Saint Olav - King of Norway

VIII. Canute the mighty conquers Norway

The support for a full uprising came when Canute the mighty, king over Denmark and England, laid claim to Norway. King Canute was an immensely rich man. He sent men to Norway with sacs full of precious things. They took contact with the great men and gave them rich gifts, on condition that they went over to king Canute's side and fought against king Olav. They also promised them great power in the land, once king Canute himself became king over Norway. Many defected to him. Few could hold out against king Canute's «red gold». Not least, his promise of increased power enticed many, but what counted most must have been the thought of being able to govern themselves without interference from a king who lived abroad. The chiefs broke their oath of allegiance to king Olav and deserted to the enemy. There are historians who reproach king Olav for dealing too harshly with the traitors. It is tempting here to draw a comparison with things that happened in this country in more recent times: after the Second World War, a number of traitors were lined up against a wall and shot - unfortunately! A few decades later, a man who had sold Norway for rubles was given twenty years in prison. In an historical perspective, comparison break down, and yet the parallels do exist.

We do not need to describe in black-and-white terms the conflict between the aristocracy of the mighty men and the king. Sigvat the poet does indeed say in a poem, «I know that whoever sells his good lord for gold will one day go down to black hell.» And the farmer Torgeir in Sul in Verdal sings a song about Olav Haraldsson's enemies and calls them «traitors to their king, men who made the devil rejoice». Snorre himself describes this conflict with great calm. He is for Olav, but his sympathies are never one-sided. He knows, since he comes from Iceland, what ethical demands were made by the clan society. He must have understood that the great men were enticed, not only by king Canute's red gold and the promise of power, but also by the idea of revenge. The great men whom we know from the saga had lost many of their relatives «In accordance with the king's righteous judgement». It might well be the case that the king believed he had the right to punish their relatives, but family vengeance also spoke clearly: anyone who lets his murdered relative lie unavenged in the earth, loses all his honour. Sigrid, mother of Asbjørn Selsbane who had been killed, placed the spear which had killed him in the hands of Tore Hund, Asbjørn's uncle, with the words: «If you want to do a deed worthy of a man now, then let this spear leave your hands in such a way that it comes to stand in the breast of Olav Digre. And I tell you that everyone will look on you as a coward, unless you avenge Asbjørn.» Tore Hund obeys the clan society's inexorable demand for revenge, and the spear is cast at the king on the field of Stiklestad: «It entered his breastplate and pierced his belly.» Snorre retains his objectivity and avoids painting in black-and-white, because he understands both parts in the conflict: it is the old time and the new time that stand against one another.

Canute the mighty sailed to Norway with many ships and sailors. Few friends were left to Olav Haraldsson; those who had been his soldiers now abandoned him. Canute was accepted as king at all the parliamentary assemblies. He won the land without striking one single blow with the sword. King Olav had to flee from the land, leaving his warships in a fjord in Sunnmøre. He went over the mountains to Gudbrandsdalen and Oppland, and did not stop until he came to Sweden. Before he came that far, he let those of his men who wished go home to their farms. Bishop Grimkjell remained in Oppland, presumably staying with his niece in Stange. It was important for Olav that the bishop remained behind in Norway, so that he could provide for the good of the newly organised Church as best as was possible during the king's absence. He left queen Astrid behind in Sweden, and went with his son Magnus and a handful of faithful men to Gardarike (Russia). He settled in Novgorod, where he was well received by Grand Duke Jaroslav and his princess Ingegjerd of Sweden, whom Olav at an earlier time was meant to marry.