Gisli Sursson's Saga and The Saga of the People of Eyri

by Martin Regal

  In the autumn after the Mavahlid incident, Thorbjorn the Stout’s horses were found in the mountains. His stallion had been unable to hold the pasture against Thorarin’s stallion and the whole herd had been snowed under. When they were discovered, they were all dead.

  That same autumn a large number of people gathered at Tunga between the Laxa rivers inland from Helgafell to sort the sheep. Men from Snorri the Godi’s farm were there for the sorting, and they were led by Snorri’s uncle, Mar Hallvardsson. Helgi was the name of his shepherd. Bjorn, Vigfus’s nephew, was lying on top of the wall of the sheep-pen, holding a shepherd’s staff, and Helgi was sorting the sheep. Bjorn asked which sheep he had just separated out. When it was checked, it was found to have Vigfus’s brand on it.

  ‘You’re sorting the sheep rather casually today, Helgi,’ said Bjorn.

  ‘It’s more dangerous for someone like you,’ replied Helgi, ‘sitting on common pasture.’

  ‘What would a thief like you know about that,’ said Bjorn, who then leapt up and struck Helgi with his staff so that he fell down unconscious.

  When Mar saw this he drew his sword and lunged at Bjorn, striking his arm below the shoulder and causing a serious wound. At that, men rushed to join the two sides, but others went between them and separated them so that nothing of note happened.

  The following morning, Vigfus rode down to Helgafell and demanded compensation for the injury, but Snorri said he would not make anything out of the incidents that had occurred there. Vigfus did not like this answer and they parted with great coolness.

  In the spring, Vigfus brought a charge of inflicting a bloody wound at the Thorsnes Assembly but Snorri argued that Bjorn had provoked the incident. The outcome of the case was that Bjorn was unprotected by the law for his assault against Helgi, and got no compensation for his bloody wound, although he carried his arm in a sling after that.

  24 At the same assembly, Thorgest the Old and the sons of Thord Bellower brought an action against Eirik the Red for the killing of Thorgest’s sons who had died the autumn before when Eirik had fetched his bench-boards at Breidabolstad. The assembly was very well-attended, and large forces had already been gathered together. During the assembly, Eirik made his ship seaworthy at Eiriksvog on Oxnaey island, assisted by Thorbjorn Vifilsson, Killer-Styr, the sons of Thorbrand of Alftafjord, and Eyjolf Æsuson from Svinaey island. But Styr was the only one of Eirik’s supporters at the assembly, and he tried to dissuade whomever he could from supporting Thorgest. Styr also asked Snorri the Godi not to join Thorgest’s attack on Eirik after the assembly, and promised him in return that he would support him in the future if he was in any difficulty. Because of Styr’s pledge, Snorri took no part in the action.

  After the assembly, Thorgest and his men travelled in a large fleet towards the islands, but Eyjolf Æsuson kept Eirik’s ship hidden in the bay at Dimunarvog where Styr and Thorbjorn came to join Eirik. Eyjolf and Styr then followed Arnkel’s example and each of them accompanied Eirik in their own ferry out to Ellidaey island.

  It was on this journey that Eirik the Red discovered Greenland and he stayed there for three winters before returning to Iceland for one winter.16 He then went back to settle Greenland, and this happened fourteen years before Christianity was adopted by law in Iceland.

  25 Now to turn to Vermund and Thorarin the Black, who reached land in Norway north of the mouth of Trondheim, from where they sailed into Trondheim. At that time Earl Hakon Sigurdsson ruled Norway17 and Vermund went to see the earl and became one of his men. Thorarin sailed west to the British Isles with Alfgeir that same autumn, and Vermund gave his share of the ship to them. Thorarin does not come into this story again.

  Earl Hakon spent the winter at Lade, and Vermund was one of his favourite men there. The earl treated him well because he knew that Vermund was from a distinguished family in Iceland. There were two Swedish brothers also staying with the earl, one named Halli and the other Leiknir. They were men of much greater size and strength than any other men in Norway or farther afield at the time. They both went into berserk fits and once they had worked themselves up into a frenzy they were not like human beings. They went mad like dogs and had no fear of either fire or iron. But on a daily basis they were not difficult to get along with, as long as they were not crossed; once roused, they turned into the most erratic men. The Swedish King Eirik the Victorious18 had sent the berserks to the earl with the warning that he should treat them well, adding that they would be of great assistance if their moods could be kept under control.

  The following spring after he had been with the earl for the winter, Vermund wanted to return home to Iceland and asked the earl for permission to make his journey.

  The earl said he could travel wherever he wished, but asked him to consider before he left ‘whether there is any particular thing in my possession that you would accept from me to contribute to your success, which would increase the honour and esteem of both of us.’

  When Vermund considered what he should ask for from the earl, the idea occurred to him that his success in Iceland would be greatly strengthened if he had supporters such as the berserks. So he became determined to ask if the earl would give him the berserks as supporters. The reason behind his request was that Vermund thought his brother Styr was assuming more than his fair share of power and treating him unfairly, just as he treated many other people whenever he could get away with it. Vermund thought Styr would find it more difficult to bully him if he had followers like the brothers with him. Vermund then told the earl that he would accept the honour of being given the protection and backing of the berserks.

  ‘It seems to me,’ replied the earl, ‘that you have asked for the one thing that will be of no use to you, even if I granted it. I think they will prove obstinate and arrogant whenever you have to deal with them. I also think it would be too much for any farmer’s son to control them and keep them subservient, even though they have been obedient in their service to me.’

  Vermund said he would risk taking them if the earl would hand them over to him. The earl told him to find out first from the berserks if they would go with him. Vermund did so, asking if they would travel with him to Iceland and give him support and backing in return for his assurance that he would treat them well and give them anything they needed when they asked for it. The berserks replied that they had never thought of going to Iceland, and that they had not thought there were suitable chieftains there for them to serve.

  ‘But if you are so keen for us to go to Iceland with you, Vermund, you should also realize that we will behave very badly if you do not grant us whatever we ask for if you have the means to give it to us,’ they said.

  Vermund said that would never happen. After that he got their consent to accompany him to Iceland if that was the earl’s wish and he gave them his approval.

  Vermund then told the earl what had happened, and he made the decision that the berserks should go with him to Iceland, ‘if you believe that will do most for your honour.’

  But he also warned him that he would regard it as an insult if he mistreated them once they had come under his control. Vermund replied that he need not be concerned about that. After that Vermund sailed to Iceland with the berserks and had a good journey, arriving at his farm at Bjarnarhofn the same summer that Eirik the Red sailed to Greenland, as was told earlier.

  Soon after Vermund got home, the berserk Halli advised him that he wanted Vermund to find him a suitable wife. Vermund did not think he knew a likely woman of good family who would want to tie herself to a berserk for the rest of her life, so he kept putting it off. But when Halli realized this, his wolf mind took over and he became ill-tempered and everything between them went awry. The berserks became arrogant and disobedient towards Vermund, and he began to regret having taken them on.

  In the autumn Vermund hosted a great feast and invited his brother Styr, Arnkel the Godi, and the people of Eyri. When the feast was over, Vermund offered the berserks as a gift to Arnkel calling it
a most suitable tribute, but Arnkel would not accept it. Then Vermund sought Arnkel’s advice about how to rid himself of this problem, and Arnkel suggested he hand them on to Styr, saying he would be best suited to having such men because of his arrogance and injustice.

  When Styr was ready to leave, Vermund went up to him and said, ‘Now, brother, I would like us to end the coolness that has been between us since before I went away. We should renew our loyal kinship and good friendship, and to that end I will give you the men that I brought to Iceland to serve and support you, for I know no man confident enough to fight you if you have supporters like them.’

  ‘I welcome a better relationship between us, kinsman,’ Styr replied, ‘but the only news I’ve heard of these men that you brought back suggests they would bring trouble rather than prestige or fortune. I’ll never take them into my household, having enough enemies of my own without them adding to my troubles.’

  ‘What advice can you give me then, kinsman,’ Vermund asked, ‘to rid myself of this problem?’

  ‘That’s another matter entirely,’ said Styr. ‘Helping you solve your problem is one thing, but receiving these men from you as a gift is another, and I do not want it. But solving your problem is no man’s responsibility as much as mine, if we are now on friendly terms again.’

  Even though Styr spoke in this way, Vermund still wanted him to take the berserks, and so the brothers parted with great affection. Styr went home with the berserks, although they were not at all keen on this to begin with, saying Vermund had no right to sell them or give them away like slaves, but nevertheless, they admitted that it was more to their liking to serve Styr rather than Vermund. And at first their relationship looked quite promising.

  The berserks were with Styr when he went west across the fjord to kill Thorbjorn Kjalki who lived in Kjalkafjord. He had a very sturdy bed closet made of timber beams, which the berserks broke open by forcing the joints apart in no time at all, though it was Styr who killed Thorbjorn Kjalki.

  26 During the autumn when the berserks had come to stay with Styr, Vigfus of Drapuhlid set out one day with his three slaves to make charcoal at a place named Seljabrekkur. One of the slaves was called Svart the Strong.

  Once they were in the woods, Vigfus said, ‘It’s a great shame, and one that you must feel quite strongly, Svart, that you should be an enslaved man when you are as strong and manly as you appear to be.’

  ‘Certainly I find it hard to bear,’ he said. ‘But it’s not within my power to do anything about it.’

  ‘What would you do in return for me granting your freedom?’ asked Vigfus.

  ‘I can’t pay for it with money, since I have none, but I won’t spare any effort in whatever other ways there may be.’

  ‘Go over to Helgafell and kill Snorri the Godi,’ said Vigfus, ‘and after that you will certainly have your freedom as well as valuable goods which I will give you.’

  ‘I’d never be able to bring that off,’ said Svart.

  ‘I’ll give you directions,’ replied Vigfus, ‘so that it can be done without endangering your life.’

  ‘I’d like to hear about it then,’ said Svart.

  ‘You go over to Helgafell and get into the loft which is above the front door and remove enough floor boards so that you can fit your halberd through the gap. And when Snorri goes out to the toilet, thrust the halberd through the loft’s floor into Snorri’s back so hard that it goes through the belly. Then run out on to the roof and down the wall and you’ll be able to get away under cover of darkness.’

  With this plan in mind Svart went over to Helgafell and tore open the roof above the front door and got into the loft. This was at the time of evening when Snorri and his men were sitting by the fire eating their meal. At that time all farms had outdoor toilets. When Snorri and his men got up to go outside, Snorri led the way and was already out the door by the time Svart struck. But Mar Hallvardsson was walking behind Snorri and Svart’s halberd got him, striking him on the shoulder-blade and cutting through beneath the arm, but it was not a serious wound.

  Svart ran out on to the roof and down on to the wall, but he slipped on the paving stones and had quite a bad fall. Snorri got hold of him before he could get up. They got the whole story out of him, including the deal Vigfus had made with him, as well as the fact that Vigfus was then at Seljabrekkur burning charcoal. Then Mar’s wound was dressed.

  Snorri went with a party of six men to Drapuhlid. As they came over a rise they saw the fire where Vigfus and his farmhands were burning charcoal. They took them by surprise and killed Vigfus but spared the lives of his farmhands. Snorri returned home and Vigfus’s slaves told the news back at Drapuhlid. Vigfus was placed in a burial mound later that day.

  The same day, Vigfus’s widow, Thorgerd, went to Bolstad to tell her kinsman Arnkel the news, and ask him to take up the case of Vigfus’s killing. But Arnkel declined, saying it was the duty of his kinsmen, the Kjalleklings. He directed the case instead to Styr, as the kinsman most appropriate to bring a suit following the killing, since he was always keen to get involved in everything.

  Thormod Trefilsson made this verse about the killing of Vigfus:

  20.

  The leader of the people first

  felled the one who toppled the one who toppled gold-bristled

  gold-bristled boar-helmets. boar-helmets: warrior

  He was known by the name Vigfus.

  After that the young wound-mews wound-mews: ravens

  tore at the wound-flesh

  of the warrior there,

  of Bjorn’s heir.

  27 After that Thorgerd travelled out to Hraun and asked Styr to bring a suit following the killing of his kinsman, Vigfus.

  ‘I promised Snorri the Godi last spring, when he distanced himself from the dispute between us and Thorgest’s sons, that I would not turn against him in any case in which others more involved than myself could act,’ Styr said. ‘You should approach my brother Vermund to take up this case, or some of our other relatives.’

  So Thorgerd went out to Bjarnarhofn and asked Vermund for support, saying he was the most obliged to help ‘since Vigfus trusted you most of all his kinsmen’.

  ‘I’m bound by duty to contribute something towards the action,’ Vermund replied, ‘but I’m not willing to take on the problem on behalf of our other relatives. None the less, I will offer both my support and advice to the best of my ability. First I want you to go out to Eyri and see Vigfus’s kinsman, Steinthor. He’s always spoiling for a fight, and it’s time he tried himself out in some kind of legal action.’

  ‘You’re putting me to a lot of trouble for this lawsuit, but I don’t mind how much effort I put in if it’s a success,’ Thorgerd said.

  Then she went out to Eyri and visited Steinthor and asked him to take charge of the action over the killing.

  ‘Why do you ask me to do this?’ asked Steinthor. ‘I am a young man and have never taken any part in a lawsuit, whereas Vigfus’s kinsmen who are more closely related than I am are much pushier than me. There is no chance of my taking the case off their hands, although I will stick by any of my kinsmen who take on the case.’

  That was the only answer Thorgerd got there. She then went across the fjord to see Vermund and told him how things stood, saying that her whole case was lost unless he took the lead in the action.

  ‘There’s still a good chance that a prosecution will result from this case,’ Vermund replied, ‘which should be some consolation. I’ll give you some further instructions if you will carry them out.’

  ‘I’m still willing to do more in order to achieve this,’ she replied.

  ‘Go home now,’ said Vermund, ‘and have your husband Vigfus’s body dug up. Then remove his head and take it to Arnkel and tell him that this head would not have left it to others to bring a suit on his behalf if it had been necessary.’

  Thorgerd said she did not know where that kind of talk would lead and she could see they were not going to spare her any hardship
or misery.

  ‘But I am willing to do this,’ she said, ‘if it will make things worse for my enemies than before.’

  After that she went home and made all the preparations she had been instructed to. When she arrived at Bolstad she told Arnkel that Vigfus’s kinsmen wanted him to take charge of the action over Vigfus’s killing and that they all promised their support. Arnkel said he had already said how he felt about the matter.

  Then Thorgerd brought out the head from underneath her cloak and said, ‘Now here is the head that would not have refused to bring a suit on your behalf if it had been necessary.’

  Arnkel was very shocked by this and pushed her away from him, saying, ‘Go away and tell Vigfus’s kinsmen that they may no longer fail me in their support against Snorri the Godi, any more than I may flag in pursuing this prosecution. But my instincts tell me that however things turn out, they will give in before I do. And I can see that it is Vermund’s strategy you are following here, but he won’t need to egg me on whenever we are standing together as kinsmen.’

  Thorgerd returned home and the winter passed. In the spring Arnkel started a case against all those involved in the killing of Vigfus except for Snorri the Godi. Snorri brought his own case against those who plotted against his life and another for the bloody wound dealt to Mar, arguing that these served to put Vigfus beyond the protection of the law. Both parties turned out in great numbers at the Thorsnes Assembly, but all the Kjalleklings supported Arnkel and so their side had the numbers. Arnkel pressed his charges with great determination.

  When the time came for judgement, men intervened and the case was submitted to arbitration and all the matters dealt with by negotiation, with the result that Snorri agreed to their verdict on the killing of Vigfus, and had to pay a heavy fine and Mar had to spend three years abroad. Snorri paid his fine on the spot and the assembly closed with all these cases settled.