More Than a Damsel: The Subtle Sovereignty of Guinevere and Kriemhild
When you picture a medieval queen, you might envision a beautiful woman adorned in a lavish gown, modest, graceful, and most importantly, loyal to the king. Relationships between medieval royals were often marked by a queen’s dependence on male figures, as their status provided the queen with legitimacy and access to power. However, this dependence could also be a double-edged sword, as it required the queen to navigate complex dynamics of loyalty and agency to assert her own authority. Although this was usually the case, there were exceptions to this dynamic.
The Nibelungenlied, a German epic poem written anonymously around 1200, tells the story of two powerful female queens, Kriemhild and Brunhild, who deviate from the expected portrayal of a medieval queen. They behave in ways that challenge the power dynamics between queens and their male counterparts, as they fluctuate between being dependent, interdependent, and independent of men.
At the beginning of the poem, Kriemhild is introduced as the beautiful and charming princess of the kingdom of Burgundy, under the protection of her brothers, Gunther, Gernot, and Giselher. Despite the expectation to marry, Kriemhild was determined to stay single and avoid both the joys and sorrows of love. Her resistance toward marriage challenges the traditional gender norms of medieval society, where women were often expected to define their identity through marital alliances. This stance represents not only a desire for independence but also foreshadows that Kriemhild may defy other conventions of a typical medieval female figure, setting the stage for her unique role in the story. Unbeknownst to her, love was on its way regardless of whether or not she wanted to experience it. This love came in the form of a man named Siegfried, prince of the Netherlands, renowned for his unmatched bravery and heroic accomplishments. Siegfried hears of Kriemhild’s rumored beauty and falls in love with her from afar, even without having laid eyes on her. Thus, he becomes determined to woo her, setting on a journey to Burgundy.
Meanwhile, as Kriemhild remains a damsel, we are suddenly introduced to Brunhild, who lies on the other extremity of this spectrum. Brunhild is no ordinary queen- apart from having no husband, she possesses extraordinary strength and maintains her independent authority through a highly unconventional system: any man who seeks her hand in marriage must defeat her in a series of athletic activities; otherwise, he is executed. Her independence is striking: she has no king, she sets the terms for any potential marriage, and she actively defends her power through life-or-death athletic contests.
However, as the story progresses, Brunhild’s independence is shattered by the intervention of Siegfried and Gunther. Using his invisible cloak, Siegfried helps Gunther defeat Brunhild in the battle, unjustly stripping her of her autonomy. Then, when the newlywed couple finally slept together, Brunhild’s strength disappears, and she is no longer stronger than any other woman. This moment signifies how marriage in medieval literature often represents a transfer of power, where a woman’s physical or symbolic strength is forfeited in exchange for her role within the marital bond. This marks a clear shift from independence to interdependence, as Brunhild is now bound by the authority of her husband, the new king.
In contrast to Brunhild’s forced submission, Kriemhild’s journey takes a different path. After everyone finds out Siegfried helped Gunther defeat Brunhild, Hagen, Gunther’s loyal vassal, kills him. Kriemhild is devastated at first, and begins to suspect foul play. Then, she realizes that Hagen and, by extension, her brother Gunther were responsible for Siegfried’s murder. Kriemhild’s grief quickly transforms into a burning desire for vengeance.
Years later, she marries Etzel, the widowed King of Hungary. This marriage serves as a strategy- it grants her power and an army, key elements in her quest for retribution against Hagen and her Burgundian family. Her evolution from a grieving widow to a queen bent on revenge contributes to the complexities of royal dependence, interdependence, and independence. Initially, Kriemhild’s identity is characterized by her role as Siegfried’s wife, but his murder forces Kriemhild to redefine herself. Her grief isolates her from her family, leaving her without direct political power and in a position where she must become independent, to fulfill her desire for vengeance. Her subsequent marriage to Etzel demonstrates that even as a queen with clear ambitions, Kriemhild must rely on interdependence with a king and manipulate the system to her advantage. She aligns herself with a powerful king and uses her role as queen to assert agency, leveraging her new position to bring about the downfall of her enemies.
Overall, Kriemhild and Brunhild present a unique form of queenship where their relationship with male figures is not a static and dependent state, but rather a dynamic balance between dependence, interdependence, and independence, constantly shifting in response to power struggles and personal ambitions.
The Nibelungenlied, a German epic poem written anonymously around 1200, tells the story of two powerful female queens, Kriemhild and Brunhild, who deviate from the expected portrayal of a medieval queen. They behave in ways that challenge the power dynamics between queens and their male counterparts, as they fluctuate between being dependent, interdependent, and independent of men.
At the beginning of the poem, Kriemhild is introduced as the beautiful and charming princess of the kingdom of Burgundy, under the protection of her brothers, Gunther, Gernot, and Giselher. Despite the expectation to marry, Kriemhild was determined to stay single and avoid both the joys and sorrows of love. Her resistance toward marriage challenges the traditional gender norms of medieval society, where women were often expected to define their identity through marital alliances. This stance represents not only a desire for independence but also foreshadows that Kriemhild may defy other conventions of a typical medieval female figure, setting the stage for her unique role in the story. Unbeknownst to her, love was on its way regardless of whether or not she wanted to experience it. This love came in the form of a man named Siegfried, prince of the Netherlands, renowned for his unmatched bravery and heroic accomplishments. Siegfried hears of Kriemhild’s rumored beauty and falls in love with her from afar, even without having laid eyes on her. Thus, he becomes determined to woo her, setting on a journey to Burgundy.
Meanwhile, as Kriemhild remains a damsel, we are suddenly introduced to Brunhild, who lies on the other extremity of this spectrum. Brunhild is no ordinary queen- apart from having no husband, she possesses extraordinary strength and maintains her independent authority through a highly unconventional system: any man who seeks her hand in marriage must defeat her in a series of athletic activities; otherwise, he is executed. Her independence is striking: she has no king, she sets the terms for any potential marriage, and she actively defends her power through life-or-death athletic contests.
However, as the story progresses, Brunhild’s independence is shattered by the intervention of Siegfried and Gunther. Using his invisible cloak, Siegfried helps Gunther defeat Brunhild in the battle, unjustly stripping her of her autonomy. Then, when the newlywed couple finally slept together, Brunhild’s strength disappears, and she is no longer stronger than any other woman. This moment signifies how marriage in medieval literature often represents a transfer of power, where a woman’s physical or symbolic strength is forfeited in exchange for her role within the marital bond. This marks a clear shift from independence to interdependence, as Brunhild is now bound by the authority of her husband, the new king.
In contrast to Brunhild’s forced submission, Kriemhild’s journey takes a different path. After everyone finds out Siegfried helped Gunther defeat Brunhild, Hagen, Gunther’s loyal vassal, kills him. Kriemhild is devastated at first, and begins to suspect foul play. Then, she realizes that Hagen and, by extension, her brother Gunther were responsible for Siegfried’s murder. Kriemhild’s grief quickly transforms into a burning desire for vengeance.
Years later, she marries Etzel, the widowed King of Hungary. This marriage serves as a strategy- it grants her power and an army, key elements in her quest for retribution against Hagen and her Burgundian family. Her evolution from a grieving widow to a queen bent on revenge contributes to the complexities of royal dependence, interdependence, and independence. Initially, Kriemhild’s identity is characterized by her role as Siegfried’s wife, but his murder forces Kriemhild to redefine herself. Her grief isolates her from her family, leaving her without direct political power and in a position where she must become independent, to fulfill her desire for vengeance. Her subsequent marriage to Etzel demonstrates that even as a queen with clear ambitions, Kriemhild must rely on interdependence with a king and manipulate the system to her advantage. She aligns herself with a powerful king and uses her role as queen to assert agency, leveraging her new position to bring about the downfall of her enemies.
Overall, Kriemhild and Brunhild present a unique form of queenship where their relationship with male figures is not a static and dependent state, but rather a dynamic balance between dependence, interdependence, and independence, constantly shifting in response to power struggles and personal ambitions.
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