what is wergild in beowulf

Wergild is a precept in some archaic legal codes whereby a monetary value was established for a person's life, to be paid as a fine or as compensatory damages to the person's family if that person was killed or injured. In the Old English epic poem Beowulf, wergild is an important ongoing theme. Before the start of the story, Beowulf’s father Ecgtheow had been forced to leave his own country because he could not pay wergild. Hrothgar welcomed him to Denmark and paid the wergild, creating an obligation that extended to Beowulf. The monster Grendel not only ravaged the country of Denmark but refused to pay wergild, thereby adding insult to injury. Refusing to pay wergild was seen as dishonorable, and provoking blood feud