-bold warrior; wisely he ruled
over his empire. Eomer woke to him,
help of heroes, Hemming's kinsman,
Grandson of Garmund, grim in war.(Gummere's translation)
The family tree of legendary Kings of the Danes, according to the Gesta Danorum (Books I to VII)

Kings of the Danes are in bold and marked with an asterisk (*). Kings of the Swedes are marked with a dagger (†).

Humble
KEY
AngulDan*GrythaMarriage or coupling
Parent and child
The AnglesHumble*Lother*King of the SaxonsInheritance by other or unclear means
Sigtryg, King of the Swedes†Skiold*AlfhildSumble, King
of the Finns
GróaGram*†SigneHenry, King
of the Saxons		Hakon, King
of the Nitherians
Swipdag*†Guthorm*
Hadding*Ragnhild
Asmund†Gunhild
Guthorm
HenryUffe†Hunding†ThorhildUlfhildUbbe
Scot
Ragnar†SwanhwidHandwan
Thorwald
Frode*
Hothbrodd†Halfdan*RoSkat
Thora
Helge*Ro*
Athisl†Urse
King GewarRolf*† KrageRuteBjarkeSkuldeHiartuar†*
Hother†*NannaHerlekGerit
Rorik*Gerwendil
King of BritainGeruthaHorwendilFeng
AmlethHermutrude, Queen of ScotlandWiglek*
Wermund*Frowin, governor of Sleswik
Uffe*, aka Olaf the GentleKetWig
Dan*
Hugleik*
Frode* the Vigorous
Dan*
KrakaRagnarBrakFridleif* the Swift
Gotar, King of NorwayHun, King of the HunsWestmarKollGotwar
RollerErik†Gunwar the FairAlfhildFrode*HanundGrep11 other brothers (two named Grep)
Hythin, King of TellemarkAlfEyfuraArngrimGrubbHiarn*Amund, King of Norway
Halfdan†12 sons, including AngantyAneJurithaFridleif*FrogerthaFrok
Hanef, King of SaxonySwerting, King of SaxonyOlafFrode*
Siward†Unnamed sonsIngeld*HelgaHelgeAsa
FrodeFridleifIngeldOlaf*Karl, governor of Gothland
UlfhildFrode*Hather, a chiefHarald*Signe
ErikThorhildHalfdan*† BiargrammHarald
Asmund
Kings of Norway

Name spellings are derived from Oliver Elton's 1905 translation, The First Nine Books of the Danish History of Saxo Grammaticus, via Wikisource.

References

  1. Tom A Shippey; Andreas Haarder (1998). Beowulf: The Critical Heritage. Routledge. pp. 301–. ISBN 978-0-415-02970-4. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  2. ^  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Wermund". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 523.

External links

Legendary titles
Preceded byWihtlæg King of the Angles Succeeded byOffa of Angel
Preceded byWiglek King of Denmark Succeeded byUffo
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