his death, assigning Eiríkr blóðøx (“blood-axe”) to be
high king. While this account is not likely to be accurate,
the sons certainly all believed themselves entitled to the
dignity of king. Upon Haraldr’s death, his sons sought
power in various of the petty kingdoms their father had
controlled. Any governmental reforms he made col-
lapsed with the end of his personal rule.
Further Reading
Editions
Bjarni Aðalbjamarson, ed. “Haralds saga inshárfagra.” In Heim-
skringla. 3 vols. Íslenzk fornrit, 26–8. Reykjavik: Hið íslenzka
fornritafélag, 1941–51, vol. 1, pp. 94–149.
Guðbrandr Vigfússon and C.R. Unger, eds. “Haralds Þáttr hárf-
agra.” In Flatelyarbok. En Samling af norske Konge-Sagaer
med indskudte mindre Fortællinger om Begivenheder i og
undenfor Norge samt Annaler. 3 vols. Christiania [Oslo]:
Malling, 1860–68, vol. 1. pp. 567–76.
Sigurður Nordal, ed. Egils saga Skalla-Grímssonar. Íslenzk
fornrit, 2. Reykavik: Hið íslenzka fornritafélag, 1933.
Storm, Gustav, ed. Monumenta historiae norvegiae: latinske
kildeskrifter til Noregs historie i middelalderen. Christiania
[Oslo]: Brögger, 1880.
Translations
Hermann Palsson and Paul Edwards, trans. Egil’s Saga. Har-
mondsworth: Penguin, 1976.
Hollander, Lee M., trans., Heimskringla: History of the Kings of
Norway. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1964, pp. 59–95.
Literature
Andersen, Per Sveaas. Samlingen av Norge og kristningen av
landet 800–1130. Handbok i Norges historie, 2. Bergen:
Universitetsforlaget, 1977.
Andersson, Theodore M. “Kings’ Sagas (Konungasögur).” In
Old Norse–Icelandic Literature: A Critical Guide. Ed. Carol
J. Clover and John Lindow. Islandica, 45. Ithaca and London:
Cornell University Press, 1985.
Berman, Melissa A. “Egils saga and Heimskringla.” Scandina-
vian Studies 54 ( 1982 ), 21–50.
Bjami Aðalbjarnarson. “Formáli.” In Heimskringla, vol. 1
Campbell, Alistair. “The Opponents of Haraldr Hárfagri at
Hafrsfj ro ̨ðr.” Saga-Book of the Viking Socacy 12.4(1942),
232–7.
Gunnes, Erik. Rikssamling og kristning 800–1177. Oslo: Cap-
pelen, 1976.
Holmsen, Andreas. Nye studier i gammel historie Oslo: Univer-
sitetsforlaget, 1976.
Jones, Gwyn. A History of the Vikings. 2nd ed. Oxford and New
York: Oxford University Press, 1984.
Ólafía Einarsdóttir. “Dateringen af Harald hårfagers død.” His-
torisk tidsskrift (Norway) 47 (1968). 15–34.
Sawyer, P. H. “Harald Fairhair and the British Isles.” In Les Vi-
kings et leur civilisation: problèmes actuels. Ed. Régis Boyer.
École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Bibliothèque
Arctique et Antarctique, 5. Paris and La Haye: Mouton, 1976,
pp. 105–9.
Ruth Mazo Karras
HAROLD GODWINSON (ca. 1020–1066)
On 14 October 1066 Harold Godwinson, the last Saxon
king of England, lay dead on the fi eld of Battle, near
Hastings in Kent. The hopes of his family to create a
royal dynasty were dashed, the fortunes and lives of his
supporters wasted in what may have been as audacious a
bid for royal power as that of William the Conqueror.
Harold had been opposed by several contenders for
the throne after the death of Edward the Confessor in
January 1066 and had defeated them all, including his
brother Tostig and Tostig’s ally, King Harald of Nor-
way, at the Battle of Stam ford Bridge in late September- The decision to under take a forced march from
Stamford, near York, to Hastings, where William waited
with his continental army, is often seen as a move made
in desperation; it is likely that Harold was confi dent of
victory or, at the very least, of a temporary repulse of
William.
William’s success has dominated the history of late
Anglo-Saxon times. It is often forgotten that Harold,
formerly earl of Wessex, had been king for nearly a
year. The short duration of his reign means that little
was written about it, or about Harold’s character, by the
historians of the day. William of Poitiers, who wrote his
Gesta Guillelmi ducis Normannorum et regis Anglorum
in the 1070s, describes Harold as brave, am bitious, and
clever, but an unwise dispenser of patronage. The Eng-
lish author of the Vita Aedwardi regis is more enthusi-
astic; Harold “was a true friend of his race and country,
he wielded his father’s powers even more actively, and
walked in his ways, that is, in patience and mercy, and
with kindness to men of good will.” It is not entirely
surprising that legends of Harold’s survival after Hast-
ings circulated for some years af ter the battle.
Harold was 27 when he inherited the earldom of Wes-
sex on Godwin’s death in 1053. Harold and his brothers
Leofwine, Gyrth, and Tostig controlled, as earls, all of
southern England, including East Anglia and even a part
of Northumbria. Harold and Tostig were successful in
England’s defense against Welsh and Scottish forces,
and both won Edward’s gratitude. But it was to Harold
that the dying king commended his wife (Harold’s sister
Edith) and kingdom in January 1066.
Harold had held a special position at court, referred
to as Edward’s governor by the Vita Aedwardi regis, and
in 1064 or 1065 royal ambassador to Normandy. This
visit, at which Harold presumably promised to sup-
port William’s claim to the English throne, is recorded
mainly in pro-Norman sources; the story is diffi cult to
reconcile with the silence of Anglo-Saxon writers on
the subject. The Vita Aedwardi hints of the visit, but
the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle does not refer to it. Harold
clearly believed, at Stamford Bridge and Hastings, that
he was defend ing England from its enemies, not that he
was asserting a doubtful claim.
It is possible that the Confessor may have fed the
hopes of several contenders with hints of a future be-
HARALDR HÁRFAGRI HÁLFDANARSON