Heimskringla; Or, The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway
eastward to Olaf, and gave him these tidings. He was in no pleasant
humour at it, and threatened a speedy vengeance; but it was not allotted
by fate to King Olaf to revenge himself on Thrand and his relations,
because of the hostilities which had begun in Norway, and which are now
to be related. And there is nothing more to be told of what happened
after King Olaf sent men to the Farey Islands to take scat of them. But
great strife arose after Karl's death in the Farey Islands between the
family of Thrand of Gata and Leif Ossurson, and of which there are great
sagas.
154. KING OLAF'S EXPEDITION WITH HIS LEVY.
Now we must proceed with the relation we began before,--that King Olaf
set out with his men, and raised a levy over the whole country
(A.D. 1027). All lendermen in the North followed him excepting Einar
Tambaskelfer, who sat quietly at home upon his farm since his return
to the country, and did not serve the king. Einar had great estates
and wealth, although he held no fiefs from the king, and he lived
splendidly. King Olaf sailed with his fleet south around Stad, and many
people from the districts around joined him. King Olaf himself had a
ship which he had got built the winter before (A.D. 1027), and which
was called the Visund (1). It was a very large ship, with a bison's head
gilded all over upon the bow. Sigvat the skald speaks thus of it:--
"Trygvason's Long Serpent bore,
Grim gaping o'er the waves before,
A dragon's head with open throat,
When last the hero was afloat:
His cruise was closed,
As God disposed.
Olaf has raised a bison's head,
Which proudly seems the waves to tread.
While o'er its golden forehead dashing
The waves its glittering horns are washing:
May God dispose
A luckier close."
The king went on to Hordaland; there he heard the news that Erling
Skjalgson had left the country with a great force, and four or five
ships. He himself had a large war-ship, and his sons had three of twenty
rowing-banks each; and they had sailed westward to England to Canute
the Great. Then King Olaf sailed eastward along the land with a mighty
war-force, and he inquired everywhere if anything was known of Canute's
proceedings; and all agreed in saying he was in England but added that
he was fitting out a levy, and intended coming to Norway. As Olaf had a
large fleet, and could not discover with certainty where he should go to
meet King Canute, and as his people were dissatisfied with lying quiet
in one place with so large an armament, he resolved to sail with his
fleet south to Denmark, and took with him all the men who were best
appointed and most warlike; and he gave leave to the others to return
home. Now the people whom he thought of little use having gone home,
King Olaf had many excellent and stout men-at-arms besides those who, as
before related, had fled the country, or sat quietly at home; and most
of the chief men and lendermen of Norway were along with him.
ENDNOTES: (1) Visundr is the buffalo; although the modern bison, or
American animal of that name, might have been known through
the Greenland colonists, who in this reign had visited some
parts of America.--L.
155. OF KING OLAF AND KING ONUND.
When King Olaf sailed to Denmark, he set his course for Seeland; and
when he came there he made incursions on the land, and began to plunder.
The country people were severely treated; some were killed, some bound
and dragged to the ships. All who could do so took to flight, and made
no opposition. King Olaf committed there the greatest ravages. While
Olaf was in Seeland, the news came that King Onund Olafson of Sweden had
raised a levy, and fallen upon Scania, and was ravaging there; and then
it became known what the resolution had been that the two kings
had taken at the Gaut river, where they had concluded a union and
friendship, and had bound themselves to oppose King Canute. King Onund
continued his march until he met his brother-in-law King Olaf. When they
met they made proclamation both to their own people and to the people
of the country, that they intended to conquer Denmark; and asked the
support of the people of the country for this purpose. And it happened,
as we find examples of everywhere, that if hostilities are brought upon
the people of a country not strong enough to withstand, the greatest
number will submit to the conditions by which peace can be purchased at
any rate. So it happened here that many men went into the service of the
kings, and agreed to submit to them. Wheresoever they went they laid the
country all round subjection to them, and otherwise laid waste all with
fire and sword.
Of this foray Sigvat the skald speaks, in a ballad he composed
concerning King Canute the Great:--
"'Canute is on the sea!'
The news is told,
And the Norsemen bold
Repeat it with great glee.
And it runs from mouth to mouth--
'On a lucky day
We came away
From Throndhjem to the south.'
Across the cold East sea,
The Swedish king
His host did bring,
To gain great victory.
King Onund came to fight,
In Seeland's plains,
Against the Danes,
With his steel-clad men so bright.
Canute is on the land;
Side to side
His long-ships ride
Along the yellow strand.
Where waves wash the green banks,
Mast to mast,
All bound fast,
His great fleet lies in ranks."
156. OF KING CANUTE THE GREAT.
King Canute had heard in England that King Olaf of Norway had called out
a levy, and had gone with his forces to Denmark, and was making great
ravages in his dominions there. Canute began to gather people, and he
had speedily collected a great army and a numerous fleet. Earl Hakon was
second in command over the whole.
Sigvat the skald came this summer (A.D. 1027) from the West, from Ruda
(Rouen) in Valland, and with him was a man called Berg. They had made a
merchant voyage there the summer before. Sigvat had made a little poem
about this journey, called "The Western Traveller's Song," which begins
thus:--
"Berg! many a merry morn was pass'd,
When our vessel was made fast,
And we lay on the glittering tide
or Rouen river's western side."
When Sigvat came to England he went directly to King Canute, and asked
his leave to proceed to Norway; for King Canute had forbidden all
merchant vessels to sail until he himself was ready with his fleet. When
Sigvat arrived he went to the house in which the king was lodged; but
the doors were locked, and he had to stand a long time outside, but when
he got admittance he obtained the permission he desired. He then sang:--
"The way to Jutland's king I sought;
A little patience I was taught.
The doors were shut--all full within;
The udaller could not get in.
But Gorm's great son did condescend
To his own chamber me to send,
And grant my prayer--although I'm one
Whose arms the fetters' weight have known."
When Sigvat became aware that King Canute was equipping an armament
against King Olaf, and knew what a mighty force King Canute had, he made
these lines:--
"The mighty Canute, and Earl Hakon,
Have leagued themselves, and counsel taken
Against King Olaf's life,
And are ready for the strife.
In spite of king and earl, I say,
'I love him well--may he get away:'
On the Fields, wild and dreary,
With him I'd live, and ne'er be weary."
Sigvat made many other songs concerning this expedition of Canute and
Hakon. He made this among others:--
"'Twas not the earl's intention then
'Twixt Olaf and the udalmen
Peace to establish, and the land
Upright to hold with Northman's hand;
But ever with deceit and lies
Eirik's descendant, Hakon, tries
To make ill-will and discontent,
Till all the udalmen are bent
Against King Olaf's rule to rise."
157. OF KING CANUTE'S SHIP THE DRAGON.
Canute the Great was at last ready with his fleet, and left the land;
and a vast number of men he had, and ships frightfully large. He himself
had a dragon-ship, so large that it had sixty banks of rowers, and the
head was gilt all over. Earl Hakon had another dragon of forty banks,
and it also had a gilt figure-head. The sails of both were in stripes
of blue, red, and green, and the vessels were painted all above
the water-stroke; and all that belonged to their equipment was most
splendid. They had also many other huge ships remarkably well fitted
out, and grand. Sigvat the skald talks of this in his song on Canute:--
"Canute is out beneath the sky--
Canute of the clear blue eye!
The king is out on the ocean's breast,
Leading his grand fleet from the West.
On to the East the ship-masts glide,
Glancing and bright each long-ship's side.
The conqueror of great Ethelred,
Canute, is there, his foemen's dread:
His dragon with her sails of blue,
All bright and brilliant to the view,
High hoisted on the yard arms wide,
Carries great Canute o'er the tide.
Brave is the royal progress--fast
The proud ship's keel obeys the mast,
Dashes through foam, and gains the land,
Raising a surge on Limfjord's strand."
It is related that King Canute sailed with this vast force from England,
and came with all his force safely to Denmark, where he went into
Limfjord, and there he found gathered besides a large army of the men of
the country.
158. HARDAKNUT TAKEN TO BE KING IN DENMARK.
Earl Ulf Sprakalegson had been set as protector over Denmark when King
Canute went to England, and the king had intrusted his son Hardaknut in
the earl's hands. This took place the summer before (A.D. 1026), as we
related. But the earl immediately gave it out that King Canute had, at
parting, made known to him his will and desire that the Danes should
take his son Hardaknut as king over the Danish dominions. "On that
account," says the earl, "he gave the matter into our hands; as I,
and many other chiefs and leading men here in the country, have often
complained to King Canute of the evil consequences to the country of
being without a king, and that former kings thought it honour and power
enough to rule over the Danish kingdom alone; and in the times that are
past many kings have ruled over this kingdom. But now there are greater
difficulties than have ever been before; for we have been so fortunate
hitherto as to live without disturbance from foreign kings, but now we
hear the king of Norway is going to attack us, to which is added the
fear of the people that the Swedish king will join him; and now King
Canute is in England." The earl then produced King Canute's letter and
seal, confirming all that the earl asserted. Many other chiefs supported
this business; and in consequence of all these persuasions the people
resolved to take Hardaknut as king, which was done at the same Thing.
The Queen Emma had been principal promoter of this determination; for
she had got the letter to be written, and provided with the seal,
having cunningly got hold of the king's signet; but from him it was all
concealed. Now when Hardaknut and Earl Ulf heard for certain that King
Olaf was come from Norway with a large army, they went to Jutland,
where the greatest strength of the Danish kingdom lies, sent out
message-tokens, and summoned to them a great force; but when they heard
the Swedish king was also come with his army, they thought they would
not have strength enough to give battle to both, and therefore kept
their army together in Jutland, and resolved to defend that country