Beowulf (505-580) was King of the Geats from 530 to 580, succeeding Heardred and preceding Wiglaf. Beowulf became a semi-legendary king after he was said to have slain the monster Grendel and its mother, and he reigned as king of the Geats for fifty years before dying in battle with a fearsome dragon.
Biography[]
Beowulf was the son of Edgetho and a daughter of Hrethel, who was the king of the Geats in southern Sweden; he was raised at Hrethel's court since the age of seven. He was fifth-in-line to the throne of Geatland due to his royal descent through his mother and not through his father, so he decided to prove his worth as a warrior by heading to Sjaelland and helping King Hrothgar against the monster Grendel. Beowulf and some of the best of Geatland's warriors slew Grendel and his mother, and Hrothgar gave Beowulf invaluable treasures, rewarding him for his bravery in battle.
He ruled as King of the Geats for fifty years following the death of his cousin Heardred, as he was the last available ruler. Beowulf did not want to become king, but his cousin's death at the hands of the Swedes led to Beowulf being forced to take the throne. For fifty years, he fought the Swedes, and Beowulf ruled as a great king. In 580, however, Beowulf faced a new challenge when a fearsome dragon, angry at the humans for stealing a golden cup from its domain, rampaged throughout Geatland. The elderly Beowulf and his cousin Wiglaf slew the dragon, but Beowulf was mortally wounded by one of the dragon's horns, and he was burned on a funeral pyre after his death.