King Harald was in Viken in the summer (A.D. 1064), and he sent his men
to the Uplands after the scat and duty which belonged to him; but the
bondes paid no attention to the demand, but said they would hold all for
Earl Hakon until he came for it. Earl Hakon was then up in Gautland
with a large armed force. When summer was past King Harald went south
to Konungahella. Then he took all the light-sailing vessels he could get
hold of and steered up the river. He had the vessels drawn past all
the waterfalls and brought them thus into the Wener lake. Then he rowed
eastward across the lake to where he heard Earl Hakon was; but when the
earl got news of the king's expedition he retreated down the country,
and would not let the king plunder the land. Earl Hakon had a large
armed force which the Gautland people had raised for him. King Harald
lay with his ships up in a river, and made a foray on land, but left
some of his men behind to protect the ships. The king himself rode up
with a part of the men, but the greater part were on foot. They had to
cross a forest, where they found a mire or lake, and close to it a wood;
and when they reached the wood they saw the earl's men, but the mire
was between them. They drew up their people now on both sides. Then King
Harald ordered his men to sit down on the hillside. "We will first see
if they will attack us. Earl Hakon does not usually wait to talk." It
was frosty weather, with some snow-drift, and Harald's men sat down
under their shields; but it was cold for the Gautlanders, who had but
little clothing with them. The earl told them to wait until King Harald
came nearer, so that all would stand equally high on the ground. Earl
Hakon had the same banner which had belonged to King Magnus Olafson.
The lagman of the Gautland people, Thorvid, sat upon a horse, and the
bridle was fastened to a stake that stood in the mire. He broke out with
these words: "God knows we have many brave and handsome fellows here,
and we shall let King Steinkel hear that we stood by the good earl
bravely. I am sure of one thing: we shall behave gallantly against
these Northmen, if they attack us; but if our young people give way, and
should not stand to it, let us not run farther than to that stream; but
if they should give way farther, which I am sure they will not do,
let it not be farther than to that hill." At that instant the Northmen
sprang up, raised the war-cry, and struck on their shields; and the
Gautland army began also to shout. The lagman's horse got shy with the
war-cry, and backed so hard that the stake flew up and struck the lagman
on the head. He said, "Ill luck to thee, Northman, for that arrow!" and
away fled the lagman. King Harald had told his people, "If we do make
a clash with the weapons, we shall not however, go down from the hill
until they come nearer to us;" and they did so. When the war-cry was
raised the earl let his banner advance; but when they came under the
hill the king's army rushed down upon them, and killed some of the
earl's people, and the rest fled. The Northmen did not pursue the
fugitives long, for it was the fall of day; but they took Earl Hakon's
banner and all the arms and clothes they could get hold of. King Harald
had both the banners carried before him as they marched away. They spoke
among themselves that the earl had probably fallen. As they were riding
through the forest they could only ride singly, one following the
other. Suddenly a man came full gallop across the path, struck his spear
through him who was carrying the earl's banner, seized the banner-staff,
and rode into the forest on the other side with the banner. When this
was told the king he said, "Bring me my armour, for the earl is alive."
Then the king rode to his ships in the night; and many said that the
earl had now taken his revenge. But Thiodolf sang thus:--
"Steinkel's troops, who were so bold,
Who the Earl Hakon would uphold,
Were driven by our horsemen's power
To Hel, death goddess, in an hour;
And the great earl, so men say
Who won't admit he ran away,
Because his men fled from the ground,
Retired, and cannot now be found."