What do you think?
Rate this book
Hero Tales and Legends of the Rhine
An abundance of literature exists on the subject of the Rhine and its legends, but with few exceptions the works on it which are accessible to English-speaking peoples are antiquated in spirit and verbiage, and their authors have been content to accept the first version of such legends and traditions as came their way without submitting them to any critical examination. It is claimed for this book that much of its matter was collected on the spot, or that at least most of the tales here presented were perused in other works at the scene of the occurrences related. This volume is thus something more than a mere compilation, and when it is further stated that only the most characteristic and original versions and variants of the many tales here given have gained admittance to the collection, its value will become apparent.
It is, of course, no easy task to infuse a spirit of originality into matter which has already achieved such a measure of celebrity as have these wild and wondrous tales of Rhineland. But it is hoped that the treatment to which these stories have been subjected is not without a novelty of its own. One circumstance may be alluded to as characteristic of the manner of their treatment in this work. In most English books on Rhine legend the tales themselves are presented in a form so brief, succinct, and uninspiring as to rob them entirely of that mysterious glamour lacking which they become mere material by which to add to and illustrate the guide-book. The absence of the romantic spirit in most English and American compilations dealing with the Rhine legends is noteworthy, and in writing this book the author’s intention has been to supply this striking defect by retaining as much of the atmosphere of mystery so dear to the German heart as will convey to the English-speaking reader a true conception of the spirit of German legend...
It is, of course, no easy task to infuse a spirit of originality into matter which has already achieved such a measure of celebrity as have these wild and wondrous tales of Rhineland. But it is hoped that the treatment to which these stories have been subjected is not without a novelty of its own. One circumstance may be alluded to as characteristic of the manner of their treatment in this work. In most English books on Rhine legend the tales themselves are presented in a form so brief, succinct, and uninspiring as to rob them entirely of that mysterious glamour lacking which they become mere material by which to add to and illustrate the guide-book. The absence of the romantic spirit in most English and American compilations dealing with the Rhine legends is noteworthy, and in writing this book the author’s intention has been to supply this striking defect by retaining as much of the atmosphere of mystery so dear to the German heart as will convey to the English-speaking reader a true conception of the spirit of German legend...
346 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1915
39 people are currently reading
91 people want to read
About the author
Lewis Spence
398 books52 followersJames Lewis Thomas Chalmers Spence was a Scottish journalist, poet, author, folklorist and student of the occult.
After graduating from Edinburgh University he pursued a career in journalism. He was an editor at The Scotsman 1899-1906, editor of The Edinburgh Magazine for a year, 1904–05, then an editor at The British Weekly, 1906-09. In this time his interest was sparked in the myth and folklore of Mexico and Central America, resulting in his popularisation of the Mayan Popul Vuh, the sacred book of the Quiché Mayas (1908). He compiled A Dictionary of Mythology (1910 and numerous additional volumes).
Spence was an ardent Scottish nationalist, He was the founder of the Scottish National Movement which later merged to form the National Party of Scotland and which in turn merged to form the Scottish National Party. He unsuccessfully contested a parliamentary seat for Midlothian and Peebles Northern at a by-election in 1929.
He also wrote poetry in English and Scots. His Collected Poems were published in 1953. He investigated Scottish folklore and wrote about Brythonic rites and traditions in Mysteries of Celtic Britain (1905). In this book, Spence theorized that the original Britons were descendants of a people that migrated from Northwest Africa and were probably related to the Berbers and the Basques.
Spence's researches into the mythology and culture of the New World, together with his examination of the cultures of western Europe and north-west Africa, led him almost inevitably to the question of Atlantis. During the 1920s he published a series of books which sought to rescue the topic from the occultists who had more or less brought it into disrepute. These works, amongst which were The Problem of Atlantis (1924) and History of Atlantis (1927), continued the line of research inaugurated by Ignatius Donnelly and looked at the lost island as a Bronze Age civilization, that formed a cultural link with the New World, which he invoked through examples he found of striking parallels between the early civilizations of the Old and New Worlds.
Spence's erudition and the width of his reading, his industry and imagination were all impressive; yet the conclusions he reached, avoiding peer-reviewed journals, have been almost universally rejected by mainstream scholarship. His popularisations met stiff criticism in professional journals, but his continued appeal among theory hobbyists is summed up by a reviewer of The Problem of Atlantis (1924) in The Geographical Journal: "Mr. Spence is an industrious writer, and, even if he fails to convince, has done service in marshalling the evidence and has produced an entertaining volume which is well worth reading." Nevertheless, he seems to have had some influence upon the ideas of controversial author Immanuel Velikovsky, and as his books have come into the public domain, they have been successfully reprinted and some have been scanned for the Internet.
Spence's 1940 book Occult Causes of the Present War seems to have been the first book in the field of Nazi occultism.
Over his long career, he published more than forty books, many of which remain in print to this day.
After graduating from Edinburgh University he pursued a career in journalism. He was an editor at The Scotsman 1899-1906, editor of The Edinburgh Magazine for a year, 1904–05, then an editor at The British Weekly, 1906-09. In this time his interest was sparked in the myth and folklore of Mexico and Central America, resulting in his popularisation of the Mayan Popul Vuh, the sacred book of the Quiché Mayas (1908). He compiled A Dictionary of Mythology (1910 and numerous additional volumes).
Spence was an ardent Scottish nationalist, He was the founder of the Scottish National Movement which later merged to form the National Party of Scotland and which in turn merged to form the Scottish National Party. He unsuccessfully contested a parliamentary seat for Midlothian and Peebles Northern at a by-election in 1929.
He also wrote poetry in English and Scots. His Collected Poems were published in 1953. He investigated Scottish folklore and wrote about Brythonic rites and traditions in Mysteries of Celtic Britain (1905). In this book, Spence theorized that the original Britons were descendants of a people that migrated from Northwest Africa and were probably related to the Berbers and the Basques.
Spence's researches into the mythology and culture of the New World, together with his examination of the cultures of western Europe and north-west Africa, led him almost inevitably to the question of Atlantis. During the 1920s he published a series of books which sought to rescue the topic from the occultists who had more or less brought it into disrepute. These works, amongst which were The Problem of Atlantis (1924) and History of Atlantis (1927), continued the line of research inaugurated by Ignatius Donnelly and looked at the lost island as a Bronze Age civilization, that formed a cultural link with the New World, which he invoked through examples he found of striking parallels between the early civilizations of the Old and New Worlds.
Spence's erudition and the width of his reading, his industry and imagination were all impressive; yet the conclusions he reached, avoiding peer-reviewed journals, have been almost universally rejected by mainstream scholarship. His popularisations met stiff criticism in professional journals, but his continued appeal among theory hobbyists is summed up by a reviewer of The Problem of Atlantis (1924) in The Geographical Journal: "Mr. Spence is an industrious writer, and, even if he fails to convince, has done service in marshalling the evidence and has produced an entertaining volume which is well worth reading." Nevertheless, he seems to have had some influence upon the ideas of controversial author Immanuel Velikovsky, and as his books have come into the public domain, they have been successfully reprinted and some have been scanned for the Internet.
Spence's 1940 book Occult Causes of the Present War seems to have been the first book in the field of Nazi occultism.
Over his long career, he published more than forty books, many of which remain in print to this day.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 5, 2025
This book has a very accurate title—so you should know from that whether it is of interest to you or not. I was curious about general Rhine lore due to the influence of Volsunga Saga and The Nibelungenlied, saw this for cheap at a used bookstore (Dover edition), and thought I’d give it a try.
And it definitely delivers Rhine lore. The aspect that caught me be surprise that I really appreciated is that the book is organized geographically, and Spence takes care to note it is meant to reflect the passage of sailing up the Rhine. So after the informative intro, it starts in the north and proceeds south towards the mountains. Some tales are better than others, but all are rooted in the actual location and the corresponding map helps you situate yourself if western German geography and the course of the Rhine aren’t your specialties. The book dates to 1915, so the language is a bit antiquated, which I found charming but could see how others might find it annoying. And the destruction of WW2 hadn’t happened yet, so there are references to architecture that are no longer accurate.
All in all though, a solid crash course in Rhine lore! Most people interested in the subject at a beginner’s level will find it worthwhile with certain exceptions for the caveats mentioned here.
And it definitely delivers Rhine lore. The aspect that caught me be surprise that I really appreciated is that the book is organized geographically, and Spence takes care to note it is meant to reflect the passage of sailing up the Rhine. So after the informative intro, it starts in the north and proceeds south towards the mountains. Some tales are better than others, but all are rooted in the actual location and the corresponding map helps you situate yourself if western German geography and the course of the Rhine aren’t your specialties. The book dates to 1915, so the language is a bit antiquated, which I found charming but could see how others might find it annoying. And the destruction of WW2 hadn’t happened yet, so there are references to architecture that are no longer accurate.
All in all though, a solid crash course in Rhine lore! Most people interested in the subject at a beginner’s level will find it worthwhile with certain exceptions for the caveats mentioned here.
September 26, 2017
Now that I am home from my Rhine River cruise I can say that this book of tales was a great preparation for my trip. Many of the stories in Spence's collection were referred to as I visited sites in western Germany.
As literature, however, I wasn't particularly excited about Hero Tales and Legends of the Rhine. Nearly every tale ended with everyone dying, the heroine locked up in a nunnery, or some dark magical transformation. For instance, in one story there are seven princesses who have balked at getting married, but they finally agree to have a big party where they will choose grooms from all the suitors in the kingdom. While the men are waiting for them to appear, however, the girls all head out to the Rhine and start rowing away on a boat. The men are distressed to see them escaping, but even more upset as they watch the boat capsize and all the women drown. This, by the way, is the origin of a group of 7 rocks poking out the top of the river.
Anyway, these legends give insight into the early Germanic peoples.
As literature, however, I wasn't particularly excited about Hero Tales and Legends of the Rhine. Nearly every tale ended with everyone dying, the heroine locked up in a nunnery, or some dark magical transformation. For instance, in one story there are seven princesses who have balked at getting married, but they finally agree to have a big party where they will choose grooms from all the suitors in the kingdom. While the men are waiting for them to appear, however, the girls all head out to the Rhine and start rowing away on a boat. The men are distressed to see them escaping, but even more upset as they watch the boat capsize and all the women drown. This, by the way, is the origin of a group of 7 rocks poking out the top of the river.
Anyway, these legends give insight into the early Germanic peoples.
August 21, 2019
This is a 1995 reprint of a work originally published in 1915. The basic arrangement of the book follows the course of a Rhine journey from north to south, treating tales and legends associated with towns, burgs, hills and churches along the way. I quite enjoyed the archaic diction employed in the telling of the tales (e.g. "Come hither at midnight, and at sunrise thy father shall be rich and honoured.") One thing I felt the lack of, though, was any mention of the provenance of the tales. You had often no notion if the tales were old and 'authentic' legends or recent concoctions. Maybe it's not fair to blame the author for not doing something he never intended to do, but it did detract a bit.
May 15, 2020
This book was surprisingly good. Mythology anthologies have a way of getting dull and those written before WW1 especially. However, this book was quite good for its category, entertaining and informative. Its a shame that this is probably the best English language book on German mythology and nothing comparative has been written in the last 100 years. The Nazis destroyed a beautiful German culture.
Read
June 13, 2019This is an interesting book. I enjoyed the first part better. I think this is a book better read a little at a time because of the many legends and fairy tales. They begin to run together after awhile. I do like that it is arranged geographically, and it will be a good reference when we do our Rhine River cruise.
February 23, 2021
Too dark
It may be old, but to me...It was way too dark. The writer must have second thoughts about the reason why he write it
It may be old, but to me...It was way too dark. The writer must have second thoughts about the reason why he write it
December 10, 2014
After I have been abroad I try to hold on to the experience as long as possible. I put photo albums on the net, write blog posts (La Vita e Troppo Breve per Dottore Gianni is it's possibly puzzling title) and I continue to read about the areas visited.
I spent most of October in Germany, with about 6 days in Switzerland and three in Strasbourg, France. Much of what I saw was centered on the mighty Rhine, so I decided to read this book, published in 1915, that is mostly as its title indicates, tales and legends. It also has a component of history, as the erudite Mr Spence puts many of the myths in context. I very much enjoyed the mix of myth and history, and to a point I enjoyed the tales.
I must say that I expected more exciting stories than most of them were. It may have partly been in the the writing of each of them, but for whatever reason, while I did not ever consider stopping my reading of them, many left me underwhelmed. There are some funny and happy, but many more are very dark indeed - often magic, spells etc figure into the tales, occasionally to help a worthy soul, more often to wreak havoc. Many of the stories concern thwarted young love, usually by fathers of young damsels who don't want their girls to marry the men they love, or, without knowing that the daughters are in love already, choose a husband for them. The consequence is often violent, the young women throwing themselves off precipices over the Rhine, and sometimes returning as ghosts to haunt the area, or persons, or both. Interestingly, in almost all of this sort of story there is no mother (who might either support husband or daughter, or complicate the situation in other ways). There is not even an explanation of what might have happened to the mother (after all, it takes two to tangle). The fathers are usually repentant after the fact, and some build chapels to the dead daughters, or live as hermits atoning for their sin or at least neglect. The young men are frequently knights, and there is a fair share of jousting, and a lot of heading off to the Crusades on the part of these fellows. One I remember returns from the East to find that his beloved has killed herself, then one night finds himself in the place that she did the deed. He is visited by the beautiful young woman (they're always the most beautiful in the land), cold to the touch of course, and dies - thus the lovers are reunited in death.
It's all the stuff of good, dark German Romanticism. As the author/relater tells us "he who cannot appreciate their background of gloomy grandeur will never come at the true spirit of that mighty literature of Germany..."
Some of the tales are mighty. Spence relates in very short form the epic Nibelungenlied, and some of the tales of Charlemagne rise to the occasion, as do a few of the standard plot line I've noted above. The tale of the Lorelei is one of the most memorable. I very much enjoyed reading this, even if the tales were not usually up to what I'd hoped they'd be, and even if the tales were often repetitions of earlier ones, or at best variations on the same theme. So! Test your ability to handle the dark German Romantic spirit if you like - give it a good read!
I spent most of October in Germany, with about 6 days in Switzerland and three in Strasbourg, France. Much of what I saw was centered on the mighty Rhine, so I decided to read this book, published in 1915, that is mostly as its title indicates, tales and legends. It also has a component of history, as the erudite Mr Spence puts many of the myths in context. I very much enjoyed the mix of myth and history, and to a point I enjoyed the tales.
I must say that I expected more exciting stories than most of them were. It may have partly been in the the writing of each of them, but for whatever reason, while I did not ever consider stopping my reading of them, many left me underwhelmed. There are some funny and happy, but many more are very dark indeed - often magic, spells etc figure into the tales, occasionally to help a worthy soul, more often to wreak havoc. Many of the stories concern thwarted young love, usually by fathers of young damsels who don't want their girls to marry the men they love, or, without knowing that the daughters are in love already, choose a husband for them. The consequence is often violent, the young women throwing themselves off precipices over the Rhine, and sometimes returning as ghosts to haunt the area, or persons, or both. Interestingly, in almost all of this sort of story there is no mother (who might either support husband or daughter, or complicate the situation in other ways). There is not even an explanation of what might have happened to the mother (after all, it takes two to tangle). The fathers are usually repentant after the fact, and some build chapels to the dead daughters, or live as hermits atoning for their sin or at least neglect. The young men are frequently knights, and there is a fair share of jousting, and a lot of heading off to the Crusades on the part of these fellows. One I remember returns from the East to find that his beloved has killed herself, then one night finds himself in the place that she did the deed. He is visited by the beautiful young woman (they're always the most beautiful in the land), cold to the touch of course, and dies - thus the lovers are reunited in death.
It's all the stuff of good, dark German Romanticism. As the author/relater tells us "he who cannot appreciate their background of gloomy grandeur will never come at the true spirit of that mighty literature of Germany..."
Some of the tales are mighty. Spence relates in very short form the epic Nibelungenlied, and some of the tales of Charlemagne rise to the occasion, as do a few of the standard plot line I've noted above. The tale of the Lorelei is one of the most memorable. I very much enjoyed reading this, even if the tales were not usually up to what I'd hoped they'd be, and even if the tales were often repetitions of earlier ones, or at best variations on the same theme. So! Test your ability to handle the dark German Romantic spirit if you like - give it a good read!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews