Resumen
Resumen de La historia de los volsungos (saga volsunga)
Go deeper: the whole of La historia de los volsungos (saga volsunga)
About 3 h 50 min to read.Para quién es
You will love this saga if you enjoy myths of gods in disguise, dragon fights, cursed treasure and fierce, clever women. It suits readers of Norse legend and anyone curious about where Wagner's Ring found its fire.
De qué trata este libro
What would you do if a one-eyed stranger drove a sword into a tree at your sister's wedding feast and said that whoever pulled it out could keep it? In The Story of the Volsungs, a young man named Sigmund does exactly that, and the gift sets his whole family on a road of glory, betrayal and revenge.
It follows one family from Sigi, said to be a son of Odin, to the dragon-slayer Sigurd and the women who love him.
En este resumen
- 1A stranger's sword marks the Volsung lineFree
- 2Signy turns a wedding trap into revenge
- 3Sigmund loses the sword and his luck
- 4Sigurd grows up and wins the dragon's gold
- 5Brynhild, Gudrun and the drink of forgetting
- 6Fate and the shadow of Odin rule the tale
- 7Oaths, gold and revenge move every hand
- 8A saga told in plain scenes and old songs
Idea clave 1 de 8
A stranger's sword marks the Volsung line
The saga opens with a crime. Sigi, whom people call Odin's son, goes hunting with a thrall named Bredi. Bredi kills more deer than Sigi does, and Sigi cannot bear it. He kills the thrall and hides the body in a snowdrift. The body is found, and Sigi is declared an outlaw.
Odin does not abandon him. He gives his son ships and fighting men, and Sigi becomes king of the Huns. His son Rerir rules in turn, but Rerir and his queen have no child. Freyia hears their prayers and sends a giant's daughter, who drops an apple into the king's lap. The queen eats it, and her child is born at last. He is named Volsung, and he grows into a mighty king. His eldest children are the twins Sigmund and Signy.
Volsung builds a hall with a huge oak growing through its roof, called Branstock. At the wedding feast for Signy and King Siggeir of Gothland, an old one-eyed man in a spotted cloak walks in. He pushes his sword into the trunk up to the hilt and promises it to whoever can draw it out. The best men in the hall fail. Sigmund pulls it out as if it were lying loose.
Siggeir offers three times the sword's weight in gold. Sigmund refuses. Siggeir hides his anger, but that same evening he starts planning his revenge for the insult.
A gift from Odin brings the Volsungs glory, and it also brings the hatred that will hunt them.
That’s 1 of 8 key points.
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Who’s who
- Sigmund
- Volsung's eldest son, who pulls Odin's sword from the oak and survives his family's slaughter to take revenge.
- Signy
- Sigmund's twin sister, forced to marry Siggeir, who plans a cunning and costly revenge for her family.
- Sigurd
- Sigmund's son, raised by a king, who wields Gram, kills the dragon Fafnir and wins a hoard of cursed gold.
- Regin
- The smith and Sigurd's foster father, who wants his brother's gold and urges Sigurd to kill the dragon.
- Brynhild
- A shield-maiden put to sleep by Odin, who has sworn to marry only the man who knows no fear.
- Gudrun
- King Giuki's daughter, who dreams of a golden hawk and marries Sigurd, her brothers' mighty ally.
- Gunnar
- Giuki's son, who wants to marry Brynhild but cannot ride through the ring of fire himself.
- Grimhild
- Gudrun's mother, a wise-woman who shapes her children's fortunes with drinks, spells and persuasive words.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 59,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 3 h 55 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about La historia de los volsungos (saga volsunga)
What is The Story of the Volsungs about?
It follows the Volsung family across generations, from Sigi and Volsung to the dragon-slayer Sigurd. The saga tells of a magic sword, a treacherous invitation, a long revenge, cursed gold and a quarrel between two queens.
Who is Sigurd in the Volsunga Saga?
Sigurd is Sigmund's son, raised in King Hjalprek's court. He has Gram forged from his father's shards, avenges Sigmund, kills the dragon Fafnir, wins the hoard, and meets the shield-maiden Brynhild on Hindfell.
Who is the one-eyed stranger in the Volsunga Saga?
He is Odin, the chief of the gods, who often travels in disguise as an old man with one eye. He leaves the sword in the oak, helps Sigurd choose Grani, and appears again in later scenes.
Is the Volsunga Saga a true story and when was it written?
It is a legend, not history, though it draws on old Germanic and Norse heroic tales. An unknown Icelandic author wrote it down in the thirteenth century, using older Eddic poems as sources.
Is the Volsunga Saga easy to read?
The saga moves in short, clear scenes, with plain dialogue and a steady family line to follow. Its repeated patterns, from tests to dreams to journeys, make it easy to follow by ear.
Cite this edition
The Story of the Volsungs (Volsunga Saga). Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-the-volsungs-volsunga-saga.
The story of the Volsungs (Volsunga saga). (2026). Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-the-volsungs-volsunga-saga (Original work published ca. 1270)
The Story of the Volsungs (Volsunga Saga). Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-the-volsungs-volsunga-saga.
@book{anonymous2026story,
title = {The Story of the Volsungs (Volsunga Saga)},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-the-volsungs-volsunga-saga},
note = {First published ca. 1270}
}
