Harald Hardrada

King Harald II "Hardrada" Sigurdsson (c. 1015-1066)

"We never kneel in battle
Before the storm of weapons
And crouch behind our shields;
So the noble lady told me.
She told me once to carry
My head always high in battle
Where swords seek to shatter
The skulls of doomed warriors."

• A poem reportedly written by Harald Hardrada shortly before his death in 1066 at Stamford Bridge, and later recorded in King Harald's Saga by Snorri Sturluson, translated by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Pálsson (Penguin Classics, 1966, 2005).

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Jarl Rognvald Kali

Jarl Rognvald Kali of Orkney (d. 1158)

"I'll swear, clever sweetheart,
you're a slender delight
to grasp and to'cuddle,
my golden-locked girl.
Ravenous the haw, crimson-
clawed, flesh-crammed -
but now, heavily hangs
the silken hair."

• This poem is attributed to Rognvald Kali, a 12th-century jarl (earl) of Orkney. He wrote this love poem after having met Viscountess Ermengarde of Narbonne (c. 1120-1194) while traveling on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Rognvald Kali's poetry was preserved in the Orkneyinga Saga, written c. 1200 by an anonymous Icelander. The translation used here was by Hermann Pálsson and Paul Edwards (Penguin Classics, 1981).  

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Arnor Earl's-Poet

Arnor Earl's-Poet

"Awkward our choice
when Earls are eager
to fight - friendship
is far from easy."

• This poem is attributed to Arnor Earl's-Poet, an 11th-century skald. The verse was preserved in the Orkneyinga Saga, written c. 1200 by an anonymous Icelander. The translation used here was by Hermann Pálsson and Paul Edwards (Penguin Classics, 1981).

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Jarl Rognvald Kali Kolsson of Orkney

Jarl Rognvald Kali of Orkney (ruled approximately 1137-1158)

"I'll pace warily,
give no peace to the plotter,
chance nothing, cherish
the beard on my chin."

• This poem is attributed to Rognvald Kali, a 12th-century jarl (earl) of Orkney. In the poem, the jarl describes his paranoid life amidst the dangerous political climate of medieval Orkney, where multiple jarls precariously shared power over the islands. Rognvald Kali's paranoia was well founded, as he was violently killed in 1158. The verse was preserved in the Orkneyinga Saga, written c. 1200 by an anonymous Icelander. The translation used here was by Hermann Pálsson and Paul Edwards (Penguin Classics, 1981). 

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Grettir's Saga

Grettir's Saga (anonymous 14th century text)

"No man can trust
in his own unaided
strength, that's clear
to me - because
the courage of heroes
ebbs away
on the death day
as their luck runs out."

• A Life/Death Poem about the character, Hallmund, recorded in the anonymously written Grettir's Saga (c. 14th century), translated by Jesse Byock (Oxford World's Classics, 2009). 

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Bersi Skald-Torfuson (Grettir's Saga)

Bersi Skald-Torfuson (in the anonymous Grettir's Saga, written c. 14th century)

"Certainly you can see, my lord, that it is better to spare one man and in return have the thanks of many."

• Spoken by Bersi Skald-Torfuson to the Norwegian Jarl Svein (co-ruler of Norway, r. 1000-1015) in a scene from the anonymously written Grettir's Saga (c. 14th century), translated by Jesse Byock (Oxford World's Classics, 2009).

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Snorri Sturluson

Snorri Sturluson (c. 1179-1241)

"Bitter words could only
Rouse the rage of others.
Men who always quarrel
Have no wish for treaties."

• From an anonymous poem in King Harald's Saga by Snorri Sturluson, translated by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Pálsson (Penguin Classics, 1966, 2005).

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Gudmund the Powerful (Grettir's Saga)

Gudmund the Powerful (c. 11th century, quoted in the 14th cenuty Grettir's Saga)

"Trust no one so well that you do not rely best on yourself."

• Spoken by the character, Gudmund the Powerful, in the anonymously written Grettir's Saga (c. 14th century), translated by Jesse Byock (Oxford World's Classics, 2009). 

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Onund Tree-Foot (Grettir's Saga)

Onund Tree-Foot
(semi-mythical Norwegian Viking and Icelandic settler said to have lived in the 9th century)

"The day we faced the music
of sword blades clanging on shields
destroyed my life's joy:
hardships grip us too soon."

• Spoken by the character, Onund Tree-Foot, in the anonymously written Grettir's Saga (c. 14th century), translated by Jesse Byock (Oxford World's Classics, 2009).

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Grettir the Strong

Grettir the Strong (said to have lived in the 11th century)

"Danger is at your own door when it has entered your neighbor's."

• Spoken by the character, Grettir, in the anonymously written Grettir's Saga (c. 14th century), chapter 34, translated by Jesse Byock (Oxford World's Classics, 2009).

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Onund Treefoot (Grettir's Saga)

Onund Tree-Foot (semi-mythical Norwegian Viking and Icelandic settler said to live in the 9th century)

"Many would-be warriors
mouth off but fail to think.
Your type sadly lacks practice
in fighting it out to the end."

• Spoken by the character, Onund Tree-Foot, in the anonymously written Grettir's Saga (c. 14th century), translated by Jesse Byock (Oxford World's Classics, 2009).

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th-century Viking poet)

"West over water I fared,
bearing poetry's waves to the shore
of the war-god's heart;
my course was set.
I launched my oaken craft
at the breaking of ice,
loaded my cargo of praie
aboard my ship aft."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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King Harald Hardrada

King Harald Hardrada (c. 1015-1066 CE)

"Now I go creeping from forest
To forest with little honour;
Who knows, my name may yet become
Renowned far and wide in the end."

• Quote supposedly composed by a fifteen-year-old Harald "Hardrada" Sigurdsson, in King Harald's Saga by Snorri Sturlusson, translated by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Pálsson (Penguin Classics, 1966, 2005).

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