The Career Of Grimoald


The Avars, led by Cacan, their king, crossed, in the year 611, the

mountains of Illyria and Lombardy, killed Gisulph, the grand duke, with

all his adherents, in battle, and laid siege to the city of Friuli,

behind whose strong walls Romilda, the widow of Gisulph, had taken

refuge. These events formed the basis of the romantic, and perhaps

largely legendary, story we have to tell.



One day, so we are told,
omilda, gazing from the ramparts of the city,

beheld Cacan, the young khan of the Avars, engaged in directing the

siege. So handsome to her eyes appeared the youthful soldier that she

fell deeply in love with him at sight, her passion growing until, in

disregard of honor and patriotism, she sent him a secret message,

offering to deliver up to him the city on condition of becoming his

wife. The khan, though doubtless despising her treachery to her people,

was quick to close with the offer, and in a short time Friuli was in his

hands.



This accomplished, he returned to Hungary, taking with him Romilda and

her children, of whom there were four sons and four daughters. Cacan

kept his compact with the traitress, marrying her with the primitive

rites of the Hungarians. But her married life was of the shortest. He

had kept his word, and such honor as he possessed was satisfied. The

morning after his marriage, moved perhaps by detestation of her

treachery, he caused the hapless Romilda to be impaled alive. It was a

dark end to a dark deed, and the perfidy of the woman had been matched

by an equal perfidy on the part of the man.



The children of Romilda were left in the hands of the Avars. Of her

daughters, one subsequently married a duke of Bavaria and another a duke

of Allemania. The four sons, one of whom was Grimoald, the hero of our

story, managed to escape from their savage captors, though they were

hotly pursued. In their flight, Grimoald, the youngest, was taken up

behind Tafo, the oldest; but in the rapid course he lost his hold and

fell from his brother's horse.



Tafo, knowing what would be the fate of the boy should he be captured,

turned and galloped upon him lance in hand, determined that he should

not fall alive into the hands of his cruel foes. But Grimoald's

entreaties and Tafo's brotherly affection induced him to change his

resolution, and, snatching up the boy, he continued his flight, the

pursuing Avars being now close at hand.



Not far had they ridden before the same accident occurred. Grimoald

again fell, and Tafo was now obliged to leave him to his fate, the

fierce pursuers being too near to permit him either to kill or save the

unlucky boy. On swept Tafo, up swept the Avars, and one of them,

halting, seized the young captive, threw him behind him on his horse,

and rode on after his fellows.



Grimoald's peril was imminent, but he was a child with the soul of a

warrior. As his captor pushed on in the track of his companions, the

brave little fellow suddenly snatched a knife from his belt, and in an

instant had stabbed him to the heart with his own weapon Tossing the

dead body from the saddle, Grimoald seized the bridle and rode swiftly

on, avoiding the Avars, and in the end rejoining his flying brothers. It

was a deed worthy the childhood of one who was in time to become a

famous warrior.



The fugitives reached Lombardy, where Tafo was hospitably received by

the king, and succeeded his father as Grand Duke of Friuli. Grimoald was

adopted by Arigil, Duke of Benevento, in whose court he grew to manhood,

and in whose service his courage and military ability were quickly

shown. There were wars between Benevento and the Greeks of southern

Italy, and in these the young soldier so greatly distinguished himself

that on the death of Arigil he succeeded him as Duke of Benevento.



Meanwhile, troubles arose in Lombardy. Tafo had been falsely accused, by

an enemy of the queen, of criminal relations with her, and was put to

death by the king. Her innocence was afterwards proved, and on the death

of Ariowald the Lombards treated her with the greatest respect, and

raised Rotharis, her second husband, to the throne. He, too, died, and

Aribert, uncle of the queen, was next made king. On his death, his two

sons, Bertarit and Godebert, disputed the succession. A struggle ensued

between the rival brothers, in the course of which Grimoald was brought

into the dispute.



The events here briefly described had taken place while Grimoald was

engaged in the Greek wars of his patron, Duke Arigil. When he succeeded

the latter in the ducal chair, the struggle between Bertarit and

Godebert was going on, and the new Duke of Benevento declared in favor

of the latter, who was his personal friend.



A scheme of treachery, of a singular character, put an end to their

friendship and to the life of Godebert. A man who was skilled in the

arts of dissimulation, and who was secretly in the pay of Bertarit,

persuaded Godebert that his seeming friend, Duke Grimoald, was really

his enemy, and was plotting his destruction. He told the same story to

Grimoald, making him believe that Godebert was his secret foe. In proof

of his words he told each of them that the other wore armor beneath his

clothes, through fear of assassination by his assumed friend.



The suspicion thus artfully aroused produced the very state of things

which the agent of mischief had declared to exist. Each of the friends

put on armor, as a protection against treachery from the other, and when

they sought to test the truth of the spy's story it seemed fully

confirmed. Each discovered that the other wore secret armor, without

learning that it had just been assumed.



The two close friends were thus converted by a plotting Iago into

distrustful enemies, each fearing and on guard against assassination by

the other. The affair ended tragically. Grimoald was no sooner fully

convinced of the truth of what had been told him than he slew his

supposed enemy, deeming it necessary to save his own life. The dark

scheme had succeeded. Treason and falsehood had sown death between two

friends.



Bertarit, his rival removed, deemed the throne now securely his. But the

truth underlying the tragedy we have described became known, and the

Lombards, convinced of the innocence of Grimoald, and scorning the

treachery by which he had been led on to murder, dismissed Bertarit's

pretensions and placed Grimoald on the throne. His career had been a

strange but highly successful one. From his childhood captivity to the

Avars he had risen to the high station of King of Lombardy, a position

fairly earned by his courage and ability.



We are not yet done with the story of this distinguished warrior.

Bertarit had taken the field against him, and civil war desolated

Lombardy, an unhappy state of affairs which was soon taken advantage of

by the foes of the distracted kingdom. The enemy who now appeared in the

field was Constans, the Greek emperor, who laid siege to Benevento,

hoping to capture it while Grimoald was engaged in hostilities with

Bertarit in the north.



Grimoald had left his son, Romuald, in charge of the city. On learning

of the siege he despatched a trusty friend and officer, Sesuald by

name, with some troops, to the relief of the beleaguered stronghold,

proposing to follow quickly himself with the main body of his army.



And now occurred an event nobly worthy of being recorded in the annals

of human probity and faithfulness, one little known, but deserving to be

classed with those that have become famous in history. When men erect

monuments to courage and virtue, the noble Sesuald should not be

forgotten.



This brave man fell into the hands of the emperor, who sought to use him

in a stratagem to obtain possession of Benevento. He promised him an

abundance of wealth and honors if he would tell Romuald that his father

had died in battle, and persuade him to surrender the city. Sesuald

seems to have agreed, for he was led to the walls of the city that he

might hold the desired conference with Romuald. Instead, however, of

carrying out the emperor's design, he cried out to the young chief, "Be

firm, Grimoald approaches"; then, hastily telling him that he had

forfeited his life by those words, he begged him in return to protect

his wife and children, as the last service he could render him.



Sesuald was right. Constans, furious at his words, had his head

instantly struck off; and then, with a barbarism worthy of the times,

had it flung from a catapult into the heart of the city. The ghastly

trophy was brought to Romuald, who pressed it to his lips, and deeply

deplored the death of his father's faithful friend.



This was the last effort of the emperor. Fearing to await the arrival

of Grimoald, he raised the siege and retreated towards Naples, hotly

pursued by the Lombards. The army of Grimoald came up with the

retreating Greeks, and a battle was imminent, when a Lombard warrior of

giant size, Amalong by name, spurring upon a Greek, lifted him from the

saddle with his lance, and rode on holding him poised in the air. The

sight of this feat filled the remaining Greeks with such terror that

they broke and fled, and their hasty retreat did not cease till they had

found shelter in Sicily.



After this event Bertarit, finding it useless to contend longer against

his powerful and able opponent, submitted to Grimoald. Yet this did not

end their hostile relations. The Lombard king, distrusting his late foe,

of whose treacherous disposition he already had abundant evidence, laid

a plan to get rid of him by murdering him in his bed. This plot was

discovered by a servant of the imperilled prince, who aided his master

to escape, and, the better to secure his retreat, placed himself in his

bed, being willing to risk death in his lord's service.



Grimoald discovered the stratagem of the faithful fellow, but, instead

of punishing him for it, he sought to reward him, attempting to attach

him to his own service as one whose fidelity would make him valuable to

any master. The honest servant refused, however, to desert his old lord

for a new service, and entreated so earnestly for permission to join

his master, who had taken refuge in France, that Grimoald set him free,

doubtless feeling that such faithfulness was worthy of encouragement.



In France Bertarit found an ally in Chlotar II., who took up arms

against the Lombards in his aid. Grimoald, however, defeated him by a

shrewd stratagem. He feigned to retreat in haste, leaving his camp,

which was well stored with provisions, to fall into the hands of the

enemy. Deeming themselves victorious, the Franks hastened to enjoy the

feast of good things which the Lombards had left behind. But in the

midst of their repast Grimoald suddenly returned, and, falling upon them

impetuously, put most of them to the sword.



In the following year (666 A.D.) he defeated another army by another

stratagem. The Avars had invaded Lombardy, with an army which far

out-numbered the troops which Grimoald could muster against them. In

this state of affairs he artfully deceived his foes as to the strength

of his army by marching and countermarching his men within their view,

each time dressed in uniform of different colors, and with varied

standards and insignia of war. The invaders, deeming that an army

confronted them far stronger than their own, withdrew in haste, leaving

Grimoald master of the field.



We are further told of the king of the Lombards whose striking history

we have concisely given, that he gave many new laws to his country, and

that in his old age he was remarkable for his bald head and long white

beard. He died in 671, sixty years after the time when his mother acted

the traitress, and suffered miserably for her crime. After his death,

the exiled Bertarit was recalled to the throne of Lombardy, and Romuald

succeeded his father as Duke of Benevento, the city which he had held so

bravely against the Greeks.



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