The 12th century was a
tumultuous year for the nobles of Orkney. At the beginning of the century, King
Magnus III “Barefoot” reasserted the power of the Norwegian crown over the
islands, yet, upon his death in 1103, the jarls of Orkney regained some of
their autonomy. The Heimskringla of
Snorri Sturluson (c. 1179-1241) and the anonymous Orkneyinga Saga (published around 1200) provided names of the jarls
who were said to have ruled Orkney before and after Magnus. According to those
aforementioned sources, the sons of the late King Magnus III appointed a
certain Jarl Hakon Paulsson to rule in Orkney. Jarl Hakon was said to have
executed his cousin, Saint Magnus, in 1117 in order to maintain sole rule over
the islands. Not long after that event, Jarl Hakon died and power in Orkney
passed to his two sons, Harald Smooth-Tongue and Paul (or Pál) the Silent. Yet,
like their father, the siblings were not keen on sharing power.
Harald
and Paul were apparently half-brothers, and while Paul’s mother remains
unknown, the Orkneyinga Saga did name
Harald Smooth-Tongue’s supposed mother. Harald was said to have been born to
Helga Moddansdottir, a woman from a prominent family in Caithness, Scotland. Helga
reportedly had a sister named Frakokk, who was said to have traveled to Orkney
sometime after King David I became king of the Scots in 1124. Frakokk joined
Helga in the court of Jarl Harald Smooth-Tongue, and, according to the Orkneyinga Saga, Harald put great trust
in their counsel.
Around
the time of Frakokk’s supposed arrival in Orkney, the divide between Jarl
Harald and Jarl Paul was reaching a breaking point. One of Paul’s staunchest
allies, Thorkel Sumarlidason, was reportedly assassinated and the rival factions
of the jarls were nearing open war. Peace, however, was said to have been
maintained by mutual friends of the two rulers. The jarls even allegedly
pledged to work on improving their sibling relationship by spending Christmases
together.
During
an unknown year, Harald Smooth-Tongue reportedly announced that he would host a
Christmas feast on his estate at Ophir and that Jarl Paul was invited. Harald’s
mother, Helga, and his aunt, Frakokk, were allegedly still present in Orkney at
the time and, according to the Orkneyinga
Saga, they spent the days leading up to Christmas by feverishly sewing a
magnificent snow-white robe, which was lined with golden thread. As the story
goes, this was a special gift that they wanted to present to a certain rival jarl
during the upcoming Christmas feast.
In
a greatly embellished (or perhaps purely fictitious) section from the Orkneyinga Saga, Jarl Harald
Smooth-Tongue discovered the luxurious robe sometime after it was completed. He
asked his mother and aunt about the garment, and they quickly responded that it
was not for him, but for his brother, Paul. Yet, Harald coveted that white and
gold robe, and he was determined to wear it at all costs. The young jarl
haughtily marched over to the robe and began unfolding it, and would have completed
the task if his mother had not snatched the gift away. The Orkneyinga Saga continued the peculiar scene:
“The
Jarl snatched it back and was about to put it on when the sisters pulled off
their bonnets, tore their hair and said that if he put on the garment his life
would be at risk. Though they were both in tears he didn’t let that stop him,
but no sooner was the garment upon his back than his flesh began to quiver and
he began to suffer terrible agony. He had to go to bed and not long after that he
died” (Orkneyinga Saga, chapter 55).
And so died Jarl Harald
Smooth-Tongue, or, at least, that is how the Orkneyinga Saga portrayed his death. Whatever the case, whether the
jarl’s death was a nefarious plot gone wrong, an assassination, or simply of natural
causes, it followed that Jarl Paul the Silent emerged as the sole ruler of
Orkney. Yet, Paul similarly did not live happily ever after. Around 1137, Paul
the Silent mysteriously disappeared and was succeeded by Rognvald Kali (read
about that HERE).
Written by C. Keith Hansley.
Picture Attribution: (A scene
of King Haakon the Good of Norway by Peter Nicolai Arbo (1831–1892), [Public
Domain] via Creative Commons).
Sources:
- Orkneyinga Saga, written anonymously approximately c. 1200, translated by Hermann Pálsson and Paul Edwards. New York: Penguin Classics, 1981.
- Heimskringla, by Snorri Sturluson and translated by Lee Hollander. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1964, 2018.
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Magnus-III
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-I
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