The Challenge of Thor

I am the God Thor,
I am the War God,
I am the Thunderer!
Here in my Northland,
My fastness and fortress,
Reign I forever! 

Here amid icebergs
Rule I the nations;
This is my hammer,
Miölner the mighty;
Giants and sorcerers
Cannot withstand it! 

These are the gauntlets
Wherewith I wield it,
And hurl it afar off;
This is my girdle;
Whenever I brace it,
Strength is redoubled! 

The light thou beholdest
Stream through the heavens,
In flashes of crimson,
Is but my red beard
Blown by the night-wind,
Affrighting the nations! 

Jove is my brother;
Mine eyes are the lightning;
The wheels of my chariot
Roll in the thunder,
The blows of my hammer
Ring in the earthquake! 

Force rules the world still,
Has ruled it, shall rule it;
Meekness is weakness,
Strength is triumphant,
Over the whole earth
Still is it Thor's-Day! 

Thou art a God too,
O Galilean!
And thus single-handed
Unto the combat,
Gauntlet or Gospel,
Here I defy thee!

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) , "The Challenge of Thor", from Tales of a Wayside Inn, in The Musician's Tale; The Saga of King Olaf, no. 1, published 1863

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

by Carl Reinhold Busch (1862-1943) , "The Challenge of Thor", published 1903. [voice and piano]
by Sveinbjörn Sveinbjörnsson (1847-1927) , "The Challenge of Thor" [voice and piano]
by D. Emily Tinker , "The Thunderer", published 1926. [dramatic tenor or baritone and piano]
by Alfred H. West , "The Challenge of Thor", published 1891. [baritone or bass and piano]

Date added to the website: 2008-06-23.

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