Phantom Armies of the Night

This book examines the Wild Hunt of Medieval paganism--the nocturnal procession of demons, hounds, soldiers, and knights, some covered in blood, others carrying their heads beneath their arms. Variations of this myth are still a living, evolving tradition.

Claude Lecouteux is a former professor of medieval literature and civilization at the Sorbonne. He is the author of numerous books on medieval and pagan afterlife beliefs, including The Return of the Dead, The Secret History of Vampires, and Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies. He lives in Paris.

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part One
The Hosts of the Night

1    The Good Women Who Roam the Night
2    The Phalanxes of Demons
3    The Troops of the Dead
4    The Phantom Armies

Part Two
The Supernatural Hunters

5    The Diabolical Huntsman
6    The Wild Huntsman
7    The Cursed Hunter

Part Three
The Wild Hunt

8    The Legend of King Herla
9    The Mesnie Hellequin
10    The Evolution of the Legend
11    The Birth of New Legends
12    The Wild Hunt, Masked Men, and Bawdy Fellows
13    The Wild Hunt in Scandinavia
14    The Passage of the Wild Hunt

Part Four
Odin and the Wild Hunt

15    Scholars and the Tradition
16    The Indo-European Roots of the Wild Hunt
17    Two Hypotheses
18    Concluding Thoughts

Appendix 1 For Protection against Spirits of the Night

Appendix 2 The Wild Hunt in Constance

Appendix 3 No One Escapes His Fate

Appendix 4 The Society of the Bone

Appendix 5 The Coach of the Diabolical Hunstman

Appendix 6 The Names of the Wild Hunt and Its Leader

Notes

Bibliography

Index