Hrothgar
| Hrothgar | |
|---|---|
Queen Wealhþeow serving Hrothgar (background, centre) and his men. Illustration from a 1908 children's book. | |
| King of Denmark | |
| Predecessor | Halfdan |
| Successor | Halga |
| Died | 6th-century AD |
| Spouse | Wealhþeow |
Hrothgar (Old English: Hrōðgār [ˈr̥oːðɡɑːr]; Old Norse: Hróarr) was a semi-legendary Danish king living around the early sixth century AD.
Hrothgar appears in the Anglo-Saxon epics Beowulf and Widsith, in Norse sagas and poems, and in medieval Danish chronicles. In both Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian tradition, Hrothgar is a Scylding, the son of Halfdan, the brother of Halga, and the uncle of Hrólfr Kraki. Moreover, in both traditions, the mentioned characters were the contemporaries of the Swedish king Eadgils; and both traditions also mention a feud with men named Fróði and Ingeld. The consensus view is that Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian traditions describe the same person.