How many sons did King Hrethel have?

King Hrethel had three sons: Herebeald, Hæþcyn, and Hygelac. This genealogy appears in Beowulf as part of the poem’s account of Beowulf’s Geatish family and the succession of its royal house.

The three brothers have sharply different fates. Herebeald, the eldest, is accidentally killed by Hæþcyn during a hunting incident. Because the death is unintended, Hrethel cannot pursue the normal cycle of vengeance against his own son. The loss devastates Hrethel, who eventually dies from grief.

Hæþcyn later becomes king of the Geats, but he is killed during the wars between the Geats and the Swedes. Hygelac arrives too late to save him, although he rescues the surviving Geatish warriors. Hygelac then succeeds to the throne and becomes Beowulf’s most important royal relative and patron.

Beowulf is not one of Hrethel’s sons. He is Hrethel’s grandson through Hrethel’s unnamed daughter, who marries Ecgtheow. The number three can therefore be confused with the wider family group, which includes Hrethel’s daughter, Beowulf, and later generations. The stored answer counts only Hrethel’s male children.