Heldenepen

Epics, mostly anonymous medieval narrative poems of epic-heroic character, whose subjects (in the German-speaking countries) derive from the (originally oral) tradition of Germanic legends and heroic poems. Their roots go back to the time of the Migration of Germanic Peoples or even further. The major epics were based on the legend cycles involving the Nibelungs, Dietrich von Bern, Wolfdietrich and Ornit, and the Hilde-Kudrun cycle. These epic poems were mostly produced in connection with major, often tragic, events (death and destruction) and celebrated virtues such as honour, loyalty, courage and the love of fighting. The various cycles which were written down, particularly in Austria, from the 13th century onwards and often in different versions, include the Nibelungenlied(ca. 1200), the Kudrunepic (1230/40) and a major part of the Dietrich Epics. They were produced in simplified versions, partly in prose (Volksbücher) and collected in what were called Heldenbücher ("Books of Heroes") in the late Middle Ages. The best-known of these is the Ambraser Heldenbuch.