Kriemhild

Kriemhild, also rendered Crimhild or Crimhilde in some manuscripts, is a central figure of Germanic legend, most prominently in the Nibelungenlied. The Burgundian princess is the sister of Gunther, king of Burgundy, and, in the familiar narrative, the wife of the hero Siegfried. The character appears in various Middle High German sources, with the tale transmitted in multiple versions that share core elements but differ in details and emphasis.

After Siegfried’s murder, attributed to Hagen in most versions, Kriemhild swears vengeance and becomes a driving force of the saga’s tragedy. She later marries Etzel (Attila the Hun) and invites the Burgundians to his court, where a final outbreak of violence leads to widespread deaths and the disintegration of the Burgundian realm. The story is frequently analyzed for its themes of honor, loyalty, revenge, and the agency and vulnerability of women within the medieval heroic code.

In modern adaptations, Kriemhild remains a prominent figure, most notably in Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen. In the opera cycle, she is developed as a powerful, morally complex queen whose pursuit of vengeance shapes the latter portions of the work. Her story has influenced later literature, film, and scholarly interpretation, making her one of the best-known figures in Germanic myth and legend.