The Rhinegold prologue

After the wars between the older rulers of the earth and the lords of the sky, the victorious young king of the gods, Wotan (god of light, air, and wind), wanders the middle earth looking to gain all the knowledge and power he can find. He comes to a spring at the foot of the World Ash Tree and asks the norns at the fountain of Mimr for all knowledge of the past, present, and future. The Norns agree to give Wotan most of their knowledge but only after he hangs on the world ash tree for a long space of time, and to give the Norns one of his eyes.

Wotan does all this and the Norns give him sacred knowledge. He breaks off one of the branches of the World Ash tree and fashions for himself a spear on which he carves the runes and sacred knowledge he has learned. He decrees that henceforth all contracts and sacred pacts (vertragen) must be protected by his spear. But by breaking off this branch, Wotan himself starts the slow decay of the World Ash Tree which harkens to the ultimate downfall of the gods.

To further consolidate his power he enslaves the fire god, Loge, who becomes his partner in crime, and marries the goddess, Fricka.

Spurred on by Fricka, and Loge, Wotan decides to build a splendid castle in the heavens from which he can look down on all the men, giants, and dwarves of the middle and low parts of the earth. He hires two mighty giants, Fasfolt and Fafner, to build this castle, Valhalla, for him. He finds however that he has nothing to pay the giants with and turns to Loge. Loge consuls Wotan to say that when done he will pay them with the young goddess of youth, Freia the sister of Fricka who grows the golden apples that keep the gods young. The giants agree and build the mighty fortress while all the gods sleep.

A primal force of nature deposits the magic gold into the river Rhine and instructs his three daughters, the Rhinemaidens, to watch the gold carefully. They constantly swim around it in joyful love.

Das Rhinegold - The theft of the magical gold

The Three Rhinemaidens are swimming in the depths of the river Rhine, as Alberich the Nibelung (a night-dwarf) enters. The Rhinemaidens tease him as he tries catch them.

Then a ray of sunlight shines on pile of gold. The Rhinemaidens tell Alberich that if someone should forswear all love, he would be able to forge an all-powerful ring of the Rhinegold. They tell this to Alberich because they think he would never forswear love, as he was so lustily chasing them. But they are wrong: Alberich realizes that these water maidens will not give him any love, and that if he can't have that he can have power. He swims to the gold, renounces love (so verflucht ich die liebe), and steals it from them. As everything is enveloped in darkness, Alberich makes his way down to Nibelheim and forges the ring.

Up on a hill Fricka awakens to see the splendid fortress in the heaven completed by the Giants. She wakes up Wotan who is dreaming of the golden hall. Finally he awakes and beholds the castle. His joy is quickly dashed when Fricka reminds Wotan that he must now give Fricka's sister, Freia, to the giants as payment. Wotan tells Fricka that Loge told him to do this and he has no intention of giving Freia away. He has charged Loge to go out into the middle earth and find a suitable replacement for Freia. The giants come and demand the agreed upon ransom. Wotan waits for Loge who does not come.

Freia panics and calls on her brothers Froh, and the thunder god, Donner, to protect her. Donner threatens the giants with his mighty war hammer (mjllonir), but Wotan bars him with his spear as Wotan's Runespear protects his deal with the giants. And just then Loge appears in a flickering flame. All gods are angry at him. Loge says he understands the giants' demand - for who could deny love? Who except Alberich? And so Loge tells them about Alberich who cursed love, fashioned a magic ring, and enslaved his fellow Nibelung's. Alberich is a bitter enemy of the giants and the two giants declare that they will take the Nibelung's treasure instead of Freya. As Wotan hesitates, the giants take Freya away and demand their payment be delivered before sunset.

The gods suddenly feel weak mist envelopes the fortress in the heavens: Loge knows that this is because Freya normally gives them Golden Apples which bestows them their eternal youth - no Freya, no Apples. Loge, who isn't affected (It troubles me less: for I'm only half as godlike as you, you immortals !), suggests that Wotan should take the Ring from Alberich, since it does not belong to him: steal from the thief. Left with little choice, Wotan agrees to try to win Alberich's treasure. He tells Loge to lead him to Nibelheim - but not through the river Rhine (possibly because he does not want the Rhinemaidens see him - he intends to take the opportunity to gain the ring for himself.).

There, Alberich's brother, Mime, has fashioned a helmet called the Tarnhelm which, among its many powers, makes the wearer invisible or able to transform into other forms. Mime tries to hide the helmet, hoping to steal the Ring with its help, but he fears Alberich's might too much and gives the helmet when Alberich asks for it. Alberich wears the Tarnhelm and turns invisible - and mockingly whips Mime. Alberich has just left when Loge and Wotan arrive. Mime tells them how Alberich has enslaved the once happy Nibelungens and has made them dig in the depths of the earth for more gold. Loge promises Mime they will free all Nibelung dwarfs from Alberich's tyranny.Loge pretends disbelief in the Tarnhelm's powers, and to prove its might, Alberich wears the Tarnhelm and turns into a huge dragon (serpent?). Alberich storms in and warns the gods to watch out (Habt Ach !) for his growing Nibelung hoards with which he will rule the world. Loge pretends to be frightened, and asks next whether Alberich could turn into something tiny to evade his enemies. Alberich doesn't see the trick and turns into a toad. Wotan and Loge catch Albreich in a net and drag him up to the middle earth.

Back on earth the gods order Alberich to give them all his treasures as a ransom before he can be freed. Alberich summons the Nibelungs and they pile all his treasures. Loge also places the Tarnhelm on the pile, Alberich is furious, but tries to calm himself with the knowledge that Mime can forge a new magic helmet. But then Wotan demands the Ring as well. He proceeds to take it and lets Loge free Alberich. Crushed, Alberich places a deadly curse (verflucht) on the ring - all who have it will die, and all who don't will envy it until once again it comes back to its rightful owner - the Nibelungen. Wotan ignores his words as he muses that now he has all the power in the world.

The giants return with Freya and order that the gold must completely hide Freia from their sight. They pile the gold around her. The giants look carefully, they see a chink and order the Tarnhelm to cover it up. Finally all the gold is exhausted, but Fasfolt claims he can still see Freya's eye and shouts "I can not give her up if I can see her eye." "But all the golds is gone," Loge proclaims. Then the giants notice the ring on Wotan's finger. They order him to give up the ring as ransom. Loge tells them that the ring belongs to the Rhinemaidens, but Wotan tells them all that he will keep this ultimate symbol of power. The giants drag Freia from the gold and start to take her away again. Wotan refuses to give up the ring.

Then all things stop....out of the ground comes the primordial mother of the Earth, Erda, who tells Wotan to flee the curse of the ring and that the downfall of the gods is approaching - for all that is, will end. Then she disappears. Reluctantly, Wotan follows this piece of advice and gives the Ring to the giants. As the giants take up the gold they start to argue over the ring, and as foretold, Fafner kills Fasfolt for the power of the ring. The power of the curse horrifies Wotan, who realizes that he must protect the gods from this curse and Erda's prophecy of the ultimate downfall of the gods.

Fricka reminds Wotan that they can now enter the fortress in the sky. Wotan is not as happy as he was in the morning when he first beheld the castle. He calls upon Donner to clear the mist with a mighty storm. Donner calls up thunder and with a violent lighten strike the mists are cleared and a glittering rainbow bridge spans over the earth to heaven and the war hall, Valhalla.

As the gods are walking the Rainbow Bridge to Valhalla, Loge proclaims his disgust for Wotan's action and remarks (aside) that they are merely hastening to their own end and he would welcome the day he can turn again into his elemental (form) and burn everything.

Then, distant singing can be heard: the Rhinemaidens proclaim their sorrow over the loss of their gold, and the falseness of all that rules above.. Wotan bids Loge tell them to be silent - but they won't be silenced. The gods ignore the Rhinemaidens and enter Valhalla.

Die Walk�re - The Valkyrie

The ring's malediction worries Wotan. He can't let it go on, but if he takes back the ring from Fafner he will infringe his own pacts and this the source of his power "everything by pacts, nothing by violence". To give the ring back to the Rhinemaidens, he will have to resort to tricks. Alberich isn't affected by the curse as he paid the ring buy renouncing to love. The riches produced by the ring are stronger than Wotan's laws. As a result he can't trust humans. So he decides to rise and army in Valhalla, formed by heroes who must prove their worth by dying in battle. Wotan provokes wars to create new heroes. To select them, he creates the Valkyries, war maiden who excite battle fervour on the battlefield. He rapes Erda to give birth to Br�nnhilde, his favourite.

But he still isn't at peace. So he mates with a mortal in order to produce a mortal who would be completely free from his law, and thus able to take back the ring without compromising Wotan. In fact he has twins : Siegmund and Sieglinde, who later have an incestuous relation in spite of Sieglinde being married. Fricka, goddess of marriage isn't happy and compels Wotan not to help Siegmund in his fight with Sieglinde's husband. He assigns this task to Br�nnhilde. But Br�nnhilde is touched by the love between the twins, is convinced Wotan doesn't want his son to to die, and disobey, protecting Siegmund. Wotan shatters Siegmund's sword Nothung, who dies stabbed to death. He then kills Sieglinde's husband and punishes his daughter who had fled with a pregnant Sieglinde. She will be a valkyrie no longer, will lay defenceless in deep sleep and will become wife to the first person who finds her. She manages to convince Wotan to make it so that only the bravest can marry her. Wotan summons Loge (in his fire-elemental form) to surround the sleeping Bruennhilde in fire. He leaves the scene with the words "Whosoever fears the tip of my spear shall never pass through the fire!".

Siegfried

Sieglinde dies while giving birth to Siegfried in the forest where Mime lives and where Fafner watches over his gold assuming the shape of a dragon (thanks to the Tarnhelm). Mime intent to rise him to kill Fafner in order to get back the ring. Siegfried breaks all the swords forged by the dwarf. Only his father's sword Nothung would do, but Mime doesn't manage to forge it back so he hides the remains.

Wotan doesn't want power anymore, he intends to leave it to Siegfried and Br�nnhilde. He gives up his occupations of king of the gods to travel under the guise of Wanderer, without intervening, feeling his laws are outdated. However he still watches over Br�nnhilde to reserve her to Siegfried. Loge helps him in his elemental form.

Siegfried finally get backs what's left of the sword and forges it back, before killing Fafner. He takes the treasure and the ring without knowing its meaning, and killed Mime who had tried to kill him. Siegfried still doesn't know fear and search for "the sleeping maiden" (who is in fact Br�nnhilde). He meets Wotan who had summoned Erda and informed her that he no longer feard the end of the gods; indeed, it is his desire. Wotan wants to stop Siegfried because of his insolence, but Nothung shatters the god's spear. Wotan is broken, his laws destroyed by a real free man. Siegfried goes through the enchanted fire to Bruennhilde there, thinking her to be a "man". But as he realizes she is definitely not a man, he experiences fear for the first time in his life. He kisses her, which awakes her, and they declare their love to each other.

Goetterdaemmerung - Twilight of the gods

The Spring of Wisdom has dried up and the Ash has died, and Wotan's Runespear has been shattered. Wotan has ordered the dead Ash be cut down and the wood be piled around Valhalla as a great pyre which will one day be ignited by Loge.

Siegfried and Br�nnhilde are married. Alberich managed to have a queen bear his child Hagen, and counts on his son to avenge him by taking back the ring from Siegfried.

Meanwhile, Wotan has gone in an almost catatonic state, waiting for the end to come, which frightens the gods and the Valkyries. His ravens inform him of what happens in the world. It seems Loge has deserted Valhalla to influence events in order to bring the end of the world.

Siegfried loses his memory after falling for Hagen's tricks, and falls in love with another woman. Br�nnhilde accuses him of treason. He defends himself swearing to be killed by Hagen's spear if he lied. Hagen gives him back his memory so that he becomes aware he knew Br�nnhilde, and kills him. Br�nnhilde sought advice from the Rhinemaidens and understand her mistake, what the ring means, and that her father Woten wishes for the twilight of the gods. Br�nnhilde leavs Siegfried's corpse atop a funeral pyre, takes the Ring and says that the fire that soon consumes her will cleanse it from the Curse and then the Rhinemaidens can fetch their gold from the ashes. She puts on the Ring and takes a torch from one of the vassals. She tells Wotan's ravens to fly home past the Valkyrie Rock and bid Loge, who is still there, to go to Valhalla: the downfall of gods is nigh. He hurls the torch into the pyre with the words "Thus do I throw this torch at Valhalla's vaulting towers!". The wood catches fire rapidly. Bruennhilde mounts her steed, Grane, and speaking a last greeting to Siegfried she rides into the blazing pyre.

The flames instantly blaze up and fill the entire space before the hall. The Rhine swells up and sweeps over the fire. On the surface appear the three Rhine-daughters, which alarms Hagen. He flings away hastily his spear, shield and helmet, and madly plunges into the flood crying 'Keep away from the Ring!'. The Rhinemaidens draw him down below.

Through the cloud-bank on the horizon breaks an increasing red glow. In its light the Rhine is seen to have returned to its bed and the nymphs are circling and playing with the Ring on the calm waters.

"From the ruins of the half-burnt hall, the men and women perceive with awe the light in the sky, in which now appears the hall of Valhalla, where the gods and heroes are seen sitting together.... Bright flames seize on the abode of the gods; and when this is completely enveloped by them, the curtain falls." (Wagner's stage directions)