The Giant of Bern and Orm Ungerswayne: A Ballad

A towering, restless warrior arrives at the court of the Danish monarch, demanding the king’s daughter and half his realm. The monarch refuses and calls for a champion, but the seasoned knights remain silent until Orm Ungerswayne, the least honored man at the table, steps forward to accept the challenge. Though dismissed as a child by the giant Jutt of Bern, Orm declares that courage can outweigh size and strength.

To prepare for the desperate contest, Orm seeks the grave-hill of his father, the legendary King Sigurd. He awakens the dead king and demands Birting, a mighty sword hidden beneath the earth, learning that the weapon carries both a powerful legacy and a perilous obligation. Armed at last, Orm returns to the royal hall, where the young challenger and the giant meet in a fierce battle that stretches across two days and into the gathering dusk. Told in vigorous, archaic verse, this ballad blends heroic combat, buried kings, supernatural inheritance, and the audacity of an unlikely champion.