Anglo Saxon Riddles #1

Have a go at solving the riddle before you can see the answer below.


I am a solitary dweller, wounded with a knife, stricken with a sword, weary of battle deeds, tired of blades. Often I behold war, fight a dangerous foe; I look not for comfort, that safety may come to me out of the struggle, before I perish entirely among men; but the forged brands strike me; the handiwork of smiths, hard-edged, exceeding sharp, bite me in the strongholds. I must await a more grevious encounter. Never could I find in the city the race of physicians, of those who healed wounds with herbs, but my sword wounds grow wide by deadly blows day and night.

Answer: Shield