BEOWULF	BIOGRAPHY
Created by Michael Uslan and Ricardo Villamonte (DC Version)

Beowulf; Art by Aaron Lopresti and Matt Ryan

PERSONAL DATA

Aliases: Dragon Slayer
Identity: The general public of today considers Beowulf to be a myth; but to his contemporaries, he was well-known
Occupation: Prince of the Geats; adventurer
Place of Birth: Geatland (Sweden)
Marital Status: Single
Known Relatives: Ecgtheow (father, deceased)
Base of Operation: Mobile
Gender: Male
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Red
First Appearance: (in a DC Comic): Beowulf #1 (April-May 1975)
Creators: Michael Uslan and Ricardo Villamonte (DC Version)

OVERVIEW

Beowulf is a legendary warrior of the North who dedicated his life to fighting the forces of evil and the monster Grendel in particular.

HISTORY

Beowulf is a legendary warrior of the North who has been made immortal through the Old English heroic epic poem which bears his name. Even though the poem was committed to paper sometime between the 8th and the 11th century A.D., the story is believed to have been handed down through many years of oral tradition. It is unclear when Beowulf walked the Earth, but scholars estimate the time of his heroic feats to sometime around the 5th or 6th century A.D.

As the son of King Ecgtheow, Beowulf was the Prince of the Geats. (The Geats were a people inhabiting a region of what today is the nation of Sweden.) Beowulf was a noble savage, a mighty warrior with ambitions and wits.

In Daneland (today's Denmark), the mead hall of King Hrothgar of the Spear-Danes was haunted by the murderous swamp demon Grendel. Many men met their fate at Castle Hrothgar trying to slay Grendel, until Beowulf was summoned to the scene of the crime by the mystic Shaper, servant of the god of fate Wyrd. Led astray by magic before he could face Grendel, Beowulf encountered a demonic entity calling itself "Satan", who told Beowulf that he had a part to play in Satan's little game. Beowulf was told that he had to perform some great feats in foreign lands before being able to face Grendel.

Together with Nan-Zee (a female former servant of Satan from Sweden), his allies Wiglaf and Hondscio, the mysterious Shaper and the traitorous Unferth (a Danish nobleman from the court of King Hrothgar), Beowulf set out to find a way to defeat Grendel and experienced many adventures along the way.

At one time, Beowulf encountered a time-travelling Wonder Woman, who had been charged with the task of slaying the other-dimensional devil known as D'Grth. Beowulf fought alongside Wonder Woman, Stalker and Claw the Unconquered and finally bested D'Grth. Beowulf was returned to his time, but Grendel managed to remain in modern times and went on to encounter the Secret Six.

Little is known about the further exploits of Beowulf, other than what is told in the epic poem: he went on to become a king of his people and died after slaying a dragon.

POWERS AND WEAPONS

Beowulf possesses no superhuman powers, but is a skilled swordsman and warrior. He is strong and agile.

He has at times used his horned hemlet as a weapon. It is said to originally be the skull of a grotto minotaur.

CHRONOLOGY

For a definitive list of appearances of Beowulf in chronological order click here