Dietrich von Bern

Some are incredibly popular tales you might think you know, but with surprising origins, and others are stories that might be new to you, but are definitely worth a listen.

We told the story of Dietrich of Bern and the dwarf Loren back in episode 292, Dwarf Fortress.

And I offhandedly ended the episode with, "Hey, if you want to hear more about this guy, let me know." I've actually received kind of a lot of requests for more of those stories.

That led to me diving into the legends and discovering this rich tapestry of just the weirdest guys.

We'll get back to Dietrich of Bern, but the story doesn't start with him.

It starts with his grandfather, Wolf Dietrich.

Wolf Dietrich's story ties into another one, which even though it's one of the first stories we've told on this podcast, and to call the quality iffy is an insult to iffy things everywhere, it does remain one of the most popular stories on here, The Saga of the Volsungs, or the Nibelungenlied.

That story helped to inspire parts of Lord of the Rings.

Laurin, returning one day from a distant country, brought back with him to the Rose Garden the lovely princess Similda.

He wished to make her his queen, but Similda, who had come against her will, would listen neither to entreaties nor threats, and in a short time her brother, discovering where she was, came to set her free, bringing with him Dietrich of Bern and several other warriors.

when they suddenly beheld the rose garden they halted overcome by its beauty all but one the ferocious veitige who rushed forward and cutting the silken barrier opened the battle the warriors had counted on an easy victory but laurin exerted all the power of his magic weapons and combined with it the aid of five giants nevertheless the warriors conquered Lauren was taken captive and carried to Bolton where they planned to make him court buffoon Lauren was silent and uncomplaining at last a day came when he was left unguarded he fled from the court quickly reached the outskirts of boatswain and began the perilous journey back to his mountains as his eyes clung to the vivid light of the distant rose garden he suddenly realized that the glow was a curse to him for its light could be seen from the depths of the lowest valleys everyone marveled at it and everyone sought and often found the source dwarf king determined to make his kingdom invisible it should no longer be observed from the valleys when people could not see it they would lose their desire to visit it so he laid a magic spell on the rose garden a spell making it invisible in daytime and at night but larin had forgotten the twilight which is neither day nor night and in the twilight of every clear evening the flowers of the rose-garden spread their soft rosy curtain over the mysterious high spires of rock and their warm radiance dominates the mountains and valleys as it did in the old days before dwarfs and men were enemies today we call this light the alpine glow and when it spreads over the peaks of the rose-garden the people in the valley come out to gaze in wonder But they know nothing of that older time when men were kinder and the world more beautiful.

for more information or to volunteer please visit a legend from ireland princess fiar usga retold by thomas crofton croker a little way beyond the gallows green of cork and just outside the town there is a great loch of water where people in the winter go and skate for the sake of diversion but the sport above the water is nothing to what is under it for at the very bottom of this loch there are buildings and gardens far more beautiful than any now to be seen and how they came there was in this manner long before saxon foot pressed irish ground there was a great king called cork whose palace stood where the loch now is in a round green valley that was just a mile about In the middle of the courtyard was a spring of fair water, so pure and so clear that it was the wonder of all the world.

Laurin, returning one day from a distant country, brought back with him to the Rose Garden the lovely princess Similda.

He wished to make her his queen, but Similda, who had come against her will, would listen neither to entreaties nor threats, and in a short time her brother, discovering where she was, came to set her free, bringing with him Dietrich of Bern and several other warriors.

when they suddenly beheld the rose garden they halted overcome by its beauty all but one the ferocious veitige who rushed forward and cutting the silken barrier opened the battle the warriors had counted on an easy victory but laurin exerted all the power of his magic weapons and combined with it the aid of five giants nevertheless the warriors conquered Lauren was taken captive and carried to Bolton where they planned to make him court buffoon Lauren was silent and uncomplaining At last a day came when he was left unguarded.

He fled from the court, quickly reached the outskirts of Boatswain, and began the perilous journey back to his mountains.

Laurin, returning one day from a distant country, brought back with him to the Rose Garden the lovely princess Similda.

He wished to make her his queen, but Similda, who had come against her will, would listen neither to entreaties nor threats, and in a short time her brother, discovering where she was, came to set her free, bringing with him Dietrich of Bern and several other warriors.

when they suddenly beheld the rose garden they halted overcome by its beauty all but one the ferocious veitige who rushed forward and cutting the silken barrier opened the battle the warriors had counted on an easy victory but laurin exerted all the power of his magic weapons and combined with it the aid of five giants nevertheless the warriors conquered Lauren was taken captive and carried to Bolton where they planned to make him court buffoon Lauren was silent and uncomplaining At last a day came when he was left unguarded.

He fled from the court, quickly reached the outskirts of Boatswain, and began the perilous journey back to his mountains.

Laurin, returning one day from a distant country, brought back with him to the Rose Garden the lovely princess Similda.

He wished to make her his queen, but Similda, who had come against her will, would listen neither to entreaties nor threats, and in a short time her brother, discovering where she was, came to set her free, bringing with him Dietrich of Bern and several other warriors.

when they suddenly beheld the rose garden they halted overcome by its beauty all but one the ferocious veitige who rushed forward and cutting the silken barrier opened the battle the warriors had counted on an easy victory but laurin exerted all the power of his magic weapons and combined with it the aid of five giants nevertheless the warriors conquered Lauren was taken captive and carried to Bolton where they planned to make him court buffoon Lauren was silent and uncomplaining At last a day came when he was left unguarded.

He fled from the court, quickly reached the outskirts of Boatswain, and began the perilous journey back to his mountains.