Page:History of the Literature of the Scandinavian North.djvu/268

250 than in his earlier works. In his choice of subjects he also manifested a desire of gaining a more solid basis, first in the comedy, "Magnetismen i Barberstuen," and even more so in his "Kampen for Valhal," in which the plot is taken from the ancient history of the North. But all these efforts were rather unsuccessful. His taste for the mystic and fantastic being closely allied to his romanticism, he was naturally drawn to the Middle Ages, and already in his second epoch as a writer we find him borrowing the materials for his poem, "Det öde Slot" (The Deserted Castle), from the times of Valdemar the Great. From 1822, in which year he became Lector at the Soroe Academy, began that period of his poetical career, in which he completed his best works and those which are of most importance to the literature of Denmark. First appeared the poem, "Valdemar den Store og hans Maend," then followed the four historical novels, "Valdemar Seir," "Erik Menveds Barndom," "Kong Erik og de Fredlöse," and "Prinds Otto af Danmark," and this cycle was closed with the poem, "Dronning Margrete." In these works, based on the popular ballads of the Middle Ages, Ingemann took Walter Scott as his model, and though his novels are by no means equal to those of the renowned Scottish author, and though they are in many ways incorrect in personal characterization and historical coloring, still they are exceedingly attractive on account of their vivid and graphic descriptions of the most glorious epoch of Danish history. They have had a very stimulating influence on the Danish people, and by them more than by any other of his works Ingemann came to be regarded as a national poet. The cycle of romances, "Holger Danske," is also closely allied to these historical novels, and is one of his most original and attractive works. Several poems from it have been adopted as popular songs by the common people.

In later times Ingemann wrote several tales in which the plots are taken from real life. The best among them is the admirably written story "Landsbybörnene " (the children of