Hrethel (; ) is a king of the Geats.
Name Hrethel's name appears with both the root vowel and and with both the consonant (i.e. the phoneme , pronounced in Old English) and (which would ordinarily represent the phoneme ).Klaeber's Beowulf and The Fight at Finnsburg, 4th rev. edn by R. D. Fulk, Robert E. Bjork, and John D. Niles (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008), pp. liii, 469. This is thought to be due to an early manuscript of Beowulf writing the root vowel using the early graphs (for the vowel resulting from the i-mutation of Common Germanic ) and (for the phoneme , pronounced ). Later scribes misread the former as and failed to recognise that the latter represented the sound rather than .R. D. Fulk, A History of Old English Meter (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992), p. 317 (§353.17).
The name also appears as a genitive weak noun, in the half-line "þæt is Hrǣdlan lāf" ('that is Hrǣdla's bequest'). Rendered in ordinary Late West Saxon spelling and in nominative form, this form of the name would presumably have been *Hrēðla.Cf. R. D. Fulk, A History of Old English Meter (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992), p. 317 (§353.17); Klaeber's Beowulf and The Fight at Finnsburg, 4th rev. edn by R. D. Fulk, Robert E. Bjork, and John D. Niles (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008), pp. liii, 469.
Role in Beowulf Hrethel is married to a sister or daughter of Swerting (Hygelac is the nefa of Swerting) and he has three sons: Hæþcyn, Herebeald and Hygelac. He also has a daughter who marries Ecgþeow and has the son Beowulf.Klaeber's Beowulf and The Fight at Finnsburg, 4th rev. edn by R. D. Fulk, Robert E. Bjork, and John D. Niles (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008), pp. lix, 472.
Hrethel fosters Beowulf (his grandson) by taking him into his royal household aged seven.Klaeber's Beowulf and The Fight at Finnsburg, 4th rev. edn by R. D. Fulk, Robert E. Bjork, and John D. Niles (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008), p. 83 (lines 2428-2434). Fostering was a common Germanic practice and does not indicate Beowulf's father, Ecgþeow did not want to raise him; indeed, the practice was intended to further improve relations between families and family members, and create close ties of obligation, affection and shared responsibility. As an adult, Beowulf expresses his gratitude to his foster-father explicitly:
Hreðel dies of grief when his oldest son Herebeald is killed by his own brother Hæþcyn in a hunting accident, a death that could not be avenged. He is succeeded by Hæþcyn.Klaeber's Beowulf and The Fight at Finnsburg, 4th rev. edn by R. D. Fulk, Robert E. Bjork, and John D. Niles (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008), p. lix.
Hrethel's heirlooms There are two pieces of "Hrethel's heirloom" handed down to his grandson Beowulf in the poem. First is (v. 454), which is a war-shirt or mail coat crafted by Weland smith, which he already owns at the beginning of the poem, and bequeaths it to Hygelac in the event of his death. (2015) Translated by William Morris; A.J. Wyatt; Francis Barton Gummere, Delphi Classics. The other is (v. 2191), heirloom sword, which he received from his uncle Hygelac after his feat of destroy the Grendel-kin.
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