Ragnhild Sigurdsdotter
Encyclopedia
Sigurd Hart
Sigurd Hart or Sigurd Hjort was a legendary king of Ringerike in Norway, who appears in Ragnarssona þáttr and in Halfdan the Black's saga....
of the Dagling
Dagling
The Dagling or Dögling dynasty was a legendary clan of the petty kingdom Ringerike what today is Norway. It was descended from a Dag the Great....
clan
Norse clans
The Scandinavian clan or ætt was a social group based on common descent or on the formal acceptance into the group at a þing.-History:...
.
Family
According to the Ragnarssona þáttrRagnarssona þáttr
Ragnarssona þáttr, Þáttr af Ragnars sonum or the Tale of Ragnar's sons is a short story on Ragnar Lodbrok and his sons.-Ragnar Lodbrok:When Sigurd Ring dies, Ragnar succeeds him as the king of Sweden and Denmark...
, Ragnhild was a daughter of Sigurd Hart
Sigurd Hart
Sigurd Hart or Sigurd Hjort was a legendary king of Ringerike in Norway, who appears in Ragnarssona þáttr and in Halfdan the Black's saga....
and his wife Ingeborg ("Ingibjorg"). Her paternal grandparents were Helgi the Sharp
Helgi the Sharp
Helgi the Sharp may refer to:* Helgi the Sharp * Helgi the Sharp...
and Aslaug. Her maternal grandfather was Harald Klak
Harald Klak
Harald 'Klak' Halfdansson was a king in Jutland around 812–814 and again from 819–827.-Family:...
. The identity of her maternal grandmother is not mentioned. The Heimskringla
Heimskringla
Heimskringla is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorri Sturluson ca. 1230...
changes the name of Harald Klak's daughter but the given lineage remains the same. "Ragnhild's mother was Thorny, a daughter of Klakharald king in Jutland, and a sister of Thrye Dannebod
Thyra
Thyra was the consort of King Gorm the Old of Denmark. She is believed to have led an army against the Germans. Gorm and Thyra were the parents of King Harald Bluetooth....
who was married to the Danish king, Gorm the Old
Gorm the Old
Gorm the Old , also called Gorm the Sleepy , was the first historically recognized King of Denmark, reigning from to his death . He ruled from Jelling, and made the oldest of the Jelling Stones in honour of his wife Thyra. Gorm was born before 900 and died .-Ancestry and reign:Gorm is the reported...
, who then ruled over the Danish dominions."
The "Ragnarssona þáttr" identifies Aslaug as a daughter of Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye and Blaeja. Aslaug was also a twin sister of Harthacnut of Denmark
Harthacnut of Denmark
Harthacnut or Cnut I was a legendary King of Denmark. He is alternatively given as the son of an otherwise unknown "Sweyn," or, as presented by Ragnarssona þáttr, of the semi-mythic viking chieftain Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, himself one of the sons of the legendary Ragnar Lodbrok...
. Blaeja is earlier identified as a daughter of Ælla of Northumbria.
Ragnarssona þáttr
According to the Ragnarssona þáttrRagnarssona þáttr
Ragnarssona þáttr, Þáttr af Ragnars sonum or the Tale of Ragnar's sons is a short story on Ragnar Lodbrok and his sons.-Ragnar Lodbrok:When Sigurd Ring dies, Ragnar succeeds him as the king of Sweden and Denmark...
, "Sigurd Hart. Of all the men ever seen, he was the fairest, and the biggest, and the strongest. They were the same age, Gorm Knutsson and Sigurd Hart. When Sigurd was twelve, he killed the berserk
Berserker
Berserkers were Norse warriors who are reported in the Old Norse literature to have fought in a nearly uncontrollable, trance-like fury, a characteristic which later gave rise to the English word berserk. Berserkers are attested in numerous Old Norse sources...
Hildibrand in a duel, and he single-handedly slew twelve men in that fight. After that Klakk-Harald
Harald Klak
Harald 'Klak' Halfdansson was a king in Jutland around 812–814 and again from 819–827.-Family:...
gave him his daughter, who was called Ingibjorg. They had two children: Gudthorm and Ragnhild."
"Then Sigurd learnt that King Frodi, his father's brother, was dead. He went north to Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and became king over Ringerike
Ringerike
oskar er kjempe kulRingerike is a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Ringerike...
, his inheritance. There is a long story told of him, as he did all manner of mighty deeds. But it's said of his passing, that he rode out hunting in the wilderness, as was his custom, and Haki Hadaberserk came at him with thirty fully armed men and they fought with him." The name of his opponent means "Haki, berserker
Berserker
Berserkers were Norse warriors who are reported in the Old Norse literature to have fought in a nearly uncontrollable, trance-like fury, a characteristic which later gave rise to the English word berserk. Berserkers are attested in numerous Old Norse sources...
from Hadeland
Hadeland
Hadeland is a traditional district in the south-eastern part of Norway. It is located around the southern part of lake Randsfjorden in Oppland county, and consists of the municipalities of Gran, Jevnaker and Lunner. Hadeland occupies the area north of the hills of Nordmarka close to the Norwegian...
." Nothing else is mentioned of his past. "Sigurd fell there, after first killing twelve men, but King Haki had lost his right hand and received three other wounds besides. Afterwards Haki and his men rode to Ringerike, to Stein, where Sigurd's dwelling was, and took away Ragnhild his daughter, and his son Gudthorm, and plenty of goods too, and carried them off home with him to Hadeland. And soon after that, he had a great feast prepared and meant to celebrate his wedding, but it was put off because his wounds weren't healing. Ragnhild was fifteen years old then, and Gudthorm fourteen. Autumn passed, and Haki was laid up with his wounds till Yule
Yule
Yule or Yuletide is a winter festival that was initially celebrated by the historical Germanic people as a pagan religious festival, though it was later absorbed into, and equated with, the Christian festival of Christmas. The festival was originally celebrated from late December to early January...
."
"At this time, King Halfdan the Black
Halfdan the Black
Halfdan the Black was a ninth-century king of Vestfold. He belonged to the House of Yngling and was the father of Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway.-Biography:...
was staying at his estate in Hedmark
Hedmark
is a county in Norway, bordering Sør-Trøndelag, Oppland and Akershus. The county administration is in Hamar.Hedmark makes up the northeastern part of Østlandet, the southeastern part of the country. It includes a long part of the borderline with Sweden, Dalarna County and Värmland County. The...
. He sent Harek Gand with a hundred and twenty men, and they marched over the frozen Lake Mjøsa
Mjøsa
Mjøsa is Norway's largest lake, as well as one of the deepest lakes in Norway and in Europe as a whole, after Hornindalsvatnet. It is located in the southern part of Norway, about 100 km north of Oslo...
to Hadeland one night and came the next morning to King Haki's home and seized all the doors of the hall
Hall
In architecture, a hall is fundamentally a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age, a mead hall was such a simple building and was the residence of a lord and his retainers...
where the retainers were sleeping. And then they went to King Haki's bedroom and took Ragnhild and Gudthorm, her brother, and all the treasure that was there, and carry it off with them. They burnt all the retainers in their hall and then leave. But King Haki got up and got dressed and went after them for a while. But when he came to the ice, he turned down his sword-hilt to the ground and fell on the point and met his death there, and he's buried on the bank of the lake."
"King Halfdan saw them coming over the ice with a covered wagon and guessed their mission had gone exactly as he wished. He had a message sent then to all the settlements and invited to all the important people in Hedmark to a big feast that very day. There he celebrated his wedding to Ragnhild, and they lived together for many years after. Their son was King Harald the Fine-Haired
Harald I of Norway
Harald Fairhair or Harald Finehair , , son of Halfdan the Black, was the first king of Norway.-Background:Little is known of the historical Harald...
, who was first to become sole ruler over the whole of Norway."
The "Ragnarssona þáttr" was preserved in the Hauksbók
Hauksbók
The Hauksbók is one of the few medieval Norse manuscripts of which the author is known. His name was Haukr Erlendsson , and as long back as it is possible to trace the manuscript it has been called the Hauksbók after its author. It was partly written by Haukr himself, partly by assistants...
by Haukr Erlendsson
Haukr Erlendsson
Haukr Erlendsson was the writer of the Hauksbók.In 1294, he became the lawspeaker of Iceland and in 1301 he arrived in Norway, where, according to a letter from 1311, he is called the lawspeaker and knight of the Gula Thing. He appears to have held this position until 1322....
. The book is a collection of Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
tales and was compiled in the early 14th century.
Heimskringla
A similar account is given in the Saga of Halfdan the Black, part of the HeimskringlaHeimskringla
Heimskringla is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorri Sturluson ca. 1230...
by Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was twice elected lawspeaker at the Icelandic parliament, the Althing...
. The Kings' sagas
Kings' sagas
The kings' sagas are Norse sagas which tell of the lives of Scandinavian kings. They were composed in the 12th to 14th centuries in Iceland and Norway....
included were written in the 13th century.
"Sigurd Hjort was the name of a king in Ringerike, who was stouter and stronger than any other man, and his equal could not be seen for a handsome appearance. His father was Helge Hvasse (the Sharp); and his mother was Aslaug, a daughter of Sigurd the worm-eyed, who again was a son of Ragnar Lodbrok. It is told of Sigurd that when he was only twelve years old he killed in single combat the berserk Hildebrand, and eleven others of his comrades; and many are the deeds of manhood told of him in a long saga about his feats. Sigurd had two children, one of whom was a daughter, called Ragnhild, then twenty years of age, and an excellent brisk girl. Her brother Guthorm was a youth." The account slightly differs from the Ragnarssona þáttr when giving the age of Ragnhild at the time of Sigurd Hart's death. According to Ragnarssona þáttr, she was fifteen years old, but according to Halfdan the Black's saga, she was twenty.
"It is related in regard to Sigurd's death that he had a custom of riding out quite alone in the uninhabited forest to hunt the wild beasts that are hurtful to man, and he was always very eager at this sport. One day he rode out into the forest as usual, and when he had ridden a long way he came out at a piece of cleared land near to Hadeland. There the berserk Hake came against him with thirty men, and they fought. Sigurd Hjort fell there, after killing twelve of Hake's men; and Hake himself lost one hand, and had three other wounds. Then Hake and his men rode to Sigurd's house, where they took his daughter Ragnhild and her brother Guthorm, and carried them, with much property and valuable articles, home to Hadeland, where Hake had many great farms. He ordered a feast to be prepared, intending to hold his wedding with Ragnhild; but the time passed on account of his wounds, which healed slowly; and the berserk Hake of Hadeland had to keep his bed, on account of his wounds, all the autumn and beginning of winter."
"Now King Halfdan was in Hedemark at the Yule entertainments when he heard this news; and one morning early, when the king was dressed, he called to him Harek Gand, and told him to go over to Hadeland, and bring him Ragnhild, Sigurd Hjort's daughter. Harek got ready with a hundred men, and made his journey so that they came over the lake to Hake's house in the grey of the morning, and beset all the doors and stairs of the places where the house-servants slept. Then they broke into the sleeping-room where Hake slept, took Ragnhild, with her brother Guthorm, and all the goods that were there, and set fire to the house-servants' place, and burnt all the people in it. Then they covered over a magnificent waggon, placed Ragnhild and Guthorm in it, and drove down upon the ice. Hake got up and went after them a while; but when he came to the ice on the lake, he turned his sword-hilt to the ground and let himself fall upon the point, so that the sword went through him. He was buried under a mound on the banks of the lake."
"When King Halfdan, who was very quick of sight, saw the party returning over the frozen lake, and
with a covered waggon, he knew that their errand was accomplished according to his desire. Thereupon he ordered the tables to be set out, and sent people all round in the neighbourhood to invite plenty of guests; and the same day there was a good feast which was also Halfdan's marriage-feast with Ragnhild, who became a great queen. Ragnhild's mother was Thorny, a daughter of Klakharald king in Jutland, and a sister of Thrye Dannebod who was married to the Danish king, Gorm the Old, who then ruled over the Danish dominions."
"Ragnhild, who was wise and intelligent, dreamt great dreams. She dreamt, for one, that she was standing out in her herb-garden, and she took a thorn out of her shift; but while she was holding the thorn in her hand it grew so that it became a great tree, one end of which struck itself down into the earth, and it became firmly rooted; and the other end of the tree raised itself so high in the air that she could scarcely see over it, and it became also wonderfully thick. The under part of the tree was red with blood, but the stem upwards was beautifully green and the branches white as snow. There were many and great limbs to the tree, some high up, others low down; and so vast were the tree's branches that they seemed to her to cover all Norway, and even much more."
"Queen Ragnhild gave birth to a son, and water was poured over him, and the name of Harald given him, and he soon grew stout and remarkably handsome. As he grew up he became very expert at all feats, and showed also a good understanding. He was much beloved by his mother, but less so by his father."
Historicity
According to "A History of the Vikings" (1968) by Gwyn JonesGwyn Jones (author)
Gwyn Jones was a Welsh novelist and story writer, and a scholar and translator of Nordic literature and history.Jones was a native of New Tredegar, Monmouthshire...
, "the written sources of the twelfth century and thirteenth centuries must be regarded with scepticism
Skepticism
Skepticism has many definitions, but generally refers to any questioning attitude towards knowledge, facts, or opinions/beliefs stated as facts, or doubt regarding claims that are taken for granted elsewhere...
or downright disbelief" when they portray the chieftains, jarls and kings of Viking Age Norway. "Their world is that of tradition
Oral tradition
Oral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...
and folktale
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
rather than history". Jones considers however that the grandparents of Harald I of Norway
Harald I of Norway
Harald Fairhair or Harald Finehair , , son of Halfdan the Black, was the first king of Norway.-Background:Little is known of the historical Harald...
"loom closer to the frontier of history." The assassination of Gudrød the Hunter
Gudrød the Hunter
Gudrød the Hunter was a semi-legendary king in Vingulmark in south-east Norway, during the early Viking Age from 804 until 810...
by command of his wife Åsa could be estimated to c. 840. Halfdan the Black was their son. The account of the assassination is given in the Ynglinga saga
Ynglinga saga
Ynglinga saga is a legendary saga, originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson about 1225. It was first translated into English and published in 1844....
, also written by Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was twice elected lawspeaker at the Icelandic parliament, the Althing...
. "They had a son by their marriage called Halfdan; and the autumn that Halfdan was a year old Gudrod went upon a round of feasts. He lay with his ship in Stiflesund, where they had been drinking hard, so that the king was very tipsy. In the evening, about dark, the king left the ship; and when he had got to the end of the gangway from the ship to the shore, a man ran against him, thrust a spear through him, and killed him. The man was instantly put to death, and in the morning when it was light the man was discovered to be Aasa's page-boy: nor did she conceal that it was done by her orders."
The saga of Halfdan the Black portrays its hero rising to the throne of Agder
Agder
Agder is a historical district of Norway in the southernmost region of Norway, corresponding to the two counties Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder. Today, the term Sørlandet is more commonly used.-Name:...
and Vestfold
Vestfold
is a county in Norway, bordering Buskerud and Telemark. The county administration is in Tønsberg.Vestfold is located west of the Oslofjord, as the name indicates. It includes many smaller, but well-known towns in Norway, such as Larvik, Sandefjord, Tønsberg and Horten. The river Numedalslågen runs...
at the age of eighteen-years-old (c. 858). "When he was eighteen years old he took his kingdom in Agder, and went immediately to Vestfold, where he divided that kingdom, as before related, with his brother Olaf." Olaf being Olaf Geirstad-Alf
Olaf Geirstad-Alf
Olaf Gudrødsson, or as he was named after his death Olaf Geirstad-Alf, was a legendary Norwegian king of the House of Yngling from the Ynglinga saga. He was the son of Gudrød the Hunter and the brother of Halfdan the Black. Gudrød and Olaf conquered a large part of Raumarike.Gudrød died when Olaf...
, a paternal half-brother to Halfdan. Gwynn considers that accounts of how Ragnhild was married to Halfdan "are heavy with the accoutrement of fictional saga". Wedding and bedding the rescued princess the same day of meeting her follows "the highest tradition of the Sagas of Old Time."
The identification of Ragnhild as a niece of Thyra
Thyra
Thyra was the consort of King Gorm the Old of Denmark. She is believed to have led an army against the Germans. Gorm and Thyra were the parents of King Harald Bluetooth....
is considered improbable due to chronology involved. Ragnhild would be a 9th century figure while Thyra became Queen consort of Denmark in the 10th century. Gwynn considers the saga of Halfdan the Black to be able to give some historical information but dismisses its second part, covering events from the marriage with Ragnhild to his death, as based on "legend, folktale, and dreams." The dream of Ragnhild has a clear implication, that "her progeny would flourish like a great tree with blood-red roots, green trunk, and snow-white branches which would cover the whole of Norway and lands father afield." Such dreams of future greatness were reported in tales concerning the parents of other conquerors. Gwyn points to a literary tradition of such "dreams," dating at least to the surviving narratives about Cyrus the Great
Cyrus the Great
Cyrus II of Persia , commonly known as Cyrus the Great, also known as Cyrus the Elder, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Under his rule, the empire embraced all the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East, expanded vastly and eventually conquered most of Southwest Asia and much...
. Such tales would also exist about figures born later that Harald I, such as Sigurd I of Norway
Sigurd I of Norway
Sigurd I Magnusson , also known as Sigurd the Crusader , was King of Norway from 1103 to 1130. His rule, together with his brother Eystein I of Norway , has been regarded by historians as a golden age for the medieval Kingdom of Norway...
.