Skjegge Asbjørnson
Skjegge Asbjørnson | |
|---|---|
| ᛌᚴᛁᚴᚴᛁ ᚭᛌᛓᛁᛆᚱᚿᛆᚱᛌᚭᚿ | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | before 986 |
| Died | 997-998 Mære, Norway |
Skjegge Asbjørnson (Old Norse: Skeggi Ásbjarnarson, d. 997–998), also called Jernskjegge or Járnskeggi (lit. 'Ironbeard'), was a Norwegian viking chieftain of Ørland. He is known from Snorri Sturluson's account of the life of King Olaf Tryggvason.
Biography
Skjegge's father was Asbjørn Hordsson. Skjegge, along with Sweyn Haakonsson and Ragnvald Lodinsson, are said to have commanded 60 longships as part of Jarl Haakon Sigurdsson's fleet against the Jomsvikings in the Battle of Hjörungavágr.[1] Skjegge's home was at Opphaug in Ørland.
When King Olaf Tryggvason proceeded to Mære in 997, Skjegge was among the local pagan chieftains and farmers in the Trøndelag region who opposed the importation of Christianity. Skjegge requested that King Olaf observe a blót being conducted at a shrine of Thor "as other Kings in the land [had] done before [him]." King Olaf agreed, but once inside, he immediately attacked the image of Thor while his men seized and killed Skjegge. Under threat of further violence, the frightened farmers agreed to convert to Christianity. The King then took some of them hostage, "that they would cleave to the new faith that was given them."[1]
After Skjegge was killed, his remains were brought back to Ørland, and he was buried in a tumulus called Skjeggehaugen (lit. 'Skjegge's hill') on the grounds of what later became the Austrått manorial estate. As of the 21st century, there are several small hills at Austrått called Skjeggehaugen and it is unknown which is the real site of Skjegge's grave.
Skjegge's daughter Gudrun (Old Norse: Guðrún) was later given as a wife to King Olaf as part of a settlement between the king and Skjegge's relatives, but she was sent away after she attempted to kill the King in his sleep to avenge her father.[1]