Norway 4: Eirik Bloodaxe, Hakon the Good, Greycloak and Earl Hakon Flashcards
(34 cards)
Why was Eirik forced to leave Norway after two years of his rule?
He came into conflict with Sigurð Hakonarsson, earl of Lade
936…?
Harald Bluetooth becomes king of Denmark
Why did Eirik Bloodaxe come into conflict with Sigurð Hakonarsson, earl of Lade
Sigurth was Fairhair’s brother-in-law and no doubt felt entitled to a special relationship with Harald’s successor as they would rely on him for control of Trondelag and the North, just as Harald had relied on the first earl of Lade
It seems that Eirik did not agree that sigurth was that important and so sigurth began to explore other options i.e.. Hakon, who was being brought up in England
Main subheadings/ topics for the reign of Hakon the Good
1) Background and coming into power/ area of power
2) Military reform
3) Legal/ assembly reform
4) Hakon’s attempts to convert Norway/ chrisitanity
The extent of Hakon’s power on his accession…
Hakon had the same base of power in western Norway and from the beginning he had strong supper from his friend and ally, earl Sigurth of Lade.
In the north, Sigurth probably had all the power and Hakon was only king there in name.
What was Hakon’s relationship with the general Norwegian populace like?
He appears to have been a king who was sympathetic to the farmers and their leaders; his rule seems to have been a peaceful one and he appears to have been less harsh on the general populace than his father and brother; hence his nickname ‘the good’
What was the leiðang (3 points) ?
- Sagas talk of a naval levy system – A compulsory military service by the farmers
- It probably didn’t cover the entire country in the 10th century and was likely based in western Norway
- Areas were divided into skipreiður- a district obliged to supply a ship’s equipment and crew
What does the naval levy system represent?
An expansion of the farmer’s earlier customary obligation to help defend people in their districts
What happened in the mid- 10th c.
the assembly organisation of western Norway changed and it has been subject to much scholarly debate
What does Krag believe regarding Hakon’s role in the development of the assembly organisation?
Krag is cautious about the extent of Hakon’s involvement in the development of the assembly organisation, as states that the administration of justice was still something that was primarily the concern of the farmers themselves
What does Moseng believe regarding Hakon’s role in the development of the assembly organisation?
Moseng disagrees with Krag and says that Hakon was involved in the reform of the legal system and that he worked with the farmers to change it
He credits hakon with expanding the Frostathing an the Gulathing jurisdictions
What was Hakons major failure/ reform which did not succeed?
His attempt to introduce Christianity
Discuss Veøy
On the island of veøy excavations have uncovered a round churchyard with Christian burials dating from the 10th century i.e. during Hakon’s reign== earliest Christian site in Norway
But paganism was being practised at the same time in nearby areas
Consider the reigns of Harald Fairhair and Hakon the Good at higher levels of abstraction
When we consider the reigns of Harald Fairhair and Hakon the Good at higher levels of abstraction, we see a repetition in trends:
- expansion
- fracture
- retreat to the centres of power and then expand again
Unification in Harald’s reign and Hakons…
Harald’s rule can be called the external Unifciation and Hakons reforms and new institutions can be thought of as internal unification achieved by organisation rather than force
Battle at which Hakon the good was killed at Greycloack won
Erik’s son, Harald Greycloak, and his brothers wounded Hakon at the battle of Fitjar in 961 and Hakon died a few days later
Where was the centre of power in the Viking age in scandinavia and why was this?
The centre of Viking age power was Denmark
- It had a larger population
- a more strategic and easily controlled location
- Close contact with the Frankish empire ( which served as the model for much of 8th and 9th century state formation)
Why did Harald Bluetooth help Harald Greycloak and his brothers gain Norway? (2 reasons)
- he did not want them to stay in Denmark forever- they could have thought about claiming the danish throne for themselves
- meant he could claim overlordship of coastal norway
Other than Hakon the good, who else did Greycloak kill when he became king and why
Earl Sigurð of Lade
He had been Hakon’s biggest ally
In gaining northern Norway and Trondelag upon his death, Greycloak reached a new milestone in the Unification of Norway
After Greycloak became king, why did Bluetooth begin to distrust him?
he controlled so much of Norway that he was in a position to end denmark’s overlordship and Norway’s subservience
What was Greycloak doing before he became king
he had spent some time in England and thus would have been christian as he would have had to convert either in England or when he was in Denmark
What did Bluetooth do about the threat to his power that Greycloak now posed?
Bluetooth began to plot with Hakon Sigurðson , the son of the killed Earl Sigurð of Lade who had gone to Denmark after his father had been killed and Bluetooth promised him he would be an earl of norway as his father had been
How did Greycloak die
According to a contemporary poem, Earl hakon avenged his father’s death by killing Greycloak at the battle of Limfjord in Denmark, c.970
What happened in 974 and what was the result of this
Earl Hakon was forcibly baptised in Germany after fighting for Blueooth and losing in Germany
After Hakon finally got back to Norway he and Harald had developed their own animosity
