Clash of Maldon (Leeth)

The following inbringing is an oversetting from Ængelsaxish into the Anglish tongue; tis the first and twoth reading of the Hild at Maldon.

Oversetting
Byrhtnoth made a speech, raised his shield, waved his lithesome ash-spear, spoke in words, angry and firm gave him back an andword: ‘Hear thee, seafarer, what these folks sayeth? They willeth to give thee spears as gavel, deadly tip, and fanded swords, a betaling in war-gear, that ne will do thee good at hild. Go back again, sailors’ bydel, tell thy kinsmen a much more hateful reckoning, that a fearless leader stands here with his ferd, one who is willing to ward this land, my lord Æthelred’s land, the folk and the ground. Heathens must fall at hild. It seems to me too shameful that ye should go unfought to thy ships with our sceat, now that ye have thus come so far here into our land. Ye ne ought to win hoard so deftly; but spear-tip and sword-edge, dreadful hild-play, must settle atween us before we bestow gavel.’

Byrhtwold made a speech, raised his shield (he was an old witholder), shook his ash-spear. He besought the wyemen very boldly: ‘Mind must be harder, heart keener, wit must be bigger as our strength lessens. Here our leader lies all cut down, a good man in the dirt. He who thinks to turn away from this hild-play now shall always be fit to wail it. I am afanded in life; I ne willeth to go, but I ettle to lay myself down by the side of my lord, by so dear a man.’ In the same way the child of Æthelgar, Godric, heartened them all in fighting. Oft he let a spear fly, a deadly dart against the vikings, and so too he went forthward at the front of the ferd, he slashed and cut them down – until he fell in the hild. That was not the Godric who fled from the fight.