IN the autumn the remnants of King Magnus’s army and fleet left the island of Man, and with his thirteen year old son, Sigurd, returned to Norway. On their arrival in Norway, Sigurd and his two brothers, Eystein and Olaf, were proclaimed kings. Eystein, who was fourteen years old, was to have the northern, and Sigurd the southern, part of the country. Olaf was then four or five years old, and his third part of the country remained under the control of his two brothers.

When the three sons of Magnus Barefoot had been chosen kings of Norway, several of those who had been away taking part in the crusades returned home. They had made themselves renowned, and had many things to relate. Some had been to Jerusalem and some to Constantinople, and it was said that those who would enter the military service at Constantinople had the best of opportunities to earn great money. By these extraordinary tidings many of the Northmen were seized by a desire to make similar expeditions, and they asked of the two kings that one of them should place himself at the head of such an expedition. The kings agreed to this, and had the preparations made at their common expense. Many of the great men in the country took part in this enterprise, and when all was ready it was decided that Sigurd was to go with the crusade, while Eystein was to stay at home and govern the country for their joint account.

Four years after the fall of King Magnus (1107), King Sigurd sailed from Norway with sixty ships. He first visited the king of England, Henry I., and remained with him during the winter. In the spring he sailed with his fleet to Valland (the west of France), and in the fall came to Galicia, Spain, where he stayed the second winter. Along the coast he had several battles with the heathens. At the Straits of Gibraltar he defeated a large viking force, and on the island of Forminterra, east of Spain, he exterminated a band of Moorish brigands and took a great booty. After similar victories on the islands of Ivica and Minorca, he came to Sicily, where he was very well received by Duke Roger. It is stated in the saga that King Sigurd, during his stay in Sicily, conferred upon Duke Roger the title of king, though with what right he did so does not appear, nor is it mentioned by contemporary historians.

In the summer King Sigurd sailed to Palestine, and at Acre met Baldwin, king of Palestine, who received him particularly well, accompanied him to Jerusalem and showed him the holy sepulchre and other sacred places. They also rode to the river Jordan and bathed in it, and then returned to Jerusalem. King Baldwin and the patriarch of Jerusalem presented Sigurd with a splinter of the holy cross, with the condition that he, and twelve other men with him, should swear to promote Christianity with all their power, and erect an archbishop’s seat in Norway if possible, and the splinter was to be kept where the holy king Olaf reposed. Thereupon King Sigurd with his fleet assisted King Baldwin in capturing the town of Sidon, Syria, and received his share of a great booty. He then proceeded to Constantinople, and was received in the grandest style by Emperor Alexius. After having stayed here for some time and enjoyed the great festivities given in his honor, King Sigurd made preparations for his return home. He gave the emperor all his ships, and the valuable dragon head which had adorned his own ship was set up in the Sophia church. The emperor gave him horses and guides to conduct him through his dominions. Leaving quite a number of his men, who went into the service of the emperor, King Sigurd started homeward on horseback through Bulgaria, Hungary and Germany. When in the midsummer of 1111 he came to Schleswig in Denmark, Earl Eilif gave him a magnificent reception. Here he also met the Danish king Nils, who had married his stepmother, Margaret Fridkolla. King Nils accompanied him north to Jutland, and gave him a ship provided with everything needful. He then returned to Norway, where he was joyfully received by his people. He had been absent three years and a half, and all agreed that no one had ever made a more honorable expedition from Norway. From this day he was given the surname Jorsalfar, i.e., the Crusader.

While King Sigurd was attaining fame on his journeys far away from his country, King Eystein was occupied with peaceful achievements at home. A great deal was done for the real benefit of the country, and under his wise government Norway made progress in the same way that it had done in the time of his grandfather Olaf Kyrre. He improved the laws, built churches and monasteries, made harbors, and established beacon lights. On the mountain of Dovre he built cabins, where travellers could find shelter. In Bergen he built the monastery at Nordnes, Michael’s Church, the Church of the Apostles, and the great king’s hall. In Nidaros he built the Church of St. Nikolas. He also built a Church at Throndenes in Halogaland. King Eystein also extended the limits of the country, not by warfare and bloodshed, but by peaceful negotiations. Thus he gained the allegiance of the inhabitants of the Swedish province Jemteland, which was formerly a Norwegian province, but was taken by Sweden after the fall of Olaf Trygvason.

King Olaf was taken sick and died before he reached manhood, and it seems to have been only in name that he had any share in the government. The relation between Eystein and Sigurd was not always the most cordial, and Sigurd was usually to blame for it. The winter of 1112-13 King Eystein spent most of the time at Sarpsborg. There lived at that time at Mikle-Dal in Aamord a rich and influential man called Olaf of Dal. He spent a good part of the winter at Sarpsborg with his daughter Borghild, a very handsome and accomplished girl. Borghild and King Eystein often met, and the king found great pleasure in conversing with her. The people began to talk about this friendship, and King Sigurd, who was then at Konghelle, also heard of the girl that his brother had taken a liking to. When Borghild heard it whispered that people talked ill of her intimacy with King Eystein, she took it much to heart. When Eystein had gone north she went to Sarpsborg, and, after suitable fasts, carried red-hot irons to prove her innocence, endured the test, and thus cleared herself from all offence. Sigurd then rode over to her home, where he remained all night, made Borghild his concubine and took her away with him. They had a son, who was called Magnus, and was immediately sent to Halogaland to be fostered by Vidkun Jonson of Biarkey.

The relation between the brothers remained strained as long as they both were kings, but it never came to a breach of peace. Occasionally they even peacefully met as each other’s guests. On one of these occasions, when the two kings were feasting together at one of Eystein’s estates, they had what was called a “man-measuring,” or comparison of merits. The saga says that in the evening, when the people began to drink, the ale was not good, so that the guests were very quiet and still. Then said King Eystein: “Why are the people so silent? It is more proper in parties that people are merry, so let us find some jest over our ale that will amuse us; for surely, brother Sigurd, all will like to see us happy.”

Sigurd replied, rather bluntly: “Do you talk as much as you please, but give me leave to be silent.”

Eystein said: “It is a common custom over the ale-table for one person to compare himself with another, and now let us do so.” Sigurd did not answer.

“I see,” said Eystein, “that I will have to begin this amusement, and I will take thee, brother, to compare myself with; we are both kings, have equal property, and there is no difference in our birth.”

Sigurd then said: “Dost thou remember that I could always throw thee when we wrestled, although thou art a year older?”

Eystein: “But I remember also that I was better at the games which require limberness.”

Sigurd: “But how was it when we were swimming? I could duck thee whenever I wanted to.”

Eystein: “But I could swim as far as thou, and could dive as well; and I could run on ice-legs10 so well that nobody could beat me, while thou couldst no more do it than a cow.”

Sigurd: “I consider it a more useful and suitable accomplishment for a chief to be an expert at his bow; but I think thou couldst hardly draw my bow, even with the help of the foot.”

Eystein: “I am not as strong at the bow as thou art, but my aim is as good; and I can run on skis11 much better than thou, and that is usually held a great accomplishment.”

Sigurd: “It is much better for a chief who is to be the superior of other men that he is conspicuous in a crowd, and strong and powerful in weapons above other men.”

Eystein: “It is just as well to be handsome, so as to be easily known from others on that account; and this behooves a chief, as a fair face and fine clothes go well together. I am also better versed in law than thou, and can speak better.”

Sigurd: “It may be that thou hast learned more law-quirks than I, for I have had something else to do; neither will any one deny thee a smooth tongue. But many say that thy words are not to be trusted; that thy promises are not kept, and that thou talkest according to what those who are about thee say, which is not kingly.”

Eystein: “Often I promise what people ask of me, as I like to have all be joyful about me, and it happens that conflicting interests afterward appear, which must be considered. But thou mostly promisest people what is evil, and no one is pleased because thy promises are kept.”

Sigurd: “All say that the expedition I made out of the country was a princely expedition, while thou wert sitting at home like thy father’s daughter.”

Eystein: “Now thou hast touched the tender spot, and I would not have brought up this conversation if I had not known what to reply on this point. I think I equipped thee from home for this expedition like a sister.”

Sigurd: “Thou must have heard that I was in many battles in the Saracen’s land, and gained victory in all. I brought to this country many valuables, the like of which had never been seen here before. I became acquainted with great men, and was respected by them. I went to the Saviour’s grave, and saw thee not there. I went to the river Jordan, in which the Lord was baptized, and I swam across, but I saw thee not there. On the edge of the river there is a bush of willows, and there I twisted a knot of willows, and said that this knot thou shouldst untie, brother, or take the curse thereto attached.”

Then King Eystein said: “I have heard that thou hast had some battles abroad, but it was more useful for the country what I was doing here at home. North in Vaagen (Lofoten) I put up booths, so that the poor fishermen could find shelter; I also had a church built there, appointed a priest, and gave land for the support of the church; before that, they were nearly all heathens there. These people will remember that Eystein was king in Norway. Across the Dovre Mountain lay the road from Throndhjem. Formerly many froze to death, and all suffered hardships on the journey; but I built a mountain inn and endowed it with property. Those who hereafter travel there will remember that Eystein was king in Norway. Off Agdanes there were breakers and shoals and no harbor, so that many ships were wrecked; now there is a good harbor and good anchorage for the ships, and a church has also been built there. I had war-signals erected on the highest mountains, which is of benefit to all who live in the interior. I built the royal hall in Bergen and the Apostles’ Church and a covered passage between them. The kings who succeed us will remember my name. I built St. Michael’s Church at Nordnes (in Bergen) and the monastery Munkeliv at the same place. I improved the laws, brother, so that everybody could deal justly with his neighbor, and if the laws are upheld the government will be better. More by gentle words and wise dealings than by violence and breach of peace did I succeed in making the inhabitants of Jemteland subjects of this kingdom. All these things may be considered small matters, but they will benefit the people of the country more than the fact that thou hast butchered bluemen in Serkland for the devil and hurled them into hell. And if thou didst tie a knot for me, I will not untie it; but I think that if I had been inclined to tie a knot for thee, I could have tied such a knot that thou wouldst not have been king of Norway on thy return to this country with but a single ship.”

This was the end of the “man-measuring.” There was silence in the hall, and both kings were very angry. Several other incidents are recorded, which show the jealousy that existed between the kings. However, peace was preserved between them as long as they lived.

Six years after his brother Olaf’s death, King Eystein was taken suddenly sick and died at the age of thirty-three, August 29, 1122. He was buried in Christ Church in Nidaros, and it is said that so many mourners had never stood over any man’s grave in Norway since the death of King Magnus the Good.

Sigurd was now sole king of Norway and free from the restraint which the pacific disposition of the popular Eystein had placed upon him. Shortly after the death of Eystein, King Sigurd entered into an agreement with the Danish king Nils Sveinson, who had married his stepmother, Margaret Fridkolla. They agreed upon a joint invasion of Sweden. The real motive was probably to secure this kingdom, which was at the time torn by internal strifes, for Margaret’s son Magnus Nilson; but the avowed purpose was to christianize the inhabitants of the Swedish province of Smaaland, where paganism still lingered. The two kings were to meet with their armies at Oeresund. King Sigurd collected a fleet of about three hundred and sixty ships and proceeded to the meeting-place; but through some mistake the Danish army had already returned home. King Sigurd held a council with his men, at which they spoke of King Nils’ breach of faith and determined to take revenge by plundering his country. They first plundered the town of Tumartorp, and then sailed east to the merchant town Kalmar, which they attacked. They plundered in the province of Smaaland, compelled the people to accept Christianity, and imposed on the country a tribute of 1,800 cattle. After this King Sigurd returned to Norway with a great booty. This expedition was called the Kalmar levy, and was the only levy Sigurd carried out while he was sole king.

During the later years of his reign, King Sigurd was often violent and showed unmistakable signs of insanity. One Whit-Sunday he sat in his high-seat with Queen Malmfrid at his side, and in his hand he held the holy book, written in gilded letters, which he had brought with him from Constantinople. On the benches were seated many friends and guests. Then the king suddenly got one of his attacks. He rolled his eyes and looked all around him, and then said: “Many are the changes which may take place during a man’s lifetime. Two things were dearer to me than anything else, namely, this book and the queen; and now it is quite different. The queen does not know herself how hideous she is; for a goat’s horn is standing out of her head. And this book is good for nothing.” Thereupon he threw the book on the fire which was burning on the floor, and gave the queen a blow with his fist between the eyes.

Before the king stood the young taper-bearer, Ottar Birting, who was on duty that day. He was of small stature, but of agreeable appearance, lively and bold. His surname Birting had been given him on account of his black hair and dark complexion. He sprang forward and snatched the book from the fire, held it out, and said: “Yes, sire, different were the days when you came with great state and splendor to Norway, and all your friends hastened to welcome you. Now days of sorrow have come over us; for to this holy festival many of your friends have come, and cannot be cheerful on account of your sad condition. Now, good king, follow my advice! Make peace first with the queen, whom you have so highly affronted, and then gladden by gentleness all your chiefs, friends, and servants.” “What?” cried King Sigurd. “Dost thou dare to give me advice, thou black churl, thou great lump of a houseman’s lad!” And he sprang up, drew his sword, and swung it, as if going to cut him down. But Ottar stood quiet and upright, and looked the king straight in his face. The king turned round the sword-blade, and gently touched Ottar on the shoulder with it. Then he sat down in silence on his high-seat. All were silent, for nobody dared to utter a word. In a little while the king had quieted down. He then rebuked his liegemen for not having stopped his insane acts, and thanked Ottar for what he had done. He concluded his speech by making Ottar a liegeman, and said: “Go thou now and sit among the lendermen, and be a servant no longer.”

Ottar Birting became in later years one of the most celebrated men in Norway.

A few years before his death King Sigurd, in spite of the strong protest of Bishop Magne, discarded Queen Malmfrid, and married a beautiful and high-born woman, named Cecilia. The last winter of his life King Sigurd spent in Oslo. In the spring he was taken violently sick. His friends saw in this the punishment of Heaven for his improper marriage, and urged him to dissolve it; but he loved Cecilia too dearly to acquiesce in this. At last, she herself suggested a separation. “I did not know that thou, too, wouldst leave me like the others,” said the king sadly. He grew gradually worse after this, and on March 26, 1130, he died, forty years old. His body was deposited in a vault in St. Halvard’s Church. According to the saga, “the time of his reign was good for the country, for there was peace, and crops were good.”