Tag Archives: Guthwald Thegn

DAS Chronicle

Captives and Feuds, 877 A.D. (Earleywood 2017)

An Englisc viewpoint

At Wareham peace was sworn by solemn oaths from the Danes upon their holy ring, and hostages were given to Alfred the king: but the heathen proved forsworn, and fled towards Exeter. So Alfred sent for the hostages to be brought to him for hanging – for what other use is there for a hostage if oaths are not kept?

It fell to the Cilternsaete to escort two captives to the king – a man called Thorhelm and a woman called Fritha. We were also joined by Eadwulf, a Northumbrian who, like us, had come south to seek safety.

It was not long into the journey that we saw that there were small groups of Vikings abroad, seeking to free the hostages. The man Thorhelm used his weasel tongue to befriend young Wulfgar, and promised him great reward for his freedom – a gold arm-ring. So the boy, unwise, let him free, and he fled.

The Danes sought to waylay us, but as they had split into small bands could not stand before us, and we forced a passage along the road. There were several such skirmishes, and although Fritha was lost – freed or slain, I cannot say – we gained other captives, who would decorate a gallows just as well.

Later, we pursued the Viking stragglers as they headed to Exeter, harrying them, but unable to prevent them form seizing the burh.

That evening, a truce was called and Thorhelm offered his ransom to Wulfgar – an arm-ring indeed, bit of brass, not gold. Yet further proof that the heathen cannot be trusted.

This Thorhelm also showed that whilst he might fool a young boy, his tongue could get him into trouble, and not out of it. Drunk, no doubt, he called Guthwald thegn a lowly peasant – which brought the promise of a blood-feud with the Cilternsaete. Thorhelm wriggled and writhed, but was caught like an eel in a fish-trap. At length, realising his folly, and helped by those of greater wisdom, he agreed to buy himself free of the feud by serving as a mercenary (but without pay) for the Cilterseate on two future campaigns, when called upon by Guthwald to do so.

Later, a man entered the hall, wet and unkempt from the sea. He gave his name as Herjolf, Halfdan’s man, and brought news that the Danish fleet had been wrecked. Surely, this was the wrath of God upon the heathen for breaking their oaths.

– Herewulf Thegn

A Dane’s viewpoint

The Englisc were much impressed with Thorhelm’s generosity to their man Wulfgar and during the banquet gave him a large, ornate yet strangely ugly dish made of silver that is spoken of as one of their most sacred treasures, the very Chalice of St Botolph. Unfortunately, greed overcame some of our folk and the dish was first stolen, then broken into parts and some of them hidden. Grimkell of the Westmen agreed that the dish should be brought together again but had great difficulty finding where he had hidden one of the pieces of silver in his drunken state. He claimed somebody else must have moved it .

Later in the evening, Halfdan’s man Herjolf arrived unexpectedly, worn from hard travel and bearing news that the fleet at Swanwich was wrecked. Bosi, Hersir of the Holmbyggjar, welcomed Herjolf and thanked him for bringing his news with all possible speed, dire though that news was. Bosi gave Herjolf drink and bade him rest at the back of the hall.

There was much debate about the meaning of these tidings, and it was felt that Njord must have turned his face against the warriors of the sea-steed. Some spoke of making a sacrifice to Njord to regain his favour, others of sacrificing to a more powerful god such as the Allfather or Thor, to overcome Njord and bring us better fortune. It was suggested that the large silver chalice would make an excellent sacrifice. The wise man Styrkar asked that bones be cast to test the truth of Herjolf’s tidings. Ingibjorg supplied knuckle bones and Fritha and Styrkar read their meaning, concluding that only half the fleet had been lost. This led to much debate as to whether Herjolf was mistaken or whether he had deliberately tried to cause panic. Indeed when we learned that he had disappeared from his resting place, it was felt he might have been a naughty god in disguise, seeking to cause mischief.

Somehow the Chalice ended up back with the Englisc, who clearly repented of their generosity, being mean-spirited people who do not understand true gift-giving. They refused to return it and took great offence at some trivial remark of Thorhelm’s, threatening him with death and blood-feud, and only relenting when under great duress he agreed to fight for them for two campaigns. Still, the Oestvikingae are known to be mercenaries, so perhaps their leader, my father’s son Hauk, will be able to turn this twist of fate to his advantage.

– Ingibjorg Ragnarsdottir

DAS Chronicle

Looting the Looters, 875 A.D. (Flaunden, November 2015)

1 Comment

The Vikings, laden down by loot from Medhamstead Abbey and fleeing the forces of Wessex, pushed into East Anglia to meet up with King Guthrum’s forces who were busy putting down the uprisings there. However, they found themselves slowed by their riches, harried by Englisc and also by those Vikings without treasure. In the ensuing clashes much treasure changed hands, including the Oestvikingae loosing the holy sheep’s shoulder blade which they stole from Cadbury.

Confrontation

One particularly mighty piece of loot was the Chalice of St. Botolph (an East Anglian abbot and saint of great repute). This chalice was said to have worked many miracles in the hands of the Englisc, turning aside sword-blows to save its bearer. It changed hands many times this day. The Westmen lost it to the lone wandering scop Cynric of the Sumersaete. Shortly afterwards, the marauding Oestvikingae sprung upon him and wrestled it from his grasp, and they then took their axes to it and chopped it to a more manageable size. They then tried to hide the majority of it, but they kept being disturbed by the Cilternsaete and Holmbyggjar. The Holmbyggjar soon cut down Hauk, stole most of the Chalice, and fled far to the East pursued by Thorhelm, leaving everyone else looking for them in vain.

Grimkell

In the evening, the local Englisc hosted a feast for the Vikings, under the rules of King Ceolwulf of Mercia. Much eating and drinking followed, including toasts to numerous Gods and Saints. There was a lot of talk of current affairs: of King Ceolwulf’s rule, of King Harald Fairhair’s raids on the Islands, of how the gathered company would act if they were a King. There were also many songs, from rousing and bawdy sing-alongs to the scop Cynric performing hauntingly beautiful tunes.

There was also much talk of the Chalice of St. Botolph. There was speculation that it might be cursed, so many times had it changed hands that day: that any who held it would lose their fights, and not hold it for long. Thus the Holmbyggjar divided its pieces up, between the Oestvikingae and the Westmen. The Oestvikingae and the Westmen then challenged Cynric to an arm wrestle for control of it, and he confidently and consecutively defeated five men to gain control of the entire Chalice and restore it. However, then the curse of the Chalice struck, and he was defeated at the hands of Hallgerd, who in turn was rapidly defeated by Guthwald. After that demonstration and confirmation of the terrible curse, none challenged Guthwald, as none wished to bear such an unlucky relic…

DAS Chronicle

The Sack of London, Autumn 872 A.D. (Flaunden, October 2013)

Leave a comment

At which the Vikings harried refugees from the sack of London, as they fled up Watling Street towards the Abbey of St. Albans.

Autumn 872. The great Mercian town of London had been taken by the Great Army, causing many Christian folk to flee the city.

King Burhred of Mercia and King Alfred of Wessex each sent fyrdsmen to find and succour the fleeing Christians and escort them to safety. Besides that, each fyrd was tasked to try and find out what the Great army intended to do next – and, in the case of the West Saxons, also what the Mercians’ intentions were.

Having fought their way through bands of Viking plunderers, the Mercians and West Saxons found the fleeing Christians and escorted them north up Watling Street to seek sanctuary at the Abbey of St Albans. That was not without incident – the prospect of taking slaves and booty drew Viking raiders to the convoy, harrying it incessantly. The members of the refugee column were thus often scattered, but the Christians did eventually succeed in re-forming the convoy and continuing north. In a last attempt to stop them, the Vikings drew up across Watling Street to block the road.

The fyrdsmen charged them, and although there were many slain on both sides, the Christians fleeing London managed to reach the Abbey, and safety.

Some weeks later the Mercians made peace with the Great Army, and a banquet was held to celebrate that – and to try and find out what might happen next.

Because so many had fallen in battle, Abbot Wulfnoth of St Albans wished to make good his losses and bolster his local defences, and so Guthwald of the Cilternsaete was granted five hides of land at Sandridge and made a thegn, provided he fulfilled the three common dues of bridge work, fortress work, and fyrd service, and was presented on behalf of the Abbot with a mail byrnie. His wergeld was increased to 1200 shillings.

During the banquet, it emerged that the Vikings would next raid Northumbria – but what after that?

An excerpt from Hauk Ragnarsson’s Saga
The next year the Great Heathen Host descended upon London. As the Englisc fled their burning city, the Oestvikingae fell upon them, under the orders of the vǫlva Guðrún to gather living creatures for sacrifice at blót. The Englisc attempted to travel in a convoy, escorting refugees to St Albans, but the Oestvikingae harried them, chasing through the woodlands, howling like wolves and striking where they were weakest. The Englisc convoy collapsed, and Hauk unleashed Thorhelm the Cruel, who chased down the unarmed civilians and children like a fearsome beast. However, the Oestvikingae over-extended themselves, advancing ahead of the other Vikings, and were driven off by the re-grouped Englisc, who marched on to St. Albans. Guðrún was displeased not to have her offering, and the Oestvikingae swore to do better next time… Whilst the plunder from London was being divided, Fritha of the Oestvikingae, wife of Thorhelm, claimed for herself the Chalice of King Edwin of Northumbria, a precious vessel that once bore the sainted King’s head.