_Joy is renewed at Heorot. Congratulations crowd upon the victor. Hrothgar
literally pours treasures into the lap of Beowulf; and it is agreed among
the vassals of the king that Beowulf will be their next liegelord._

_Beowulf leaves Dane-land. Hrothgar weeps and laments at his departure._

_When the hero arrives in his own land, Higelac treats him as a
distinguished guest. He is the hero of the hour._

_Beowulf subsequently becomes king of his own people, the Geats. After he
has been ruling for fifty years, his own neighborhood is wofully harried
by a fire-spewing dragon. Beowulf determines to kill him. In the ensuing
struggle both Beowulf and the dragon are slain. The grief of the Geats is
inexpressible. They determine, however, to leave nothing undone to honor
the memory of their lord. A great funeral-pyre is built, and his body is
burnt. Then a memorial-barrow is made, visible from a great distance, that
sailors afar may be constantly reminded of the prowess of the national
hero of Geatland._

_The poem closes with a glowing tribute to his bravery, his gentleness,
his goodness of heart, and his generosity._

* * * * *

It is the devout desire of this translator to hasten the day when the
story of Beowulf shall be as familiar to English-speaking peoples as that
of the Iliad. Beowulf is our first great epic. It is an epitomized history
of the life of the Teutonic races. It brings vividly before us our
forefathers of pre-Alfredian eras, in their love of war, of sea, and of
adventure.