VSNR Publications

"The Viking Society for Northern Research is making virtually all its publications (and some other related items) from inception in 1893 to the present freely available on this website, though recent titles may not be released until three years from the date of publication."

http://vsnrweb-publications.org.uk/

"These digital versions are not intended to replace our printed publications, and titles currently in print will remain available to buy in book form as long as there is a demand for them (the list can be seen at www.vsnr.org/publications/ ). The digital versions are intended to make the range of our publications known to a wider public, and may be used for reference purposes, to evaluate books for purchase or for university courses and for private study. The copyright belongs either to the authors or to the Viking Society, as stated at the beginning of each work, and permission must be obtained from the Society to use downloaded versions either in whole or in part for any other purpose."

Morkinskinna

 “Morkinskinna is an Old Norse kings' saga, relating the history of Norwegian kings from approximately 1025 to 1157. The saga was written in Iceland around 1220, and has been preserved in a manuscript from around 1275. The name Morkinskinna means "mouldy parchment" and is originally the name of the manuscript book in which the saga has been preserved. The book itself, GKS 1009 fol, is currently in the Royal Danish Library in Copenhagen. It was brought to Denmark from Iceland by Þormóður Torfason (Tormod Torfæus) in 1662.
The saga starts in 1025 or 1026 and in its received form, ends suddenly in 1157, after the death of King Sigurðr II. Originally, the work may have been longer, possibly continuing until 1177, when the narratives of Fagrskinna and Heimskringla, which use Morkinskinna as one of their sources, end. Apart from giving the main saga, the text is lavishly interspersed with citations from skaldic verse (about 270 stanzas) and includes a number of short Icelandic tales known as þættir.“ [wiki]

Morkinskinna
edited by Carl Unger, 1867
Danish
https://archive.org/details/morkinskinna00unge

Fagrskinna

Fagrskinna  
edited by  Jonsson, Finnur, 1858
Danish

https://archive.org/details/fagrskinna00unkngoog/page/n4/mode/2up

“Fagrskinna is one of the kings' sagas, written around 1220. It takes its name from one of the manuscripts in which it was preserved, Fagrskinna meaning 'Fair Leather', i.e., 'Fair Parchment'. Fagrskinna proper was destroyed by fire, but copies of it and another vellum have been preserved.
An immediate source for the Heimskringla of Snorri Sturluson, Fagrskinna is a central text in the genre of kings' sagas. It contains a vernacular history of Norway from the ninth to the twelfth centuries, from the career of Halfdan the Black to the Battle of Re in 1177, and includes extensive citation of skaldic verses, some of them preserved nowhere else. It has a heavy emphasis on battles, such as the Battle of Hjörungavágr and the Battle of Svolder. The book is often thought to have been written in Norway, either by an Icelander or a Norwegian.” [wiki]
 

Fagrskinna
edited by Munch and Unger, 1847
Icelandic

https://archive.org/details/Fagrskinnakortfa001511452v0FaguReyk/page/n3/mode/2up

Stenton's William the Conqueror

William the Conqueror and the Rule of the Normans,

by Frank Merry Stenton.

1908 edition

From Project Gutenberg

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/59444

INTRODUCTION     1
 
CHAPTER I        THE MINORITY OF DUKE WILLIAM AND ITS RESULTS     63
 
CHAPTER II        REBELLION AND INVASION     96
 
CHAPTER III        THE CONQUEST OF MAINE AND THE BRETON WAR     126
 
CHAPTER IV        THE PROBLEM OF THE ENGLISH SUCCESSION     143
 
CHAPTER V        THE PRELIMINARIES OF THE CONQUEST
                                AND THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS     180
 
CHAPTER VI        FROM HASTINGS TO YORK     211
 
CHAPTER VII        THE DANISH INVASION AND ITS SEQUEL     267
 
CHAPTER VIII        THE CENTRAL YEARS OF THE ENGLISH REIGN     304
 
CHAPTER IX        THE LAST YEARS OF THE CONQUEROR     344
 
CHAPTER X        WILLIAM AND THE CHURCH     376
 
CHAPTER XI        ADMINISTRATION     407
 
CHAPTER XII    DOMESDAY BOOK     457
 
INDEX

 

William of Poitiers, The Life of William

 A volume containing the original text of The Gesta Willelmi, by William of Poitiers can be found on Project Gutenberg, in French. Accordingly, the material here quoted from the volume has been translated via Google and any translation errors arise there.
The same volume contains William of Jumieges (see previous post).

HISTOIRE DES NORMANDS, PAR GUILLAUME DE JUMIÈGE. —
VIE DE GUILLAUME-LE-CONQUÉRANT, PAR GUILLAUME DE POITIERS.
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/64008

The original Latin text, edited by Giles in 1845,  can be found on Internet Archive.
https://archive.org/details/scriptoresrerum00gilegoog/page/n7/mode/2up

About The Gesta Willelmi from the preface by Giles.
“10. The next work is of a more important character,  being in fact the source from which we obtain most  of our information conceming the life of the first William. The Gesta Willelmi, by William of Poitiers, was first published by Duchesne, among the Scriptores rerum Normannicarum, from a MS. that had been lent  to him by Sir R. Cotton. This MS. was never retumed to its owner, and either perished in the French Revolution or still exists unnoticed on the shelves of some provincial library.
The work was again printed by Maseres in a volume entitled Historiae Anglicanau circa tempvs  conquestus Anglicae a Gulielmo Notho, Normannorum  duce, selecta monumenenta, Lond, 4to. 1807.
The whole  of that volume will be included in the present collection, except the Encomium Emmae, of which the English Historical Society are preparing an edition, and the extracts from Ordericus Vitalis, which it seems unnecessary to reprint, because a new edition of the whole of that author  will no doubt before long issue from the press."
[it begins on page 77]
https://archive.org/details/scriptoresrerum00gilegoog/page/n97/mode/2up?view=theater

Who was William of Poitiers?

Orderic Vitalis gives a biography of WOP in Book IV, chapter VII.
“Thus  far  William  of  Poitiers  carries  his  history,  which, imitating  the  style  of  Sallust,  eloquently  and  acutely  recounts the  acts  of  King  William.  This  author  was  by  birth  a Norman,  being  a  native  of  the  town  of  Preaux,  where  his sister  was  abbess  of  a  convent  of  nuns  dedicated  to  St. Leger.  He  is  called  William  of  Poitiers,  because  in  that city  he  drank  deeply  at  the  fountain  of  learning.  Returning into  his  own  country,  he  became  eminent  as  the  most learned  of  all  his  neighbours  and  fellow  students,  and  made himself  useful  to  Hugh  and  Gislebert,  bishops  of  Lisieux,  in ecclesiastical  affairs,  as  archdeacon  of  that  diocese.  He  had served  with  courage  in  a  military  career  before  he  took orders,  fighting  bravely  for  his  earthly  sovereign,  so  that  he was  the  better  able  to  describe  with  precision  the  scenes  of war,  from  having  himself  been  present  and  encountered their  perils.  As  age  came  on  he  devoted  himself  to  science and  prayer,  and  was  more  capable  of  composing  in  prose  or verse  than  of  preaching.  He  frequently  wrote  clever  and agreeable  poems,  adapted  for  recitation,  submitting  them without  jealousy  to  the  correction  of  his  juniors.  I  have briefly  followed,  in  many  parts,  his  narrative  of  King  William and  his  adherents  without  copying  all  he  has  written, or  attempting  to  imitate  his  elegant  style”.   
https://archive.org/details/ecclesiasticalhi02ordeuoft/page/46/mode/2up?q=poitiers

The introduction to the Volume states:-
“Guillaume de Poitiers is undoubtedly one of the most distinguished of our ancient historians; he lacks neither the sagacity to disentangle the moral causes of events and the character of the actors, nor the talent to depict them. He knew the Latin historians, and evidently endeavored to imitate them; also Orderic Vital and several of his contemporaries compared him to Sallust; he sometimes reproduces in fact, with enough success, the precision and the energy; but he falls much more often into affectation and obscurity. It is no less a great loss than that of the beginning and the end of his work; the first and last years of King William's life are absolutely missing in all the manuscripts. That of the Cottonian library, which is the most complete and on which Duchesne published his edition, begins in 1035 and ends in 1070."

William of Poitiers on Earl Godwin.
Following a description of the death of Alfred at the beginning of the text, William of Poitiers shows his lack of objectivity regarding Earl Godwin and his offspring.
“We therefore address you a short apostrophe, Godwin, whose name, after your death, survives you infamous and odious. If it were possible, we would like to scare you of the crime you have so wickedly committed. What execrable fury agitates you? With what heart could you meditate, against right and justice, such an abominable crime? Why, the most cruel of homicides, do you commit for the loss of you and yours the smallest betrayal? You congratulate yourself on having done what the laws and customs of the nations furthest removed from Christianity abhor; Alfred's outrages and evils excite your joy, O wickedest of men, and cause the tears of good people to flow. Such things are dismal to report.
But the most glorious Duke William, whose actions, supported by divine help, we will learn of in future ages, will strike with an avenging sword the throat of Harald, so similar to you in cruelty and perfidy. You shed by your treachery the innocent blood of the Normans; but in its turn the iron of the Normans will cause the blood of yours to flow. We would have preferred to bury this inhuman crime in perpetual silence; but we do not believe that even bad actions, necessary for the continuation of history, should be excluded from our writings, as we should forbid ourselves from imitation.”

William of Jumièges, Gesta Normannorum Ducum

 A volume containing the original text of William of Jumieges Gesta Normannorum Ducum can be found on Project Gutenberg, in French. Accordingly, the material here, namely the contents, the introduction and the letter of William of Jumieges, have been translated via Google and any translation errors arise there. The same volume contains William of Poitiers (see next post).

HISTOIRE DES NORMANDS, PAR GUILLAUME DE JUMIÈGE. —
VIE DE GUILLAUME-LE-CONQUÉRANT, PAR GUILLAUME DE POITIERS.
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/64008

 William the Bastard was descended from Rollo who founded Normandy in the early 900s. The line of descent through the Dukes of Normandy is

Genealogy                                reigned
Rollo                                       911 - 928
William Longsword               927 - 942
Richard I the Fearless            942 - 996
Richard II the Good               996 - 1026
Robert I the magnificent      1027 - 1035
William the Bastard             1028 - 1087

According to Wikipedia “William of Jumièges was the original compiler of the history known as the Gesta Normannorum Ducum ("Deeds of the Dukes of the Normans"), written in about 1070. This was built upon the framework of an earlier history compiled by Dudo of Saint-Quentin, De moribus et actis primorum Normannorum ducum, between c. 996 and c. 1015.’  

Almost nothing is known of William of Jumieges, we have neither birth nor death dates.

Orderic Vitalis names William as “Calculus.” In Book III, chapter V, he states:
“At  the  instigation  of  the  devil,  who  never  ceases  from mischief  to  mankind,  violent  hostilities  broke  out  between. the  French  and  the  Normans.  Henry,  king  of  France,  and Geoffrey  Martel,  the  valiant  count  of  Anjou,  crossed  the frontiers  of  Normandy  with  numerous  forces  and  committed great  ravages.  On  the  other  hand,  William,  the  brave  duke of  Normandy,  was  not  slow  in  taking  ample  revenge  for  the injury  done,  taking  many  of  the  French  and  Angevins prisoners,  putting  some  to  death,  and  throwing  numbers into  prison,  where  they  long  suffered.  The  reader  who  desires to  make  himself  acquainted  with  the  particulars  of  the attacks  and  devastations,  which  ensued  on  one  side  or  the other,  will  find  them  described  in  the  works  of  William,  a monk  of  Jumieges,  surnamed  Calculus,  and  William  of Poitiers,  archdeacon  of  Lisieux,  who  have  written  the  history of  Normandy  with  great  care,  and  dedicated  their works  to  William,  then  king  of  England,  whose  favour  they wished  to  secure.”
https://archive.org/details/ecclesiasticalh01fragoog/page/425/mode/2up?q=calculus&view=theater

William of Jumieges’s Gesta Normannorum Ducum is comprised of eight books and an introductory letter.

Contents
Letter to William, Orthodox King of the English, on the facts and gestures of the Dukes of the Normans.
Book I     How Hastings oppressed Neustria before the arrival of Rollo
Book II    Deeds and gestures of Rollo, First Duke of Normandy
Book III    Of the Second Duke of Normandy, William son of Rollo
Book IV    Of Richard I, son of Duke William
Book V    Of Duke Richard II, son of Richard I
Book VI    Of Richard III and Robert his brother, both sons of Richard II
Book VII    Of Duke William, who submitted England by his arms.
Book VIII    Of Henry I, king of the English and Duke of the Normans.

At the beginning of the Gesta he makes a dedication to William the Bastard, naming him as King of England rather than as Duke of Normandy. William identifies himself as a monk of Jumieges.
“To William, pious, victorious and orthodox king of the English, by the grace of the Supreme King, William, monk of Jumiège, and the most unworthy of all monks, wishes the strength of Samson to strike down his enemies, and the depth of Solomon to recognize justice.”
From this introductory letter, the work is usually dated to a twenty year period between the Bastard’s coronation at Christmas 1066 and his death in 1087.
 
The eighth book is concerned with the rule of the Bastard’s son Henry and as it post dates the introductory letter it is therefore thought to have been added by a later writer. The introduction states:- “the eighth was obviously added later by a monk of the abbey of Le Bec: without speaking of the difference in tone and style, there is question of several events occurring after the death of Guillaume de Jumiège, for example, the death of Adèle, countess of Blois, sister of King Henry I of England, which occurred in 1137, and that of Boson, Abbot of Le Bec, which occurred the same year.” 

The concluding chapters of book seven relate the events of William’s death and burial and must also have been added after his death. Thus we cannot say with certainty, where the work of William of Jumieges ends and his co-writer begins; nor can we identify what has been added later.
The introduction also states “It even appears that in the first seven books, several chapters, notably chapter IX of book VI, chapters XII, XXII, XXXVIII of book VII, and perhaps a few other passages were also added afterwards, or at least interpolated, either by the monk author of the VIIIth book, or by some other chronicler.”  These are:
 

Book VI, CHAPTER IX.
Of the abbey of Bec, of its first abbot and founder, the venerable Herluin, and of his successor Anselme.
Book VII,
CHAP. XII. D'Arnoul, son of Guillaume Talvas, and his brother Olivier, a monk from Le Bec.
CHAP. XXII. Monasteries that were founded in Normandy in the time of Duke William.
CHAP. XXXVIII. Of the Duke's return to Normandy, and of the death of Archbishop Maurile.

William of Jumieges identifies his sources in his introductory letter. He notes that the beginning i.e the first four books, has been taken from the works of Dudo.
“I drew the beginning of my story, up to Richard II, from the story of Dudon, a learned man, who had learned very carefully from Count Raoul, brother of Richard I, everything he confided to the paper, to be transmitted to posterity.”

William of Jumieges continues: “Everything else I have learned partly from the relations of many men, whom their age and experience render equally trustworthy, partly from having seen it with my own eyes and having judged it with certainty, so that I give it as my own.”

Chapters 34-38 of Book Seven cover the period from the gathering of William’s fleet at Saint-Valery, in Ponthieu, to the return of William to Normandy following his coronation.

The Greatest Saga of Olafr Tryggvason

Heimskringla contains a saga of Olaf Tryggvason, but it is not the only one*.

There is also the Greatest Saga of Óláfr Tryggvason which is featured here.

THE  SAGA  OF  KING  OLAF  TRYGGWASON
WHO  REIGNED  OVER  NORWAY  A.D.  995  TO  A.D.  1000
TRANSLATED   BY   J.    SEPHTON,    M.A.    published 1895
https://archive.org/details/sagaofkingolaftr00olafiala/page/n3/mode/2up?view=theater

 “THE  translation  of  the  Saga  of  King  Olaf  Tryggwason  has  been  made  from  the  text  of  the  Fornmanna  Sb'gur,  printed  at  Copenhagen,  in  1825.  Occasionally  a  reading  has  been  taken  from  the  Flateyjarbok,  printed  at  Christiania,  in  1860.”

*See Wikipedia for the various versions.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%93l%C3%A1fs_saga_Tryggvasonar

What is the difference between them?  

Simply put, the Greatest OT Saga contains the Heimskringla OT saga integrated with a great deal of additional material about Olaf from other sources. The unknown author set out to expand the OT saga and transform it into a comprehensive account of his life and times.

The preface to the translation presented here gives information concerning the text.
It says, “one  of  his  [Olaf’s] admirers  thought  it  desirable  to  collect  into  one  complete  story,  and  weld  together,  the  notices  respecting him.”  
and “An  author  had  no  copyright  in  his  work.  It  [the work] was  taken  by  the  writer  of  a  succeeding  generation  on  the  same  subject,  who  appropriated  the  language  of  his  predecessor  as  well  as  the  matter.  Thus  the  larger  Sagas  are  all  probably  composite  growths,  having  passed  through  several  hands.”

What are the additions?

Firstly there is the Heimskringla OTS.
“First  and  foremost  of  the  author's  sources  is  the  Heimskringla  life,  by  Snorri,  which  gives  what  may  be  called  an  historical  picture  of  the  hero.”
“Snorri Sturluson's Heimskringla (c. 1230s) includes an Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar.” [wiki]

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/598/598-h/598-h.htm#link2H_4_0111

Secondly there is the Oddr Snorrason account.
“Next  to  this  is  a  life  written  by  Odd  Monk  at  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century.  This  work,  written  originally  in  Latin,  is  lost,  but  two  free  translations  of  it  exist,  and  these  give  what  may  be  called  a  legendary  picture  of  the  King.  Both  these  lives  fully  described  King  Olaf's  great  work  of  bringing  heathen  Norway  within  the  Christian  fold,  but  only  cursorily  dealt  with  the  conversion  of  Iceland  and  the  other outlands,  the  Orkneys  and  Shetland,  the  Faroes,  and  Greenland.”

“An account of Óláfr's life was written in Latin in the 12th century by the Benedictine monk Oddr Snorrason. It is considered to be the first full-length Icelandic saga. Oddr made use of previous written works including those of Sæmundr fróði and Ari Þorgilsson as well as Acta sanctorum in Selio and possibly Historia de Antiquitate Regum Norwagiensium [Theodoricus]. His original work has been lost, but a translation into Old Norse, known as Odds saga munks, is preserved in two nearly complete versions and a fragment of a third. It is difficult to tell how closely the translation reflects the Latin original, but it clearly owes a debt to hagiography, presenting King Óláfr as the apostle to the Norwegians.” [wiki]

Thirdly there is Landnamobok and the Kristni Saga
"Whatever matter  the  author  of  the  present  Saga  found  in  Icelandic  literature  which  bore  upon  the  latter  work,  he  has  used  and  incorporated ;  and  in  particular  has  embodied  a  full  account  of  the  discovery  of  Iceland,  and  notices  of  those  of  the  early  settlers  who  were  favourable  to  Christianity.  Thus  he  has  inserted  several  extracts  from  the  Landnamabok,  and  has  largely  expanded  those  parts  of  Kristni  Saga  which  precede,  and  those  which  describe  the  establishment  of  Christianity  by  law." 

“Landnámabók, "Book of Settlements"), often shortened to Landnáma, is a medieval Icelandic written work which describes in considerable detail the settlement (landnám) of Iceland by the Norse in the 9th and 10th centuries CE.” [wiki]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landn%C3%A1mab%C3%B3k

English Translation of Landnamabok on Wayback Machine
https://web.archive.org/web/20120712074242/http://www.northvegr.org/sagas%20annd%20epics/miscellaneous/landnamabok/index.html

“Kristni saga (the book of Christianity) is an Old Norse account of the Christianization of Iceland in the 10th century and of some later church history. It was probably written in the early or mid-13th century, as it is dependent on the Latin biography of King Olaf Tryggvason written by the monk Gunnlaugr Leifsson around the last decade of the 12th century. This results in Latinate forms of some names. The author also used work by Ari Þorgilsson, probably the now lost longer version of the Íslendingabók, and Laxdæla saga.” [wiki]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristni_saga

English Translation of Kristni Saga on VSNR website, 2006. [pdf]
http://www.vsnrweb-publications.org.uk/Text%20Series/IslKr.pdf

Fourthly there are the lives of the poet Hallfred and Kiartan.
"Again,  there  were  two  famous  Icelanders,  contemporaries  of  King  Olaf,  who  were  brought  into  close  connection  with  him — the  poet  Hallfred  and  Kiartan.  The  author  of  the  Great  O.  T.  Saga  has  included  in  his  work  almost  the  whole  of  Hallfred's  Saga,  and  such  a  part  of  the  Laxdsela  Saga  as  gives  a  full  view  of  Kiartan's  life,  his  relations  with  Gudrun,  and  his  death." 

"Hallfreðr Óttarsson or Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld (Troublesome Poet) (c. 965 – c. 1007) was an Icelandic skald. He is the protagonist of Hallfreðar saga according to which he was the court poet first of Hákon Sigurðarson, then of Óláfr Tryggvason and finally of Eiríkr Hákonarson. A significant amount of poetry by Hallfreðr has been preserved, primarily in Hallfreðar saga and the kings' sagas but a few fragments are also quoted in Skáldskaparmál". [wiki]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallfre%C3%B0r_vandr%C3%A6%C3%B0ask%C3%A1ld

"Hallfreðar saga vandræðaskálds is one of the Icelanders' sagas. The saga is preserved in several 14th century manuscripts, including Möðruvallabók and Flateyjarbók, with significant difference between the versions. It relates the story of Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld, an Icelandic poet active around the year 1000. The saga has some resemblance to the sagas of other poets, such as Kormáks saga and Gunnlaugs saga, but in Hallfreðar saga there is less emphasis on the romantic relationships of the skald. Instead the saga dwells on the troubled conversion of Hallfreðr from Norse paganism to Christianity and his relationship with King Óláfr Tryggvason and other Norwegian rulers." [wiki]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallfre%C3%B0ar_saga

Laxdæla saga also Laxdœla saga (Old Norse pronunciation, Laxdoela saga, Laxdaela saga or The Saga of the People of Laxárdalr, is one of the Icelanders' sagas. Written in the 13th century, it tells of people in the Breiðafjörður area of Iceland from the late 9th century to the early 11th century. The saga particularly focuses on a love triangle between Guðrún Ósvífrsdóttir, Kjartan Ólafsson and Bolli Þorleiksson. Kjartan and Bolli grow up together as close friends but the love they both have for Guðrún causes enmity between them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laxd%C3%A6la_saga

English translation of Laxdaela saga on Project Gutenberg
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/17803

 

Image The Death of Kiartan

Fifthly there is the life of Sigmund  Brestison
“In  a  similar  manner  the  intimacy  of  Sigmund  Brestison  with  King  Olaf  has  caused  the  author  to  include  in  his  work  a  large  portion  of  the  Fareyinga  Saga,  so  as  to  give  Sigmund's  life  in  full.” 

The Færeyinga Saga, the saga of the Faroe Islands, is the story of how the Faroe Islanders were converted to Christianity and became a part of Norway. It was written in Iceland shortly after 1200. The author is unknown and the original manuscript is lost to history, but passages of the original manuscript have been copied in other sagas, especially in three manuscripts: Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar en mesta, Flateyjarbók, and a manuscript registered as AM 62 fol. [wiki]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%A6reyinga_saga

English Translation of the Fareyinga  Saga on the Icelandic Saga Database. The Saga of Thrond of Gate, 1896 translation into English by F. York Powell from the original Icelandic 'Færeyinga saga’. 
https://www.sagadb.org/faereyinga_saga.en

Sixthly there is the poetry
“Also,  in  imitation  of  the  Heimskringla,  he  has  inserted  quotations  from  three  late  poems,  the  Rekstefia,  the  Jomsvikinga  Drapa,  and  the  Bui  Drapa,  in  order  to  furnish  evidence,  though  it  is  not  contemporary  evidence,  for  additional  facts  which  he  has  introduced.”
 
“Hallar-Steinn’s Rekstefja, possibly ‘Split-refrain’ (HSt Rst; see below on title), is a drápa in thirty-five stanzas describing the life and death of the Norwegian king Óláfr Tryggvason (r. c. 995-c. 1000). After the traditional bid for a hearing (st. 1), the skald outlines Óláfr’s youth in Russia (sts 2-4), then tells of his success as a warlord raiding in the British Isles and elsewhere (sts 5-8), his missionary activities Christianizing five countries (sts 9-11), and his qualities as leader, including generosity towards his men (sts 12-14). He then narrates Óláfr’s last battle at Svǫlðr (sts 15-23), comments on the further course of the poem (st. 24), relates incidents, some semi-miraculous, proving Óláfr’s extraordinary agility, strength, piety and closeness to God (sts 25-31), praises God (sts 32-3) and concludes with remarks on previous praise-poems for Óláfr and the status of his own work (sts 34-5).”
https://skaldic.org/skaldic/m.php?p=text&i=1237&v=intro

Rekstefia in English translation on the Skaldic Project Website
https://skaldic.org/skaldic/m.php?p=text&i=1237

“Forty-three complete stanzas and two helmingar (sts 44, 45) survive from Jómsvíkingadrápa ‘Drápa about the Jómsvíkingar’ (Bjbp Jóms). Composed some two centuries after the event it describes, the poem relates historical and legendary traditions about the famous sea-battle of Hjǫrungavágr (tentatively identified with Liavågen, Møre og Romsdal, Norway; Megaard 1999). This was fought c. 985 between a Wendish-Danish force under Búi digri ‘the Stout’ Vésetason and Vagn Ákason, leaders of the Jómsvíkingar, and a Norwegian force led by Hákon jarl Sigurðarson and his son Eiríkr. (On Jóm and the Jómsvíkingar, see Notes to sts 6/2, 17/4 below, and on the jarls and other skaldic poetry associated with the battle, see ‘Ruler biographies’ in Introduction to this volume.)”
https://skaldic.org/skaldic/m.php?p=text&i=1122&v=intro

The Jomsviking Drapa in English translation on the Skaldic Project Website
https://skaldic.org/skaldic/m.php?p=text&i=1122

The Jomsviking Drapa in Vigfusson and Powell
https://archive.org/details/corpuspoeticumbo02guuoft/page/300/mode/2up?view=theater

“Búadrápa ‘Drápa about Búi’ (ÞGísl Búdr) is preserved solely in ÓT, which cites nine full stanzas and three helmingar in the course of its account of the famous sea-battle at Hjǫrungavágr (probably Liavågen, Møre og Romsdal, Norway). This battle was fought c. 985 between a Norwegian force led by the jarls Hákon Sigurðarson and his son Eiríkr and a Wendish-Danish force led by Búi Vésetason and Vagn Ákason, leaders of the warrior fraternity later known as the Jómsvíkingar. (On the jarls, the battle and other skaldic poetry associated with it, see ‘Ruler biographies’ in Introduction to this volume; for other Jómsvíkingar at the battle named in ÓT, see Context to st. 1.)”
https://skaldic.org/skaldic/m.php?p=text&i=1412&v=intro

Buadrapa in English translation on the Skaldic Project Website
https://skaldic.org/skaldic/m.php?p=text&i=1412

Bua Drapa in Vigfusson and Powell
“BUA-DRAPA  is  one  of  the  latest  insertions  in  the  great  O.T.  Saga.  It is  in  Egil's  rhyming-metre,  and  by  an  unknown  poet,  Thorkel  Gislason, of  the  same  age  as  Biarni,  whom,  indeed,  he  seems  to  imitate.  Only  part of  it  has  been  preserved.  It  is  almost  entirely  made  up  of  the  worst and  latest  'vulgus-phrases'  of  the  school  of  Einar  and  the  last  court- poets.  Two  lines  only  present  any  interest, — 1.  27,  where  it  is  said  that  'Every  hail-stone  weighed  an  ounce!'  and  31-32,  'The  loathsome ogress  shot  sharp  arrows  from  her  fingers.'  These  exaggerations  are duly  inserted  into  the  text  of  the  later  edition  of  the  Kings'  Book.  Ari tells  the  tale  simply  according  to  the  older  and  undecked  traditions.”
https://archive.org/details/corpuspoeticumbo02guuoft/page/302/mode/2up?view=theater

Unusually, Vig does not give an English translation of the poem?
https://archive.org/details/corpuspoeticumbo02guuoft/page/308/mode/2up?view=theater

Seventhly there are the individual stories
“To  complete  his  view  of  King  Olaf,  the  writer  of  the  Great  0.  T.  Saga  has  included  many  episodical  stories,  which  not  being  now  found  elsewhere,  would  otherwise  have  been  lost  to  us,  such  as  the  Saga  of  Thorwald  Kodranson,  the  stories  of  Rognwald  of  AErwick,  of  Swein  and  Finn,  of  Thorwald  Tassel,  of  Eindridi  Broadsole,  of  Gunnar  Half,  of  Gaut,  and  others.” 

 Finally there are the succeeding kings
"And  as  he  began  his  work  with  an  account,  taken  from  the  Heimskringla,  of  the  Kings  preceding  King  Olaf ;  so  he  has  concluded  it  with  a  slight  sketch,  mostly  from  the  same  work,  of  succeeding  Kings,  that  he  might  relate  the  fate  of  two  great  barons,  favourites  of  Olaf ;  and  also  introduce  to  the  reader,  in  chronological  order,  the  legendary  notices  respecting  the  King  after  his  disappearance  at  the  battle  of  Swold".

What is the result of the compilation?

According to the editor in the preface, the compilation and the reworking of the original texts corrupts them and detracts from the original stories. e.g. “The  different  stories  which  he  weaves  together  do  not  always  agree  well  For  example,  the  narrative  of  the  battle  of  Hiorunga  Bay,  ch.  90,  in  which  the  Wickings  of  Jom  were  defeated  by  Earl  Hakon,  is  a  piece  of  clear  and  precise  writing  in  Heimskringla.  This  narrative  the  Great  0.  T.  Saga  writer  has  enlarged  by  quotations  from  later  poems,  and  in  attempting to  weave  the  new  matter  of  these  poems  into  the  Heimskringla  account,  has  rather  injured  its  clearness  and  precision  than  otherwise.” 
and
“A  remark  may  be  made  upon  the  chronology.  Though  the  Heimskringla  Life  of  King  Olaf,  and  the  Great  0.  T.  Saga,  adopt  in  the  main  the  same  chronology,  yet  there  are  vital  differences  between  them  in  the  sequence  of  events.  The  compiler  of  the  latter  work,  in  bringing  other  Sagas  into  his  story,  and  in  particular  the  Laxdsela,  was  compelled  to  adopt  a  sequence  of  his  own  as  he  attempted  to  weave  together  various  narratives  into  one  harmonious  whole.  But  the  chronology  is  unsettled,  and  perhaps  hopelessly  so.”

Poetry from the King's Sagas Volume I

 Vol. 1. Poetry from the King's Sagas I:   From Mythical Times to c 1035 (2012)

https://skaldic.org/skaldic/m.php?p=vol&i=1

edited by Diana Whaley

 see also  - Contents, volume I
http://www.gbv.de/dms/ub-kiel/737841176.pdf

 

Geoffrey of Monmouth’s British History

Geoffrey of Monmouth’s British History

Old English chronicles, edited by John Allen Giles
From Gile’s preface
https://archive.org/details/oldenglishchroni00gileuoft/page/n5/mode/2up?view=theater
 
CHAP.  V.-GEOFFREY  OF  MONMOUTH.

"GEOFFREY,  surnamed  of  Monmouth,  is  celebrated  in  English  literature  as  the  author,  or  at  least  the  translator,  of  Historia  Britonum,  a  work  from  which  nearly  all  our  great  vernacular poets  have  drawn  the  materials  for  some  of  their  noblest  works  of  fiction  and  characters  of  romance.  He  lived  in  the  early  part  of  the  twelfth  century,  and  in  the  year  1152  was  raised  to  the  bishopric  of  St.  Asaph.

The  first  of  his  writings,  in  point  of  time,  was  a  Latin  translation  of  the  Prophecies  of  Merlin,  which  he  undertook  at  the  request  of  Alexander  bishop  of  Lincoln.  His  next  work  was  that  on  which  his  fame  principally  rests,  the  Historia Britonum,  dedicated  to  Robert,  duke  of  Gloucester,  who  died  in  1147.  Into  this  second  work  he  inserted  the  Latin  translation  above-mentioned,  which  now  appears  as  the  seventh  book  of  Historia  Britonum.  A  third  composition has  also  been  ascribed  to  Geoffrey,  entitled  Vita  Merlini,  in  Latin  hexameter  verse  :  but  the  internal  evidence  which  it  affords,  plainly  proves  that  it  is  the  work  of  a  different  author.  
Although  the  list  of  our  Chroniclers  may  be  considered  as  complete,  without  the  addition  of  this  work,  yet  we  have  thought  it  worthy  of  a  place  in  our  series  for  many  reasons.  It  is  not  for  historical  accuracy  that  the  book  before  us  is  valuable  ;  for  the  great  mass  of  scholars  have  come  to  the  decided  conviction  that  it  is  full  of  fables.  But  it  is  the  romantic  character  which  pervades  the  narrative,  together  with  its  acknowledged  antiquity,  which  make  it  desirable  that  the  book  should  not  sink  into  oblivion.  Those  who  desire  to  possess  it  as  a  venerable  relic  of  an  early  age,  will  now  have  an  opportunity  of  gratifying  their  wish  ;  whilst  others,  who  despise  it  as  valueless,  in  their  researches  after  historic  truth,  may,  nevertheless,  find  some  little  pleasure  in  the  tales  of  imagination  which  it  contains.

The  value  of  this  work  is  best  evinced  by  the  attention  which  was  paid  to  it  for  many  centuries  ;  Henry  of  Huntingdon made  an  abstract  of  it,  which  he  subjoined  as  an  appendix  to  his  history:  and  Alfred  of  Beverley,  a  later  writer,  in  his  abridgment  of  this  work  which  still  exists,  has  omitted  Geoffrey's  name,  though  he  calls  the  author  of  the  original,  Britannicus. "

The text is from page 89 to page 292. It covers the period from the birth of Britain before the Trojan war to the reign of Cadwallader in AD 668.
https://archive.org/details/oldenglishchroni00gileuoft/page/86/mode/2up?view=theater

Asser's Life of Alfred

Annals of the Reign of Alfred the Great from AD 849 to AD 887 by Asser of Saint David’s.

Old English chronicles, edited by John Allen Giles
From Gile’s preface
https://archive.org/details/oldenglishchroni00gileuoft/page/n5/mode/2up?view=theater


CHAP.  II.— ASSER’S  LIFE  OF  ALFRED.

"This  work  is  ascribed,  on  its  own  internal  authority,  to  Asser,  who  is  said  to  have  been  bishop  of  St.  David's,  of  Sherborne  or  of  Exeter,  in  the  time  of  king  Alfred.  Though  most  of  the  public  events  recorded  in  this  book  are  to  be  found  in  the  Saxon  Chronicle,  yet  for  many  interesting  circumstances  in  the  life  of  our  great  Saxon  king  we  are  indebted  to  this  biography  alone. …
 As  the  work  has  been  edited  by  Petrie,  so  has  it  been  here  translated,  and  the  reader,  taking  it  upon  its  own  merits,  will  find  therein  much  of  interest  about  our  glorious  king,  concerning  whom  he  will  lament  with  me  that  all  we  know  is  so  little,  so  unsatisfying. "

The text is from page 42 to page 86.
https://archive.org/details/oldenglishchroni00gileuoft/page/42/mode/2up?view=theater

Ethelwerd's Chronicle

Old English Chronicles, Edited by John Allen Giles

From Gile’s preface
https://archive.org/details/oldenglishchroni00gileuoft/page/n5/mode/2up?view=theater

CHAP.  I.— ETHELWERD'S  CHRONICLE.

"THE  short  chronicle,  which  passes  under  the  name  of  Ethelwerd,  contains  few  facts  which  are  not  found  in  the  Saxon  Chronicle  its  precursor.  Of  the  author  we  know  no  more  than  he  has  told  us  in  his  work.  Malmesbury  calls  him  'noble  and  magnificent'  with  reference  to  his  rank  ;  for  he  was  descended  from  king  Alfred  :  but  he  forgets  his  peculiar praise — that  of  being  the  only  Latin  historian  for  two  centuries  ;  though,  like  Xenophon,  Caesar,  and  Alfred,  he  wielded  the  sword  as  much  as  the  pen.

Ethelwerd  dedicated  his  work  to,  and  indeed  wrote  it  for  the  use  of  his  relation  Matilda,  daughter  of  Otho  the  Great,  emperor  of  Germany,  by  his  first  empress  Edgitha  or  Editha ;  who  is  mentioned  in  the  Saxon  Chronicle,  A.D.  925,  though  not  by  name,  as  given  to  Otho  by  her  brother,  king  Athelstan.  Ethelwerd  adds,  in  his  epistle  to  Matilda,  that  Athelstan  sent  two  sisters,  in  order  that  the  emperor  might  take  bis  choice  ;  and  that  he  preferred  the  mother  of  Matilda.

The  chronology  of  Ethelwerd  is  occasionally  a  year  or  two  at  variance  with  other  authorities.  The  reader  will  be guided  in  reckoning  the  dates,  not  by  the  heading  of  each  paragraph,  A.D.  891,  975,  &c.,  but  by  the  actual  words  of  the  author  inserted  in  the  body  of  the  text.

I  have  translated  this  short  chronicle  from  the  original  text  as  well  as  I  was  able,  and  as  closely  as  could  be  to  the  author's  text ;  but  I  am  by  no  means  certain  of  having  always  succeeded  in  hitting  on  his  true  meaning,  for  such  is  the  extraordinary barbarism  of  the  style,  that  I  believe  many  an ancient  Latin  classic,  if  he  could  rise  from  his  grave,  would  attempt  in  vain  to  interpret  it. "

The text begins on page 19: It covers the period from AD 430 to AD 960
https://archive.org/details/oldenglishchroni00gileuoft/page/n19/mode/2up?view=theater

Asta’s Sons : Olaf and Haraldr

Haraldr Sigurdsson, aka Hardrada, grew up in the shadow of his older half brother Olaf Haraldsson. Olaf is also known as St Olaf because he was canonised a year after his death, and he is known as Olaf II because he was also king of Norway. It must not have been easy for Haraldr to have been following in the footsteps of a brother who was both a saint and a king. Both brothers were the sons of Åsta Gudbrandsdatter, and both their fathers claimed descent from king Harald Fairhair through different lines.  According to King Olaf Trygvason’s Saga, when Asta was pregnant with Olaf, her husband, Harald Grenske, decided it was time to try and trade up his wife. The King of Sweden, Olaf the Victorious, had died and his widow, Sigrid, was interviewing for replacement husbands. When Harold proposed to Sigrid she refused him saying that he was already well married to Asta. Olaf’s saga tells us that ‘Sigrid was a woman of the greatest understanding, and clever in many things.’
But Haradr was not satisfied with her response and a short time later he showed up at her house to press his suit although many people had persuaded him otherwise. Another king from Russia had arrived at the same time with the same intent. Sigrid lodged them together in an old hall furnished with old furniture and she plied them with strong drink until they and their guards fell into a drunken stupor. Then she torched the hall and burned them alive within it. “Then Queen Sigrid ordered an attack on them in the night, both with fire and sword. The house was burnt, with all who were in it and those who slipped out were put to the sword. Sigrid said that she would make these small kings tired of coming to court her. She was afterwards called Sigrid the Haughty (Storrada).’
After also refusing King Olaf Trygvasson, Sigrid went on to marry King Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark, who conquered and ruled England for several months in 1013-14. She was step-mother to Sweyn’s son, King Canute, who ruled England after him from 1016 to 1035. Because Sigrid was married to Sweyn during his reign of England she was technically Queen of England for this period, but we hear little of this in the history books.
Needless to say when Asta heard the news of her husband’s death she was not impressed and she returned home to her father’s house where she gave birth to Olaf Haraldsson. Asta then married Sigurd Syr who claimed descent from King Harald Fairhair and Ragnar Lodbrok. All three were said to be tall. Harald Fairhair had many sons, but his son Sigurd Rise was so tall he was known as Sigurd Giant and as he was the grandfather of Sigurd Syr, it is not surprising that Haraldr Sigurdsson was renowned for his height. Haraldr’s saga says he was five ells tall. A viking ell was approximately eighteen inches, making Haraldr around seven foot six.
Sigurd was the king of Vik and he was known as Syr because he kept pigs. Haraldr Hardrada was very sensitive about this and there are accounts of his taking revenge against those who baited him about it. “Sigurd his [Olaf’s] stepfather was a careful householder, who kept his people closely to their work, and often went about himself to inspect his corn-rigs and meadowland, the cattle, and also the smith-work, or whatsoever his people had on hand to do.”
At the age of twelve Olaf Haraldsson was sent on his viking gap years with his foster father Hrane the Far Travelled. He fought in England in the conflict between King Ethelred and King Sweyn Forkbeard. When Sweyn’s son, Canute, raised his invasion force in 1015-16 he emptied the north of fighting men. With them came Erik Hakonsson who had been ruling Norway since the fall of Olaf Trygvasson in 1000. Hearing that Erik had left the north taking his forces with him, Olaf Haroldsson saw his opportunity and legged it back to Norway. Once there he did what any returning viking son would do, he went to see his mother and  declared his intention to replace Erik and become King of Norway. 

 

He took advice from Sigurd, Hrane and Asta. She said “For my part, my son, I am rejoiced at thy arrival, but much more at thy advancing thy honour. I will spare nothing for that purpose that stands in my power, although it be but little help that can be expected from me. But if a choice could be made, I would rather that thou shouldst be the supreme king of Norway, even if thou shouldst not sit longer in thy kingdom than Olaf Trygvason did, than that thou shouldst not be a greater king than Sigurd Syr is, and die the death of old age.”

Around 1018 when Haraldr Hardrada was three years old, Olaf visited his mother Asta and her new sons Halfdan, Guthorm and Haraldr. A bard’s tale about Olaf and Haraldr predicts Haraldr’s kingship.  “Then Asta brought her youngest son, called Harald, who was three years old, to him. The king [Olaf] made a wry face at him also; but he looked the king in the face without regarding it. The king took the boy by the hair, and plucked it; but the boy seized the king's whiskers, and gave them a tug. "Then," said the king, "thou wilt be revengeful, my friend, some day.” In the second part of the story, Olaf finds Haradr sailing toy ships. ‘Harald was busy with chips of wood, sailing them, in his sport along the edge. The king asked him what these were; and he answered, these were his ships of war. The king laughed, and said, "The time may come, friend, when thou wilt command ships.”’  In the final part of the story Harald’s brothers Halfdan and Guthorm were asked what they would most like to have. Halfdan replied that he wanted ten farm’s worth of corn, and Guthorm that he wanted enough cows to encircle the lake. But Haraldr replied that he wanted enough personal housecarls, i.e. men at arms, to eat Guthorm’s cows in a single sitting. ‘The king laughed, and said to Asta, "Here, mother, thou art bringing up a king.”
Olaf was known as Olaf the Thick, not because he was stupid, but because he was stocky and stout. He apparently did not inherit the tall gene from Harold Fairhair. His saga describes him in the first two chapters.
“Olaf came early to manhood, was handsome in countenance, middle-sized in growth, and was even when very young of good understanding and ready speech.”
‘When Olaf Haraldson grew up he was not tall, but middle-sized in height, although very thick, and of good strength. He had light brown hair, and a broad face, which was white and red. He had particularly fine eyes, which were beautiful and piercing, so that one was afraid to look him in the face when he was angry. Olaf was very expert in all bodily exercises, understood well to handle his bow, and was distinguished particularly in throwing his spear by hand: he was a great swimmer, and very handy, and very exact and knowing in all kinds of smithwork, whether he himself or others made the thing. He was distinct and acute in conversation, and was soon perfect in understanding and strength. He was beloved by his friends and acquaintances, eager in his amusements, and one who always liked to be the first, as it was suitable he should be from his birth and dignity.’
Olaf commenced a campaign of Christian conversion at swordpoint, murdering and torturing the pagan population as he conquered the regions of Norway. He was politically inept and as he made advances across Norway in gaining territory and followers, Canute’s representatives followed, using the same espionage strategies that his father Sweyn Forkbeard had used on Ethelred’s nobles to buy them back.
Olaf’s attempts to negotiate with Sweden over territory and the hand of the King’s daughter, Ingegerd, were unsuccessful. Ingegerd was married off to the the ruler of Russia, Yaroslav, and Olaf was forced to accept her sister Astrid instead. Olaf was an adulterer who serially raped his wife Astrid’s serving girl until she eventually produced Olaf’s son and heir, the illegitimate Magnus the Good.
By 1029, Olaf was forced to retreat from Norway, to the court of his sister-in-law, Ingegerd and her husband Yaroslav of Russia. “and without stopping went on to Russia to King Jarisleif and his queen Ingegerd; but his own queen Astrid, and their daughter Ulfhild, remained behind in Svithjod [Sweden], and the king took his son Magnus eastward with him.” Olaf stayed in Russia for a while but following a dream from God he decided to return and attempt to retake Norway.
He was met on his return to Sweden by his loyal followers. Most notable was his half-brother Haraldr, now fifteen, with a force of 600 men. “Now when it was reported in Norway that King Olaf was come from the East to Svithjod, his friends gathered together to give him aid. The most distinguished man in this flock was Harald Sigurdson, a brother of King Olaf, who then was fifteen years of age, very stout, and manly of growth as if he were full-grown. Many other brave men were there also; and there were in all 600 men when they proceeded from the uplands, and went eastward with their force through Eid forest to Vermaland. From thence they went eastward through the forests to Svithjod and made inquiry about King Olaf's proceedings.”
Eventually there was battle for control of Norway at a place named Stiklestad. Prior to the battle, Olaf suggested that Haraldr was too young and should not fight.
 "It appears to me advisable," says the king, "that Harald my brother should not be in the battle, for he is still in the years of childhood only."
Harald replies, "Certainly I shall be in the battle, for I am not so weak that I cannot handle the sword; and as to that, I have a notion of tying the sword-handle to my hand. None is more willing than I am to give the bondes a blow; so I shall go with my comrades."
Haraldr was allowed to fight, but the battle did not go well for Olaf and he was killed. "King Olaf fell on Wednesday, the 29th of July (A.D. 1030)."

Haraldr was injured and forced to retreat in exile to Russia.
 “Harald Sigurdson was severely wounded; but Ragnvald Brusason brought him to a bonde's the night after the battle, and the bonde took in Harald, and healed his wound in secret, and afterwards gave him his son to attend him. They went secretly over the mountains, and through the waste forests, and came out in Jamtaland. Harald Sigurdson was fifteen years old when King Olaf fell. In Jamtaland Harald found Ragnvald Brusason; and they went both east to King Jarisleif in Russia, as is related in the Saga of Harald Sigurdson.”
 

Haraldr Sigurdsson is described in his obituary at the end of his saga.
 “It was a common observation that King Harald distinguished himself above all other men by wisdom and resources of mind; whether he had to take a resolution suddenly for himself and others, or after long deliberation. He was, also, above all other men, bold, brave, and lucky, until his dying day, as above related; and bravery is half victory.
King Harald was a handsome man, of noble appearance; his hair and beard yellow. He had a short beard, and long mustaches. The one eyebrow was somewhat higher than the other. He had large hands and feet; but these were well made. His height was five ells.
He was stern and severe to his enemies, and avenged cruelly all opposition or misdeed.  King Harald was most greedy of power, and of all distinction and honour. He was bountiful to the friends who suited him. King Harald never fled from battle, but often tried cunning ways to escape when he had to do with great superiority of forces. All the men who followed King Harald in battle or skirmish said that when he stood in great danger, or anything came suddenly upon him, he always took that course which all afterwards saw gave the best hope of a fortunate issue.”
 Haraldr remained in Russia under the tutelage of Yaroslav for three or four years before he travelled south and ended up serving in the Emperor’s court in Constantinople.

All 265 chapters of Olaf Haraldsson’s Saga can be found on Project Gutenberg.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/598/598-h/598-h.htm#link2H_4_0233\

The Twelve Days of Christmas: Day Twelve: Edward’s Saga

The Saga of Edward the Confessor was featured on this blog in early December last year with a link to Dasent’s 1894 english translation on the sacred texts website. See
https://saga1066.blogspot.com/2021/12/the-saga-of-edward-confessor.html

The saga’s other title is Saga Játvarðar konungs hins helga or the Játvarðar Saga in short.  According to wiki it was compiled in the 14th century in Iceland. There’s a copy on Internet Archive of an 1852 translation.
Saga Játvarðar konúngs hins helga
https://archive.org/details/SagaJatvardarkon000200849v0JatvReyk/page/n3/mode/2up

The saga appears at the end of the Flateyjarbok manuscript which was written around 1387 to 1394. “Flateyjarbók is the largest medieval Icelandic manuscript, comprising 225 written and illustrated vellum leaves. It contains mostly sagas of the Norse kings” [wiki]  See the Vigfússon and Unger 1860 edition here
Flateyjarbok
https://archive.org/details/flateyjarbokens00unkngoog/page/462/mode/2up?view=theater

Edward’s Saga makes use of post-conquest sources, and has absorbed the Norman propaganda supporting William’s claim. The further from the original events, the greater distortion of the accounts by the post-conquest sources. Over three hundred years the story is transformed and crucial facts are missing or distorted.

In Chapter six the saga relates that Edward made William his heir following the death of Godwin.

6. King Edward made up his mind after that [the death of Godwin] that he thought duke William the bastard was next to the kingdom in England after him, both for this cause that he was come from the kings of the English, and because of the near kinship which was between them.  

Not only does it include a summary of the story of Harold’s shipwreck and oath, it precedes it with an oath made by the entire witan to support his appointment of William. These oaths do not appear in the English records.

Once on a time when Edward had a conference with all the greatest chiefs, he made all take an oath to him;  first the sons of Godwin, and all the rest after them, that they would take no king after him but William the bastard. But it was a little after that Harold Godwin's son fared on some business of his own south over the sea, and could not get back for the sake of foul winds. Then he came to visit duke William, and stayed with him awhile. Then he took an oath to William also that he would not hold the realm against him when they lost king Edward.  It is also some men's story that then he betrothed a daughter of the duke, and broke himself those bonds.

The Saga claims that Edward repeated this nomination of William as heir during his final illness. It does not refer to William’s absence or explain why William was not summoned to Edward’s bedside.

When king Edward had ruled England three and twenty years he was seated in London.  Then he took sickness at Yule, and calls to him many chiefs, and again gave it out that William was to be king after him in England.

Harold is accused of pretending that Edward gave him the throne when Edward was too ill to speak. This is another version of the deathbed throne grab as described by Wace.

But when the sickness began to press him so that he had little voice left, men say that Harold stooped over him and called men to witness afterwards that the king had given him the kingdom after him in England.  King Edward died a little after and was buried in London in Paul's church. He shone by miracles straightway after his death as he did before, and lay in earth till saint Thomas the archbishop translated him and let them lay him in a worthy shrine.

In Chapter seven, Harold’s appointment by the Witan is explained. The nobility wanted an Englishman as king not someone ‘outlandish’ i.e someone from outside the land. So according to this saga, the English twice appointed the Norman Duke William on Edward’s orders, but at the last minute decided that Harold was more suited because he was English.

7.   For that Harold, Godwin's son, was of great family in England, and a very proper man in himself, but the rulers of the land thought it hard to come under the rule of outlandish lords, then they took Harold to be king, and he was consecrated under the crown as the custom was of English chiefs.  

The saga has limited information about the relationship between Harold and his brother Tostig. It repeats the error that Tostig was the elder and it has no knowledge of his expulsion from England at the end of 1065, prior to Edward’s illness. It states that Tostig was still in England at the time of the coronation and that he challenged Harold for posession of the throne. It does not mention his exile to Flanders.

In this design his brother Tosti had no share, but he was older, and so he thought himself nearer to the kingdom.  Then he went to meet his brother Harold and claimed to be even with him, but when Harold said "nay" to that, then he fared out of the land and fled to Denmark to find king Sweyn, Wolf's son, his kinsman, and bade him fare to England and win the land under his rule "as the Dane kings of old had done."  But Sweyn was not ready to do that.  

The Twelve Days of Christmas: Day Twelve: Saga of Haraldr Hardrada.

 The Saga of Haraldr Hardrada was contained in the manuscript Heimskringla which was written in Iceland in c 1230. Only one page of the original manuscript survives, the rest was lost in a fire in 1728.
“Heimskringla is a collection of sagas about Swedish and Norwegian kings, beginning with the saga of the legendary Swedish dynasty of the Ynglings, followed by accounts of historical Norwegian rulers from Harald Fairhair of the 9th century up to the death of the pretender Eystein Meyla in 1177. [wiki]”
Following an error by Edward Freeman in his history of the Norman Conquest, the saga of Haraldr Hardrada is often misnamed ‘Heimskringla’ in popular history books.

Note that Wace’s account (above) was written approximately 100 years after 1066, this account was written some 60 years after Wace. The saga is not a direct replica of Wace’s account but follows its own agenda.

SAGA OF HARALD HARDRADE.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/598/598-h/598-h.htm#link2H_4_0539

Chapter 77 of the saga describes King Edward and his family. His wife Queen Edith Godwinson is given five brothers, Tostig, the eldest, then Morcar, Waltheof, Sweyn and finally Harold.

“and the fifth was Harald, who was the youngest, and he was brought up at King Edward's court, and was his foster-son. The king loved him very much, and kept him as his own son; for he had no children.”

Chapter 78 describes Harold’s visit to Normandy and William’s court. There is no mention of any oath taken by Harold to support William’s claim to be Edward’s heir. The chapter focuses on an engagement between Harold and one of the daughters of William. Her name is not given and no account is given of his existing relationship with Edith Swanneck. Chapter 79 notes that Harold did not return to fulfil the betrothal. The same chapter describes the death and burial of King Edward, giving the wrong death date.
 
Edward was king over England for twenty-three years and died on a bed of sickness in London on the 5th of January, and was buried in Paul's church. Englishmen call him a saint.

Chapter 80 describes the positions of Tostig and Harold within Edward’s court.  

The sons of Earl Godwin were the most powerful men in England. Toste was made chief of the English king's army, and was his land-defence man when the king began to grow old; and he was also placed above all the other earls. His brother Harald was always with the court itself, and nearest to the king in all service, and had the charge of the king's treasure-chamber.

The saga repeats the accusation that Harold faked Edward’s bestowal of the throne and that he used false witnesses to support his claim. It gives the wrong date for his coronation.

It is said that when the king was approaching his last hour, Harald and a few others were with him. Harald first leans down over the king, and then said, "I take you all to witness that the king has now given me the kingdom, and all the realm of England:" and then the king was taken dead out of the bed.
The same day there was a meeting of the chiefs, at which there was some talk of choosing a king; and then Harald brought forward his witnesses that King Edward had given him the kingdom on his dying day. The meeting ended by choosing Harald as king, and he was consecrated and crowned the 13th day of Yule, in Paul's church. Then all the chiefs and all the people submitted to him.

Haraldr Hardrada’s Saga is concerned principally with the activities of Tostig and Haraldr Hardrada with respect to the invasion of York in 1066. It is not concerned with William the Bastard until the end of the saga when it describes his arrival in England and the death of Harold at the battle of Hastings. It does not present any claim that Harold Godwinson made oaths to William concerning the throne. Chapter 99 describes William’s reaction to the death of Edward.
 
When the Earl of Rouen, William the Bastard, heard of his relation, King Edward's, death, and also that Harald Godwinson was chosen, crowned, and consecrated king of England, it appeared to him that he had a better right to the kingdom of England than Harald, by reason of the relationship between him and King Edward. He thought, also, that he had grounds for avenging the affront that Harald had put upon him with respect to his daughter. From all these grounds William gathered together a great army in Normandy, and had many men, and sufficient transport-shipping.  

Chapter 80 relates that Tostig felt that Harold had robbed him of the throne, especially as he was the older brother, and he challenges Harold.

Now when his brother, Earl Toste, heard of this [Harold’s Coronation] he took it very ill, as he thought himself quite as well entitled to be king. "I want," said he, "that the principal men of the country choose him whom they think best fitted for it." And sharp words passed between the brothers. King Harald says he will not give up his kingly dignity, for he is seated on the throne which kings sat upon, and is anointed and consecrated a king. On his side also was the strength of the people, for he had the king's whole treasure.

In Chapter 81, King Harold strips Tostig of his command and Tostig voluntarily leaves for Flanders. According to the English sources, Tostig had been exiled in Flanders since late October 1065 and was not present for the death of Edward.
 
Now when King Harald perceived that his brother Toste wanted to have him deprived of the kingdom he did not trust him; for Toste was a clever man, and a great warrior, and was in friendship with the principal men of the country. He therefore took the command of the army from Toste, and also all the power he had beyond that of the other earls of the country. Earl Toste, again, would not submit to be his own brother's serving man; therefore he went with his people over the sea to Flanders, and stayed there awhile, then went to Friesland, and from thence to Denmark.

Master Wace: William the Bastard's Epiphany

According to Master Wace, William the Bastard was not celebrating Epiphany when news reached him from England regarding the death of Edward. One would assume that the same spy network that reported Harold’s ascension was also capable of reporting Edward’s illness and decline. But Wace, who was writing a hundred years later implies that William had no knowledge of events in England which is suspicious if he were the designated heir. Surely he would have been closely following the doings of the English court and been invited to the ceremonies surrounding the completion of the Edward’s greatest achievement, the cathedral containing his tomb.  But William was preparing to hunt. The story of William’s receipt of the news and his response is contained in the continuation of Chapter IX.

“The duke was in his park at Rouen. He held in his hand a bow, which he had strung and bent, making it ready for the arrow ; and he had given it into the hands of a page, for he was going forth, I believe, to the chace, and had with him many knights and pages and esquires, when behold! at the gate appeared a serjeant,who came journeying from England, and went straight to the duke and saluted him, and drew him on one side, and told  him privily that king Edward was dead, and that Harold was raised to be king.”

What follows next is Wace’s imaginative account of the Bastard’s dismay at receiving the news.

When the duke had listened to him, and learnt all the truth, how that Edward was dead, and Harold was made king, he became as a man enraged, and left the craft of the woods. Oft he tied his mantle, and oft he untied it again ; and spoke to no man, neither dared any man speak to him.
Then he crossed the Seine in his boat, and came to his hall, and entered therein ; and sat down at the end of a bench, shifting his place from time to time, covering his face with his mantle, and resting his head against a pillar. Thus he remained long, in deep thought, for no one dared speak to him ; but many asked aside, " What ails the duke, why makes he such bad cheer?"

 William is comforted by his seneschal, William Fitz Osbern. The seneschal was the head steward of a medievil household. According to Wace, Fitz Osbern advised William not to try to conceal his embarassment, as the cat was already out of the bag regarding Harold’s treachery.

“Then behold in came his seneschal [William Fitz Osbern], who rode from the park on horseback; and he passed close by the duke, humming a tune as he went along the hall; and many came round him, asking how it came to pass that the duke was in  such plight. And he said to them,
" Ye will hear news, but press not for it out of season; news will  always spread some time or another, and he who gets it not fresh, has it old."
Then the duke raised himself up, and the seneschal said to him,
" Sire, sire, why do you conceal the news you have heard ? If men hear it not at one time, they will at another ; concealment will do you no good, nor will the telling of it do harm. What you keep so close, is by this time known all over the city; for men go through the streets telling, and all know, both great and small, that king Edward is dead, and that Harold is become king in his stead,  and possesses the realm."

Duke William confides in his steward and is advised by the home help to make an attack on England. There is no mention of Tostig, who is carefully written out of all William’s preparations. Fitz Osbern was later rewarded with the earldom of Hereford until his death in 1070.

"That indeed is the cause of my sorrow," said the duke, " but I know no help for it. I sorrow for Edward, and for his death, and for the wrong that Harold has done me. He has wronged me in taking the kingdom that was granted and promised to me, as he himself had sworn."
To these words Fitz Osber, the bold of heart, replied, " Sire, do not vex yourself, but bestir yourself for your redress ; that you may be revenged on Harold, who hath been so disloyal to you. If your courage fail not, the land shall not abide with him. Call together all that you can call ; cross the sea, and take the kingdom from him. A bold man should  begin nothing unless he pursue it to the end ; what  he begins he should carry through, or abandon it  without more ado."

In Edward’s Life, King Edward is reported as directing Harold to look after his Norman followers (see above). But Wace adds to Harold’s crime of perjury, the crime of persecution of the Normans remaining in England.

“Thus the fame of king Harold's act went through the country. William sent to him often, and reminded him of his oath; and Harold replied injuriously, that he would do nought for him, neither take his daughter, nor yield up the land. Then William sent him his defiance, but Harold always answered that he feared him nought.
The Normans who dwelt in England, who had wives and children there, men whom Edward had invited and endowed with castles and fiefs, Harold chased out of the  country, nor would he leave one there ; he drove  out fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters.”

Master Wace makes a major error when he reports that Harold was crowned at Easter rather than in January.  This is the first indication that he gives regarding the timing of the death of Edward and he is clearly ill informed. He makes further reference to the terms of Harold’s oath, in which he is well schooled, but he is lacking in actual facts regarding the succession.

“Harold received the crown at Easter; [Christmas] but it would  have been better for him if he had done otherwise, for he brought nought but evil on his heirs, and on all the land. He perjured himself for a kingdom, and that kingdom endured but little space ; to him it was a great loss, and it brought all his lineage to sorrow. He refused to take the duke's daughter to wife, he would neither give nor take according to his covenant, and heavily will he suffer for it; he,  and all he loves most.”

The Twelve Days of Christmas: Day Twelve: Master Wace

The post conquest publicity machine of William the Conqueror had two main objectives. Firstly to create a case in support of William’s claim to the English crown. Secondly, to create a case to discredit Harold Godwinson’s claim and assassinate his character and that of his family.

Master Wace had connections to Bayeux Cathedral and was writing in the 1160’s, a hundred years after the conquest. His sources were post conquest and his patron was Henry II. His Chapter IX on Edward’s death and Harold’s succession immediately follows his account of Harold’s shipwreck in Normandy and his oaths.

Firstly he skips over any explanation of William’s absence from the English court during Edward’s extended illness from the beginning of November 1065 through his illness and the consecration of his cathedral in preparation of his burial.
 
‘The day came that no man can escape, and king Edward drew near to die. He had it much at heart, that William should have his kingdom, if possible;  but he was too far off, and it was too long to tarry for him, and Edward could not defer his hour. He lay in heavy sickness, in the illness whereof he was to die; and he was very weak, for death pressed hard  upon him’. 

Wace invents a dialogue between Harold and Edward, stating that Harold had primed his followers to support his grab for the throne. Wace tells us by dialogue that Edward has not fathered an heir, and that the people want him to name an heir who will maintain peace, and that they want his successor to be Harold. This does not specify whether Harold has been formally elected by the witan, or whether Edward actually has the authority to name his own successor. Thus he states William’s claim that Edward was coerced by Harold and his followers.

“Then Harold assembled his kindred, and sent for his friends and other people, and entered into the  king's chamber, taking with him whomsoever he pleased. An Englishman began to speak first, as Harold had directed him, and said ;
" Sire, we sorrow greatly that we are about to lose thee ; and we are much alarmed, and fear that great trouble may come upon us : yet we cannot lengthen thy life, nor alter thy fate. Each one must die for himself, and none for another; neither can we cure thee; so that thou canst not escape death ; but dust must return to dust. No heir of thine remains who may comfort us after thy death. Thou hast lived long, and art now old, but thou hast had no child, son or daughter; nor hast thou other heir, who may remain instead of thee to protect and guard us, and to become king by lineage. On this account the people weep and cry aloud, and say they are ruined, and  that they shall never have peace again if thou failest them. And in this, I trow, they say truly ; for without a king they will have no peace, and a king they cannot have, save through thee.
Give then thy kingdom in thy lifetime to some one who is strong enough to maintain us in peace. God grant that none other than such may be our king ! Wretched is a realm, and little worth, when justice and peace fail ; and he who doth not or cannot maintain them, has little right to the kingdom he hath.
Well hast thou lived, well hast thou done, and well wilt thou do; thou hast ever served God, and wilt be rewarded of him. Behold the best of thy people, the noblest of thy friends ; all are come to beseech thee, and  thou must grant their prayer before thou goest hence, or thou wilt not see God. All come to implore thee that Harold may be king of this land. We can give  thee no better advice, and no better canst thou do."  

As soon as he had named Harold, all the English in the chamber cried out that he said well, and that the king ought to give heed to him. " Sire' they said, "if thou dost it not, we shall never in our lives  have peace."

The next part of the dialogue gives Edward’s response as imagined by Wace. It presents William’s claim that he was previously promised the throne by Edward, but not when. It also claims that some Englishmen have sworn to support this, but again, not whom or when. This could be a veiled reference to Harold’s oath.

“Then the king sat up in his bed, and turned his face to the English there, and said, " Seignors, you well know, and have ofttimes heard, that I have given my realm at my death to the duke of Normandy ; and as I have given it, so have some among  you sworn that it shall go.”"

Then Harold takes his prompt and requests the throne from Edward.

“But Harold, who stood by, said, " Whatever thou hast heretofore done, sire, consent now that I shall be king, and that your land be mine ; I wish for no other title, and want no one to do any thing more for me.”"

Edward states that Harold will have the throne but the wording carefull avoids Edward saying ‘I give it to you.’  Edward is merely acknowledging his awareness that there is nothing he can do to prevent Harold taking control. He then prophecises that William will successfully take his revenge on Harold.

" Harold," said the king, " thou shalt have it, but I know full well that it will cost thee thy life. If I know any thing of the duke, and the barons that are with him, and the multitude of people that he can command, none but God can avail to save thee."

Harold responds that he does not fear William.

“Then Harold said that he would stand the hazard, and that if the king would do what he asked, he feared no one, be he Norman or other.”

Edward then gives his consent that the English select their own king and by this allows them to make Harold the heir.

“So the king turned round and said, whether of his own free will I know not, "Let the English make either the duke or Harold king as they please, I consent." Thus he made Harold heir to his kingdom, as William could not have it. A kingdom must have a king; without one, in fact, it would be no kingdom ; so he let his barons have their own will. 

Wace concludes the scene with Edward’s death and burial.

“And now he could abide no longer. He died, and the English lamented much over him. His body was greatly honoured, and was buried at Westminster ; and the tomb which was made for him was rich, and endureth still.”

Wace finally claims that Harold used his position to take the crown and deliberately concealed his coronation from William.

“As soon as king Edward was dead, Harold, who was rich and powerful, had himself anointed and crowned, and said nought of it to the duke, but took the homage and fealty of the richest, and best born of the land.”

The Twelve Days of Christmas: Day Twelve: Harold's Coronation

The twelfth day of Christmas, 5th January is the Eve of the Epiphany. Harold's coronation followed immediately after the burial of Edward, quite possibly as part of the same event, whilst the congregation was gathered in the cathedral.  Harold was later criticised for the apparent haste of his coronation but more likely it was simply more expedient to combine the ceremonies.

There had been almost two weeks in which Edward sickened and died. All the nobles and senior clergy in the land were gathered together for the celebration of Christmas and the consecration of the church. There had been plenty of time in which to address the succession and to nominate a successor. Harold, as the 'under-king' and Edward's 'governor' was foremost in the possible heirs. 

William claimed through his publicity machine and many post-conquest writers that he was the designated heir, but he was not present to represent Edward at the consecration, this role fell to Queen Edith. Nor was he present thoughout Edward's final illness, or called for in his final hours.  ASC 1065 clearly states that Harold Godwinson was the chosen successor. The Bayeax tapestry shows Harold being offered the crown.

 

ASC 1065
" But the prudent king had settled the realm on high-born men— on Harold himself, the noble earl; who in every season faithfully heard and obeyed his lord, in word and deed; nor gave to any what might be wanted by the nation's king. This year also was Earl Harold hallowed to king; but he enjoyed little tranquillity therein the while that he wielded the kingdom."

ASC E
“And Harold the earl succeeded to the kingdom of England, even as the king had granted it to him, and men also had chosen him thereto; and he was crowned as king on Twelfth-day.”

Symeon of Durham
 “After his [Edward’s] funeral, the under-king Harold, son of duke Godwin, whom the king before his decease had chosen as the successor to his kingdom, was by the princes of all England elected to the royal dignity; and on the same day was solemnly consecrated king by Aldred, arch-bishop of York.”

Matthew Paris's Lives of Edward, written nearly 200 years later claims that Harold was elected because no-one dared to oppose him.

He  [Harold] was  tall  and  open  handed  and  handsome, 
But  less  loyal  than  he  appeared  ; 
He  caused  himself  to  be  elected  by  many,  
And  crowned ;  for  to  oppose  him
No  one  dared,  and  this  wrong  took  place,
 

 

Although Symeon says that Harold was crowned by Archbishop Aldred of York, the Bayeax tapestry shows Harold's coronation being officiated by Archbishop Stigand.

 Orderic Vitalis, pp461-462
"On the very day of the funeral, when the people were bathed in tears for the loss of their beloved king, Harold caused himself to be crowned by archbishop Stigand alone, though the pope had suspended him from his functions for certain crimes, without the concurrence of any other bishops and the earls and barons of the realm.
When the English were apprized of the bold usurption effected by Harold, they were very indignant and some of the most powerful lords, resolved on an obstinate resistance, refused to offer him any tokens of submission. Others, not knowing how to free themselves from the yoke imposed upon them, which soon became firmly fixed, and on the other hand, considering that they could neither depose him, not while he held the reigns of government set up another king to the advantage of the realm, submitted to his usurption, consolidating the power which he had already established. In a short time the throne which had been iniquitously seized was stained by horrible crimes."
[and here Orderic moves on to the expulsion of Tostig which he sets after the coronation and which he blames on Harold]

Matthew Paris shows Harold crowning himself.  He says in "the Lives of Edward the Confessor"

It  was  the  feast  of  the  Epiphany,  when  
The  crown  he  placed  on  his  head,
And  the  morrow  after  King  Edward
Died,  Which  had  seemed  to  him  long  delayed;
By  seculars  and  lay  people. 
With  pride  hastily  
Without  sacrament  of  Holy  Church,
And  without  service  was  he  crowned. 

Henry of Huntingdon gives the post-conquest view that Harold seized the crown unlawfully.  He follows the error that Edward died on twelfth day, the eve of epiphany. He says, “ For when the church of St. Peter at Westminster had been consecrated on Holy Innocents' day, and soon afterwards King Edward departed this life on the eve of Epiphany, and was interred in the same church, which he had built and endowed with great possessions, some of the English sought to make Edgar Etheling king; but Harold, relying on his power and his pretensions by birth, seized the crown.”