After the death of his brother, Heorogar, in a battle with the Heathobards, a reluctant Hrothgar is appointed king. He immediately finds himself on the horns of a dilemma: does he fight the Heathobards, or does he offer his daughter, Freawaru, as a 'peaceweaver'? Either decision seems doomed to fail: his army is not big enough to win a decisive victory, but if he makes peace, his nobles will think him weak and want to remove him from the throne. Hrothgar is best known from the Anglo-Saxon epic poem, Beowulf, where he appears in a background role as the king whose hall is attacked by a troll. This book aims to put Hrothgar in the foreground. His story is fleshed out with information from other sources, particularly the Gesta Danorum of Saxo Grammaticus. Several other characters from Nordic legend also make an appearance: the dragon-slayer, Frodo, the Northland's greatest warrior, Starkath, and Hrothgar's berserker, Bjarki Bear-Sark.