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48-456: Snorri Sturluson wrote in the Ynglinga saga that Haki had amassed a great force of warriors and sometimes plundered together with his brother Hagbard (who himself was the hero of one of the most popular legends of ancient Scandinavia, see Hagbard and Signy ). When Haki considered that he had amassed enough wealth and followers to make himself the king of Sweden, he proceeded with his army against

96-507: A clerk tightly linked to the Roskilde Cathedral . This is based on the great interest the author has in the city of Roskilde , which he describes in vivid detail, chronicling how it got its name and promising immortality to the city through his writing. Kings of the Danes are in bold and marked with an asterisk (*). The source used for the genealogical information and name spellings is

144-414: A brutal enemy who killed many men and lastly Eric, who held the banner of the two brothers. Jorund and his men fled to the ships, but Haki was mortally wounded. Haki asked for a longship , which was loaded with his dead warriors and their weapons. He had the sails hoisted and set fire to a piece of tar-wood , which he asked to be covered with a pile of wood. Haki was all but dead when he was laid on top of

192-478: A chieftainship, and soon acquired more property and additional chieftainships. Snorri and Herdís were together for four years at Borg. They had at least two children, Hallbera and Jón. The marriage succumbed to Snorri's philandering, and in 1206, he settled without Herdís in Reykholt as the manager of an estate. He also made significant improvements to the estate, including an outdoor bath fed by hot springs . The bath

240-528: A knife—intending, she said, to make him like his one-eyed hero Odin . Before the knife could strike its target, though, bystanders deflected the blow so it hit his cheek instead. The resulting settlement would have beggared Páll, but Jón Loftsson intervened in the Althing to mitigate the judgment and, to compensate Sturla, offered to raise and educate Snorri. Thus Snorri received an excellent education and forged connections he might not otherwise have been able to. He

288-546: A lesser degree, in Aggesen's Brevis Historia Regum Dacie , and to a much lesser degree in Saxo's Gesta Danorum . The second book of Saxo's Gesta Danorum , starting at Halfdan Scylding , through the fourth book, the reign of Dan II , is based on the genealogy of the Chronicon, though substantial additional mythical material has been used. The original version of Chronicon Lethrense

336-451: A meeting with them and Kolbein the Younger, Gissur brought out the letter. Orm refused. Shortly after, Snorri received a letter in cipher runes warning him of the plot, but he could not understand them. After Gissur led seventy men on a daring raid to his house, achieving complete surprise. Snorri Sturluson was assassinated in his house at Reykholt in autumn of 1241. It is not clear that he

384-459: A resolution of the Althing , where Snorri exerted much influence due to his political ties and legal acumen. In 1220, Snorri returned to Iceland and by 1222 was back as law speaker of the Althing, which he held this time until 1232. The basis of his election was entirely his fame as a poet. Politically he was the king's spokesman, supporting union with Norway, a platform that acquired him enemies among

432-534: Is certainly a work of its own. Its stories are interesting and over time copies found its way to other places; there was a copy in the 13th-century Latin Annals of the Cathedral of Lund . Because of this, Chronicon Lethrense is often connected to Annales Lundenses , of which it is now a part, but it is unlikely the chronicle was originally included in this anthology. The chronicle is believed to have been composed in

480-901: Is often taken to be the author of Egil's Saga . He was assassinated in 1241 by men claiming to be agents of the King of Norway. Snorri Sturluson was born in Hvammur í Dölum  [ is ] (commonly transliterated as Hvamm or Hvammr) as a member of the wealthy and powerful Sturlungar clan of the Icelandic Commonwealth , in AD 1179. His parents were Sturla Þórðarson the Elder of Hvammur (also known as Hvamm-Sturla) and his second wife, Guðný Böðvarsdóttir . He had two older brothers, Þórðr ( b.  1165 ) and Sighvatr Sturluson ( b.  1170 ), two sisters, Helga and Vigdís, and nine half-siblings . Snorri

528-463: The Gylfaginning to Spanish , providing a biographic account of Snorri at the prologue. "Nine worlds I remember", one of the epigraphs to chapter IV of Carl Sagan 's Cosmos , is a quotation from Snorri's Edda . In Norwegian Chronicon Lethrense Chronicon Lethrense ( Danish : Lejrekrøniken English : Chronicle of Lejre /Leire ) is a small Danish medieval work from

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576-525: The 20th century and to date has been colored by the historical views adopted when Iceland sought to sever its ties with Denmark , any revision of which still has strong nationalistic sentiments to contend with. To serve such views, Snorri and other leading Icelanders of his time are sometimes judged with an element of presentism , drawing on concepts that came into vogue only centuries later, such as state , independence , sovereignty , and nation . Jorge Luis Borges and María Kodama studied and translated

624-478: The Icelandic commonwealth and a position of high respect. In the summer of 1218, he left the lawspeaker position and sailed to Norway , by royal invitation. There he became well acquainted with the teenage King Hákon Hákonarson and his co-regent, Jarl Skúli . He spent the winter as house guest of the jarl. They showered gifts upon him, including the ship in which he sailed, and he in return wrote poetry about them. In

672-507: The Swedish champions Svipdag and Geigad and then they attacked the 'shield-circle' around the Swedish king and slew him and his two sons. Haki and his warriors subdued the Swedish provinces and Haki made himself the king of Sweden. Then he happily sat in peace for three years while his warriors travelled far and wide and amassed fortunes. The previous king, Hugleik, had two cousins named Eric and Jorund , who had become famous by killing Gudlög ,

720-516: The Swedish royal seat at Uppsala . Haki was a brutal warrior and he had twelve champions, among whom was the legendary warrior Starkad the Old. The Swedish king Hugleik had also gathered a large army and was supported by the two champions Svipdag and Geigad . On the Fyrisvellir (Fyris Wolds), south of Uppsala, there was a great battle in which the Swedish army was defeated. Haki and his men captured

768-458: The attack was to show that even the furthest kingdoms of the world might not be untouched by the Danish arms. Saxo writes that Starkad and Haki brought their fleet to Ireland, where the rich and greedy king Hugleik lived. Hugleik was never generous to an honourable man, but spent all his riches on mimes and jugglers . In spite of his avarice, Hugleik had the great champions Geigad and Svipdag. When

816-525: The battle began, the jugglers and mimes panicked and fled, and only Geigad and Svipdag remained to defend Hugleik, but they fought like an entire army. Geigad dealt Starkad a wound on the head which was so severe that Starkad would later sing songs about it. Starkad killed Hugleik and made the Irish flee. He then had the jugglers and mimes whipped and beaten, in order to humiliate them. Then the Danes brought Hugleik's riches out to Dublin to be publicly looted, and there

864-515: The blood of women, and attacked mothers and children in one general and ruthless slaughter. He was soon chased away by Sigar's son Siwald. In the Chronicon Lethrense , Haki (as Aki) killed the usurper Hiarwart within a day of his having taken the royal title from Rolf Kraki . Haki then became king of the Danes. In turn, he was then killed by Fritleff . Kings of the Danes are in bold and marked with an asterisk (*). The source used for

912-540: The chiefs of Iceland. In 1262, the Althing ratified union with Norway and royal authority was instituted in Iceland. Each member swore an oath of personal loyalty to the king, a practice which continued as each new king came to the throne, until absolute and hereditary monarchy was formally accepted by the Icelanders in 1662. Snorri Sturluson's writings provide information and indications concerning persons and events influencing

960-414: The chiefs. In 1224, Snorri married Hallveig Ormsdottir (c. 1199–1241), a granddaughter of Jón Loftsson, now a widow of great means with two young sons, and made a contract of joint property ownership (or helmingafélag ) with her. Their children did not survive to adulthood, but Hallveig's sons and seven of Snorri's children did live to adulthood. Snorri was the most powerful chieftain in Iceland during

1008-527: The conscise Annales Ryenses (around 1290), the Compendium Saxonum (1340s) and the Gesta Danorum på danskæ (round 1300, not to be confused with Saxo's work of the same title). Swedish translations from the 14th century, suggest that the original might have been more extensive than the texts that have been preserved. Although the author is unknown, there is some conjecture that he may have been

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1056-481: The discovery of Vinland . To an extent, the legacy of Snorri Sturluson also played a role in politics long after his death. His writings could be used in support of the claims of later Norwegian kings concerning the venerability and extent of their rule. Later, Heimskringla factored in establishing a national identity during the Norwegian romantic nationalism in mid-19th century. Icelandic perception of Snorri in

1104-484: The eve of battle he dismissed those forces and offered terms to his brother. Sighvatur and Sturla drove Snorri into the countryside with a force of 1000 men, where he sought refuge among other goðar. Órækja undertook guerrilla operations in the fjords of western Iceland and fighting carried on. Haakon IV made an effort to intervene from afar, inviting all of Iceland's cheiftains to a peace conference in Norway. This maneuver

1152-413: The evil Sigar (the feud with Sigar is still going on and Hagbard has not yet been hanged): "Good talk," says Gudrun, "let us do even so; what kings deemest thou to have been the first of all men?" Brynhild says, "The sons of Haki, and Hagbard withal; they brought to pass many a deed of fame in the warfare." Gudrun answers, "Great men certes, and of noble fame! Yet Sigar took their one sister, and burned

1200-483: The first part of Sven Aggesen 's Brevis Historia Regum Dacie or Saxo Grammaticus ' Gesta Danorum , though considerably smaller and of much lesser quality. It is sometimes referred to as the "Chronicle of the Kings of Lejre." One of the noted aspects of Chronicon Lethrense is the writer's deep hatred of all things German , which at times takes on epic proportions. This German hatred can also be traced, although to

1248-467: The genealogical information and name spellings is the English translation provided by Mischa Hooker of Augustana College . Nerman, B. Det svenska rikets uppkomst . Stockholm, 1925. Snorri Sturluson Snorri Sturluson ( Old Norse : [ˈsnorːe ˈsturloˌson] ; Icelandic: [ˈsnɔrːɪ ˈstʏ(r)tlʏˌsɔːn] ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He

1296-575: The king and questions of loyalty but he nevertheless managed to build up the Norwegian state from what it had been. When Snorri arrived in Norway for the second time, it was clear to the king that he was no longer a reliable agent. The conflict between Haakon and Skúli was beginning to escalate into civil war. Snorri stayed with the jarl and his son, and the jarl gave him the jarl title, hoping to command his allegiance. In August 1238, Sighvatur and four of his sons (Sturla, Markús, Kolbeinn, and Þórður Krókur,

1344-484: The king of Hålogaland . When they learnt that king Haki's champions were gone plundering, they assembled a large force and steered towards Sweden. They were joined by many Swedes who wanted to reinstall the Yngling dynasty on the Swedish throne. The two brothers entered Mälaren , went towards Uppsala , and landed on the Fyrisvellir . There they were met by king Haki, who had a considerably smaller force. Haki was, however,

1392-514: The late 12th century, written in Latin . Unlike Chronicon Roskildense , which deals primarily with information presented as real historical facts after the introduction of Christianity in Denmark , Chronicon Lethrense is a recording of folklore about the old pre-Christian Danish kings and the adventure stories that were eventually associated with them. In that sense it is not much different from

1440-509: The latter two executed after the battle), were killed at the Battle of Örlygsstaðir in Iceland against Gissur Þorvaldsson and Kolbein the Young, chiefs whom they had provoked. Snorri, Órækja, and Þorleifur requested permission to return home. As the king now could not predict Snorri's behavior, permission was denied. He was explicitly ordered to remain in Norway on the basis of his honorary rank. Skúli on

1488-406: The necessity to confront Skúli, who declared himself king in 1239. Skúli was defeated militarily and killed in 1240. Meanwhile, Snorri resumed his chieftainship and made a bid to crush Gissur by prosecuting him in court for the deaths of his brother Sighvatr and nephew Sturla. After the jarl's defeat, Haakon sent two agents to Gissur bearing a secret letter with orders to kill or capture Snorri. Gissur

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1536-411: The other hand gave permission and helped them book passage. Snorri must have had his own ideas about the king's position and the validity of his orders, but at any rate he chose to disobey them; his words according to Sturlunga saga , 'út vil ek' (literally 'out want I', but idiomatically 'I will go home'), have become proverbial in Icelandic. He returned to Iceland in 1239. The king was distracted by

1584-410: The other, house and all; and they may be called slow to revenge the deed; why didst thou not name my brethren who are held to be the first of men as at this time?" In Gesta Danorum (book 7), Haki ( Hakon ) killed Sigar, avenging his brother Hagbard's death. In Gesta Danorum , Saxo Grammaticus gives Haki as a king of Denmark, and Hugleik, called Huglet(h)us , is an Irish king. The motivation behind

1632-506: The peoples inhabiting North Europe during periods for which relevant information is scarce: thus, for example, he can be used to illuminate relations between England and Scandinavia during the 10th and 11th centuries. Snorri is considered a figure of enduring importance in this regard, Halvdan Koht describing his work as "surpassing anything else that the Middle Ages have left us of historical literature". He also provided an early account of

1680-474: The pile. The wind was blowing towards the water and the ship departed in full flame between the small islands out into the sea. This was much talked about and it gave him great fame. Most legends surrounding Haki are probably lost. In the Völsunga saga , Gudrun and Brynhild have a discussion on the "greatest of men" referring to a legend now lost, where Haki's sons have not yet avenged their sisters by killing

1728-520: The second half of the 12th century, probably around 1170, or according to more recent scolarship, in the early 1190s, and preceded the writing of the far more famous and verbose Gesta Danorum by Saxo , with which it shares many traditions not found in other sources. The Chronicon Lethrense was one of Saxo's many sources. The Chronicon Lethrense , as included in the Annales Lundenses , supplied material for several other chronicles, such as

1776-570: The summer of 1219, he met his Swedish colleague, the lawspeaker Eskil Magnusson , and his wife, Kristina Nilsdotter Blake , in Skara . They were both related to royalty and probably gave Snorri an insight into the history of Sweden . Snorri was mainly interested in history and culture. The Norwegian regents, however, cultivated Snorri, made him a skutilsvein , a senior title roughly equivalent to knight , and received an oath of loyalty. The king hoped to extend his realm to Iceland, which he could do by

1824-533: The year before Snorri married Hallveig. A period of clan feuding followed. Snorri raised an armed party under his nephew Böðvar Þórðarson, and another under his son Órækja, with the intent of executing a first strike against his brother Sighvatur and Sturla Sighvatsson. It is possible that Snorri perceived that only resolute, saga -like actions could achieve his objective, but if so he proved unwilling or incapable of carrying them out. Alternatively, he might have done this as military posturing or performance of power. On

1872-557: The years 1224–1230. Many of the other chiefs found his position as royal office-holder contrary to their interests, especially the other Sturlungar . Snorri's strategy seems to have been to consolidate power over them, at which point he could offer Iceland to the king. His first moves were civic. On the death in 1222 of Sæmundur, son of Jón Loftsson, he became a suitor for the hand of his daughter, Sólveig . Herdís' silent vote did nothing for his suit. His nephew, Sturla Sighvatsson, Snorri's political opponent, stepped in to marry her in 1223,

1920-428: Was being invited now to join the unionist movement. A meeting at the Althing was arranged for the summer of 1241 but Gissur and Kolbein arrived with several hundred men. Snorri and 120 men formed around a church. Gissur chose to pay fines rather than to attack. Hallveig died of natural causes. When the family bickered over the inheritance, Hallveig's sons, Klaeing and Orm, asked assistance from their uncle Gissur. Holding

1968-400: Was deserted by Snorri on the battlefield in a flare-up over the chain of command. In 1237, Snorri thought it best to travel to Norway and join the king. The reign of Haakon IV (Hákon Hákonarson), King of Norway , was troubled by civil war relating to questions of succession and was at various times divided into quasi-independent regions under rival contenders. There were always plots against

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2016-424: Was educated by Sæmundr fróði , grandfather of Jón Loftsson, at Oddi, and never returned to his parents' home. His father died in 1183 and his mother, as his guardian, soon squandered Snorri's share of the inheritance. Jón Loftsson died in 1197. The two families then arranged a marriage in 1199 between Snorri and Herdís, the daughter of Bersi Vermundarson. From her father, Snorri inherited an estate at Borg, as well as

2064-577: Was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing . He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of the Prose Edda , which is a major source for what is today known about Norse mythology and alliterative verse , and Heimskringla , a history of the Norse kings that begins with legendary material in Ynglinga saga and moves through to early medieval Scandinavian history . For stylistic and methodological reasons, Snorri

2112-628: Was given the option of surrender. He fled to the cellar. There, Símon knútur asked Arni the Bitter to strike him. Then Snorri said: Eigi skal höggva! —"Do not strike!" Símon answered: "Högg þú!" — "You strike now!" Snorri replied: Eigi skal höggva! —"Do not strike!" and these were his last words. This act was not popular in either Iceland or Norway. To diminish the odium, the king insisted that if Snorri had submitted, he would have been spared. The fact that he could make such an argument reveals how far his influence in Iceland had come. Haakon went on suborning

2160-410: Was known as Snorralaug  [ is ] , and the buildings have been preserved to some extent. During his initial years at Reykholt he fathered another five children, with three different women: Guðrún Hreinsdóttir, Oddný, and Þuríður Hallsdóttir. Snorri quickly became known as a poet, and also functioned as a lawyer. In 1215, he became lawspeaker of the Althing , the only public office of

2208-484: Was raised from the age of three or four by Jón Loftsson , a relative of the Norwegian royal family, in Oddi , Iceland. Key to his political and cultural education was his fosterage at Oddi, which resulted from a settlement regarding his father's legal dealings. As Hvamm-Sturla was trying to settle a lawsuit with the priest and chieftain ( Goðorðsmaðr ) Páll Sölvason, Páll's wife Þorbjörg Bjarnardóttir lunged suddenly at him with

2256-503: Was so much of it that none cared for its strict division. When Haki learnt that his brother Hagbard had been killed by Sigar, he avenged his brother. However, killing Sigar was not enough to satiate his thirst for blood: Then Hakon used his conquest to cruel purpose, and followed up his good fortune so wickedly, that he lusted for an indiscriminate massacre, and thought no forbearance should be shown to rank or sex. Nor did he yield to any regard for compassion or shame, but stained his sword in

2304-503: Was transparent to Sighvatur, who suspected, as apparently Snorri did not, that the king was planning a maneuver against the goðar in Norway. Instead of killing his opponents he began to insist that they take the king up on his offer. Órækja's fate was capture by his cousin Sturla during an ostensible peace negotiation at Reykjaholt. Þorleifur Þórðarson, a cousin of Snorri's, was also captured. Þorleifur had come to his assistance with 800 men, but

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