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The Saga of the Jomsvikings
In the year A.D. 986, Earl Hakon, ruler of most of Norway, won a triumphant victory over an invading fleet of Danes in the great naval battle of Hjorunga Bay. Sailing under his banner were were were no fewer than five Icelandic skalds, the poet-historians of the Old Norse world. Like good war correspondence of the present, they went home after the battle to relate what they had seen and heard; and, being poets as well as reporters, no doubt they seasoned their versions well with imagination.
132 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1200
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* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author
Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.
See also: Anonymous
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
November 21, 2012
An exciting little saga about the semi-legendary Baltic warrior band known as the Jomsvikings. The final chapters contain a last stand good enough to rival the Volsunga Saga and Hervararsaga, well not quite but it is good.
I actually read Hollanders translation of this saga many years ago, but I must admit, this was much more scholarly and contained both an English translation, the original Icelandic text, plus a very good introduction that explored the manuscript versions and a discussion on the archaeology of the Baltic islands mentioned in the saga.
I actually read Hollanders translation of this saga many years ago, but I must admit, this was much more scholarly and contained both an English translation, the original Icelandic text, plus a very good introduction that explored the manuscript versions and a discussion on the archaeology of the Baltic islands mentioned in the saga.
August 25, 2024
"Cattle die..and kinsman die,
thyself eke soon wilt die;
but fair fame...will fade never,
I ween, for him who wins it"
-Hávamál, stanza 77
"Fiercest fight-at home while
fondles the craven his buxom
wife-waxes space now
Vithri's weather- awaits us.
Safe, I say, the weakling
sleeps, no trouble expecting,
warm in his wife's embraces;
we sharpen spears for battle"
-Vigfus to Earl Eric
In the year 986 CE there was an epic naval battle off the coast of Western Norway. It was fought between Jarl Haakon Sigurdsson of Norway and King Harald Bluetooth of Denmark. This battle became semi-legendary and was written about roughly two centuries later as a saga composed from several different epics. This saga was instrumental in the foundation of the semi-mythical band of warriors known as the Jomsvikings. Allegedly based out of their headquarters of Jomsborg (historians are still not sure where exactly it was but most scholars think somewhere in the Baltics) this elite mercenary unit was famed for its skill and devotion towards the pagan Norse gods.
The saga itself must be placed squarely in the vein of historical fiction. While the major characters are real and the battle is real this version is an amalgamation of several poetic eddas and written two hundred years after these events. But this saga has all the hallmarks of Norse folk traditions such as threefold repetitions often found in Norse legends and lore. For example, King Gorm has three dreams about hard time to befall Denmark; the three marvels portending coming events to Jarl Klak-Harold; Palnatoki comes only to the third summons to the funeral feast; three times a hostile invasion is prevented by a resourceful prince's daughter or wife (itself a legendary motif); young Svein's threefold and ever increasingly impudent claims and three successive harrowings of the king's land; even the three successive arrivals at Jomsburg of Sigvaldi, Bui, and Vagn and their subsequent threefold reprisals for their actions; jarl Hakon must call on his goddess three times; and the course of the great naval battle is broken into three phases.
That was merely a brief taste of the major folklore elements to the story. It is also slanted in the portrayal of some of the real historical figures. i think the introduction summed it up best:
"..we must regard the sagas...not so much as reliable historical documents but as art products making only a secondary claim to historical veracity..."
So this is the story of the Jomsvikings. It was written at a time when there were great conflicts in the Norse world, ranging from the growing power of Kings versus the Jarls, the conflict between the Old Norse pagans and Christians, and the conflicts between Norway and Denmark.
I enjoyed this interesting book and appreciated it like a poetic edda, as opposed to an actual historical record. As we have little to no source material for the existence of the Jomsvikings or Jomburg, the historical figures are real and even the actual naval battle has a semi-legendary status about it.
Anyone interested in ancient Norse culture will appreciate this classic epic.
thyself eke soon wilt die;
but fair fame...will fade never,
I ween, for him who wins it"
-Hávamál, stanza 77
"Fiercest fight-at home while
fondles the craven his buxom
wife-waxes space now
Vithri's weather- awaits us.
Safe, I say, the weakling
sleeps, no trouble expecting,
warm in his wife's embraces;
we sharpen spears for battle"
-Vigfus to Earl Eric
In the year 986 CE there was an epic naval battle off the coast of Western Norway. It was fought between Jarl Haakon Sigurdsson of Norway and King Harald Bluetooth of Denmark. This battle became semi-legendary and was written about roughly two centuries later as a saga composed from several different epics. This saga was instrumental in the foundation of the semi-mythical band of warriors known as the Jomsvikings. Allegedly based out of their headquarters of Jomsborg (historians are still not sure where exactly it was but most scholars think somewhere in the Baltics) this elite mercenary unit was famed for its skill and devotion towards the pagan Norse gods.
The saga itself must be placed squarely in the vein of historical fiction. While the major characters are real and the battle is real this version is an amalgamation of several poetic eddas and written two hundred years after these events. But this saga has all the hallmarks of Norse folk traditions such as threefold repetitions often found in Norse legends and lore. For example, King Gorm has three dreams about hard time to befall Denmark; the three marvels portending coming events to Jarl Klak-Harold; Palnatoki comes only to the third summons to the funeral feast; three times a hostile invasion is prevented by a resourceful prince's daughter or wife (itself a legendary motif); young Svein's threefold and ever increasingly impudent claims and three successive harrowings of the king's land; even the three successive arrivals at Jomsburg of Sigvaldi, Bui, and Vagn and their subsequent threefold reprisals for their actions; jarl Hakon must call on his goddess three times; and the course of the great naval battle is broken into three phases.
That was merely a brief taste of the major folklore elements to the story. It is also slanted in the portrayal of some of the real historical figures. i think the introduction summed it up best:
"..we must regard the sagas...not so much as reliable historical documents but as art products making only a secondary claim to historical veracity..."
So this is the story of the Jomsvikings. It was written at a time when there were great conflicts in the Norse world, ranging from the growing power of Kings versus the Jarls, the conflict between the Old Norse pagans and Christians, and the conflicts between Norway and Denmark.
I enjoyed this interesting book and appreciated it like a poetic edda, as opposed to an actual historical record. As we have little to no source material for the existence of the Jomsvikings or Jomburg, the historical figures are real and even the actual naval battle has a semi-legendary status about it.
Anyone interested in ancient Norse culture will appreciate this classic epic.
April 5, 2020
The sea battle is so good. High octane stuff that even Hollywood couldn't provide.
Did a short thread highlighting the best parts here.
Did a short thread highlighting the best parts here.
January 1, 2022
The Saga of the Jómsvíkings was a fun, quick read. I appreciated the introduction, which helped establish fact versus fiction in the tale, and the translation read smoothly and coherently. This is the first saga I have read in a while, and I enjoyed getting back into that storytelling style again. As a short and easy read, this book might be a good place to start if you are interested in reading a saga but are worried about following everything, as the action and family relationships are fairly straightforward; however, some of the more fantastical pieces are more fun overall. In the end, I would give this book four stars.
December 23, 2014
The Saga of the Jomsvikings is an absolutely essential primary source for historical and cultural study of the Scandinavians in the 10th Century CE. As always, the historian should beware the accuracy of his or her source, particularly in the case of a saga written by Icelandic Skalds and preserved in an oral tradition -- but with this in mind, this saga can provide an excellent view into the mindset of the men who fought at the Battle of Hjorunga.
For those of you reading this book for interest over research, it is actually quite enjoyable. The translation is excellent, and the story, despite often becoming confused due to the constant repetition of names within a family line, is riveting. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Scandinavian or "viking" epics and/or warfare.
For those of you reading this book for interest over research, it is actually quite enjoyable. The translation is excellent, and the story, despite often becoming confused due to the constant repetition of names within a family line, is riveting. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Scandinavian or "viking" epics and/or warfare.
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October 28, 2023"Toki. The name signifies 'fool,' just as the Swiss Tell does. Both legendary heroes were famous for their reckless bravery and prowess in archery."
"[Bjorn] went back into the hall. There the king's men were tossing the Welshman into the air and had well-nigh torn him to pieces. Then Bjorn got hold of the dead man and put him on his back and returned with him to his men. He did that mostly for glory's sake."
"At that moment Sigmund Brestisson, a great fighter, attacked Bui on his ship, and it ended with Sigmund cutting off both of Bui's hands at the wrists. Then Bui stuck the stumps into the handles of his chests and called out aloud: 'Overboard all of Bui's men,' and leaped overboard with the chests."
"Thorkel slammed down with his sword, and at that moment the young man jerked away his head, and the blow fell on the arms of the one holding his hair and cut them off at the elbow."
"[Bjorn] went back into the hall. There the king's men were tossing the Welshman into the air and had well-nigh torn him to pieces. Then Bjorn got hold of the dead man and put him on his back and returned with him to his men. He did that mostly for glory's sake."
"At that moment Sigmund Brestisson, a great fighter, attacked Bui on his ship, and it ended with Sigmund cutting off both of Bui's hands at the wrists. Then Bui stuck the stumps into the handles of his chests and called out aloud: 'Overboard all of Bui's men,' and leaped overboard with the chests."
"Thorkel slammed down with his sword, and at that moment the young man jerked away his head, and the blow fell on the arms of the one holding his hair and cut them off at the elbow."
July 7, 2018
This was a wonderful accessible translation. It could benefit from a diagram of family lines since 80% of the men named in the saga are called Harold. That's a bit confusing but Hollander did a great job keeping things clear.
June 10, 2024
As Lee Hollander mentions in the introduction, this “historical” saga has an air of legend to it, making it feel much more like a legendary saga like The Saga of the Volsungs or Beowulf. While there aren’t many supernatural events, there are enough to give the story a whimsical feeling. In my opinion, this saga bridges the gap between historical Icelandic sagas and legendary sagas beautifully.
The familial tension is very intriguing in this saga. The bastard Svein isn’t recognized by his father, King Harold, and so Svein harries Denmark and starts a war between them. Palnatóki, Svein’s foster-father and no friend to Harold, slays Harold — and even though Svein and Palnatóki love each other, the crime of Palnatóki killing Svein’s blood father is unforgivable in their culture. One could easily read between the lines and figure that Palnatóki knew the consequences of his own actions, but wished the war to end and for Svein to be king, and thought that killing Harold was the least-bloody way to accomplish this. He might have wished, or even expected, that his foster-son would show him mercy. But at the end of the day, he could not have expected anything other than what had happened, since he knew the law of the cycles of revenge. But regardless, he still feels utterly angry about this personal, if not legal, betrayal.
The Jómsvíkings are, simply put, very cool. It’s rare that we see such a unified force of Vikings tied together by specific rules and codes in the sagas, and it’s reminiscent of Medieval English knights. And through the creation of the Jómsvíkings, we get a further understanding of Palnatóki as a character; he is wise, resourceful, and a hard, but practical leader of warrior men. We saw a glimpse of this when he killed Harold, his first narrative foil, but it really shines when he forms the Jómsvíkings.
I wish that the central tension between the Jómsvíkings and King Svein persisted. It seems like the story was setting up tensions between the two since Palnatóki and Svein had such an interesting rivalry, but then it didn’t go anywhere. The fight against Earl Hákon seemed random, and not really in line with the themes previously presented.
This is a small gripe, but I wish that Búi’s character was more fleshed out. He doesn’t really stand out when compared to the other vikings, but his epilogue is interesting. I really love the saga motif of greedy wealth-hoarders turning into dragons, but it kind of came out of the blue since his character wasn’t developed.
It would have been better, in my opinion, for Vagn to have had the unhappy ending. I hated him since the start and thought he was extremely arrogant and dishonorable, so I was disappointed when he got a happy ending.
I love how pro-Pagan this story is. The forces of Earl Hákon win because of his devotion to the Old Faith, and like Hollander says in the introduction, this saga is chalk-full of Havamalistic heroics, especially with the Jómsvíkings. While I didn’t love that Vagn got a happy ending, it makes sense — he is a Viking, through and through.
One last note: the illustrations by Malcolm Thurgood were amazing. They were pretty sparse, but they really breathed life into this saga and it made the reading experience so much better.
Overall, this saga was very entertaining and pretty accessible! It’s a good one to read toward the beginning of one’s saga journey, though I would not suggest it to be the first that someone reads.
The familial tension is very intriguing in this saga. The bastard Svein isn’t recognized by his father, King Harold, and so Svein harries Denmark and starts a war between them. Palnatóki, Svein’s foster-father and no friend to Harold, slays Harold — and even though Svein and Palnatóki love each other, the crime of Palnatóki killing Svein’s blood father is unforgivable in their culture. One could easily read between the lines and figure that Palnatóki knew the consequences of his own actions, but wished the war to end and for Svein to be king, and thought that killing Harold was the least-bloody way to accomplish this. He might have wished, or even expected, that his foster-son would show him mercy. But at the end of the day, he could not have expected anything other than what had happened, since he knew the law of the cycles of revenge. But regardless, he still feels utterly angry about this personal, if not legal, betrayal.
The Jómsvíkings are, simply put, very cool. It’s rare that we see such a unified force of Vikings tied together by specific rules and codes in the sagas, and it’s reminiscent of Medieval English knights. And through the creation of the Jómsvíkings, we get a further understanding of Palnatóki as a character; he is wise, resourceful, and a hard, but practical leader of warrior men. We saw a glimpse of this when he killed Harold, his first narrative foil, but it really shines when he forms the Jómsvíkings.
I wish that the central tension between the Jómsvíkings and King Svein persisted. It seems like the story was setting up tensions between the two since Palnatóki and Svein had such an interesting rivalry, but then it didn’t go anywhere. The fight against Earl Hákon seemed random, and not really in line with the themes previously presented.
This is a small gripe, but I wish that Búi’s character was more fleshed out. He doesn’t really stand out when compared to the other vikings, but his epilogue is interesting. I really love the saga motif of greedy wealth-hoarders turning into dragons, but it kind of came out of the blue since his character wasn’t developed.
It would have been better, in my opinion, for Vagn to have had the unhappy ending. I hated him since the start and thought he was extremely arrogant and dishonorable, so I was disappointed when he got a happy ending.
I love how pro-Pagan this story is. The forces of Earl Hákon win because of his devotion to the Old Faith, and like Hollander says in the introduction, this saga is chalk-full of Havamalistic heroics, especially with the Jómsvíkings. While I didn’t love that Vagn got a happy ending, it makes sense — he is a Viking, through and through.
One last note: the illustrations by Malcolm Thurgood were amazing. They were pretty sparse, but they really breathed life into this saga and it made the reading experience so much better.
Overall, this saga was very entertaining and pretty accessible! It’s a good one to read toward the beginning of one’s saga journey, though I would not suggest it to be the first that someone reads.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 28, 2021
Can't give it a fair rating since this a translates of an old style of writing. I'm sure if I were to read more into the history behind it, I could appreciate more of what is going on. For now, just 3/5.
June 9, 2018
Hardcore.
September 27, 2021
I could have read more! It was very interesting...to learn about such a strong, brutal force.
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November 19, 2023Very interesting, didn't know this one existed.
April 16, 2013
I really am a big fan of Lee M. Hollander's Translations, I especially liked their work in The Poetic Edda. I get the feeling many translators work to just get the story itself across to you, and after that is complete, feel their job is done. Yet Hollander goes above and beyond the call of duty by offering us copious amounts of notes and background information, explaining how and why something is translated as it is, giving important cultural background, or even explaining why they and other scholars feel certain parts of unhistorical compared to the historical.
The book itself as much to do with the Kings of Denmark of the Knytling dynasty, Gorm, Bluetooth, etc. It's a delight to read, and as always with Hollander's work, you get more out of it than just the story.
The book itself as much to do with the Kings of Denmark of the Knytling dynasty, Gorm, Bluetooth, etc. It's a delight to read, and as always with Hollander's work, you get more out of it than just the story.
December 29, 2014
Most of this saga was rather dull, and I'm not certain if that is due to the saga itself or the translation. The first 2/3 I would probably give 2 stars. Its very hard to follow and nothing much happens. Having said that, the last 1/3 is easily 4-4.5. It is exciting and very much embodies the typical viking ethos. The last part is good enough that it would probably be worth another closer reading of the first part.
January 27, 2015
One of my favorite sagas, even if the first half is hard to follow without a detailed family tree (you think you can do it, but you can't, Nemo. Start drawing). Things get increasingly exciting and badass towards the second half. Definitely worth the read, and a visit to the Wolin Viking Festival...
November 16, 2015
Can't really say anything about the quality of the translation, as I haven't made any efforts comparing it to the original text - mostly due to my lack of language insight. But there's a lot of good notes and such, which makes it a worthwhile read, in addition to the actual source material itself.
June 17, 2016
Excellent book. It is a great story that gives you a peek into the lives of the Vikings. I plan to read all the Viking Sagas but I made this a higher priority than other ones because a Scandinavian Metal band had a concept album called "Jomsvikings".
December 12, 2008
Saga mostly concentrating on an elite band of Viking warriors known as the JomsVikings. Packed with blood and gore from beginning to end, even human sacrifices to gain favor from the Gods in battle!
April 10, 2014
One of the more lively saga's that really has an awesome feel to it.
January 27, 2016
A slow read but a very good book covering the Vikings' history from what oral and written sources we have left. Recommended if you are a history buff or into that area of study. Recommended
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews