Heimskringla; Or, The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway
against King Olaf's; but when he began he became so hoarse and husky in
his throat, that nobody could hear a word he said, and he also had to
sit down. There was none of the bondes now to speak against the king,
and as nobody answered him there was no opposition; and it came to this,
that all agreed to what the king had proposed. All the people of the
Thing accordingly were baptized before the Thing was dissolved.
62. ERLING SKJALGSON'S WOOING.
King Olaf went with his men-at-arms to the Gula-Thing; for the bondes
had sent him word that they would reply there to his speech. When
both parties had come to the Thing, the king desired first to have a
conference with the chief people of the country; and when the meeting
was numerous the king set forth his errand,--that he desired them,
according to his proposal, to allow themselves to be baptized. Then said
Olmod the Old, "We relations have considered together this matter, and
have come to one resolution. If thou thinkest, king, to force us who are
related together to such things as to break our old law, or to bring us
under thyself by any sort of violence, then will we stand against thee
with all our might: and be the victory to him to whom fate ordains it.
But if thou, king, wilt advance our relations' fortunes, then thou shalt
have leave to do as thou desirest, and we will all serve thee with zeal
in thy purpose."
The king replies, "What do you propose for obtaining this agreement?"
Then answers Olmod, "The first is, that thou wilt give thy sister Astrid
in marriage to Erling Skjalgson, our relation, whom we look upon as the
most hopeful young man in all Norway."
King Olaf replied, that this marriage appeared to him also very
suitable; "as Erling is a man of good birth, and a good-looking man in
appearance: but Astrid herself must answer to this proposal."
Thereupon the king spoke to his sister. She said, "It is but of little
use that I am a king's sister, and a king's daughter, if I must marry
a man who has no high dignity or office. I will rather wait a few years
for a better match." Thus ended this conference.
63. HORDALAND BAPTIZED.
King Olaf took a falcon that belonged to Astrid, plucked off all its
feathers, and then sent it to her. Then said Astrid, "Angry is my
brother." And she stood up, and went to the king, who received her
kindly, and she said that she left it to the king to determine her
marriage. "I think," said the king, "that I must have power enough in
this land to raise any man I please to high dignity." Then the king
ordered Olmod and Erling to be called to a conference, and all their
relations; and the marriage was determined upon, and Astrid betrothed to
Erling. Thereafter the king held the Thing, and recommended Christianity
to the bondes; and as Olmod, and Erling, and all their relations, took
upon themselves the most active part in forwarding the king's desire,
nobody dared to speak against it; and all the people were baptized, and
adopted Christianity.
64. ERLING SKJALGSON'S WEDDING.
Erling Skjalgson had his wedding in summer, and a great many people
were assembled at it. King Olaf was also there, and offered Erling an
earldom. Erling replied thus: "All my relations have been herses only,
and I will take no higher title than they have; but this I will accept
from thee, king, that thou makest me the greatest of that title in the
country." The king consented; and at his departure the king invested
his brother-in law Erling with all the land north of the Sognefjord, and
east to the Lidandisnes, on the same terms as Harald Harfager had given
land to his sons, as before related.
65. RAUMSDAL AND FJORD-DISTRICTS BAPTIZED.
The same harvest King Olaf summoned the bondes to a Thing of the four
districts at Dragseid, in Stad: and there the people from Sogn, the
Fjord-districts, South More, and Raumsdal, were summoned to meet. King
Olaf came there with a great many people who had followed him from
the eastward, and also with those who had joined him from Rogaland and
Hordaland. When the king came to the Thing, he proposed to them there,
as elsewhere, Christianity; and as the king had such a powerful
host with him, they were frightened. The king offered them two
conditions,--either to accept Christianity, or to fight. But the
bondes saw they were in no condition to fight the king, and resolved,
therefore, that all the people should agree to be baptized. The king
proceeded afterwards to North More, and baptized all that district. He
then sailed to Hlader, in Throndhjem; had the temple there razed to the
ground; took all the ornaments and all property out of the temple, and
from the gods in it; and among other things the great gold ring which
Earl Hakon had ordered to be made, and which hung in the door of the
temple; and then had the temple burnt. But when the bondes heard of
this, they sent out a war-arrow as a token through the whole district,
ordering out a warlike force, and intended to meet the king with it. In
the meantime King Olaf sailed with a war force out of the fjord along
the coast northward, intending to proceed to Halogaland, and baptize
there. When he came north to Bjarnaurar, he heard from Halogaland that
a force was assembled there to defend the country against the king. The
chiefs of this force were Harek of Thjotta, Thorer Hjort from Vagar,
and Eyvind Kinrifa. Now when King Olaf heard this, he turned about
and sailed southwards along the land; and when he got south of Stad
proceeded at his leisure, and came early in winter (A.D. 998) all the
way east to Viken.
66. OLAF PROPOSES MARRIAGE TO QUEEN SIGRID.
Queen Sigrid in Svithjod, who had for surname the Haughty, sat in her
mansion, and during the same winter messengers went between King Olaf
and Sigrid to propose his courtship to her, and she had no objection;
and the matter was fully and fast resolved upon. Thereupon King Olaf
sent to Queen Sigrid the great gold ring he had taken from the temple
door of Hlader, which was considered a distinguished ornament. The
meeting for concluding the business was appointed to be in spring on the
frontier, at the Gaut river. Now the ring which King Olaf had sent Queen
Sigrid was highly prized by all men; yet the queen's gold-smiths,
two brothers, who took the ring in their hands, and weighed it, spoke
quietly to each other about it, and in a manner that made the queen call
them to her, and ask "what they smiled at?" But they would not say a
word, and she commanded them to say what it was they had discovered.
Then they said the ring is false. Upon this she ordered the ring to be
broken into pieces, and it was found to be copper inside. Then the queen
was enraged, and said that Olaf would deceive her in more ways than this
one. In the same year (A.D. 998) King Olaf went into Ringenke, and there
the people also were baptized.
67. OLAF HARALDSON BAPTIZED.
Asta, the daughter of Gudbrand, soon after the fall of Harald Grenske
married again a man who was called Sigurd Syr, who was a king in
Ringerike. Sigurd was a son of Halfdan, and grandson of Sigurd Hrise,
who was a son of Harald Harfager. Olaf, the son of Asta and Harald
Grenske, lived with Asta, and was brought up from childhood in the house
of his stepfather, Sigurd Syr. Now when King Olaf Trygvason came to
Ringerike to spread Christianity, Sigurd Syr and his wife allowed
themselves to be baptized, along with Olaf her son; and Olaf Trygvason
was godfather to Olaf, the stepson of Harald Grenske. Olaf was then
three years old. Olaf returned from thence to Viken, where he remained
all winter. He had now been three years king in Norway (A.D. 998).
68. MEETING OF OLAF AND SIGRID.
Early in spring (A.D. 998) King Olaf went eastwards to Konungahella
to the meeting with Queen Sigrid; and when they met the business was
considered about which the winter before they had held communication,
namely, their marriage; and the business seemed likely to be concluded.
But when Olaf insisted that Sigrid should let herself be baptized, she
answered thus:--"I must not part from the faith which I have held,
and my forefathers before me; and, on the other hand, I shall make no
objection to your believing in the god that pleases you best." Then King
Olaf was enraged, and answered in a passion, "Why should I care to have
thee, an old faded woman, and a heathen jade?" and therewith struck her
in the face with his glove which he held in his hands, rose up, and they
parted. Sigrid said, "This may some day be thy death." The king set off
to Viken, the queen to Svithjod.
69. THE BURNING OF WARLOCKS.
Then the king proceeded to Tunsberg, and held a Thing, at which he
declared in a speech that all the men of whom it should be known to a
certainty that they dealt with evil spirits, or in witchcraft, or were
sorcerers, should be banished forth of the land. Thereafter the king had
all the neighborhood ransacked after such people, and called them all
before him; and when they were brought to the Thing there was a man
among them called Eyvind Kelda, a grandson of Ragnvald Rettilbeine,
Harald Harfager's son. Eyvind was a sorcerer, and particularly knowing
in witchcraft. The king let all these men be seated in one room, which
was well adorned, and made a great feast for them, and gave them strong
drink in plenty. Now when they were all very drunk, he ordered the house
be set on fire, and it and all the people within it were consumed, all
but Eyvind Kelda, who contrived to escape by the smoke-hole in the roof.
And when he had got a long way off, he met some people on the road going
to the king, and he told them to tell the king that Eyvind Kelda had
slipped away from the fire, and would never come again in King Olaf's
power, but would carry on his arts of witchcraft as much as ever. When
the people came to the king with such a message from Eyvind, the king
was ill pleased that Eyvind had escaped death.
70. EYVIND KELDA'S DEATH.
When spring (A.D. 998) came King Olaf went out to Viken, and was on
visits to his great farms. He sent notice over all Viken that he would
call out an army in summer, and proceed to the north parts of the
country. Then he went north to Agder; and when Easter was approaching
he took the road to Rogaland with 300 (=360) men, and came on Easter
evening north to Ogvaldsnes, in Kormt Island, where an Easter feast was
prepared for him. That same night came Eyvind Kelda to the island with
a well-manned long-ship, of which the whole crew consisted of sorcerers
and other dealers with evil spirits. Eyvind went from his ship to the
land with his followers, and there they played many of their pranks of
witchcraft. Eyvind clothed them with caps of darkness, and so thick a
mist that the king and his men could see nothing of them; but when they
came near to the house at Ogvaldsnes, it became clear day. Then it went
differently from what Eyvind had intended: for now there came just such
a darkness over him and his comrades in witchcraft as they had made
before, so that they could see no more from their eyes than from the
back of their heads but went round and round in a circle upon the
island. When the king's watchman saw them going about, without knowing
what people these were, they told the king. Thereupon he rose up with
his people, put on his clothes, and when he saw Eyvind with his men
wandering about he ordered his men to arm, and examine what folk these
were. The king's men discovered it was Eyvind, took him and all his
company prisoners, and brought them to the king. Eyvind now told all he
had done on his journey. Then the king ordered these all to be taken out
to a skerry which was under water in flood tide, and there to be left
bound. Eyvind and all with him left their lives on this rock, and the