Fagrskinna
The Fagrskinna is a book about the history of the Norwegian kings from Halvdan Svarte (9th century) to the battle with the birch legs (1177) (see Erling Skakke and Magnus Erlingsson ). The name ("beautiful parchment") was given by the historian Þormóður Torfason (Latinized Torfaeus ) (1636–1719) to a manuscript he had because of its beautiful appearance. The name of the manuscript was later transferred to the work that has also been handed down elsewhere. Originally it was probably called Nóregs konungs tal or Ættartal Nóregs konungu .
Today there is broad consensus that Fagrskinna originated in Norway around or shortly after 1220. The area around Trondheim is considered likely. The pursued tendency to be loyal to the king and to take sides against Erling Skakke and for the Birkebeiner, whose leader Sverre Sigurdsson became king, allows the conclusion that the work was written on behalf of Håkon Håkonsson . An Icelander is assumed to be the author due to his profound knowledge of the scald poetry.
In modern times, two manuscripts were known that came from Norway and were destroyed in the great fire of the library in Copenhagen in 1728. Today there are still good copies on paper from the 17th century made by Icelanders. They are in the Arnamagnäan Collection in Reykjavík and in the University Library in Oslo. It was first edited by Peter Andreas Munch and Carl Richard Unger (Christiania 1847). A better edition was then obtained from Finnur Jónsson (Copenhagen 1902). The latest edition is that of Barni Einarsson (Reykjavík 1984).
content
The Fagrskinna begins with Halfdan the Black , father of Harald Hårfagres . It is the introduction to a story about the royal family Haralds. Hence the dream that prophesies the permanent rule of the family is described in detail there. The author emphasizes again and again that all Norwegian kings come from his family. Then all kings are dealt with one after the other, whereby a certain scheme becomes visible: A good king is followed by a bad king, who is then followed by a good king. Harald Hårfagre follows Erik Blutaxt , the Håkon the good , the again Harald Gráfell and his brothers, about whom nothing good can be reported. Jarl Håkon Sigurdsson was not a king, is successful at the beginning, but then portrayed as unpopular. As king, there follows a very brief depiction of Olav Tryggvason again in a good light. It is followed by the portrayal of Olav the Saint , who is again not so well portrayed in that his actions against the Gentiles are described as very ruthless. But the main emphasis is placed on the Battle of Stiklestad , there is little talk of Christianity. His successor Sveinn , son of Canute the Great , and his mother Alfiva are judged very badly again . So it goes up and down until the Birkebein revolt, for which the author clearly takes sides. The book ends with the first great victory of the Birkebeiner in the Battle of Re in 1177.
swell
The work is based on older written sagas, on skald poems, which are quoted verbatim, and probably also little on oral tradition. There is a lost work by Sæmundur fróði , which told the story of the Norwegian kings from Halvdan Svarte to Magnus the Good in Latin. The older Ágrip script also served as a source. There must have been another depiction of the oldest Norwegian kings that is lost. There is also a lost old version of the Jómsvíkinga saga , a lost Hlaðajarla saga , from which Heimskringla also draws, then an Ólafs saga Tryggvasonar by the monk Oddr Snorrason from the Þingeyrar monastery in North Iceland and a likewise lost Ólafs saga helga den and Knúts and to name his son Sven. The main source for the time after Magnus the Good is the book Morkinskinna . Then there was the lost work Hryggjarstykki by Eiríkr Oddsson, in which the period from 1136 to 1139 is said to have been dealt with. The relationship between the Heimskringla Snorris and the Fagrskinna is still not clear. It is certain that the author of the Fagrskinna did not know the Heimskringla. But whether Snorri knew the Fagrskinna , or only had it on hand when drafting certain later chapters, or whether the textual correspondences can be traced back to a common lost source, is undecided. The sources mentioned all date from around 1200 and shortly before.
literature
- H. Ehrhardt: Fagrskinna. In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages . Volume 4: Arch Chancellor to Hiddensee. Artemis & Winkler, Munich et al. 1989, ISBN 3-7608-8904-2 , Sp. 227-228.
- Eyvind Fjeld Halvorsen: Fagrskinna. In: Olaf Olsen (ed.): Kulturhistorisk leksikon for nordisk middelalder. Fra vikingetid til reformationstid. Volume 4: Epistolarium - Frälsebonde. Rosenkilde og Bagger, Copenhagen 1959.
- Kolbrún Haraldsdóttir: Fagrskinna. In: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde . Volume 8: Euhemerism - Spruce. 2nd completely revised and greatly expanded edition. de Gruyter, Berlin et al. 1994, ISBN 3-11-013188-9 , p. 142 with further literature.
- Gerd W. Weber: Fagrskinna. In: Kindlers Literature Lexicon in dtv. Volume 8: Ea - Fac. Deutscher Taschenbuch-Verlag, Munich 1974, ISBN 3-423-03148-4 , p. 3397 ( dtv 3148).