Heimskringla, or the Chronicle of the Kings of Norway Part 83

Ulf the marshal died that spring (A.D. 1066). King Harald stood over his grave, and said, as he was leaving it, "There lies now the truest of men, and the most devoted to his king."

Earl Toste sailed in spring west to Flanders, to meet the people who had left England with him, and others besides who had gathered to him both out of England and Flanders.

83. GYRD'S DREAMS.

King Harald's fleet a.s.sembled at the Solunds. When King Harald was ready to leave Nidaros he went to King Olaf's shrine, unlocked it, clipped his hair and nails, and locked the shrine again, and threw the keys into the Nid. Some say he threw them overboard outside of Agdanes; and since then the shrine of Saint Olaf, the king, has never been opened. Thirty-five years had pa.s.sed since he was slain; and he lived thirty-five years here on earth (A.D. 1080-1066). King Harald sailed with his s.h.i.+ps he had about him to the south to meet his people, and a great fleet was collected; so that, according to the people's reckoning, King Harald had nearly 200 s.h.i.+ps beside provision-s.h.i.+ps and small craft.

While they lay at the Solunds a man called Gyrd, on board the king's s.h.i.+p, had a dream. He thought he was standing in the king's s.h.i.+p and saw a great witch-wife standing on the island, with a fork in one hand and a trough in the other. He thought also that he saw over all the fleet, and that a fowl was sitting upon every s.h.i.+p's stern, and that these fowls were all ravens or ernes; and the witch-wife sang this song:--

"From the east I'll 'tice the king, To the west the king I'll bring; Many a n.o.ble bone will be Ravens o'er Giuke's s.h.i.+p are fitting, Eyeing the prey they think most fitting.

Upon the stem I'll sail with them!

Upon the stem I'll sail with them!"

84. THORD'S DREAM.

There was also a man called Thord, in a s.h.i.+p which lay not far from the king's. He dreamt one night that he saw King Harald's fleet coming to land, and he knew the land to be England. He saw a great battle-array on the land; and he thought both sides began to fight, and had many banners flapping in the air. And before the army of the people of the country was riding a huge witch-wife upon a wolf; and the wolf had a man's carca.s.s in his mouth, and the blood was dropping from his jaws; and when he had eaten up one body she threw another into his mouth, and so one after another, and he swallowed them all. And she sang thus:--

"Skade's eagle eyes The king's ill luck espies: Though glancing s.h.i.+elds Hide the green fields, The king's ill luck she spies.

To bode the doom of this great king, The flesh of bleeding men I fling To hairy jaw and hungry maw!

To hairy jaw and hungry maw!"

85. KING HARALD'S DREAM.

King Harald also dreamt one night that he was in Nidaros, and met his brother, King Olaf, who sang to him these verses:--

"In many a fight My name was bright; Men weep, and tell How Olaf fell.

Thy death is near; Thy corpse, I fear, The crow will feed, The witch-wife's steed."

Many other dreams and forebodings were then told of, and most of them gloomy. Before King Harald left Throndhjem, he let his son Magnus be proclaimed king and set him as king over Norway while he was absent.

Thora, the daughter of Thorberg, also remained behind; but he took with him Queen Ellisif and her two daughters, Maria and Ingegerd. Olaf, King Harald's son, also accompanied his father abroad.

86. BATTLE AT SCARBOROUGH.

When King Harald was clear for sea, and the wind became favourable, he sailed out into the ocean; and he himself landed in Shetland, but a part of his fleet in the Orkney Islands. King Harald stopped but a short time in Shetland before sailing to Orkney, from whence he took with him a great armed force, and the earls Paul and Erlend, the sons of Earl Thorfin; but he left behind him here the Queen Ellisif, and her daughters Maria and Ingegerd. Then he sailed, leaving Scotland and England westward of him, and landed at a place called Klifland. There he went on sh.o.r.e and plundered, and brought the country in subjection to him without opposition. Then he brought up at Skardaburg, and fought with the people of the place. He went up a hill which is there, and made a great pile upon it, which he set on fire; and when the pile was in clear flame, his men took large forks and pitched the burning wood down into the town, so that one house caught fire after the other, and the town surrendered. The Northmen killed many people there and took all the booty they could lay hold of. There was nothing left for the Englishmen now, if they would preserve their lives, but to submit to King Harald; and thus he subdued the country wherever he came. Then the king proceeded south along the land, and brought up at h.e.l.lornes, where there came a force that had been a.s.sembled to oppose him, with which he had a battle, and gained the victory.

87. OF HARALD'S ORDER OF BATTLE.

Thereafter the king sailed to the Humber, and up along the river, and then he landed. Up in Jorvik were two earls, Earl Morukare, and his brother, Earl Valthiof, and they had an immense army. While the army of the earls was coming down from the upper part of the country, King Harald lay in the Usa. King Harald now went on the land, and drew up his men. The one arm of this line stood at the outer edge of the river, the other turned up towards the land along a ditch; and there was also a mora.s.s, deep, broad, and full of water. The earls let their army proceed slowly down along the river, with all their troops in line. The king's banner was next the river, where the line was thickest. It was thinnest at the ditch, where also the weakest of the men were. When the earls advanced downwards along the ditch, the arm of the Northmen's line which was at the ditch gave way; and the Englishmen followed, thinking the Northmen would fly. The banner of Earl Morukare advanced then bravely.

88. THE BATTLE AT THE HUMBER.

When King Harald saw that the English array had come to the ditch against him, he ordered the charge to be sounded, and urged on his men.

He ordered the banner which was called the Land-ravager to be carried before him, and made so severe an a.s.sault that all had to give way before it; and there was a great loss among the men of the earls, and they soon broke into flight, some running up the river, some down, and the most leaping into the ditch, which was so filled with dead that the Nors.e.m.e.n could go dry-foot over the fen. There Earl Morukare fell. So says Stein Herdison:--

"The gallant Harald drove along, Flying but fighting, the whole throng.

At last, confused, they could not fight, And the whole body took to flight.

Up from the river's silent stream At once rose desperate splash and scream; But they who stood like men this fray Round Morukare's body lay."

This song was composed by Stein Herdison about Olaf, son of King Harald; and he speaks of Olaf being in this battle with King Harald, his father.

These things are also spoken of in the song called "Harald's Stave":--

"Earl Valthiof's men Lay in the fen, By sword down hewed, So thickly strewed, That Nors.e.m.e.n say They paved a way Across the fen For the brave Nors.e.m.e.n."

Earl Valthiof, and the people who escaped, fled up to the castle of York; and there the greatest loss of men had been. This battle took place upon the Wednesday next Mathias' day (A.D. 1066).

89. OF EARL TOSTE.

Earl Toste had come from Flanders to King Harald as soon as he arrived in England, and the earl was present at all these battles. It happened, as he had foretold the king at their first meeting, that in England many people would flock to them, as being friends and relations of Earl Toste, and thus the king's forces were much strengthened. After the battle now told of, all people in the nearest districts submitted to Harald, but some fled. Then the king advanced to take the castle, and laid his army at Stanforda-bryggiur (Stamford Bridge); and as King Harald had gained so great a victory against so great chiefs and so great an army, the people were dismayed, and doubted if they could make any opposition. The men of the castle therefore determined, in a council, to send a message to King Harald, and deliver up the castle into his power. All this was soon settled; so that on Sunday the king proceeded with the whole army to the castle, and appointed a Thing of the people without the castle, at which the people of the castle were to be present. At this Thing all the people accepted the condition of submitting to Harald, and gave him, as hostages, the children of the most considerable persons; for Earl Toste was well acquainted with all the people of that town. In the evening the king returned down to his s.h.i.+ps, after this victory achieved with his own force, and was very merry. A Thing was appointed within the castle early on Monday morning, and then King Harald was to name officers to rule over the town, to give out laws, and bestow fiefs. The same evening, after sunset, King Harald G.o.dwinson came from the south to the castle with a numerous army, and rode into the city with the good-will and consent of the people of the castle. All the gates and walls were beset so that the Northmen could receive no intelligence, and the army remained all night in the town.

90. OF KING HARALD'S LANDING.

On Monday, when King Harald Sigurdson had taken breakfast, he ordered the trumpets to sound for going on sh.o.r.e. The army accordingly got ready, and he divided the men into the parties who should go, and who should stay behind. In every division he allowed two men to land, and one to remain behind. Earl Toste and his retinue prepared to land with King Harald; and, for watching the s.h.i.+ps, remained behind the king's son Olaf; the earls of Orkney, Paul and Erlend; and also Eystein Orre, a son of Thorberg Arnason, who was the most able and best beloved by the king of all the lendermen, and to whom the king had promised his daughter Maria. The weather was uncommonly fine, and it was hot suns.h.i.+ne. The men therefore laid aside their armour, and went on the land only with their s.h.i.+elds, helmets and spears, and girt with swords; and many had also arrows and bows, and all were very merry. Now as they came near the castle a great army seemed coming against them, and they saw a cloud of dust as from horses' feet, and under it s.h.i.+ning s.h.i.+elds and bright armour. The king halted his people, and called to him Earl Toste, and asked him what army this could be. The earl replied that he thought it most likely to be a hostle army, but possibly it might be some of his relations who were seeking for mercy and friends.h.i.+p, in order to obtain certain peace and safety from the king. Then the king said, "We must all halt, to discover what kind of a force this is." They did so; and the nearer this force came the greater it appeared, and their s.h.i.+ning arms were to the sight like glancing ice.

91. OF EARL TOSTE'S COUNSEL.

Then said King Harald, "Let us now fall upon some good sensible counsel; for it is not to be concealed that this is an hostile army and the king himself without doubt is here."

Then said the earl, "The first counsel is to turn about as fast as we can to our s.h.i.+ps to get our men and our weapons, and then we will make a defence according to our ability; or otherwise let our s.h.i.+ps defend us, for there these hors.e.m.e.n have no power over us."

Then King Harald said, "I have another counsel. Put three of our best horses under three of our briskest lads and let them ride with all speed to tell our people to come quickly to our relief. The Englishmen shall have a hard fray of it before we give ourselves up for lost."

The earl said the king must order in this, as in all things, as he thought best; adding, at the same time, it was by no means his wish to fly. Then King Harald ordered his banner Land-ravager to be set up; and Frirek was the name of him who bore the banner.