Raud the Strong
Encyclopedia
Raud the Strong was a Norse
Seid priest and sea-faring warrior, who resisted conversion to Christianity in the late 10th century CE.
Olaf Tryggvason was King of Norway
from 995 to 1000 CE. He played an important part in the conversion of the Vikings to Christianity
. Olaf traveled to the parts of Norway that had been under the rule of the King of Denmark. He demanded that the citizenry be baptized, and most reluctantly agreed. Those that did not were torture
d or killed. Despite King Olaf’s persuasive efforts, many of the Vikings were reluctant to renounce their Gods and adopt Christianity
. New and increasingly painful tortures and executions were devised by Olaf and his men. One of the most famous incidents of recalcitrance to Olaf’s attempts at coerced conversion to Christianity is that of Raud the Strong.
Raud the Strong was a large landowner, a leader-priest of Seid (an Old Norse term for a type of sorcery or witchcraft that was practiced by the pre-Christian Norse), and a sea-farer. Raud was known for his beautiful longship
, a boat larger than any of Olaf’s, with a dragon’s head carved into the bow. The ship was called “The Dragon” or “The Serpent.”
Raud the Strong, who also had the reputation of being a wizard, was defeated by Olaf in a sea battle. He escaped on his vessel, using the technique of sailing against the wind
, which was a sailing technique unusual in northern European waters at that time. Raud outran Olaf and escaped to his settlement in Gylling and Haering, a part of the Godey Isles.
After the weather calmed, Olaf sailed under cover of darkness to Godey and seized Raud from his bed. Then the king told Raud that if he accepted Christian baptism, he could keep his lands and ship and the king would be his friend.
But Raud refused, saying he would never believe in Christ, and mocked Olaf's religion and deity. Olaf became incensed and said Raud should die a horrible death. The king ordered him to be bound to a beam of wood, with his face pointed upward, and a round pin of wood put between his teeth to force his mouth open. The king then ordered a snake to be put into Raud’s mouth, but the snake would not go in. Olaf then ordered a drinking horn
to be put into Ruad’s mouth, and forced the serpent to go in by holding a red-hot iron at the opening of the horn. As a result, the snake crept into Ruad’s mouth and down his throat, and gnawed its way out his side and Raud died.
Olaf seized Raud’s gold and silver, weapons and many valuable artifacts. All the men who were with Raud were baptized, or, if they refused, were killed or tortured. The king also took the dragonship that Raud had owned, and steered it himself since it was a much larger than any ship the he had.
According to legend this is how the famous Viking ships got their distinctive shape.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
dealt with the story of King Olaf and Raud the Strong in his Tales of a Wayside Inn
(1863), Part First, The Musician's Tale; The Saga of King Olaf
X. Raud the Strong.
Norsemen
Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...
Seid priest and sea-faring warrior, who resisted conversion to Christianity in the late 10th century CE.
Olaf Tryggvason was King of 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...
from 995 to 1000 CE. He played an important part in the conversion of the Vikings to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. Olaf traveled to the parts of Norway that had been under the rule of the King of Denmark. He demanded that the citizenry be baptized, and most reluctantly agreed. Those that did not were torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
d or killed. Despite King Olaf’s persuasive efforts, many of the Vikings were reluctant to renounce their Gods and adopt Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. New and increasingly painful tortures and executions were devised by Olaf and his men. One of the most famous incidents of recalcitrance to Olaf’s attempts at coerced conversion to Christianity is that of Raud the Strong.
Raud the Strong was a large landowner, a leader-priest of Seid (an Old Norse term for a type of sorcery or witchcraft that was practiced by the pre-Christian Norse), and a sea-farer. Raud was known for his beautiful longship
Longship
Longships were sea vessels made and used by the Vikings from the Nordic countries for trade, commerce, exploration, and warfare during the Viking Age. The longship’s design evolved over many years, beginning in the Stone Age with the invention of the umiak and continuing up to the 9th century with...
, a boat larger than any of Olaf’s, with a dragon’s head carved into the bow. The ship was called “The Dragon” or “The Serpent.”
Raud the Strong, who also had the reputation of being a wizard, was defeated by Olaf in a sea battle. He escaped on his vessel, using the technique of sailing against the wind
Tack (sailing)
Tack is a term used in sailing that has different meanings in different contexts, variously a part of a sail, and an alignment with the wind. When using the latter sense, the maneuver of turning between starboard and port tack is either tacking or jibing....
, which was a sailing technique unusual in northern European waters at that time. Raud outran Olaf and escaped to his settlement in Gylling and Haering, a part of the Godey Isles.
After the weather calmed, Olaf sailed under cover of darkness to Godey and seized Raud from his bed. Then the king told Raud that if he accepted Christian baptism, he could keep his lands and ship and the king would be his friend.
But Raud refused, saying he would never believe in Christ, and mocked Olaf's religion and deity. Olaf became incensed and said Raud should die a horrible death. The king ordered him to be bound to a beam of wood, with his face pointed upward, and a round pin of wood put between his teeth to force his mouth open. The king then ordered a snake to be put into Raud’s mouth, but the snake would not go in. Olaf then ordered a drinking horn
Drinking horn
A drinking horn is the horn of a bovid used as a drinking vessel. Drinking horns are known from Classical Antiquity especially in Thrace and the Balkans, and remained in use for ceremonial purposes throughout the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period in some parts of Europe, notably in Germanic...
to be put into Ruad’s mouth, and forced the serpent to go in by holding a red-hot iron at the opening of the horn. As a result, the snake crept into Ruad’s mouth and down his throat, and gnawed its way out his side and Raud died.
Olaf seized Raud’s gold and silver, weapons and many valuable artifacts. All the men who were with Raud were baptized, or, if they refused, were killed or tortured. The king also took the dragonship that Raud had owned, and steered it himself since it was a much larger than any ship the he had.
According to legend this is how the famous Viking ships got their distinctive shape.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
dealt with the story of King Olaf and Raud the Strong in his Tales of a Wayside Inn
Tales of a Wayside Inn
Tales of a Wayside Inn is a collection of poems by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.-Overview:The poems in the collection are told by a group of adults in the tavern of the Wayside Inn in Sudbury, Massachusetts, 20 miles from Cambridge, and a favorite resort for parties from Harvard College...
(1863), Part First, The Musician's Tale; The Saga of King Olaf
The Saga of King Olaf
"The Saga of King Olaf" is a poem by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, published in 1863, as the largest part of his work Tales of a Wayside Inn. The poem is written in twenty-two parts and follows the adventures of King Olaf of Norway, spurred to avenge his slain father and reclaim his...
X. Raud the Strong.