Volsungs

• Beginning

• Signy & Sigmund

• Death of Sigmund & Sinfjotli

Beginning

Sigi was a great hunter, yet was a thrall of Skadi named Bredi who had matched his prowess in hunting and bested him. In a jealous rage, he killed Bredi, hiding the body in a snowdrift. When Skadi found his thrall dead in a snowdrift, he declared Sigi an outlaw. Later, Sigi, became king of the Huns. Sigi made many enemies in his long reign, and among the enemies were his brother-in-laws. In his old age, his enemies had him killed.

His son Rerir succeeded Sigi. Rerir, who was an even greater king than his father in bravery and combat, avenged his father, killing his uncles and other enemies. He built a great empire through his numerous victories in wars against his neighbours. However, he and his wife had problems with producing an heir. Desperately wanting a son, Rerir prayed to the gods. Frigg, wife and consort of Odin, asked for a golden apple from the giant Hrimnir. The apple was delivered to Rerir by crow, which dropped the apple in his lap. Immediately realising the importance of this divine sign, Rerir shared the apple with his wife. Soon, Rerir's wife was pregnant.

Rerir, who had fought a war, fell ill and died. Rerir's wife was pregnant for an impossible six winters! Dying, the queen asked them to cut the baby out of her womb. Volsung was born almost a man in size and strength.

Signy & Sigmund

Volsung was born an orphan, but unlike other children, but he was huge in size and strength. He succeeded his father, becoming king of Hunland. Volsung became even more powerful than his father. His palace was built with the oak tree called Branstock in the middle of his great hall.

Hrimnir sent his daughter Ljod (Hljod) to marry Volsung. Volsung became the father of ten mighty sons and a daughter, Signy. Signy was the twin sister of Sigmund and enjoyed a close relationship with her brother.

One day Siggeir, king of Gothland, came and asked for Volsung's daughter's hand in marriage. Volsung agreed, though Signy did not want to marry Siggeir, knowing him to be a treacherous and murderous king.

During the feast, Odin, disguised as old man, came to the hall and drove a great sword into Branstock. Odin told them it would be his gift to the person who could draw the sword out of great oak tree.

It was said that Volund (or Wayland the Smith) made the sword, and the magic sword was later called Gram (Balmung or Mimung in German myth). The sword had the power to make the owner win all his battles. No one in the hall except Sigmund, Volsung's younger son, could extract the sword from Branstock.

Siggeir, who could not draw the sword from Branstock, wanted the sword for himself and offered to buy the sword off Sigmund. Sigmund scornfully rejected Siggeir's offer of gold. Offended by the young man's reply, Siggeir was determined to destroy Volsung's family.

Signy unsuccessfully tried to persuade her father not to marry her to the king. She had a forboding that Siggeir would betray them. Volsung refused to heed her warning.

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After Siggeir married the reluctant Signy, he invited Volsung to come to his home.

Again, Signy warned her father, fearing her new husband would attack them, but again Volsung ignored her warning. The moment Volsung and his sons arrived in Siggeir's territory, they were ambushed in the woods. Volsung was killed in the fighting and all of his sons were captured.

Siggeir had all of Signy's brothers bound in the trees in chains. Helpless, a she-wolf would come each night to kill and devour them. One by one, each brother was killed by the she-wolf until only Sigmund was left. Signy secretly went to her brother and smeared honey all over his face and inside his mouth. When the she-wolf came, instead of biting Sigmund, she licked his face and the inside of the youth's mouth. Sigmund bit hard on the wolf until it died. Somehow, Sigmund managed to get out of his chains and hid in a cave in the woods.

Signy then found her brother alive, and together they plotted to destroy Siggeir and his men.

As Sigmund recovered in the cave, Signy bore several children to the king. When Signy's eldest son reached the age of eleven, she sent him to her brother. Sigmund was to train her son to destroy Siggeir. However, Sigmund found that Siggeir's son was too weak for such a task. Signy told her brother to then kill her son.

The following year, Signy sent her second son to her brother, but once again, Sigmund found him also to be weak; hence her second son was killed.

Realising that none of her children by her husband would be strong enough to avenge her father and brothers' death against her husband Siggeir; Signy sought help from a beautiful witch. The witch helped Signy by transforming her to look exactly like the witch.

In the form of the witch, Signy visited Sigmund, making love with her brother for three nights. Returning to her husband she was changed back to her own form. Later she discovered she was pregnant by her brother. She gave birth to Sinfjotli.

When Sinfjotli reached the age of eleven, Signy sent her son to Sigmund. Sigmund thought that Sinfjotli was Siggeir's son. Nor did Sinfjotli recognise his real father. Only Signy knew of the true relationship between Sigmund and Sinfjotli.

Sinfjotli had already grown into a man in size and strength. Sigmund discovered that Sinfjotli was suitable to help him avenge his family. When Sigmund told Sinfjotli about his family and Siggeir's betrayal, Sinfjotli agreed to help. Sigmund trained Sinfjotli until it was time for vengeance.

Sigmund and Sinfjotli tried to use stealth to reach the palace. However, Siggeir's two remaining children discovered them and told their father about armed strangers in the palace. Signy ordered her brother to kill her last two children from Siggeir, but he refused to kill any more of his sister's children. Sinfjotli had no such compunction and murdered his siblings.

Siggeir's men captured Sigmund and Sinfjotli and had them entombed alive. Signy however managed to secretly give Sigmund's magic sword to him. Sigmund and Sinfjotli used the sword and dug their way out of the barrow.

Together they set fire to Siggeir's palace, while he and his men slept. Signy came to them, revealing Sinfjotli was Sigmund's own son by her. Because she had ordered death of her own children, she returned to the burning palace to die with her hated husband.

Death of Sigmund & Sinfjotli

Sigmund returned to his home (Hunland) with Sinfjotli, where Sigmund had to drive out the imposter king who had set himself up as ruler since Volsung's death. Once again, the Volsungs re-established a mighty kingdom. Sigmund married Borghild and became the father of Helgi and Hamund.

At the age of fifteen, Helgi fought many wars and won his own kingdom. Helgi earned the named Helgi Hundingsbani when he fought two battles and killed Hunding and his sons. Helgi then went on to defeat Hodbrodd and Granmar to win his marriage to Sigrun, daughter of King Hogni (this Hogni should not be confused with the Burgundian Hogni). Sigrun was probably a Valkyrie (shield-maiden). (See The Two Helgi for the full legend about Helgi and Sigrun.)

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Borghild was jealous of her stepson Sinfjotli's prowess and plotted his death. Sigmund, who was immune to all poison, drank two of the mugs of wine that Borghild had offered to Sinfjotli. Sinfjotli however drank the third mug and died from the poison.

Borghild was banished from Hunland for poisoning her stepson.

Sigmund carried Sinfjotli's body into the wood. Sigmund met a ferryman at the fjord. The ferryman offered to help him cross, but the boat was only large enough to take one passenger. So Sigmund allowed the ferryman to take his son's body to other side of the fjord first.

As the boat reached the middle of the fjord, the boat along with Sinfjotli's body disappeared. Apparently the ferryman was none other than Odin. It seemed that Odin was personally taking Sinfjotli to Valhalla.

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Sigmund sought another wife. He fell in love with Hjordis (Sisibe or Sieglind), the beautiful daughter of King Eylimi. Sigmund wooed Hjordis but he had to compete against other powerful and younger kings, including Lyngi (Lyngvi), the son of King Hunding.

Sigmund won Hjordis despite being a much older man than the other suitors were, and married her. War broke out between Sigmund and the Hundings because Lyngi refused to give up Hjordis.

Sigmund and Eylimi were winning the battle. Yet, according to the Norns, Sigmund was fated to die that day. Yet Sigmund could never be defeated, nor he could be wounded while he wielded his magic sword (Gram or Balmung) in battle.

To fulfil Sigmund's doom, Odin came into the battlefield with his invincible spear, Gungnir. When Sigmund saw Odin, he attacked the god, but when he struck the Gungnir, Sigmund shattered the sword into two.

The tide of the battle turned against Sigmund's army and he was defeated. Sigmund and his father-in-law, King Eylimi, had fallen in battle.

At night Hjordis, who was still pregnant with Sigmund's child, found her husband mortally wounded on the battlefield. Sigmund advised his wife to gather the shards of his shattered sword so that their son could forge a new sword. Sigmund foretold that his unborn son would avenge him and Hjordis' father.

Lyngi still wanted to marry Hjordis but could not find her or her treasure, for she had fled to King Alf, whom she then married.

Hjordis gave birth to a son whom she named Sigurd. Alf, the son of King Hjalprek of Denmark, brought up Sigmund's son as if he was his very own son.