THE SACRIFICE TO THOR.
Thus was Olaf Triggveson chosen by the General Assembly to be King
over all Norway, and the rule of the land was made over to him in
accordance with the old laws, by the officers of the people. The
bonders swore to be faithful to him, to support him while he won the
whole kingdom, and to help him to hold it; Olaf on his part promised
to observe the laws and rights of the people, and to defend it from
all invaders.
These ceremonies occupied the better part of the day, and it was
sunset before Sigurd and Astrid, who had watched the ceremony,
returned to the hall. They saw nothing of Olaf for several days, for
he was very busy with the various leaders who flocked to his banner,
and he was raising men and sending messages to all quarters of Norway
with news of his election.
Soon, however, news arrived that the levies were not needed, for Jarl
Eirik and his brother Svein had fled to Sweden as soon as the news of
their father's death arrived. The whole country yielded to Olaf's
rule, glad once more to have a king of the royal line of rulers, and
glad to get rid of Hakon, who to this day is known as "Hakon the Bad."
King Olaf was eager to preach the gospel to his people, but Sigurd,
his namesake the Bishop, and the other chiefs saw that Olaf must
first make his hold on the country firmer, for they foresaw that when
the people found that Olaf was intending to overturn the old faith,
there would be tumults and revolts. The King, however, yielded only
in part to them; and refusing to dwell in Thrandheim, where the great
temple of Thor was situated, began the building of a second town,
Nidaros, a few miles distant. So the autumn and early winter passed.
Nevertheless, the news spread that Olaf was no follower of the old
gods, and grave disturbances took place throughout the country, for
the bonders drew away from the new King when they found that he was
preaching a new faith to them. Then one day came the news that at
many of the larger temples great meetings of the bonders had taken
place, with sacrifices to the old gods, and there the bonders had
solemnly vowed that they would not allow Olaf to preach the "White
Christ" in Norway.
Now all agreed that it was indeed time to act, unless the kingdom was
to be endangered. The heart of the country was the district around
Thrandheim, where the land was most thickly populated, and where the
capital lay; so Olaf realized that if he once established
Christianity here, it would not be long before the rest of Norway
gave in.
With this object he called another General Assembly at Frosta, near
the capital; but as the message went forth, the bonders seized the
messengers, and substituted a war-arrow, so that all the chiefs and
great leaders assembled with a huge host, armed and ready for war.
Olaf, who came to the Assembly with only Sigurd and a score of men,
saw that he was taken in a trap; however, on the first day of the
meeting he conciliated the Assembly, although when he mentioned
Christ several of the leaders arose and forbade him to speak on
religious subjects on that day.
Sigurd saw that the bonders were in a bad mood, and that a spark
might inflame them; so that night, as he and King Olaf sat in their
tent, he said:
"Olaf, I have a plan which I think will save us all from further
trouble."
"Then, by St. Michael, let me have it!" cried Olaf, "for I am at my
wits' end for want of one!"
So Sigurd talked long with the King that evening. The next morning,
when the Assembly opened, Olaf arose, and after a short speech said:
"Let us preserve the compact that we made before, to strengthen and
uphold each other. To this end I will attend your great sacrifice
two weeks hence at the temple in Thrandheim, and after this we will
take counsel together concerning the faith that will be held, and we
will agree to hold to whatever faith we decide upon."
At this the bonders gave a great shout of joy, thinking that King
Olaf was yielding, and the other matters for which the Assembly had
been called passed off without trouble.
When Olaf returned to his new town of Nidaros a number of men from
Iceland received baptism, shortly after Yuletide. Many traders and
others who were in the new city of Nidaros, remained through the
winter at Olaf's court, and most of these were also baptized in the
end.
For the next two weeks both Sigurd and the King were busy perfecting
Sigurd's plan. The chief opponent of Christianity among the bonders
was Ironbeard, a very powerful chief who was also priest at Moeri, a
town near Thrandheim. The winter sacrifice was to be held at the
great temple in Moeri, and if Sigurd's plan went well, all resistance
to Christianity in the district would be destroyed at one blow.
Invitations were sent out to all the chief men of the bonders, to a
feast to be held at Nidaros three days before the winter sacrifice.
The greatest chiefs and leaders of the Thrandheim districts were
invited, and all accepted, save Ironbeard and one or two others.
On the morning bidden, the invited chiefs streamed into town, on
foot, on horseback, and even on skis. Many came over the ice from
across the bay, and by next morning the new city was filled with men,
as each chief brought a party with him. Early in the morning Olaf
and his court attended service in the new church, all the visitors
refusing to watch the service.
Immediately afterward Sigurd led fifty men to the harbor. There they
put on skates, and the young Jarl led them to Ladi, which was only
three miles across the ice, though more by land.
Removing their skates, Sigurd and his men tramped up from the shore
to the temple which stood on the hill, and raising his axe, Sigurd
struck the door. In five minutes it was broken down, while the few
priests who lived near by stood watching helplessly.
Carrying out all the images, Sigurd piled them in the show ana set
fire to them as an object lesson to the watching priests and bonders
that their gods were powerless. The temple was then stripped of its
valuables and the building itself burned. When this was done, Sigurd
and his men made a cross out of two beams of wood, and this he
planted in the snow over the ruins of the idols.
[Illustration: _This cross he planted over the ruins of the idols._]
Then, seeing the bonders gathering fast, he stepped out and addressed
them:
"Friends, we are here by command of the King, and you have to-day
seen how powerless your gods are before the true God. As you know,
your chiefs are now in Nidaros; when they return they will be
Christian men, no longer heathen."
With this Sigurd and his men, laden with the spoil of the temple,
returned to Nidaros. At the harbor mouth a man met them, for it was
noontime.
"Hasten, Jarl! The Assembly has just been called!" he cried to
Sigurd. "King Olaf posted me here to bid you hasten to the hall."
Sigurd hurried on to the palace, bidding his men wait in the outer
rooms till he blew his horn. Then he made his way to the hall,
entering it just as the Assembly was opened by the King.
"Chiefs and bonders," said Olaf, looking sternly around on the two
score great leaders who sat below his high-seat, "I do not forget
that you chose me to be your King, and gave me this realm of Norway;
but some two weeks ago I called a General Assembly of the people, and
there you and others refused to hear me preach the gospel of Christ,
and only by promising to attend the winter sacrifice did I escape
injury at your hands.
"Now you and all men know that I have in many places shamed the false
gods, burnt their images and temples, and in their stead have erected
the Cross of the true God. But I am conscious of the oath which I
swore to you at that Assembly, and therefore I propose to sacrifice
to your gods the greatest and highest sacrifice that man may offer,
namely, human life."
A little murmur of joy ran around the hall as Olaf paused. On great
occasions the Norsemen used to offer as the most acceptable sacrifice
a number of slaves or criminals, condemned to death. At the next
words of Olaf, the joyous murmur ceased.
"I do not believe that thralls or malefactors should be offered to
the gods; instead, they should delight in the blood of noble men,
great chiefs, powerful bonders. Since you have refused to release me
from my oath, I propose to sacrifice this sort of men, for we must do
our best to appease the gods, that they may favor us. Am I right?"
As the King paused again, a doubtful murmur of assent rose up, and
the men, not quite sure of Olaf's meaning, fixed their eyes on the
King, who stood, handsome and erect, by his throne.
"Therefore," he continued, "I will offer to your gods the greatest
sacrifice that Norway has ever known. You must be eager to receive
from them the reward of your service and past offerings, and for the
purpose of this offering I shall select you, Orm Lugg, you, Asbiorn
of Orness, you, Stirkar of Gimsa, you, Kar of Gryting, and I will
sacrifice you upon the high altar of Thor at Thrandeim. And after
this, I shall select six others, the highest and worthiest men of
this district from among you, and they shall be sacrificed likewise,
that the gods may send us fruitful seasons and peace."