Chapter 27. Queen Ingiríth Asks King Ingi to Avenge Himself
Then King Sigurth arose and spoke. He said that there was no truth in what King Ingi accused him of; that it was Grégóríús who had concocted this, and that it would not be long, if things went as he wished, before they could meet in such wise that he would knock off that gilded helmet of his; and he ended by saying that one of them would have to go. Grégóríús in his answer said he thought he hardly needed to be prompted to meet him and that he was ready to do so.
A few days afterwards one of Grégóríús’ housecarls was slain on the Street, and it was one of King Sigurth’s housecarls who had done it. Then Grégóríús wanted to attack King Sigurth and his men, but King Ingi was against that, and so were many others.
But when Ingiríth, the mother of King Ingi, came from vespers she found Sigurth Skrúthhyrna slain. He was a courtier of King Ingi and an old man who had been in the service of many kings. Two men of King Sigurth’s, Hallvarth Gunnarsson and Sigurth, the son of Eystein Trafali had slain him; and the blame for this was laid on King Sigurth. Then she went straightway to King Ingi and said to him that he would long be [considered] a little king if he did not bestir himself even if his courtiers were killed, one after the other, like swine. The king grew furious under her reproaches; and whilst they were bandying words Grégóríús walked in, helmeted and in his coat of mail. He asked the king not to be angry,—that she was saying the truth. “I have come here to support you if you will set upon King Sigurth. And here are more than a hundred men close by, my housecarls, helmeted and in their coats of mail, and we shall attack them from the side which seems to others most dangerous.”
But most were against that, saying that Sigurth would be willing to make redress for what had been done. But when Grégóríús saw that King Ingi was about to be persuaded not to do anything, he said to him, “In this way they will kill off one by one—they killed one of my housecarls a little while ago, and now your courtier, and they will want to do away with me or some other landed-man whom they consider we can least afford to lose, once they see that you do not take action, and then remove you from your kingdom after your friends are killed. Now whatever is the inclination of your other landed-men, I for my part will not wait for the final blow. We two, Sigurth and I shall this night have it out. Not only are you poorly off on account of your disabilities, but I think you have little desire to protect your friends. But now I am altogether ready to attack Sigurth [from here] because my banner is right outside here.”
King Ingi stood up and called for his armor. He asked all those who would follow him to get ready, saying it would be no use to try to dissuade him and that he had given in many times, that now it would have to come to a decision between them.
Chapter 28. King Sigurth Is Slain
King Sigurth was drinking in the house of Sigríth Sæta and was all prepared [to fight], but thought nothing would come of the attack. Then they approached the house—King Ingi from above, from the huts of the artisans; Árni, the king’s father-in-law from Sandbridge in the west; Áslák Erlendsson from the side of his house; and Grégóríús from the Street, which was considered the most difficult side [to attack from]. Sigurth and his men shot many arrows from the loop holes in the loft, and they tore down the ovens and hurled the rocks at them. Grégóríús and his men broke down the house gate; and there in the gate fell Einar, the son of Laxa-Pál, and Hallvarth Gunnarsson, who belonged to King Sigurth’s bodyguard. The latter was shoved into the loft nor did any one feel sorry about his death. Then they tore down the houses; and then Sigurth’s men deserted him and asked for quarter. Then Sigurth went up into a loft and wanted to talk to the attackers; but he carried a gilt shield, and so was recognized, and they did not want to listen to him. They shot at him, and their arrows came as thick as falling snow, so he could not stay there. And when his men had deserted him and the houses were being broken down he came out with Thórth Húsfreya, one of his henchmen, a man from Vík. They went in the direction where King Ingi stood, and Sigurth appealed to Ingi to give him quarter. But both were cut down. Thórth Húsfreya fell after a brave fight. Many of Sigurth’s company fell there, though I name but a few, but also some of Ingi’s men. Four of Grégóríús’ men were slain, and some who were not on either side but were shot down below on the piers or outside on ships.
This fight took place fourteen days before Saint John the Baptist’s 1155 Day [June 10th], on a Friday. King Sigurth was interred by the Old Christ Church on the Hólm. King Ingi gave Grégóríús the ship King Sigurth had owned.
Two or three days afterwards King Eystein came sailing from the east with thirty ships. He had with him Hákon, his brother’s son, but did not make for Bergen but laid up in Flóruvág Bay. Men went between them to effect a reconciliation. But Grégóríús wanted to attack them, saying that matters would not improve and that he himself would be the leader. “But you, sire, shall not go. We have a sufficient force.” However, many were against it, and so nothing came of it. King Eystein returned east to Vík, and King Ingi sailed to Trondheim; and there was peace of a sort between them though they did not meet personally.
Chapter 29. Grégóríús Is Forewarned and Flees from King Eystein
Grégóríús Dagsson sailed east shortly after King Eystein did, and dwelt on his estate of Bratsberg in the shire of Hofund.1 King Eystein resided in Ósló and had his ships dragged more than two sea-miles over the ice, because the bay was frozen over far and wide. He proceeded to Hofund, intending to capture Grégóríús; but he had been warned and got away to Telemark with ninety men and from there journeyed north [west] over the mountains to the Harthanger District, thent o Stuthla in Ethni.2 There, Erling Skakki had his estate. He himself had sailed north to Bergen, but his wife, Kristín, the daughter of King Sigurth [Jerusalemfarer], was at home and offered Grégóríús all the help he wanted to proceed further. Grégóríús had a good welcome there. He was given a warship which belonged to Erling, and all else that he needed. Grégóríús thanked her cordially, saying that she had comported herself as befitted a great lady, and as was to be expected. Then they sailed to Bergen, where they found Erling, and he considered she had done the right thing.
Chapter 30. The Kings Do Not Abide by Their Agreement
Then Grégóríús Dagsson sailed north to Kaupang and arrived there before Yule. King Ingi received him with great joy, and asked him to take anything of his possessions that he desired. King Eystein had burned down Grégóríús’ estate and slaughtered his livestock. But the boathouses which King Eystein the Elder had had built north in Kaupang, and which were most valuable possessions, were burned down that winter, together with some good ships belonging to King Ingi—a deed which caused much indignation and was attributed to King Eystein and Philippús Gyrtharson, the foster brother of King Sigurth.
The summer after, King Ingi sailed south with a great fleet, and 1156 King Eystein from the east, also collecting together a force. They met by the Sel Islands north [west] of Cape Lithandisness, King Ingi having much the larger force. They were on the point of doing battle but came to an agreement by which Eystein was to pay forty-five marks in gold. Of these, King Ingi was to have thirty marks because Eystein had instigated the burning of the ships and of the boathouses. Then, Philippús was to be outlawed, as well as all those who had been connected with the burning of the ships. [On the other hand] the men guilty of striking down King Sigurth were also to be outlawed, because King Eystein accused King Ingi of sheltering them, while Grégóríús was to have fifteen marks for the damage King Eystein had done him in burning down his estate.
King Eystein was ill-pleased with this settlement, considering it forced on him. After the meeting King Ingi repaired to the Vík District, and King Eystein to the north. And then King Ingi continued to reside in Vík, and Eystein, in the north, in the Trondheim area. They did not meet personally, and there passed between them only such messages as were not conducive to peace. Also, they had one another’s friends killed
; and nothing came of the payment Eystein was to make. Each accused the other of not abiding by the agreement they had made between them. King Ingi and Grégóríús enticed many men away from King Eystein—thus, Bárth Standali Brynjólfsson and Símun Skálp, son of Hallkel Húk, and many other landed-men, such as Halldór Brynjólfsson and Jón Hallkelsson.
Chapter 31. The Hostile Fleets Face Each Other
When two years had passed since the death of King Sigurth, the 1157 two kings collected forces; Ingi, eighty ships in the eastern part of the country, and Eystein, forty-five in the north. One of these was the large dragon ship which King Eystein Magnússon had had built. Both kings had large and well-equipped crews. King Ingi stationed his ships by the island of Mostr in the south, and Eystein, a little to the north of that, in Grœninga Sound. Eystein sent Áslák the Young, the son of Jón, and Árni Sturla, the son of Sæbjørn with one ship south to Ingi to negotiate with him. But when Ingi’s men caught sight of them they attacked them, killing many of the crew. They took possession of the ship and of all on it, together with all their belongings.
But Áslák and Árni and some other men escaped to the land, rejoined King Eystein, and told him how Ingi had received them. Then King Eystein held a council and told his men how Ingi had broken the peace, and called upon them to follow him—“and we have a force so large and good that I shall never flee if you will lend me your support.” But there was no applause after his speech. Hallkel Húk was there, but both his sons, Símun and Jón, had joined Ingi. Hallkel made reply so that a great many heard it: “Let your chests of gold support you now and defend your land!”
Chapter 32. King Eystein Flees and Is Slain
During the night many secretly absconded with their ships, some joining King Ingi, some sailing to Bergen, some rowing into the fjords. But in the morning, when it was light the king was left with only ten ships. Then he left the large dragon ship behind because it was heavy to row, as well as several other ships. They damaged the dragon ship [enough to put it out of action]. Also, they let their beer run out, and ruined all they could not take along with them. King Eystein went on board the ship of Eindrithi Jónsson Mornef. They sailed north into the Sognfjord, and thence made their way overland east to Vík.
King Ingi took possession of the ships and sailed, outside the skerries, east to Vík. But east of Fold [the Óslófjord] Eystein was lying in wait for him with nearly twelve hundred [1440] men. However, when they saw King Ingi’s fleet they did not consider they were numerous enough and ran away into the forest, fleeing every which way, so that the king was left with only one man.
King Ingi and his men learned which way Eystein had taken, and also that he had only few in his company, and they searched for him. Símun Skálp found him issuing from a thicket by himself to meet them. Símun greeted him, saying, “Hail, my lord.”
The king replied, “I don’t know but you consider yourself my lord now.”
“That is what it turns out to be,” said Símun.
Símun Skálp discovers King Eystein.
The king asked him to help him escape, saying that would be seemly in him—“because for a long time we were on good terms, even though that isn’t the case now.” Símun said that couldn’t be done now. The king asked to hear mass [before being slain], and that was granted him. Then he laid himself with his face down, spreading out his arms, and asked them to slash him crosswise between his shoulders—then they would find out whether he could stand cold steel as King Ingi’s followers said he could not.
Símun spoke to the man who was to hew him, asking him to go to work, and saying that the king had crept all too long through the heather. Then he was beheaded and was considered to have behaved manfully. His body was brought to Fors1 and placed for the night under the hill south of the church. He was interred in Fors Church, with his resting place in the middle of the church floor, and a rug spread over it. Men call him holy. At the spot where he was beheaded and his blood touched the ground, a spring came up, and another one, under the hill where his body had been placed for the night. Many consider that they have regained their health from the water of either spring. People from Vík have said that many miracles happened at the tomb of King Eystein before his enemies poured broth made from a dog on it.
Símun Skálp was much reproached for his action, and it became the talk of the people. But some say that when King Eystein was captured, Símun sent a messenger to King Ingi, but that the king said he never wanted to see Eystein again. That is what King Sverri ordered written.2 But Einar Skúlason says thus:
(228.)
596. Hardly, though, will he who
hand raised ’gainst his liege-lord,
Símun Skálp, for his soul e’er
salvation find in heaven.
The Saga of Hákon the Broadshouldered
Chapter 1. Hákon Sigurtharson Is Chosen Leader of Eystein’s Troops
Hákon, son of King Sigurth, was chosen chieftain of the troops which had followed King Eystein, and they conferred the title of king on him. He was ten years of age at that time. With him were Sigurth, the son of Hallvarth of Reyr, a large landowner; also, Andréás and Onund, the foster brothers of Hákon and sons of Símun; and many of the chieftains and friends of King Eystein and King Sigurth. They first repaired to Gautland. King Ingi had taken possession of all their property in Norway and had made them outlaws. King Ingi journeyed north in Vík and resided, sometimes there, and sometimes in the northern part of the land. Grégóríús stayed in Konungahella close to where hostilities might be expected, to defend the land.
Chapter 2. Grégóríús Prepares to Battle Hákon
The summer after, Hákon and his followers came out of Gautland 1158 and proceeded to Konungahella with a very large and well-equipped army. Grégóríús was there in the town and summoned a numerous assembly of farmers and townsmen, asking for their support. It seemed to him they were half-hearted about it, and he declared that he did not trust them. He left with two ships and sailed to Vík in a depressed state of mind, intending to meet King Ingi. He had learned that King Ingi was coming south to Vík with a large army. And when Grégóríús had come but a short way north he met Símun Skálp, Halldór Brynjólfsson, and Gyrth Ámundason, the foster brother of King Ingi, and he was mighty glad to meet them. Accompanied by them he turned back. They had eleven ships. But when they rowed up to Konungahella, Hákon and his men were holding an assembly outside the town and saw Grégóríús approaching. Then Sigurth of Reyr said, “Now Grégóríús is fey, seeing that he delivers himself into our power with but a small force.”
Grégóríús moored his ships opposite the town with the intention of waiting for King Ingi. He was expected there but did not come. King Hákon prepared for battle in the town and appointed Thorljót Skaufuskalli chieftain over the troops on the merchantmen in front of the town. He was a viking and pirate. But Hákon and Sigurth and all their troops were inside the town and placed themselves in battle array on the piers. All the people in town had joined Hákon’s forces.
Chapter 3. Grégóríús Routs Hákon’s Forces
Grégóríús and his men rowed up the river and let their ships drift down at Thorljót. They exchanged shots for a while, until Thorljót and his companions leapt overboard. Some of them were killed, others made their way to land. Then Grégóríús and his men rowed toward the piers and at once shoved out the landing stages from his ship right in front of Hákon’s men. Then the man who bore his standard fell, just as he was about to go up on land. Thereupon Grégóríús called on Hall, son of Authun Hallsson, to carry the standard. He did so and carried it up on the pier, and Grégóríús stepped up right after him, holding his shield over Hall’s head. But as soon as Grégóríús came up on the pier and Hákon’s men recognized him, they drew back, making room on both sides. And when more men had come ashore from the ships, they and Grégóríús advanced, and Hákon’s men first backed out and then ran up into the town, with Grégóríús following them and twice driving them out of the
town and killing many.
It is said that there never was a braver exploit than this one of Grégóríús, because Hákon had more than four thousand [4800] men, whereas Grégóríús had not quite four hundred [480]. After the battle Grégóríús said to Hall Authunarson, “Many, it would seem to me, are more agile in an attack than you Icelanders, because you are less practiced in fighting than we Norwegians, but few seem to me more gallant than you.”
A little later, Ingi arrived and had many put to death who had taken sides with Hákon. Some he compelled to pay fines, in the case of others he burned down their farms, still others he drove out of the land and inflicted much damage on them.
During the winter, Hákon took his way north over the mountains 1159 to Trondheim, arriving there before Whitsuntide [April 12th]. And the people of that district accepted him as king allowing him to have as his paternal inheritance one third of Norway together with King Ingi. The latter was in Vík at the time, together with Grégóríús, and Grégóríús wanted to proceed north against Hákon, but many held back so that nothing was done about it that winter.
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