Treść książki
Przejdź do opcji czytnikaPrzejdź do nawigacjiPrzejdź do informacjiPrzejdź do stopki
Conversion,Things,andVikingKings
15
king.7Someyearsago,BritSollidiscoveredtwoenclosuresthatwereChristian
churchyardsontheislandofVeoyintheRomsdalsfiord,closetothecoastal
areasofTrondelag.Thegravescontainedeast-westorientedinhumationsand
remainsofwoodencoffinsdatingbacktothemid-tenthcentury.8Whenthe
Englishclergyarrived,somewherealongthecoastofMoreandRomsdal,Hdkon
wantedthegospelpreached.Heimskringlainformsthatthematterwasfinally
referredtotheFrostathingassembly,wheretheking’sdemandthatpeoplebe
baptisedandrelinquishtheirpaganfaithandriteswasstronglyopposed.Before
theassemblydissolved,thekingwastoldtoshowmoderation,oranotherruler
wouldbechosen.9JarlSigurlrintervenedandadvisedthekingthatheshould
trytoaccommodatehissubjects,andhealsotoldtheassemblythattheking
intendedtoagreewiththemandletnothingcomebetweentheirmutualfriend-
ships.Thejarl’sspeechhadacalmingeffect;thepeopleexpressedthatthey
merelywantedthekingtosacrificesotheycouldhavegoodcropsandpeace,
andthereupontheassemblyended.10
Thefollowingwinter,aYulefeastwaspreparedatMæreininnerTrondelag,
andanassemblywasalsoheldonthisoccasion.Inadvance,thechieftainswho
controlledthecultatMære,decidedtheywouldforcethekingtosacrifice.
Again,jarlSigurlractedasamediator.Thekingateafewbitsofhorseliver,
andhedrankthetoastspouredforhimwithoutmakingthesignofthecross.11
OnsomeimportantpointsFagrskinna,anotherone(manuscript)ofthekings’
sagas,presentsadditionalinformationnotfoundinHeimskringla.Itreportsthat,
atthe“greatassembly”atMære,KingHdkonhadtwooptions:eithersacrifice
accordingtocustom,orelsebedrivenfromhiskingdom.KingHdkon’sfriends
persuadedhimtopartakeinthesacrifice“sothattheheathenworshippers
wouldnotconsiderhimresponsibleforthedownfallofthelaw.”Threatsof
beingchasedawayfromthekingdomwereprobablymorethanemptywords.
AccordingtotheOldLawoftheFrostathing(sectionIV
,par.50),thepeople
hadarighttodeposeunrulykings.12Akingwouldhardlyhaveinitiatedthe
codificationofsucharule,andalreadyintheearlyeleventhcentury,itwas
7F.Birkeli,TolvvintrehaddekristendommenværtiNorge(Oslo1995).
8B.Solli,“NarrativesofEncounteringReligions.OntheChristianizationoftheNorse
aroundAD900-1000,”NorwegianArchaeologicalReview,vol.29(1996),89-114.
9HeimskringlaI,169-70.
10Ibid.,170-71.
11Ibid.,172-73.HorsesplayedasignificantpartinthepaganScandinavian(andGermanic)
cultrites;seeA.Sanmark,PowerandConversion-AComparativeStudyofChristianizationin
Scandinavia(Uppsala2004),218-27.SanmarkalsonotesthataftertheconversionofNorway,
theeatingofhorse-meatwassingledoutasparticularlyreprehensibleanditentailedsevere
punishments.
12R.KeyserandP.A.Munch,NorgesGamleLoveindtil1387,vol.1(Christiania1846),
172-73.
