The History of Norway, from the earliest times, by G. L. Baden, and from the Union of Calmar, by Baron Holbey. Translated from the Danish, and continued to the present time, by A. Andersen Feldborg

Preface

. nr^HE history of few countries has undergone less deep research than that of Norway, arising from the difficulty of ob taining authentic materials. The literary talents however of Professor Baden and Baron Holberg have been ably directed to this point, and hence in Denmark the pre sent work has been warmly appreciated by the friends of rational liberty and science. Notwithstanding Norway has excited little interest since its involution with Denmark in 1660, at a more remote period it had consider able weight in the affairs of its more southerly neighbours, and it has to the present hour preserved a distinguished character for he roism and the most ardent patriotism. The victim of political indemnity, Norway in our day has seen itself transferred to a power with which it has always been in hostility,

PREFACE.

. and to which it submitted with regret. Its permanent union with Sweden must therefore be very uncertain, since political struggles, similar to those which effected its excision from Denmark, may restore it to its old connexion. As the present period of the Norwegian history has become interesting from the courage and conduct of that nation, and the commiseration excited in the breast -of every generous Englishman for its fate, the Translator has added a succinct account of the contest between Sweden and Norway, in which, though unsuccessful, the latter has preserved her glory and her heroism unsullied. A. A. F. Cambridge, April, 1817. THE HISTORY OF NORWAY CHAP I. THE HISTORY OF NORWAY, UNTIL THE TIME OF HARALO HAARFAGER, FABULOUS AND UNCERTAIN. HOWEVER old the Norwegian nation may be, yet the earliest and most ancient history is scarcely to be denominated such.

To build a history upon probabilities, conjectures, possibilities, and arbi trary conclusions, in short upon confused and indis tinct relations, unconnected and full of fictitious cir cumstances, is incompatible with the dignity of his tory. It requires a full and unbroken series of events and certainty of information, in order to answer its proper purpose. Yet it is difficult to form such a history of times so remote, when, owing to the non existence of letters, the events of the day were transmitted to posterity by oral tradition. But every person of experience will admit the impracticability B THE HISTORY of erecting a history upon the ground of tradition alone. We look in vain for any real historical information concerning our ancestors in the writers of the civilized nations of those days.

These were the Greeks and Romans, whose historians sometimes mention the country and the habitations of the Northern nations. But, upon a more intimate acquaintance with these writers, we may convince ourselves, that their accounts of the Northern regions are as unconnected, perplexed, and unintelligible, as those which we receive from tradition, and that they are not unfrequently manifestly erroneous. The causes of this are evident, when we consider the state of their knowledge ; for none of those, whose writings have descended to us, were eye-witnesses of what they relate, but their accounts were grounded upon the relations of others, which they would be more likely to misunderstand, as their geographical knowledge was but scanty, and almost entirely con fined to Greece and the Roman Empire.

For that reason, by the country called Northern, they must sometimes have understood the countries lying on the Caspian Sea, and sometimes those on the Da nube or Rhine. The latter river, and sometimes the Pyrenees, were considered by them as the boundary of the Celts, the farthest of the known nations of Europe. But, in proportion as other Northern nations were discovered, the name of Celts was extend ed farther; whether, therefore, those authors mean a people near the Pyrenees or near Dovrefield is very frequently difficult to determine. They often confused the name of the Vendians on the Baltic sea with the Veneti in Italy, and the river Po herewith the Eridanus in the latter country. The traffic in amber chiefly made the ancient Greeks and Romans acquainted with the North : and without that ancient branch of commerce Scandina via might not have been known until 500 years later.

But even their accounts of this commerce are so un certain and imperfect, that it is far from being de termined with accuracy, what country in particular produced amber in such abundunce as to become a source of commerce, or by what route the Phœni cian merchants received that article. Besides their want of all scientific geography, the cause of this uncertainty in their accounts must be sought for in the fear the Phœnicians had, lest this traffic should become known to other nations. The voyage to Thule is therefore described as extremely dangerous, and Thule itself as a remote desert, which no one could set any value upon, nor any dare approach. The name Thule is, among those authors, liable to the same diversity of acceptation as that of Celts ; the reader must conceive it to have been sometimes given to Iceland, sometimes to Jutland, Norway, or the farthest extremity of Scotland.

From these Phœnicians, Herodotus received the little information he gives us concerning the North, the insufficiency of which he himself acknowledges, and which consists only in some accounts by which we are informed that tin and amber were brought from the extreme parts of Europe. After the time of Herodotus, the knowledge of Thule, or the North, must have ceased with the Phœnician commerce. The first information more to be depended on concerning the North, and the name of that country, appear to have been brought to the Greeks by means of Pytheas of Marseilles, a Phœnician colony. This learned man, (to whose astronomical know ledge Gassendi and Cassini have done proper jus tice,) made, as it appears, at the request of the state, two voyages to the North. But it is to be lamented that his own relations have not been preserved, but are made known to us through the medium of Strabo, who, from his narrow prejudices against Pytheas, and a singular want of geographical knowledge, has no doubt frequently impaired the value of the ac counts of Py th as I he substance of these accounts is as follows : — In six days' voyage from the island of Britain, towards the north, lay Thule, near the Frosen Sea ; Britain was 20,000 stadia in length ; Kent lay some days sail from the country of the Celts, or that country in the north-west of Europe the far thest then known : on the other side of the Rhine, lived the Ostili, or Ostiini, as far as Scythia ; the cir cumference of Britain was more than 40,000 stadia.

At Thule there was neither earth, sea, nor air, but a mixture of all these, resembling, as it were, the lungs of the sea, where earth, sea, and every thing were united as it were by a chain ; but it was inaccessible either by land or sea. Pytheas him self saw these lungs of thesea, which may have been our Froze*. Sea, but was satisfied as to the rest with the relations of others, as he well knew from astro nomical principles to procure this certain information concerning the North, which Pliny has preserved to us, that at Thule there were six months of night during the winter, and the same length of pure day during the summer. We must immediately recog nize, from this information, at least the north-western part of our country. On the other hand, it ad mits of much doubt, whether the accounts of other Grecian and Roman writers concerning Nerigon, Svionia.

Dacia, the Gottones, Tuetones, the island Baltia, &c. belong to the Northern nations in general, or any one in particular. If we ask therefore when and whence the North and Norway in particular were first peopled, the answer is by no means satisfactory. Many of our antiquaries, particularly the Swedish Rudbek, the Norwegian Schoning, and the Danish Suhm, have adduced some very powerful reasons, which induce us to believe that the North was inhabited in very early times. The two last have with unreserved zeal applied the labour and reflection of many years to throw light upon that darkness in which the origin of the Norwegian as well as every other people is involved. Their laborious works admit of no abridgment, bat must be entirely read through, and again repeated, if a person desire to obtain any real knowledge on that subject, or to be con vinced that in this no historical certainty nor satisfaction can be obtained.

Thus much 1 am inclined to believe, that Norway and the other Northern countries were inhabited as early as any other European country. As the rocks of Norway, covered with thick woods, afforded shelter to the wild beasts and birds, which nature formed for a northern region, so likewise these woods, the numberless seas, rivers, and waters, of this country abounded in all things necessary for the support of man. Theclifts in the rocks provided the necessary habitations, which in old times were known by the name of Hel. ler. The wild beasts of the woods supplied both food and clothing, while the seas, rivers, and brooks, quenched their thirst, or satisfied their hunger. To me it seems more than probable that the Finns were the earliest inhabitants of the North, at least of Norway and Sweden, who are spoken of in our Sagas, and especially the Edda, under the name of Thusser.

A strong proof of the antiquity of the Finns in Norway is derived from the worship of Thor, which was not less venerated by them than by the latter inhabitants, who probably had expelled the Finns, an event certainly much older than any historical record. It is possible, though not histor rically certain, that the people, who thus expelled or drove farther north the most ancient inhabitants, were the Joti or Goti. The same may be said of those two other events usually adduced by historians in the ancient history of Norway; the settlement of the tribe of Odin, partly in Helgeland and partly in the present territory of Drontheim ; and the sub jugation of Norway by Nor and Gor, whom some consider as before, others as after, Odin. Thus far it appears probable, that the nameof Norway (Norge) originated in the northern part; whether from a person called Nor or from its situation is a matter of indifference.

But it is likewise certain that both North and South Norway was, even to the ninth century, divided into a number of states and between a number of kings, whose names and actions have indeed been partly preserved by traditions, but these are so perplexed and so unsatisfactory, that they cannot be considered as historical truths Among the many petty kings, who reigned anciently in Norway } I shall only mention Halfdan, nick-named Svarte, This chief is praised as one of the best and great est of the rulers of Norway before the Union; he acquired honour and reputation as a legislator ; he laid the foundation by which his son Halfdan was enabled to effect an union of sovereignty, who, from being a petty king over Agder, raised himself to be king of Vigen, Upland, and several other small kingdoms, particularly in the south of Norway.

CHAP. II. THE KINGS AND REGENTS OF NORWAY, FROM THE TIME OF HARALD HAARFAGER, TO THAT OF HARALD HAAR* DRAADE, OR SIGURDSEN. HARALD HAARFAGER. 863—933. HARALD was yet very young, when his father by his death left him, together with his kingdom, the prosecution of his many contentions with the petty kings of Norway ; he therefore chose himself Guttorm, his uncle, to be his chief counsellor, so early did he give proofs of a good understanding ; for princes even of mature age are not always so provident in the choice of their confidents as Harald showed himself to be. This circumstance could not escape the observation of. the neigbouring petty kings who immediately began, by mutual combina tions, to screen themselves against the attacks of Harald and his experienced counsellor. These were not long delayed on the part of Harald ; and a prosc perous commencement served but to stimulate a young chief so ambitious of sovereignty to extend his conquests farther.

Harald, therefore, in a short time subjugated the whole of south Norway, from Lindesnœs to Dovrefiœld. Having accomplished this in the south, he marched towards the north, where; with no less success, he not only conquered the country, but gained the inhabitants, and in particular the powerful Earl Hagen in Helgeland, who became a confident and father-in-law to his new master. To him the king could safely entrust his northern conquests, which he was obliged to leave, in order to defend those in the south against Erik Emundsen, king of Sweden. But unfortunately the Earl died in the mean time, and his death threatened Harald with the loss of Throndelagen, the present territory of Drontheim, which was then considered as one of the most valuable provinces of Norway, as its inhabitants were the best, the most high-spirited, and therefore the greatest enemies of despotic power.

Harald had therefore no sooner obtained the superiority over Erik of Sweden, than he marched for Drontheim, and was again victorious. But there still remained a considerable portion of the northern part of Norway to be conquered. He therefore fixed his residence at Nidaros, the present Drontheim. There he equipped a fleet very large for those times, with the half of which he subdued Nordmber, Sondmber, Romsdal, Fiordefylke, Sogn, in short the greater part of North Norway. Harald had now brought under his subjection the whole country from the extremity of Finmark and the White Sea to Hordaland, so that there remained to be conquered in Norway only Hordaland, Rogaland, Agder, and Tellemark. But the kings of these provinces hastened their own overthrow ; for no sooner was Harald informed of their combination against him, than he visited them with a large fleet.

It was at Hafursfiord, not far from Stavanger, that he fought his well-known and successful sea-fight, which completed his con quests, and put an end to the freedom of Norway. These were fortunate victories of the conqueror Harald ; but he knew, when it was necessary, to add to them artifice, terror, bribery, or even clemency and condescending mildness. The petty kings, who therefore voluntarily submitted to him, (and this was the case with many,) retained their kingdoms under the name *of earldoms, on condition that they should pay to Harold two-thirds of the royal tribute and land-tax. Upon the same terms he appointed in the other kingdoms, the kings of which would not submit, and therefore left Norway, Earls who were generally the most powerful native inhabitants of the conquered kingdoms.

But, that he might be the better assured of their fidelity, he placed in each earldom four or more Herser, who, in conjunction with, but inferior to, the Earl, were to participate in the management of the province. It cannot be denied that such institutions discover the art of a conqueror, but it is likewise certain that only a conqueror, with the fire of youth, could maintain a fabric, which, however fair it might seem to him and his short-sighted counsellors, was not built for posterity. It is likewise certain that Norway, by the conquests of Harald, lost, if not all, a great part of her ancient popular freedom. Snorra expressly informs us, that Harald deprived the Nor wegians of their Odel's rights. In the same historian we find, that, both Harald himself, and likewise by means of his Earls, levied tribute and land taxes.

Without doubt, therefore, the loss of this right was nothing more than the loss of that ancient freedom prevailingall over the North, by which the possessors of lands had to estimate themselves what contributions were required of them for the defence of the coun try, which was the first origin of taxes. But the Norwegians lost that proud liberty of the ancient inhabitants ; as, instead of one lord, they now had many in the Earls and the Herser, besides their king. From these Earls and Herser, and other great men, who had assisted Harald in his conquests, and on that account were rewarded by fiefs, there sprang up in Norway an hereditary nobility, which, as we shall see in the history of the following period, occasioned, both to the kings and the people, as great calamities as the hereditary nobility of any other nation could.

In short, the government of Norway, which was before divided into a great number of small but free states, in which the autho rity of the king depended on his personal talents, became now a monarchy mixed with aristocracy ; it was despotic when a Harald Haarfager sat on the throne, but aristocratic under a less-powerful king. A great number of Norwegians were discontented with the political institutions of Harald, and left the country, some for ever, others with the in tention of returning in more favourable times. Iceland, the Faro Islands, the Orkneys, Zetland, the Hebrides, and Man, were thus occupied by Norwegian colonies. The coasts of Scotland, England, Ireland, France, and Germany, were likewise frequently visited by these malcontents, who endeavoured to supply by piracy, at the ex pense of other people, what they had lost at home.

Many of these even infested the coasts of their native country, and, by their continual attacks, kept Harald sufficiently employed during his whole reign, which was always in a state of disquiet. He was, in consequence, obliged to undertake many naval expeditions, which, though successful, served to convince him that he had committed errors in the formation of his political institutions ; but he was still more sensibly convinced of this in his own house, in which his numerous sons, whom he had by various concubines, according to the custom of the times, occasioned many grievous vexations to their aged father. Harald had the policy, when an opportunity offered, to marry the daughters of the kings whom he conquered. Thus he had a great number of sons of a different stock, each of whom, according to the ancient mode of thinking in Nor way, conceived himself entitled to the kingdom, in virtue of the law of Odel.

Harald was, in con sequence, threatened very early to have his kingdom dissevered and parceled out among his off spring. The means he chose to pacify them were not calculated to attain their object : for, to think that Erik, the son of a princess of Jutland, should be supreme king, and the other sons of the king, all the offspring of Norwegian women, should be inferior kings, each in his province, of which the supreme king was to receive one half of the revenue, served but to enrage them still more both against the father and the brother. Dissensions, therefore, ran so high between the brothers, that, even during the life of Harald, Bibrn, one of his best sons, was killed. The reason why the father in the dissensions between his sons always took the part of Erik, was in consequence of that plan which he thought he had laid down for a continual unity of sovereignty.

Agreeably to that plan, also, he resigned, three years before his death, the crown to Erik, hoping, by the consideration shown to himself during his life-time, to confirm that unity to his son. ERIK BLODOXE, (Bloody Axe.) 933—938. We must not condemn Erik on account of his nick-name, which most probably was given him from his distinguished achievements in piratical expeditions. Nor must impartial historians pass too severe a judgment upon him for his contests with his brothers, but they should recollect the time and the circumstances in which Harald was declared supreme king of Norway. Educated in his father's sentiments, and conceiving that the whole of Norway should always form a united sovereignty, Erik, being ar> knowledged supreme king, could not avoid main taining the claim of superior age againsthis brothers, who, according to their father's will, and the ac knowledgment of the people, were subordinate to him.

But the terror of the Norwegians for the old Harald, arising less from affection towards him than from his valour, courage, and the talents, of a conqueror, naturally ceased, when the aged Harald could no longer achieve what the young Harald had effected. It is also probable that Erik did not inherit with the sovereignty the distinguished talents of his father. The Norwegians, besides, recollecting the accounts given them by their fathers of the happy times under their several kings, now felt the de> sire of liberty arise within themselves, and willingly supported each their respective king. The contests between the supreme king Erik and the inferior kings his brothers were continued. One of them, Halfdan, caused himself to be proclaimed king by the Dronthemians, and another, Oluf, by the Vikvœringer, each as sovereigns independent in their respective provinces.

Erik prevailed over these two, and likewise over a third brother, but gained no advantage from these and other victories. The Norwegians would no longer acknowledge the supremacy of Erik ; and, when they saw that his brothers were successively compelled to yield, raised against him a formidable rival in young Hagen, who was likewise a son of Harald Haarfager, but had been brought up at the court of king Adelsteen in England. Hagen was therefore sent for. Having equipped a fleet by the assistance of the king of England, he arrived in Norway, where he was supported by the chief men, but particularly by the powerful Earl Sigurd. Hagen first subjugated Drontheim, then Vigen, and was declared sole sovereign of Norway. Erik hastened to defend himself, but the other party was too powerful against him and his Queen Gunild, who seems to have been particularly hated, and was said to have dealt in witchcraft, probably be cause she had impelled her husband to the determination never to yield to his brothers.

Erik and his queen therefore considered it as most advisable to fly, and accordingly they escaped to the Orkney Islands. HAGEN ADELSTEEN. 938—963. After the flight of Erik, it was very easy for Hagen to put himself in possession of the whole of Norway. He enjoyed an uninterrupted peace for D HISTORY OF nineteen years, which he employed in many useful institutions. With the assistance of the younger Thorleif the Wise, he improved the laws, and directed a compila tion to be made of the code, still known by the name of Gulethings Lov. In the enactment of the Frostetings Lov, he availed himself of the services of Earl Sigurd and others skilled in jurisprudence. He supported and maintained the trade of the in habitants of Jemteland, who carried on a considerable commerce with their neighbours the Norwe gians, particularly the Drontheimians, so that they willingly subjected themselves to his authority, and were followed by a part of the Helsinger.

He sub jugated Vermeland, and exacted tribute from West Gotland. In order to secure himself and Norway from the unexpected attacks of enemies, he re newed an ancient stipulation with the Skibreder, or districts lying upon the sea, that they should furnish, on the emergencies of war, a certain number of ships, watch-lights, and alarm fires. Hagen is also said to have restored to the inhabitants of the coun try the Odel's-right of which they had been de, prived by his father, probably, because he was more lenient in demanding the payment of tribute than his father. Hagen was at the same time anxious, having been himself baptised in England, to introduce Christianity into Norway, but he met with so many insurmountable difficulties, that he was obliged to give up all hope of effecting it, particularly as he had no desire to have enemies at home when se riously threatened from abroad.

Although it appears that the exiled Erik remained quiet and contented in the Orkney Islands during his bad fortune, without attempting to put himself again in possession of Norway, yet his sons, when grown to manhood, did not think like their father ; — they however deferred acting until his death; but, immediately on that event, Harald, one of them, ad vanced his pretentions to the throne of Norway, by continually infesting its coast in piratical expe ditions, in which he assaulted different parts of the kingdom. In this the young prince was supported by Harald Blaatand, King of Denmark, at whose court he had resided for a considerable time, and had, perhaps, been educated. Hagen long opposed the piratical assaults of both the Haralds, and with such effect, that the Danes were in terror for their own country, the coasts of which were frequently annoyed by the kings of Norway.

But Hagen be gan at last to feel the effects of his too-zealous desire to establish the knowledge of Christianity in Nor way. By his endeavours to that effect, he rendered' many of his old friends cold towards him ; in par. ticular the powerful Earl Sigurd of Drontheim be came his enemy, assigning as a cause, the king's zeal for Christianity, whether it was really so or not. It is probable that the Norwegian nobles, who appear at all times to have been desirous of changes in the government, when it no longer satisfied their demands, availed themselves of this pretext in order to disgrace the king among the common people, who were zealously attached to their old religion. The latter, in a fit of exasperation, destroyed some Christian churches erected by the king, put to death the priests, and compelled king Hagen himself to participate in their festivals of Odin ; in short, an intestine war was on the point of breaking out, just at the time when the sons of Erik made a new and terrible attack on Vigen.

Nothing remained for Hagen, when informed of this attack, but to effect a reconciliation with his subjects, who felt themselves provoked, and not without reason ; this object he accomplished, and then marched against his enemies, who were compelled again to fly from Norway. The sons of Erik, however, always receiving fresh support from Harald Blaat and of Denmark, soon made several attacks, which met with similar success, upon Norway, the king of which, in consequence, spent his last days un happily. But it was some comfort to him amid these hostile proceedings against Norway,that he had always an opportunity of feeling the good effects of his own institutions, before mentioned, in the protection of his country, for these institutions contributed greatly to withstand the advances of his powerful enemy.

It appears also, that he patient ly submitted to his fate, when, in one of those at tacks, he found he had received a mortal wound, which soon after put a period to his life. HARALD GRAAFELD. 963—977. By the claim of superior power more than by an unauthenticated will of Hagen, Harald, the son of Erik, was acknowledged as supreme King of Nor way ; but his brothers, as it appears, had likewise some share in the administration ; besides the powerful Earl Sigurd reserved for himself the possession of Drontheim. Vigen also had its own governor in Trygve, and Vestfold in Gudraud ; all, however, were to acknowledge the supremacy of Harald; at least they bound themselves to do so. But both the power and revenues of all these petty kings, particularly of Earl Sigurd, were too great not to excite envy in the supreme king, who soon perceived that his title was hut an empty one.

Sigurd, who besides was as daring as powerful, was the first to feel the whole wrath of Harald, which was fully gratified by the ruin and death of the Earl. The kings of Vigen and Westfold, Trygve and Gudraud, met a similar. fate, and Harald, with his brothers, took violent possession of their kingdoms. It was not so easy to obtain the submission of the Drontheimians. They were so firmly attached to Hagen, the son of the murdered Earl, and supported him so powerfully, that he obtained peace by force ; by the conditions of which the supreme king and his brothers resigned to him Drontheim, with the same advantages under which their fathers had possessed it. Whether the go vernment was conducted by Gunild or one of her sons, yet every thing demonstrates, that under Harald Graafeld the administration was by no means destitute of vigour.

Earl Hagen was there fore soon treated in such a manner, that he no Ion - ger found it advisable to remain in his earldom, and he accordingly left it as well as Norway. Gunild, however, notwithstanding her abilities, and her sons had committed a political error, which cost them dear. While in possession of Norway they had entirely forgotten their engagements and duty to Harald, King of Denmark, who had so faithfully assisted them, at a great expence, in the at tainment of their wishes. With good reason Ha rald Blaatand was very indignant, and probably in timated his displeasure to Earl Hagen, who was received at the court of Denmark. Nor did this artful chieftain neglect to consider how he could take advantage of Blaatand's indignation against Gunild and her sons. The Earl soon gained the friendship of the king, by proposing to him a plan for the removal of a dangerous rival, Prince Guldharald.

In consequence, although not seri ously enraged against the King of Norway, yet in gratitude, Harald Blaatand could not refuse to as sist Earl Hagen in ruining Harald Graafeld. This prince, indeed, only appears to have known Den mark when he was in necessity; and he was incon siderate enough, on an occasion of famine and other disagreeable circumstances at home, to go thither for the purpose of craving advice and assistance from his old supporter Harald Blaatand. But he no sooner approached Hals, the entrance into Lim firth, than his enemy, Earl Hagen, encountered and killed him. Thus died Harald Graafeld ! HAGEN JARL. 977—995. After that favourable event, Hagen proceeded to Norway accompanied by the King of Denmark: here they were received with open arms by the no bles, because, with each new change of government, they found an opportunity for, and the prospect of, obtaining new advantages.