Freelance Writing Jobs | Today's Articles | Sign In

 
Browse Sections

Harald Hardrada

The Last of the Vikings

Nov 30, 2006 Joseph Allen McCullough

Harald Hardrada was the last of the great Viking Kings. He would meet his end in England.

Harald Hardrada is the more common name of the Norwegian king Harald Sigurdsson. Born in the year 1015, Harald was the younger brother of King Olaf and third in line for the Norwegian throne. However, in 1030, King Cnut of Denmark (and later England and Norway) invaded and killed Olaf in battle. Harald was wounded in the same battle, but managed to flee the country with a group of loyal warriors.

Harald and his warriors journeyed to the land of the Rus (later Russia) and took service with the king Yaroslav, where they stayed for several years fighting in many battles. Harald became restless though, and packed up his men and set out for Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, and the wealthiest city in the known world. There, Harald and his men joined the Varangian Guard, an elite mercenary unit. Again Harald proved himself a great warrior and leader of men, and soon took command of the entire unit. In this position, he was given broad powers to plan his own attacks, and he won many victories for the Empire. He also amassed a huge amount of personal wealth.

In 1045, Harald decided to take his wealth and return to Norway. King Cnut had died years before, and the throne had passed to Harald’s nephew Magnus. Harald brought a large force of warriors with him to Norway, and King Magnus quickly agreed to share the throne with his uncle. A year later, Magnus died, circumstances unknown.

For twenty years, Harald ruled Norway, picking up the nickname Hardrada, meaning hard-ruler. But Harald could not sit easy on a throne; he craved the adventure of his Viking ancestors. In 1066, Tostig Godwinson approached him about staking his claim to the English throne. (Harald did have a vague claim through his Nephew. It wasn’t much, but none of the main participants of 1066 really had much claim to the throne.) Harald agreed and, gathering his army, set out for England.

The rest of the story is told in my article on Fulford Gate and Stamford Bridge.

The copyright of the article Harald Hardrada in UK/Irish History is owned by Joseph Allen McCullough. Permission to republish Harald Hardrada in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
What do you think about this article?

NOTE: Because you are not a Suite101 member, your comment will be moderated before it is viewable.
post your comment
What is 7+5?
30 Comments

Comments

Sep 10, 2008 11:17 AM
Guest :
Very good information; it had all the subsequent details I needed for my History homework!
Holly Lloyd-Winter
Sep 29, 2008 8:16 AM
Guest :
good info for my history homework
rosie
Sep 30, 2008 10:00 AM
Guest :
great info all I needed 4 my homework :)
Oct 3, 2008 5:46 AM
Guest :
Urgghh....Why didn't you include any bad points?
Oct 4, 2008 3:29 AM
Guest :
just what i needed for my s.a thanks for posting this story on harald
Oct 7, 2008 10:12 AM
Guest :
great imfomation helped with my history homeworkm
katie cathcart
Oct 26, 2008 7:50 AM
Guest :
great site
Nov 9, 2008 4:36 AM
Guest :
good information but i wanted to know about his army
Nov 15, 2008 7:52 AM
Guest :
Very Good helped with my history homework
Nov 17, 2008 1:07 AM
Guest :
very helpful in homework !! thank you and by the way why don't you try doing the other people and telling us where Harold Hardrada was born.i know he was born in norway but i don't know which part he was from in norway. thanks again and try to do these things it would help.
Nov 20, 2008 8:40 AM
Guest :
this is really good info about harald hardrada
Nov 23, 2008 5:09 AM
Guest :
This helped me with my history homework too! Thanks.
Nov 23, 2008 5:14 AM
Guest :
Great information
Nov 27, 2008 2:13 AM
Guest :
This a very good website for information we got alot of information .
Nov 30, 2008 8:00 AM
Guest :
very good peice of writing it really helped me with my history homework
sophie
Dec 18, 2008 12:54 AM
Guest :
Hey. Great article, although King Knut never invaded norway, like you wrote. King Knut of Denmark bribed chieftains in Norway to raise up against King Olav. They killed King Olav in the battle of Stiklestad in 1030.
Jan 2, 2009 2:48 AM
Guest :
Really great article. This has helped loads with my history extended essay. Thanks very much.
Nick
Jan 8, 2009 7:53 AM
Guest :
this is ace info wat i needed for my project about this person and era thank you
jadene 14
Feb 2, 2009 8:38 AM
Guest :
heh it helped alot of people with their history homework and it helped me with mine too well done =]
Feb 9, 2009 4:48 PM
Guest :
Awesome article- This is exactly what I needed to add to my history report! Especially this part: Harald and his warriors journeyed to the land of the Rus (later Russia) and took service with the king Yaroslav, where they stayed for several years fighting in many battles. Harald became restless though, and packed up his men and set out for Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, and the wealthiest city in the known world. There, Harald and his men joined the Varangian Guard, an elite mercenary unit. Again Harald proved himself a great warrior and leader of men, and soon took command of the entire unit. In this position, he was given broad powers to plan his own attacks, and he won many victories for the Empire. He also amassed a huge amount of personal wealth.

In 1045, Harald decided to take his wealth and return to Norway. King Cnut had died years before, and the throne had passed to Harald’s nephew Magnus. Harald brought a large force of warriors with him to Norway, and King Magnus quickly agreed to share the throne with his uncle. A year later, Magnus died, circumstances unknown.

For twenty years, Harald ruled Norway, picking up the nickname Hardrada, meaning hard-ruler. But Harald could not sit easy on a throne; he craved the adventure of his Viking ancestors. In 1066, Tostig Godwinson approached him about staking his claim to the English throne. (Harald did have a vague claim through his Nephew. It wasn’t much, but none of the main participants of 1066 really had much claim to the throne.) Harald agreed and, gathering his army, set out for England.
Feb 27, 2009 3:39 PM
Guest :
this is very very useful!
cheers for the information.
Eliza Smith
Mar 19, 2009 12:21 PM
Guest :
very good info but again you could have used pictures. it makes it look interesting
Jun 7, 2009 8:28 PM
Guest :
Very good information... now I can finish my homework!

Thanks btw!
Jul 4, 2009 2:08 AM
Guest :
thank you the information on this page helped me alot with my history homework. im happy to say that i got a B. thanks!
Aug 13, 2009 3:11 AM
Guest :
History homework: given 3 weeks to complete
Started the day before it was due and got 50/50 :D

!!NOT COPY AND PASTE!!

Thank you!!!!!!!!!
Sep 16, 2009 8:35 AM
Guest :
i couldent find any thing for my history homework abot harald
Sep 17, 2009 12:30 PM
Guest :
nice info. thanks i needed it
Sep 23, 2009 11:38 AM
Guest :
very good helped me in my lesson of 1066 thank you vey much
Nov 5, 2009 10:52 AM
Guest :
v good helped me with my history homework alot! the only thing is it doesn't really have a proper ending and doesn't say how he died.
Jan 21, 2010 1:00 PM
Guest :
It is good but it doesn't include any negative points, like what made it difficult or why his claim was bad. Apart from that I give a
thumbs up.
30 Comments
;