medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Dear Brenda,
WHile Olaf Tryggvason undoubtedly deserved to be better
known, he is not St. Olaf, Olaf Haraldsson, who lived about
a generation later (995-1030.) some traditions have the
former olaf baptize the latter, but this is probably
wishful thinking. Olaf Tryggvason was, however, indirectly
responsible for converting the Icelanders (as one story has
it, he held the sons of several noble families hostage until
the faith was adopted at the national assembly).
However, the earliest and most reliable account of this
event can be found in the Book of The Icelanders by
Ari Thorgilsson, Islandica 20 Ithaca: Cornell University Press 1930.
the accounts in Njals saga and Laxdaela saga, to say
nothing of Kristni saga, are late and unreliable.
Back to Olaf Tryggvason, although the means he used
to obtain the conversion of the various atlantic
islands were dubious, to say the least (my favorite
episode - in a saga which, like those above, must
be taken with several grains of salt - has him
holding the son of the jarl of orkney over the
gunwale of the boat with a sword at his throat,
asking his father whether he doesnt think it
would be a good idea to hve the boy (and
everyone else) baptized -
Icelanders appear to have thought a lot of him for
bringing about their "conversion" a good 25 years
BEFORE St. Olaf (haraldsson) did the same for norwway.
it has been proposed that they wanted him as
their patron saint, but were never able to
get a cultus off the ground. (he died at sea -
no relics!)
Meg
>medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
>Those of us who have read that justly renowned Anglo-Saxon epic The Battle
>of Maldon - the A-S = of Thermopyle - may not have appreciated that the
>leader of the Vikings on that memorable day in 991 AD was one Anlaf
>Tryggvason. He continued raiding England until manoeuvred into diplomacy in
>994 by King Ethelred the Unready who sent Bishop AElfheath to convert him to
>Christianity. The English king then stood sponsor to him (= godfather) when
>he was Confirmed at Andover. Then - and this is a brilliant bit of diplomacy
>which made me totally revise my view of Ethelred who has had a bad press up
>to date - he suggested that Anlaf should cease harrying the English who were
>now his fellow-Christians, but return to Norway and use his military gifts
>to claim the pagan Vikings for the Faith. Which Anlaf (aka St Olaf) duly
>did.
>My Norwegian friends tell me that such an impression did Olaf make on Norway
>as both Saint and King, that after his death he was held to be the Eternal
>King of Norway. All subsequent monarchs of Norway up to the Reformation were
>deemed to be the vassal of St Olaf and to swear allegiance to him at their
>coronation ceremony.
>Brenda M. C.
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Margaret Cormack [log in to unmask]
Dept. of Philosophy and Religion fax: 843-953-6388
College of Charleston tel: 843-953-8033
Charleston, SC 29424-0001
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