Heimskringla; Or, The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway
Saxland. King Bjorn had also merchant ships on voyages to other lands,
by which he procured for himself costly articles, and such things as
he thought needful; and therefore his brothers called him Farman
(the Seaman), and Kaupman (the Chapman). Bjorn was a man of sense and
understanding, and promised to become a good ruler. He made a good and
suitable marriage, and had a son by his wife, who was named Gudrod.
Eirik Blood-axe came from his Baltic cruise with ships of war, and
a great force, and required his brother Bjorn to deliver to him King
Harald's share of the scat and incomes of Vestfold. But it had always
been the custom before, that Bjorn himself either delivered the money
into the king's hands, or sent men of his own with it; and therefore
he would continue with the old custom, and would not deliver the
money. Eirik again wanted provisions, tents, and liquor. The brothers
quarrelled about this; but Eirik got nothing and left the town. Bjorn
went also out of the town towards evening up to Saeheim. In the night
Eirik came back after Bjorn, and came to Saeheim just as Bjorn and his
men were seated at table drinking. Eirik surrounded the house in which
they were; but Bjorn with his men went out and fought. Bjorn, and many
men with him, fell. Eirik, on the other hand, got a great booty, and
proceeded northwards. But this work was taken very ill by the people of
Viken, and Eirik was much disliked for it; and the report went that King
Olaf would avenge his brother Bjorn, whenever opportunity offered. King
Bjorn lies in the mound of Farmanshaug at Saeheim.
39. RECONCILIATION OF THE KINGS.
King Eirik went in winter northwards to More, and was at a feast in
Solve, within the point Agdanes; and when Halfdan the Black heard of it
he set out with his men, and surrounded the house in which they were.
Eirik slept in a room which stood detached by itself, and he escaped
into the forest with four others; but Halfdan and his men burnt the main
house, with all the people who were in it. With this news Eirik came
to King Harald, who was very wroth at it, and assembled a great force
against the Throndhjem people. When Halfdan the Black heard this he
levied ships and men, so that he had a great force, and proceeded
with it to Stad, within Thorsbjerg. King Harald lay with his men at
Reinsletta. Now people went between them, and among others a clever man
called Guthorm Sindre, who was then in Halfdan the Black's army, but had
been formerly in the service of King Harald, and was a great friend of
both. Guthorm was a great skald, and had once composed a song both about
the father and the son, for which they had offered him a reward. But he
would take nothing; but only asked that, some day or other, they should
grant him any request he should make, which they promised to do. Now he
presented himself to King Harald, brought words of peace between them,
and made the request to them both that they should be reconciled. So
highly did the king esteem him, that in consequence of his request they
were reconciled. Many other able men promoted this business as well as
he; and it was so settled that Halfdan should retain the whole of his
kingdom as he had it before, and should let his brother Eirik sit in
peace. After this event Jorun, the skald-maid, composed some verses in
"Sendibit" ("The Biting Message"):--
"I know that Harald Fairhair
Knew the dark deed of Halfdan.
To Harald Halfdan seemed
Angry and cruel."
40. BIRTH OF HAKON THE GOOD.
Earl Hakon Grjotgardson of Hlader had the whole rule over Throndhjem
when King Harald was anywhere away in the country; and Hakon stood
higher with the king than any in the country of Throndhjem. After
Hakon's death his son Sigurd succeeded to his power in Throndhjem, and
was the earl, and had his mansion at Hlader. King Harald's sons, Halfdan
the Black and Sigrod, who had been before in the house of his father
Earl Hakon, continued to be brought up in his house. The sons of Harald
and Sigurd were about the same age. Earl Sigurd was one of the wisest
men of his time, and married Bergljot, a daughter of Earl Thorer the
Silent; and her mother was Alof Arbot, a daughter of Harald Harfager.
When King Harald began to grow old he generally dwelt on some of his
great farms in Hordaland; namely, Alreksstader or Saeheim, Fitjar,
Utstein, or Ogvaldsnes in the island Kormt. When Harald was seventy
years of age he begat a son with a girl called Thora Mosterstang,
because her family came from Moster. She was descended from good people,
being connected with Kare (Aslakson) of Hordaland; and was moreover
a very stout and remarkably handsome girl. She was called the king's
servant-girl; for at that time many were subject to service to the king
who were of good birth, both men and women. Then it was the custom, with
people of consideration, to choose with great care the man who should
pour water over their children, and give them a name. Now when the time
came that Thora, who was then at Moster, expected her confinement,
she would to King Harald, who was then living at Saeheim; and she went
northwards in a ship belonging to Earl Sigurd. They lay at night close
to the land; and there Thora brought forth a child upon the land, up
among the rocks, close to the ship's gangway, and it was a man child.
Earl Sigurd poured water over him, and called him Hakon, after his own
father, Hakon earl of Hlader. The boy soon grew handsome, large in size,
and very like his father King Harald. King Harald let him follow his
mother, and they were both in the king's house as long as he was an
infant.
41. KING ATHELSTAN'S MESSAGE
At this time a king called Aethelstan had taken the Kingdom of England.
He was called victorious and faithful. He sent men to Norway to King
Harald, with the errand that the messengers should present him with a
sword, with the hilt and handle gilt, and also the whole sheath adorned
with gold and silver, and set with precious jewels. The ambassador
presented the sword-hilt to the king, saying, "Here is a sword which
King Athelstan sends thee, with the request that thou wilt accept it."
The king took the sword by the handle; whereupon the ambassador said,
"Now thou hast taken the sword according to our king's desire, and
therefore art thou his subject as thou hast taken his sword." King
Harald saw now that this was an insult, for he would be subject to no
man. But he remembered it was his rule, whenever anything raised his
anger, to collect himself, and let his passion run off, and then take
the matter into consideration coolly. Now he did so, and consulted his
friends, who all gave him the advice to let the ambassadors, in the
first place, go home in safety.
42. HAUK'S JOURNEY TO ENGLAND.
The following summer King Harald sent a ship westward to England, and
gave the command of it to Hauk Habrok. He was a great warrior, and very
dear to the king. Into his hands he gave his son Hakon. Hank proceeded
westward in England, and found King Athelstan in London, where there was
just at the time a great feast and entertainment. When they came to the
hall, Hauk told his men how they should conduct themselves; namely, that
he who went first in should go last out, and all should stand in a row
at the table, at equal distance from each other; and each should have
his sword at his left side, but should fasten his cloak so that his
sword should not be seen. Then they went into the hall, thirty in
number. Hauk went up to the king and saluted him, and the king bade him
welcome. Then Hauk took the child Hakon, and set it on the king's knee.
The king looks at the boy, and asks Hauk what the meaning of this is.
Hauk replies, "Herald the king bids thee foster his servant-girl's
child." The king was in great anger, and seized a sword which lay beside
him, and drew it, as if he was going to kill the child. Hauk says, "Thou
hast borne him on thy knee, and thou canst murder him if thou wilt; but
thou wilt not make an end of all King Harald's sons by so doing." On
that Hauk went out with all his men, and took the way direct to his
ship, and put to sea,--for they were ready,--and came back to King
Harald. The king was highly pleased with this; for it is the common
observation of all people, that the man who fosters another's children
is of less consideration than the other. From these transactions between
the two kings, it appears that each wanted to be held greater than the
other; but in truth there was no injury, to the dignity of either, for
each was the upper king in his own kingdom till his dying day.
43. HAKON, THE FOSTER-SON OF ATHELSTAN, IS BAPTIZED.
King Athelstan had Hakon baptized, and brought up in the right faith,
and in good habits, and all sorts of good manners, and he loved Hakon
above all his relations; and Hakon was beloved by all men. He was
henceforth called Athelstan's foster-son. He was an accomplished skald,
and he was larger, stronger and more beautiful than other men; he was
a man of understanding and eloquence, and also a good Christian. King
Athelstan gave Hakon a sword, of which the hilt and handle were gold,
and the blade still better; for with it Hakon cut down a mill-stone to
the centre eye, and the sword thereafter was called the Quernbite (1).
Better sword never came into Norway, and Hakon carried it to his dying
day.
ENDNOTES:
(1) Quern is the name of the small hand mill-stones still
found.
in use among the cottars in Orkney, Shetland, and the
Hebrides. This sword is mentioned in the Younger Edda.
There were many excellent swords in the olden time, and many
of them had proper names.
44. EIRIK BROUGHT TO THE SOVEREIGNTY.
When King Harald was eighty years of age (A.D. 930) he became very
heavy, and unable to travel through the country, or do the business of
a king. Then he brought his son Eirik to his high-seat, and gave him the
power and command over the whole land. Now when King Harald's other sons
heard this, King Halfdan the Black also took a king's high-seat, and
took all Throndhjem land, with the consent of all the people, under his
rule as upper king. After the death of Bjorn the Chapman, his brother
Olaf took the command over Vestfold, and took Bjorn's son, Gudrod,
as his foster-child. Olaf's son was called Trygve; and the two
foster-brothers were about the same age, and were hopeful and clever.
Trygve, especially, was remarkable as a stout and strong man. Now when
the people of Viken heard that those of Hordaland had taken Eirik as
upper king, they did the same, and made Olaf the upper king in Viken,
which kingdom he retained. Eirik did not like this at all. Two years
after this, Halfdan the Black died suddenly at a feast in Throndhjem
and the general report was that Gunhild had bribed a witch to give him
a death-drink. Thereafter the Throndhjem people took Sigrod to be their
king.
45. KING HARALD'S DEATH.
King Harald lived three years after he gave Eirik the supreme authority
over his kingdom, and lived mostly on his great farms which he
possessed, some in Rogaland, and some in Hordaland. Eirik and Gunhild
had a son on whom King Harald poured water, and gave him his own name,
and the promise that he should be king after his father Eirik. King
Harald married most of his daughters within the country to his earls,
and from them many great families are descended. Harald died on a bed of
sickness in Hogaland (A.D. 933), and was buried under a mound at Haugar
in Karmtsund. In Haugesund is a church, now standing; and not far from
the churchyard, at the north-west side, is King Harald Harfager's mound;
but his grave-stone stands west of the church, and is thirteen feet and
a half high, and two ells broad. One stone was set at head and one at