Eirik the Reds Saga

Eirik the Red's Saga

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Title: Eirik the Red's Saga
Author: Anonymous
Translator: John Sephton
Release Date: March 8, 2006 [EBook #17946]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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EIRIK THE RED'S SAGA:

A TRANSLATION

READ BEFORE THE LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL
SOCIETY OF LIVERPOOL,
JANUARY 12TH, 1880,

BY THE REV. J. SEPHTON.

LIVERPOOL: D. MARPLES & CO., LIMITED, MELVILL
CHAMBERS.
1880.

CONTENTS.
1. How Vifil, Gudrid's grandfather, came to Iceland.
2. Of Eirik the Red, and his discovery of Greenland.
3. Gudrid's parentage, and the emigration of her father, Thorbjorn, and
his family to Greenland.
4. Eirik's family, and his son Leif's discovery of Vinland.
5. Gudrid marries Thorstein, son of Eirik the Red. [Sickness and death
of Thorstein.]
6. Gudrid marries Karlsefni.
7. Karlsefni's expedition to Vinland. The first winter is passed at
Straumsfjordr.

8. Fate of Thorhall the Sportsman.
9. The second winter is passed at Hop.
10. Dealings with the Skroelingar.
11. Fight with the Skroelingar.
12. Return to Straumsfjordr.
13. The slaying of Thorvald by a One-footer. The colonists return to
Greenland after passing the third winter at Straumsfjordr.
14. Heroic magnanimity and fate of Bjarni.
15. Gudrid's descendants.

[Olaf, who was called Olaf the White, was styled a warrior king. He
was the son of King Ingjald, the son of Helgi, the son of Olaf, the son
of Gudred, the son of Halfdan Whiteleg, king of the Uplands (in
Norway). He led a harrying expedition of sea-rovers into the west, and
conquered Dublin, in Ireland, and Dublinshire, over which he made
himself king. He married Aud the Deep-minded, daughter of Ketil
Flatnose, son of Bjorn the Ungartered, a noble man from Norway.
Their son was named Thorstein the Red. Olaf fell in battle in Ireland,
and then Aud and Thorstein went into the Sudreyjar (the Hebrides).
There Thorstein married Thorid, daughter of Eyvind the Easterling,
sister of Helgi the Lean; and they had many children. Thorstein became
a warrior king, and formed an alliance with Earl Sigurd the Great, son
of Eystein the Rattler. They conquered Caithness, Sutherland, Ross,
and Moray, and more than half Scotland. Over these Thorstein was
king until the Scots plotted against him, and he fell there in battle. Aud
was in Caithness when she heard of Thorstein's death. Then she caused
a merchant-ship to be secretly built in the wood, and when she was
ready, directed her course out into the Orkneys. There she gave in
marriage Thorstein the Red's daughter, Gro, who became mother of
Grelad, whom Earl Thorfinn, the Skullcleaver, married. Afterwards

Aud set out to seek Iceland, having twenty free men in her ship. Aud
came to Iceland, and passed the first winter in Bjarnarhofn
(Bjornshaven) with her brother Bjorn. Afterwards she occupied all the
Dale country between the Dogurdara (day-meal river) and the
Skraumuhlaupsa (river of the giantess's leap), and dwelt at Hvamm.
She had prayer meetings at Krossholar (Crosshills), where she caused
crosses to be erected, for she was baptised and deeply devoted to the
faith. There came with her to Iceland many men worthy of honour, who
had been taken captive in sea-roving expeditions to the west, and who
were called bondmen. One of these was named Vifil; he was a man of
high family, and had been taken captive beyond the western main, and
was also called a bondman before Aud set him free. And when Aud
granted dwellings to her ship's company, Vifil asked why she gave no
abode to him like unto the others. Aud replied, "That it was of no
moment to him, for," she said, "he would be esteemed in whatever
place he was, as one worthy of honour." She gave him Vifilsdalr
(Vifilsdale), and he dwelt there and married. His sons were Thorbjorn
and Thorgeir, promising men, and they grew up in their father's house.
2. There was a man named Thorvald, the son of Asvald, the son of Ulf,
the son of Yxna-Thoris. His son was named Eirik. Father and son
removed from Jadar (in Norway) to Iceland, because of manslaughters,
and occupied land in Hornstrandir, and dwelt at Drangar. There
Thorvald died, and Eirik then married Thjodhild, daughter of Jorund,
the son of Atli, and of Thorbjorg