The Wild Hunt—the myth of a spectral, furious chase led by a mythological figure through the midwinter sky—is a staple of European folklore. While we often associate it with Odin or Woden, the original name for this terror in Britain was the Herlething.
This tale, recorded by the cleric Walter Map in the late 12th century, describes a curse so profound it trapped an entire army in a cycle of endless, silent wandering.
The Bargain with the Pygmy King
The legend begins with King Herla, a king of the very ancient Britons, who encounters a figure straight out of pagan terror. The being is described as another king: a pygmy, no taller than an ape, sitting astride a massive goat. Map portrays him as looking exactly like the pagan god Pan: a glowing face, a huge red beard, a hairy body, and thighs that degenerated into cloven hooves.
This terrifying, almost demonic figure proposes a classic Faerie bargain: he will attend Herla’s wedding that very day, and in exchange, Herla must attend his a year later.
Herla agrees. The pygmy and his impossibly huge retinue arrive at the wedding, filling the hall with shining gold and crystal vessels. The feast is pure, high magic, a staggering show of otherworldly wealth that makes it clear Herla now owes a substantial debt.
Three Days, Two Centuries
A year later, the debt is called in. Herla and his men follow the pygmy into a cavern in a lofty cliff. They emerge into a magnificent underground mansion—the home of the Hidden People.
They celebrate the pygmy king's wedding in a feast so glorious, filled with jewels and magic, that time seemed to melt away from Herla and his men. The feast lasted just three days, but as they prepare to leave the underground realm, the pygmy issues a final gift and a terrible warning.
Herla is gifted a strange, small bloodhound and is given a single, unbendable rule: no man in Herla's company must dismount until the dog leaps forward out of his bearer’s arms.
The Bloodhound's Curse
When Herla and his men are restored to the daylight, the true horror of the Faerie bargain is revealed.
Herla asks a passing shepherd for news of his queen, only to be met with confusion. The shepherd replies that the Queen and King Herla are ancient legends, because the Saxons have possessed the kingdom for a full two hundred years.Two centuries had passed while Herla was feasting for just three days.
In shock, some of Herla's men forget the pygmy's warning and dismount. They are instantly changed to dust upon touching the earth.
Herla, understanding the gravity of the curse, prohibits anyone else from touching the ground. But the bloodhound never jumps down.
The Herlething: Endless Wandering
King Herla, trapped by his agreement and cursed by the magic of the Hidden People, is condemned to endless, mad wandering. He and his entire silent, cursed army became known as the Herlething—the original British Wild Hunt.
The accounts describe the army as an assembly of "infinite wandering, of the maddest meanderings," where many within the ranks were "known to be dead appearing alive."
Their last bizarre exit was recorded on the borders of Wales and Hereford. They were spotted at high noon, looking exactly like a regular royal court on the move, equipped with "chariots and beasts of burthen, with pack-saddles and bread-baskets." The entire group then suddenly rose into the air and disappeared.
The curse was complete. Herla and the Herlething were never seen again, but the legend of their silent, mad pursuit remains Britain's most ancient and terrifying Christmas ghost story.