Gunther
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222169916
2008-06-27T22:12:09Z
65.31.150.177
/* Forms of the name */
{{Unreferenced|date=April 2008}}
:'''''Gunnar''''' ''redirects here. Gunnar is also a character from the 2000AD comic strip'' '''''[[Rogue Trooper]]'''''
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[[Image:Peter von Cornelius Hagen versenkt den Nibelungenhort 1859.jpg|275px|thumb|[[Gunther]] orders [[Hagen (legend)|Hagen]] to drop the hoard into the Rhine in the Nibelungenlied (by [[Peter von Cornelius]], 1859)]]
'''Gunther''' (Gundahar, Gundahari, [[Latin]] ''Gundaharius'' or ''Gundicharius'', [[Old English Language|Old English]] ''Gúðere'', [[Old Norse language|Old Norse]] ''Gunnarr'', anglicised as ''Gunnar'') is the [[German Language|German]] name of a semi-legendary [[Kings of Burgundy|king of Burgundy]] of the early [[5th century]]. Legendary tales about him appear in [[Latin]], medieval [[Middle High German]], [[Old Norse]], and [[Old English language|Old English]] texts, especially concerning his relations with [[Siegfried]] (Sigurd in Old Norse) and his death by treachery in the hall of [[Attila the Hun]].
==Historical information==
In [[AD]] [[406]] the [[Alans]], [[Vandals]], the [[Suevi]], and possibly the [[Burgundians]] [[Crossing of the Rhine|crossed the Rhine]] and invaded [[Gaul]]. In [[411]], the Burgundian king Gundahar or Gundicar set up a puppet emperor, [[Jovinus]], in cooperation with [[Goar]], king of the Alans. With the authority of the Gallic emperor that he controlled, Gundahar settled on the left or western (i.e. Roman) bank of the Rhine, between the river [[Lauter]] and the [[Nahe]], seizing [[Worms, Germany|Worms]], [[Speyer]], and [[Straßburg]]. Apparently as part of a truce, the [[Emperor Honorius]] later officially "granted" them the land. [[Olympiodorus of Thebes]] also mentions a ''Guntiarios'' who was called "commander of the Burgundians" in the context of the 411 usurping of [[Germania Secunda]] by Jovinus. (Prosper, a. 386){{Völsung}}
Despite their new status as [[foederati]], Burgundian raids into Roman upper [[Gallia Belgica]] became intolerable and were ruthlessly brought to an end in [[436]], when the Roman general [[Aëtius]] called in [[Hun]] mercenaries who overwhelmed the Rhineland kingdom (with its capital at the old [[Celt]]ic Roman settlement of [[Borbetomagus]], now called Worms) in 437. Gundahar was killed in the fighting, reportedly along with the majority of the Burgundian tribe. (Prosper; Chronica Gallica 452; Hydatius; and Sidonius Apollinaris)
==In legend==
The destruction of [[Worms, Germany|Worms]] and the Burgundian kingdom by the Huns became the subject of heroic legends that were afterwards incorporated into many works of [[medieval literature]] such as the [[Middle High German]] epic poem, the [[Nibelungenlied]], where King Gunther and Queen [[Brünhild]] hold their court at Worms, and [[Siegfried]] comes to woo Gunther's sister [[Kriemhild]]. (In [[Old Norse]] sources the names are Gunnar, Brynhild, Sigurd and Gudrun as normally rendered in English.)
In the ''[[Waltharius]]'', [[Gibicho]] and his son Guntharius are kings of the [[Franks]], whereas the king of the Burgundians is named Heriricus who is father to Hiltgunt, the heroine of the story. [[Hagen (legend)|Hagen]] appears here as a kinsman of Gibicho and Guntharius, but the relationship is not made explicit. In their combats with Waltharius, Guntharius loses a leg, Hagen loses half his face and one eye, and Waltharius loses a hand. But there is no hint in later tales that Gunther is in any way maimed. Another version of the story of Waltharius and Hiltgunt appears in the Norse ''[[Thidreks saga]]'', but in this account Gunther plays no part at all.
Gunther otherwise only appears in tales relating to [[Siegfried]] and the fall of the Niflungs. In most texts, such as the [[Nibelungenlied]], Gunther/Gunnar seeks to make [[Brünnehilde|Brünhild]] his wife, but can win her and master her only because the hero [[Siegfried]]/Sigurd aids him and takes his place. Siegfried marries Gunther's sister Kriemhild/Gudrun. An impassioned debate between Brünhild and Kriemhild about their respective status leads to the secret that Siegfried had taken Gunther's place being revealed. Gunther then agrees to assist in Siegfried's murder. After Siegfried is murdered, Gunther and his brothers, despite deep suspicions of treachery, accept an invitation from Etzel, or Atli in Old Norse (i.e. [[Attila the Hun]]), to visit his court. There Gunther and his brothers were betrayed. In some versions of the story, they were thrown in a [[snake pit]] to die, while in others they were killed fighting the Huns and their allies.
According to the Atlamol Gunnar remarried after Brynhild's death to a woman named Glaumvor.
==See also==
*[[Burgundians]]
*[[Nibelung]]
*[[Völsunga saga]]
{{start box}}
{{succession box |
before=[[Gebicca]] |
title=[[King of Burgundy]] |
years=[[406]](?)–[[437]] |
after= [[Gunderic of Burgundy|Gunderic]]}}
{{end box}}
{{NorseMythology}}
[[Category:Nibelung tradition]]
[[Category:Kings of Burgundy]]
[[Category:Medieval literature]]
[[Category:Norse mythology]]
[[Category:German heroic legends]]
[[Category:Surnames]]
[[de:Günther]]
[[nl:Gundohar]]
[[es:Gunter]]