Enemies at all fronts, friends at none. King Hrafn I. of Norway and Wessex.
Hrafn pictured on a runestone.
Hrafn I. is a fascinating character. He was in many ways the opposite of his father, yet so similar. His father Hávarðr is perhaps one of the finest and greatest warriors of all time. He alone managed to slay a foul sea monster ready to devour the world, and it was he who dared to risk his life, to go out on campaigns where most men would turn back to their haystacks. It is said he was over two heads taller than the tallest, and that he had the strength of a bear. He was also a Norse through and through, he loved the company of women, planting his seed in countless of women. He was a glutton and a drunkard, and never said no to a pint of mead or a fine meal. He was also quite wrathful, and was known to go berserk and shout so loud that the mountains themselves started to move. Hrafn on the other hand was a modest man. He was monogamous, and even after his wife died with only three children he continued to honor her. It was not until the last days of his life that he dared to take up two concubines - as opposed to Hávarðr who laid with almost 100 women. Where Hávarðr also was a man of great anger, Hrafn was kind to his fellow man. When I think of it, King Hrafn would have made a good follower of White Christ! That alone is seen in his personal runestone outside the great city of Miklagard - the capital of the greeks. Here he simply wrote: "The words on this stone belong to Hrafn, son of Hávarðr and adleta. Let it be known that Hrafn lived a simple life without distractions, grateful for the friendship and companionship of those around him provided". Where Hávarðr wrote about being the son of Odin and flying around in a longboat, Hrafn simply wrote that he lived a good life. But destiny would have other plans for this young king...
Trolli and the division of Norway. Tröndelag being the realm of Trolli. It should also be noted that the Kingdom of Wessex was the personal realm of Trolli.
Once he came home after their great raid, Hrafn I. had to deal with a major threat at home. No Norse Lord respected the new King, and saw him as a weakling. Hrafn I. had no loyal subjects what so ever, and every Jarl craved either indepence or to become King of Norway themself. After the death of the mighty leader Hávarðr I. Norway would be plunged into an era of civil war and backstabbing. Perhaps the gravest threat of them. Trolli his brother had become the Jarl of Trøndelag and the King of Wessex. In Hrafn's absence he had also taken control over the chiefdom of Oppland. Where most Norse would go outright to war, Hrafn understood such measures would not be so well recieved and he might have ended up being looked upon as a tyrant, in the already fragile Kingdom. What he needed to do was to diplomatically outmaneuver his brother. Luckely for Hrafn he was blessed with the cunning of Loke - the trickster god. You got to keep in mind that most the glorious armies that sacked the great cities of Paris, Rome and Miklagard had suffered extreme losses. Only a fool would go to war against someone who had 70% of realm levies. Hrafn decided to do an unhonorable choice. He would plot against Trolli the Cruel by gaining support from his vassals to take back Oppland which was rightfully Hrafn's. But he would also contact a local hero in Trondheim, the capital of the Trolli's Jarldom. Hrafn promised this hero to become the Jarl of Trøndelag if he managed to get devout Norse followers to overthrow their Christian leader. When Hrafn demanded Oppland from Trolli the Cruel, Trolli refused. This plunged the Norwegian Kingdom into a civil war. Hrafn's forces quickly entered the chiefdom of Oppland. Trolli was mustering his forces to come down and meet his brother, but unfortunately for Trolli 2400 devout Norsemen under the leadership of Tordr rise up against Trolli.
One of many battles, during what would be known as the Norwegian Civil War Era.
Suddenly Trolli was facing the might of Norse warriors on two fronts. This must truly have been a terryfying situation. Every follower of Whitechrist knew what the superior Norse warriors had done to the peoples of Brittania, and even to the greatest cities of the Christian world. Trolli might have stood a chance against the weakened Norwegian forces, but when he had to fight two wars against these unstoppable warriors he stood no chance. The forces of Trolli quickly dispersed, and he saw no other reason than to acknowledge the indepence of the Norse rebellers and give away the chiefdom of Oppland to Hrafn along with the Jarldom of Trøndelag.
Tordr sweared fealty to Hrafn under the impression that he would be promoted to a Jarl and truly be a glorious leader. Unbeknownst to him Hrafn had no intention what so ever to give up the Jarldom he and his father had fought so bitterly over. Hrafn merely saw Tordr and his rebellion as a tool to achieve his goal, which was by large to consolidate his power and perform the blood eagle on his brother. After Trolli gave up his domains i Norway proper, Hrafn, in a moment of kindness and pity, agreed to let the treacherous Trolli rule as a petty king in Wessex. During this year of 905, right after the Trolli was thrown out of Norway and over the North Sea, Hrafn's wife gave birth to his first and only son. Hrafn saw this as a sign, that his son was born during this time could only mean that the gods had blessed him. And Hrafn named him after his father in hope that his son would be just as great, or greater than him. So in the year of 905 Hávarðr II. was born. Hrafn looked now to the east and south, another great problem he faced. The Danes had carved out quite an impressive realm for themselves, stretching from Jutland to the lands of the Geats and Sveas
1 and even into the lands of the Finns. But one of the sons of the great Dane King had no woman, and Hrafn would then use all his cunning to sieze a deal where his sister Skuld would marry the Danish Prince, and heir to the Kingdom of Sweden, Klas under matrinernal terms! This would mean that not only would the Heir to Sweden be groomed by Hrafn persoally, but Sweden would pass over to his dynasty. This was truly one of the greatest achievements of Hrafn, and this action alone showed us how cunning and decietful he was. I doubt that even Hávarðr I. would never manage to make the kinds of plots that Hrafn did, and that's good as it is no honor in them, no glory - only cowardice.
Trolli getting executed by the hands of Hrafn. The method; to open up his back, stop the blood with salt and form "wings" with his lungs - a truly horrible way to die.
The situation at home did not improve however. The nobles and local warlords were, to put it mildly, not pleased with their new ruler. He was no real Norse, he had only lived on the fame of his father. He was not Hávarðr who had earned his right to rule Norway. Furthermore it was once again talks about indepence in Wessex and Essex - leaded by no other than his cruel and horrible brother. Hrafn once used his powers from Loke and instigated a second war against his brother. This time it would lead to Hrafn taking control of Nordland and the Petty Kingdom of Wessex. These actions were seen as powerhungry by the nobility and local warlords, as they thought he was holding unto too many Jarldoms. Not to speak of that he still hold the title Jarl of Trøndelag and didn't hand it over to Tordrd the Liberator as he promised. Hrafn saw no other option to calm them down, but to hold a grand Blot where he would perform the blood eagle on his brother. He also said that this Blot would be followed by an invasion of the Island of Eire, and that the most loyal subjects would be granted land there. This was indeed a wise choice by Hrafn.
You have to understand the political situation at this time. Home in Norway the population was increasing, and it was increasing more rapidly than both the production and avaible land. This caused lot of social unrest and the emergence of warring lords. When Hrafn announced that he intended to colonise all of Eire he got the support of his vassals. This would mean that the excessive Norsemen and women home in Norway would populate this island, who was anyway inhabitated by the weak followers of Whitechrist. And the Norse would only follow the strongest, the thoughest - they followed blood. By showing his strenght by conquering new land he would show them he was truly worthy of the title of King. And with the announced execution of Trolli, and all the Bishops who had dared entering his realm and the followers of White Christ they had captured on their great sacks, he would show that he was truly commited to the cause of protecting Norsedom - and to satisfy the bloodlust of his vassals. Hrafn quickly set up an example by personally performing the blood eagle on his own brother. Trolli begged for his life, like when a dog begs to not put it out. Hrafn did not hesitate. He said these exact words: "Trolli, son of the Eternal King Hávarðr, you have brought shame upon his name and your kin. You sought to end our way of live, you sought to turn all of Norway into a puppet of thise Pope of yours. But I know, deep down in your wretched soul, you can still call yourself a man and not whatever you have become. You have indeed fought bravely in battle. It would be a shame if you could not enter Valhall. I wil therefore perform the blood eagle ritual on you, and hope that Odin and my father will accept my offer". Hrafn then proceeded to cut the victim open from the back, cut the ribs from their spine, and break them so they resembled the blood stained wings. Then he pulled the lungs out through the wounds in the victims back and sprinkle salt in the wounds. The screams and pleads of Trolli could be heared all the way to Rurik in the east. But no one pitied him, no one had second thoughts about doing this, he had chosen this himself. Where he could have ruled as a twin king with Hrafn, he instead followed the path of corruption. Trolli was now sacrificed to the gods, along with the rest of his followers. He had lived like a pig, and died like a screaming pig. And more importantly, Hrafn had expelled Trolli the Cruel from Middle Eart - never more would he spread evil on the mortal realm.
Hrafn gets maimed, but continues the fight. To the right one of the many battles.
After this bloody fest, Hrafn left Norway with Klas the Heir of Sweden. They set course for Ireland, and more specifically the Earldoms of Leinster, Orvod and Desmond
2. These three Earldoms would be perfect to consolidate their powerbase in the Irish Sea, as well as raiding bases into Scotland and Mercia, and to conquer the rest of Ireland. Initially they were met with hig resitance. All of Ireland and the Cornish people came to their aid, and attacked the Norse invaders in Leinster, aswell as invading Wessex with an army of over 2000 men. They would prove to be no match for the deadly Norse warriors. They were quickly overwhelmed by them. It was at home trouble was brewing yet again. Tordr had grown furios over not becoming a Jarl as promised, and swore to the Thunderer
3 that he would kill the line of Hávarðr, become King of Norway or die trying. Even with the successfull battles and the fact that they occupied the Earldom of Leinster, Hrafn's pack had to fall back to Norway. He fought several harsh battles, Hrafn had become used to the mild climate and the so called "warriors" who fought like women. This time he faced against the fury of the Norwegian winter and fierce Norwegian warriors. It would take almost 3 winters before the rebellors had been dealt with. It lead to Tordr, the Hero of Trondheim, getting captured and had to give up all his claims and domains. The holy site of Nidaros was once again under the direct rule of the line of Hávarðr. In 910 Hrafn returned back to Eire.
Unfortunately for him, the third Norwegian civil war would mean that the so called warriors could regroup and re-reaise their armies. Hrafn had only the remainder of his forces left. He would meet an army of 1269 men, but as he remarked they must have the peasant girls of Ireland they sent agains them. As the Norwegians slayed every single of these warriors, only at the cost of 69 Norse warriors. This was truly a glorious day, and songs about this day are still sung today. I even think I heard some of you sing it earlier today. In 911 during the second battle over the control of Desmon, Hrafn would not be so lucky. As he led his forces to meet the joke of an army, a lone Celtic warrior thrusted his sword into Hrafn's right chest. Legend has it Hrafn tore of his own arm, and beat the sadistic Celt to the death with his arm. He would continue to lead his forces, and continue to fight - even if his right arm was no more. One commander, one who had served with Hávarðr since the Great Norwegian Army, said that he had not seen such bravery and such courage in no other than Hávarðr. Hrafn was truly living up to his line, Hrafn had now become a true warrior, and gone away from the vicious ways of Loke, and opened up to the path of the Warrior, the path to Valhall! In the following year all of the Celtic foces had been dealth with, and the previous Earldoms were now given Norse names and became chiefdoms. He also delegated these new colonies to the bravest warriors during his campaign, and created the Jarldom of Hlymele
4 and handed it over to a giant of a man.
Tyr, the god of war, before getting his arm bit off by the Fenrir wolf.
Many started to say that Hrafn was indeed the avatar of Tyr. That Tyr had possesed his body and saved the Norse from White Christ and waged war. And like Tyr, Hrafn had given away his arm. He came home a truly prestigious leader. He would also enjoy the spoils of war as he know took the Princess of Scotland and the Princess of West-Frankia as his concubines. He returned home in 912. And his masterplan resulted in something unforseen. In Sweden, the newly crowned King Klas, who had campaigned in Eire with Hrafn, had tried to conquer norhtern Eire for himself. This lead to Klas getting killed by the hands of Celts. One can only wonder what went through the head of Hrafn. Afterall Klas had been a great warrior, and a great companion and friend. This must truly have saddened him. But let us not remember that he was known to be a former Loki worshipper. King Klas only left behind one child, a little girl. Furthermore it was now Queen Mother Skuld, Hrafn's sister, who acted as the regent of Sweden. Even better her child was in their dynasty, that would mean Sweden would be ruled by the Kin of Hrafn. Hrafn quickly arranged a betrothal between his son Hávarðr and the Queen of Sweden. This would further secure their control over Sweden.
Northern Europe at the time of the death of Hrafn I.
Hrafn I. would however not be able to live at peace. He would not be able to fullfill his goal of becoming High King of the Irish. He would die of his battle wounds, made worse by the fact that he also joined several wars on the sides of the Swedes, Danes and the Kin of Rurik. From when he ascended to the throne of Norway in 904 after the battle of Phillipolis, he reigned until April of 913. He had reigned 9 years of constant war, and constant conflict. But during his reign, he stopped the civil wars, tempoairly, cast the followers of White Christ out of Norway and opened their backs to make a blood eagle. He even expanded the Norwegian Kingdom to the south of Eire, and helped the Danes in their subjucation of the Finns, Sweden from falling apart and Rurik from not being overrun by the ungrateful native Russians. Where Hávarðr I. had created the Kingdom and expanded it, Hrafn I. the One-Armed had truly preserved his father Kingdom, and even helped the other Kingdoms of falling apart. 41 years old he left the world and ascended to the Halls, and sat down beside his father Hávarðr and brother Styrkir who had fallen in battle as him. The eyes were now turned to the name heir of the Eternal King. Hávarðr II. was only 12 years old when he became King of Norway, and as his promised wife, Queen of Sweden he were not fit to reign, but needed a Regent. Unlike Sweden however, Norway could not have the Queen Mother to reign in his place, but had to rely on an ambitious Regent who only cared about himself, and dark times was falling over Norway. And they were foreseen by the fall of the Danes, everywhere peasants, nobles or ungrateful Finns were rising up agains them. The Kingdom of Rurik would also fall, as the Slavic people would rise up against their masters and form the Kingdom of Novgorod. Soon this same Darkness would come over the Way to North
5 too - and it started with Agder passing over to the Kingdom of Kent who were constantly under the attack of Christianity.
1: Geats and Sveas were the tribes inhabitating Sweden.
2: South-Eastern Ireland.
3: Thor, the god of thunder.
4: Duchy of Munster.
5: Norway means something like Way to the North.
. Incidentally, I live less than five minutes away from those ruins you posted - so looks like I'll have been murdered in the Norwegian raid. !!
