Historically, the 'Song of Wade' was a well-known medieval story referenced by Geoffrey Chaucer, with allusions in works like 'Troilus and Criseyde' and 'The Merchant’s Tale,' now understood as romantic allegories rather than heroic legends.

Recent scholarship reveals that the story of Wade, once thought to be a legendary hero, was actually embedded in a 12th-century sermon as a moral reflection on human nature's dangers.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge have deciphered the medieval work, showing that 'The Song of Wade' was a grounded romance rather than a mythic tale of monsters, which had mystified scholars for over a century.

The fragment of the 'Song of Wade' was first discovered in 1896 by M.R. James in a Latin manuscript, but its true meaning remained elusive until now.

The breakthrough came from correcting a mistranslation in a 12th-century sermon, where a word originally interpreted as 'elves' was misread due to a letter confusion, shifting the story's focus to real people and moral themes.

The sermon 'Humiliamini,' attributed to Alexander Neckam, used vivid imagery of wolves, adders, and sea-snakes to symbolize human flaws, with Wade’s story serving as a moral metaphor emphasizing humility and moral downfall.