CHAPTER XI.
And now, while war thus hungered for England at the mouth of the
Somme, the last and most renowned of the sea-kings, Harold Hardrada,
entered his galley, the tallest and strongest of a fleet of three
hundred sail, that peopled the seas round Solundir. And a man named
Gyrdir, on board the King's ship, dreamed a dream [239]. He saw a
great witch-wife standing on an isle of the Sulen, with a fork in one
hand and a trough in the other [240]. He saw her pass over the whole
fleet;--by each of the three hundred ships he saw her; and a fowl sat
on the stern of each ship, and that fowl was a raven; and he heard the
witch-wife sing this song:
"From the East I allure him,
At the West I secure him;
In the feast I foresee
Rare the relics for me;
Red the drink, white the bones.
The ravens sit greeding,
And watching, and heeding;
Thoro' wind, over water,
Comes scent of the slaughter,
And ravens sit greeding
Their share of the bones.
Thoro' wind, thoro' weather,
We're sailing together;
I sail with the ravens;
I watch with the ravens;
I snatch from the ravens
My share of the bones."
There was also a man called Thord [241], in a ship that lay near the
King's; and he too dreamed a dream. He saw the fleet nearing land,
and that land was England. And on the land was a battle-array two-
fold, and many banners were flapping on both sides. And before the
army of the landfolk was riding a huge witch-wife upon a wolf; the
wolf had a man's carcase in his mouth, and the blood was dripping and
dropping from his jaws; and when the wolf had eaten up that carcase,
the witch-wife threw another into his jaws; and so, one after another;
and the wolf cranched and swallowed them all. And the witch-wife sang
this song:
"The green waving fields
Are hidden behind
The flash of the shields,
And the rush of the banners
That toss in the wind.
But Skade's eagle eyes
Pierce the wall of the steel,
And behold from the skies
What the earth would conceal;
O'er the rush of the banners
She poises her wing,
And marks with a shadow
The brow of the King.
And, in bode of his doom,
Jaw of Wolf, be the tomb
Of the bones and the flesh,
Gore-bedabbled and fresh,
That cranch and that drip
Under fang and from lip.
As I ride in the van
Of the feasters on man,
With the King!
Grim wolf, sate my maw,
Full enow shall there be.
Hairy jaw, hungry maw,
Both for ye and for me!
Meaner food be the feast
Of the fowl and the beast;
But the witch, for her share,
Takes the best of the fare
And the witch shall be fed
With the king of the dead,
When she rides in the van
Of the slayers of man,
With the King."
And King Harold dreamed a dream. And he saw before him his brother,
St. Olave. And the dead, to the Scald-King sang this song:
"Bold as thou in the fight,
Blithe as thou in the hall,
Shone the noon of my might,
Ere the night of my fall!
How humble is death,
And how haughty is life;
And how fleeting the breath
Between slumber and strife!
All the earth is too narrow,
O life, for thy tread!
Two strides o'er the barrow
Can measure the dead.
Yet mighty that space is
Which seemeth so small;
The realm of all races,
With room for them all!"
But Harold Hardrada scorned witch-wife and dream; and his fleets
sailed on. Tostig joined him off the Orkney Isles, and this great
armament soon came in sight of the shores of England. They landed at
Cleveland [242], and at the dread of the terrible Norsemen, the
coastmen fled or submitted. With booty and plunder they sailed on to
Scarborough, but there the townsfolk were brave, and the walls were
strong.
The Norsemen ascended a hill above the town, lit a huge pile of wood,
and tossed the burning piles down on the roofs. House after house
caught the flame, and through the glare and the crash rushed the men
of Hardrada. Great was the slaughter, and ample the plunder; and the
town, awed and depeopled, submitted to flame and to sword.
Then the fleet sailed up the Humber and Ouse, and landed at Richall,
not far from York; but Morcar, the Earl of Northumbria, came out with
all his forces,--all the stout men and tall of the great race of the
Anglo-Dane.
Then Hardrada advanced his flag, called Land-Eyda, the "Ravager of the
World," [243] and, chaunting a war-stave,--led his men to the
onslaught.
The battle was fierce, but short. The English troops were defeated,
they fled into York; and the Ravager of the World was borne in triumph
to the gates of the town. An exiled chief, however tyrannous and
hateful, hath ever some friends among the desperate and lawless; and
success ever finds allies among the weak and the craven,--so many
Northumbrians now came to the side of Tostig. Dissension and mutiny
broke out amidst the garrison within; Morcar, unable to control the
townsfolk, was driven forth with those still true to their country and
King, and York agreed to open its gates to the conquering invader.
At the news of this foe on the north side of the land, King Harold was
compelled to withdraw all the forces at watch in the south against the
tardy invasion of William. It was the middle of September; eight
months had elapsed since the Norman had launched forth his vaunting
threat. Would he now dare to come?--Come or not, that foe was afar,
and this was in the heart of the country!
Now, York having thus capitulated, all the land round was humbled and
awed; and Hardrada and Tostig were blithe and gay; and many days,
thought they, must pass ere Harold the King can come from the south to
the north. The camp of the Norsemen was at Standford Bridge, and that
day it was settled that they should formally enter York. Their ships
lay in the river beyond; a large portion of the armament was with the
ships. The day was warm, and the men with Hardrada had laid aside
their heavy mail and were "making merry," talking of the plunder of
York, jeering at Saxon valour, and gloating over thoughts of the Saxon
maids, whom Saxon men had failed to protect,--when suddenly between
them and the town rose and rolled a great cloud of dust. High it rose,
and fast it rolled, and from the heart of the cloud shone the spear
and the shield.
"What army comes yonder?" said Harold Hardrada.
"Surely," answered Tostig, "it comes from the town that we are to
enter as conquerors, and can be but the friendly Northumbrians who
have deserted Morcar for me."
Nearer and nearer came the force, and the shine of the arms was like
the glancing of ice.
"Advance the World-Ravager!" cried Harold Hardrada, "draw up, and to
arms!"
Then, picking out three of his briskest youths, he despatched them to
the force on the river with orders to come up quick to the aid. For
already, through the cloud and amidst the spears, was seen the flag of
the English King. On the previous night King Harold had entered York,
unknown to the invaders--appeased the mutiny--cheered the townsfolks;
and now came like a thunderbolt borne by the winds, to clear the air
of England from the clouds of the North.
Both armaments drew up in haste, and Hardrada formed his array in the
form of a circle,--the line long but not deep, the wings curving round
till they met [244], shield to shield. Those who stood in the first
rank set their spear shafts on the ground, the points level with the
breast of a horseman; those in the second, with spears yet lower,
level with the breast of a horse; thus forming a double palisade
against the charge of cavalry. In the centre of this circle was
placed the Ravager of the World, and round it a rampart of shields.
Behind that rampart was the accustomed post at the onset of battle for
the King and his body-guard. But Tostig was in front, with his own
Northumbrian lion banner, and his chosen men.
While this army was thus being formed, the English King was
marshalling his force in the far more formidable tactics, which his
military science had perfected from the warfare of the Danes. That
form of battalion, invincible hitherto under his leadership, was in
the manner of a wedge or triangle. So that, in attack, the men
marched on the foe presenting the smallest possible surface to the
missives, and in defence, all three lines faced the assailants. King
Harold cast his eye over the closing lines, and then, turning to
Gurth, who rode by his side, said:
"Take one man from yon hostile army, and with what joy should we
charge on the Northmen!"
"I conceive thee," answered Gurth, mournfully, "and the same thought
of that one man makes my arm feel palsied."
The King mused, and drew down the nasal bar of his helmet.
"Thegns," said he suddenly, to the score of riders who grouped round
him, "follow." And shaking the rein of his horse, King Harold rode
straight to that part of the hostile front from which rose, above the
spears, the Northumbrian banner of Tostig. Wondering, but mute, the
twenty thegns followed him. Before the grim array, and hard by
Tostig's banner, the King checked his steed and cried:
"Is Tostig, the son of Godwin and Githa, by the flag of the
Northumbrian earldom?"
With his helmet raised, and his Norwegian mantle flowing over his
mail, Earl Tostig rode forth at that voice, and came up to the
speaker. [245]
"What wouldst thou with me, daring foe?"
The Saxon horseman paused, and his deep voice trembled tenderly, as he
answered slowly:
"Thy brother, King Harold, sends to salute thee. Let not the sons
from the same womb wage unnatural war in the soil of their fathers."
"What will Harold the King give to his brother?" answered Tostig,
"Northumbria already he hath bestowed on the son of his house's foe."
The Saxon hesitated, and a rider by his side took up the word.
"If the Northumbrians will receive thee again, Northumbria shalt thou
have, and the King will bestow his late earldom of Wessex on Morcar;
if the Northumbrians reject thee, thou shalt have all the lordships
which King Harold hath promised to Gurth."
"This is well," answered Tostig; and he seemed to pause as in doubt;--
when, made aware of this parley, King Harold Hardrada, on his coal-
black steed, with his helm all shining with gold, rode from the lines,
and came into hearing.
"Ha!" said Tostig, then turning round, as the giant form of the Norse
King threw its vast shadow over the ground.
"And if I take the offer, what will Harold son of Godwin give to my
friend and ally Hardrada of Norway?"
The Saxon rider reared his head at these words, and gazed on the large
front of Hardrada, as he answered, loud and distinct:
"Seven feet of land for a grave, or, seeing that he is taller than
other men, as much more as his corse may demand!"
"Then go back, and tell Harold my brother to get ready for battle; for
never shall the Scalds and the warriors of Norway say that Tostig
lured their king in his cause, to betray him to his foe. Here did he
come, and here came I, to win as the brave win, or die as the brave
die!"
A rider of younger and slighter form than the rest, here whispered the
Saxon King:
"Delay no more, or thy men's hearts will fear treason."
"The tie is rent from my heart, O Haco," answered the King, "and the
heart flies back to our England."
He waved his hand, turned his steed, and rode off. The eye of
Hardrada followed the horseman.
"And who," he asked calmly, "is that man who spoke so well?" [246]
"King Harold!" answered Tostig, briefly.
"How!" cried the Norseman, reddening, "how was not that made known to
me before? Never should he have gone back,--never told hereafter the
doom of this day!"
With all his ferocity, his envy, his grudge to Harold, and his treason
to England, some rude notions of honour still lay confused in the
breast of the Saxon; and he answered stoutly:
"Imprudent was Harold's coming, and great his danger; but he came to
offer me peace and dominion. Had I betrayed him, I had not been his
foe, but his murderer!"
The Norse King smiled approvingly, and, turning to his chiefs, said
drily:
"That man was shorter than some of us, but he rode firm in his
stirrups."
And then this extraordinary person, who united in himself all the
types of an age that vanished for ever in his grave, and who is the
more interesting, as in him we see the race from which the Norman
sprang, began, in the rich full voice that pealed deep as an organ, to
chaunt his impromptu war-song. He halted in the midst, and with great
composure said:
"That verse is but ill-tuned: I must try a better." [247]
He passed his hand over his brow, mused an instant, and then, with his
fair face all illumined, he burst forth as inspired.
This time, air, rhythm, words, all so chimed in with his own
enthusiasm and that of his men, that the effect was inexpressible. It
was, indeed, like the charm of those runes which are said to have
maddened the Berserker with the frenzy of war.
Meanwhile the Saxon phalanx came on, slow and firm, and in a few
minutes the battle began. It commenced first with the charge of the
English cavalry (never numerous), led by Leofwine and Haco, but the
double palisade of the Norman spears formed an impassable barrier; and
the horsemen, recoiling from the frieze, rode round the iron circle
without other damage than the spear and javelin could effect.
Meanwhile, King Harold, who had dismounted, marched, as was his wont,
with the body of footmen. He kept his post in the hollow of the
triangular wedge; whence he could best issue his orders. Avoiding the
side over which Tostig presided, he halted his array in full centre of
the enemy, where the Ravager of the World, streaming high above the
inner rampart of shields, showed the presence of the giant Hardrada.
The air was now literally darkened with the flights of arrows and
spears; and in a war of missives, the Saxons were less skilled than
the Norsemen. Still King Harold restrained the ardour of his men,
who, sore harassed by the darts, yearned to close on the foe. He
himself, standing on a little eminence, more exposed than his meanest
soldier, deliberately eyed the sallies of the horse, and watched the
moment he foresaw, when, encouraged by his own suspense and the feeble
attacks of the cavalry, the Norsemen would lift their spears from the
ground, and advance themselves to the assault. That moment came;
unable to withhold their own fiery zeal, stimulated by the tromp and
the clash, and the war hymns of their King, and his choral Scalds, the
Norsemen broke ground and came on.
"To your axes, and charge!" cried Harold; and passing at once from the
centre to the front, he led on the array. The impetus of that artful
phalanx was tremendous; it pierced through the ring of the Norwegians;
it clove into the rampart of shields; and King Harold's battle-axe was
the first that shivered that wall of steel; his step the first that
strode into the innermost circle that guarded the Ravager of the
World.
Then forth, from under the shade of that great flag, came, himself
also on foot, Harold Hardrada: shouting and chaunting, he leapt with
long strides into the thick of the onslaught. He had flung away his
shield, and swaying with both hands his enormous sword, he hewed down
man after man till space grew clear before him; and the English,
recoiling in awe before an image of height and strength that seemed
superhuman, left but one form standing firm, and in front, to oppose
his way.
At that moment the whole strife seemed not to belong to an age
comparatively modern, it took a character of remotest eld; and Thor
and Odin seemed to have returned to the earth. Behind this towering
and Titan warrior, their wild hair streaming long under their helms,
came his Scalds, all singing their hymns, drunk with the madness of
battle. And the Ravager of the World tossed and flapped as it
followed, so that the vast raven depicted on its folds seemed horrid
with life. And calm and alone, his eye watchful, his axe lifted, his
foot ready for rush or for spring--but firm as an oak against flight--
stood the Last of the Saxon Kings.
Down bounded Hardrada, and down shore his sword; King Harold's shield
was cloven in two, and the force of the blow brought himself to his
knee. But, as swift as the flash of that sword, he sprang to his
feet; and while Hardrada still bowed his head, not recovered from the
force of his blow, the axe of the Saxon came so full on his helmet,
that the giant reeled, dropped his sword, and staggered back; his
Scalds and his chiefs rushed around him. That gallant stand of King
Harold saved his English from flight; and now, as they saw him almost
lost in the throng, yet still cleaving his way--on, on--to the raven
standard, they rallied with one heart, and shouting forth, "Out, out!
Holy Crosse!" forced their way to his side, and the fight now waged
hot and equal, hand to hand. Meanwhile Hardrada, borne a little
apart, and relieved from his dinted helmet, recovered the shock of the
weightiest blow that had ever dimmed his eye and numbed his hand.
Tossing the helmet on the ground, his bright locks glittering like
sun-beams, he rushed back to the melee. Again helm and mail went down
before him; again through the crowd he saw the arm that had smitten
him; again he sprang forwards to finish the war with a blow,--when a
shaft from some distant bow pierced the throat which the casque now
left bare; a sound like the wail of a death-song murmured brokenly
from his lips, which then gushed out with blood, and tossing up his
arms wildly, he fell to the ground, a corpse. At that sight, a yell
of such terror, and woe, and wrath all commingled, broke from the
Norsemen, that it hushed the very war for the moment!
"On!" cried the Saxon King; "let our earth take its spoiler! On to
the standard, and the day is our own!"
"On to the standard!" cried Haco, who, his horse slain under him, all
bloody with wounds not his own, now came to the King's side. Grim and
tall rose the standard, and the streamer shrieked and flapped in the
wind as if the raven had voice, when, right before Harold, right
between him and the banner, stood Tostig his brother, known by the
splendour of his mail, the gold work on his mantle--known by the
fierce laugh, and the defying voice.
"What matters!" cried Haco; "strike, O King, for thy crown!"
Harold's hand griped Haco's arm convulsively; he lowered his axe,
turned round, and passed shudderingly away.
Both armies now paused from the attack; for both were thrown into
great disorder, and each gladly gave respite to the other, to re-form
its own shattered array.
The Norsemen were not the soldiers to yield because their leader was
slain--rather the more resolute to fight, since revenge was now added
to valour; yet, but for the daring and promptness with which Tostig
had cut his way to the standard, the day had been already decided.
During the pause, Harold summoning Gurth, said to him in great
emotion, "For the sake of Nature, for the love of God, go, O Gurth,--
go to Tostig; urge him, now Hardrada is dead, urge him to peace. All
that we can proffer with honour, proffer--quarter and free retreat to
every Norseman [248]. Oh, save me, save us, from a brother's blood!"
Gurth lifted his helmet, and kissed the mailed hand that grasped his
own.
"I go," said he. And so, bareheaded, and with a single trumpeter, he
went to the hostile lines.
Harold awaited him in great agitation; nor could any man have guessed
what bitter and awful thoughts lay in that heart, from which, in the
way to power, tie after tie had been wrenched away. He did not wait
long; and even before Gurth rejoined him, he knew by an unanimous
shout of fury, to which the clash of countless shields chimed in, that
the mission had been in vain.
Tostig had refused to hear Gurth, save in presence of the Norwegian
chiefs; and when the message had been delivered, they all cried, "We
would rather fall one across the corpse of the other [249], than leave
a field in which our King was slain."
"Ye hear them," said Tostig; "as they speak, speak I"
"Not mine this guilt, too, O God!" said Harold, solemnly lifting his
hand on high. "Now, then, to duty."
By this time the Norwegian reinforcements had arrived from the ships,
and this for a short time rendered the conflict, that immediately
ensued, uncertain and critical. But Harold's generalship was now as
consummate as his valour had been daring. He kept his men true to
their irrefragable line. Even if fragments splintered off, each
fragment threw itself into the form of the resistless wedge. One
Norwegian, standing on the bridge of Stanford, long guarded that pass;
and no less than forty Saxons are said to have perished by his arm.
To him the English King sent a generous pledge, not only of safety for
the life, but honour for the valour. The viking refused to surrender,
and fell at last by a javelin from the hand of Haco. As if in him had
been embodied the unyielding war-god of the Norsemen, in that death
died the last hope of the vikings. They fell literally where they
stood; many, from sheer exhaustion and the weight of their mail, died
without a blow [250]. And in the shades of nightfall, Harold stood
amidst the shattered rampart of shields, his foot on the corpse of the
standard-bearer, his hand on the Ravager of the World.
"Thy brother's corpse is borne yonder," said Haco in the ear of the
King, as wiping the blood from his sword, he plunged it back into the
sheath.
