Editorial Content for The Battle of Maldon: Together with the Homecoming of Beorhtnoth
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
J. R. R. Tolkien is, quite rightly, labeled as the grandfather of modern fantasy. A preeminent linguist of his time, he steeped his imagination in worldly epics, legends and poems from ages past. Stories that were once passed down word to word were eventually written down, no doubt altered and exaggerated along the way: “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.” “Beowulf.” “The Kalevala.” “The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún.” Tolkien delved into these works with great affection, examining and pulling apart their language and their explorations of heroism, sacrifice, honor and mythology.
THE BATTLE OF MALDON, the latest in the wave of posthumous releases, comes just a few months after the release of THE FALL OF NÚMENOR. While that tome focused on the Second Age of Middle-earth, compiling the legends into one easily digestible volume, this new work looks back at a piece the Professor sank his attentions into and devoted authorship and analysis to back in the 1950s. Though titled THE BATTLE OF MALDON, the book actually opens with “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son.” This short piece is a drama in verse, set in the time just following the Battle of Maldon.
"THE BATTLE OF MALDON is a worthwhile read for anyone seeking further scholarly Tolkien work and would be a welcome addition to your bookshelves."
Wait. What is the Battle of Maldon, you ask? It is, by way of a very brief explanation, a piece of English history. It took place in August of the year 991 near the town of Maldon in England. It was there that the Earl Byrhtnoth led a defense of England against invading Vikings, only to be soundly defeated. The Archbishop of Canterbury advised the King to pay the Vikings to stop the invasion rather than continue what appeared to be a futile military endeavor.
In “Homecoming,” we are presented with Tolkien’s version of the quest of Torhthelm and Tidwald. The poetic drama unfolds over just a few pages and lines, recounting the likely mythical journey of Torhthelm the storyteller and Tidwald the farmer as they scour the battlefield to locate the body of the fallen Beorhtnoth. They are struck by the horror of the battlefield and compelled to haste by supernatural fears.
“The Battle of Maldon” comes second. Tolkien prefaces the piece by giving an overview of the work. This time, the story is told not in poetic form but as a narrative. In reading the section as presented in Tolkien’s voice, one can very clearly see similarities to passages contained in THE LORD OF THE RINGS. This is followed by notes from Tolkien about select passages of the original poem itself.
The book also supplies “The Tradition of Versification” in Old English, which is essentially the text of a speech that Tolkien gave at Oxford around the late 1920s or early 1930s. The entire endeavor is an exploration of the myriad kinds of poetry in Old English, the meter and language, and the tradition of poetic storytelling.
While this section may not be the fiction and beautiful prose that a reader of Tolkien’s Middle-earth would expect or desire, it is absolutely fascinating insight into his mind. He puts the pieces of the puzzle together to see the big picture --- the Old English epics being key pieces that would inspire the Middle-earth we so love and admire. Seeing how his mind worked in this regard is, in itself, an impressive bit of time spent. But unless you are a fan of Tolkien in areas beyond Middle-earth, this won’t be a purchase for casual readers to enjoy --- though they could be impressed and appreciate it if they put in the time and effort.
THE BATTLE OF MALDON is a worthwhile read for anyone seeking further scholarly Tolkien work and would be a welcome addition to your bookshelves.
Teaser
In 991 AD, Vikings attacked an Anglo-Saxon defense-force led by their duke, Beorhtnoth, resulting in brutal fighting along the banks of the river Blackwater, near Maldon in Essex. The attack is widely considered one of the defining conflicts of 10th-century England, due to it being immortalized in the poem “The Battle of Maldon.” Written shortly after the battle, the poem would inspire J.R.R. Tolkien to compose his own dramatic verse-dialogue, “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son,” which imagines the aftermath of the great battle. Leading Tolkien scholar Peter Grybauskas presents for the very first time Tolkien’s own prose translation of “The Battle of Maldon,” together with the definitive treatment of “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth” and its accompanying essays.
Promo
In 991 AD, Vikings attacked an Anglo-Saxon defense-force led by their duke, Beorhtnoth, resulting in brutal fighting along the banks of the river Blackwater, near Maldon in Essex. The attack is widely considered one of the defining conflicts of 10th-century England, due to it being immortalized in the poem “The Battle of Maldon.” Written shortly after the battle, the poem would inspire J.R.R. Tolkien to compose his own dramatic verse-dialogue, “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son,” which imagines the aftermath of the great battle. Leading Tolkien scholar Peter Grybauskas presents for the very first time Tolkien’s own prose translation of “The Battle of Maldon,” together with the definitive treatment of “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth” and its accompanying essays.
About the Book
The first-ever stand-alone edition of one of J.R.R. Tolkien’s most important poetic dramas, that explores timely themes such as the nature of heroism and chivalry during war, featuring previously unpublished and never-before-seen texts and drafts.
In 991 AD, Vikings attacked an Anglo-Saxon defense-force led by their duke, Beorhtnoth, resulting in brutal fighting along the banks of the river Blackwater, near Maldon in Essex. The attack is widely considered one of the defining conflicts of 10th-century England, due to it being immortalized in the poem “The Battle of Maldon.”
Written shortly after the battle, the poem now survives only as a 325-line fragment, but its value to today is incalculable, not just as a heroic tale but in vividly expressing the lost language of our ancestors and celebrating ideals of loyalty and friendship.
J.R.R. Tolkien considered “The Battle of Maldon” “the last surviving fragment of ancient English heroic minstrelsy.” It would inspire him to compose, during the 1930s, his own dramatic verse-dialogue, “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son,” which imagines the aftermath of the great battle when two of Beorhtnoth’s retainers come to retrieve their duke’s body.
Leading Tolkien scholar Peter Grybauskas presents for the very first time Tolkien’s own prose translation of “The Battle of Maldon,” together with the definitive treatment of “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth” and its accompanying essays. Also included and never before published is Tolkien’s bravura lecture, “The Tradition of Versification in Old English,” a wide-ranging essay on the nature of poetic tradition. Illuminated with insightful notes and commentary, he has produced a definitive critical edition of these works and argues compellingly that, Beowulf excepted, “The Battle of Maldon” may well have been “the Old English poem that most influenced Tolkien’s fiction,” most dramatically within the pages of THE LORD OF THE RINGS.
