Viking Heraldy of Lewis & Cinda - Bruce Rognan

Here he cleared the forests and built a large gaard, which became his home. That is how he came to have the
name Traetelgja (wood-axe) applied to him. He married Solveig, a daughter of King Halvdan Guldtann paa Solor.
Halvdan was the son of Salve, the son of Salvar, the son of Salva, the old, who established Solor. They
had two sons, Ingjald and Halvdan. When the Swedes learned of the good country in Vermeland, they flocked
there in large numbers, and also to escape the harsh rule of King Vidfavne. The land became over-populated,
and could not support all of the people. They blamed King Olav for this and raided his gaard and burned him to
death in his house, as a sacrifice to Odin for better years. This took place at Lake Vaenern.
Halfdan Olavson Hvitbein (680 AD)
Olav’s son, Halvadan, now became king. Halvdan was raised in Solor at his father-in-law’s home, and was
called Hvitbein. At the time of Halfdan, Islam / Muslim zealots and missionaries began to spread their religious
doctrines and they penetrated southern Europe. However, they did not stop there. Evidence is found that these
Muslim missionaries traveled into Scandinavia to convert the Vikings. In the Lofoten Islands of Norway (a small
town named Kabelvag) Arab coins dating to this period have been found. 110,000 coins prior to 1000 AD have
been discovered in Norway, 131 of them have been Arabian coins. Despite Islam missionary efforts their doctrines
are never introduced successfully into Norway. Norway, instead solidifies it's own religious beliefs in
myths and sagas under the administration of Halfdan. The Norwegian mythology flourishes as a combination of
the Old Testament tales, and the Old Norse tales. The three primary Gods were Odin, Thor and Frey (from
whom the days of the week Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday come from).Odin was the god of Knowledge and
Victory. Odin did not fight the wars, he only planned them. He was assisted by his 2 ravens Hugin (thought) and
Munin (memory). Thor’s name means "thunder". He was the most popular God of the common people because
of his combination of benevolence as well as courage. The most central them in all the Viking writings was this
dual nature of man. Other traditions include the Valkyries - virgin female warriors who were daughters of Odin's
daughter Freyja, who escort brave deceased warriors to paradise (Valhalla). At this time the Vikings believed in
three distinct kingdoms characterized by 3 concentric rings: The center ring or core is called Asgard (house of
Gods), Midgard (center ring and middle earth) for the dwelling of men on earth and Utgard the outer ring also
characterized by a holy spirit within man. This belief is consistent with Moses Tabernacle among the Israelites.
The belief that divinity was the sure consequence of all mortality justified Viking behavior to seek gain power
and fulfill lustful desires. Their Tree of Life had three rivers flowing in to it - one of wisdom, one of fate and one
of prosperity. Also central to Norwegian religious beliefs at this time were sacrifices during annual festivals. The
law of sacrifice from the Law of Moses was still practiced in different apostate forms. Solemn feasts were held
periodically in which blood sacrifices (blot) were made. The decapitated bodies were held over the temple. As
many as 70 bodies of dogs, men, horses and cattle were seen at one time. The blood was collected in a sacred
vat by the leader.
Eyestein Halfdansson (710 AD)
Eyestein was the son of Halfdan Hvitbeinn of the House of Yngling according to Heimskringla. He lived around
730, and inherited the throne of Romerike and Vestfold. His wife was Hild, the daughter of the king of Vestfold,
Erik Agnarsson. Erik had no son, so Eystein inherited Vestfold. Eystein went to Varna with some ships to pillage
and carried away all livestock and other valuables. However, the king of Varna was king Skjöld who was a great
warlock. Skjöld arrived at the beach and saw the sails of Eystein's ships. He waved his cloak and blew into it
which caused a boom of one ship to swing and hit Eystein so that he fell overboard and drowned.
At this time, Norwegian's lived in farms or hamlets separated from one another by fjords, forests, empty wastelands,
and uninhabitable mountainland. Only 5% of Norway is tillable, and only 27% suited for plant life. 80% of
the people lived within 13 miles of the coast. (Obviously, this is still true today) The geography itself fostered
fierce independence. In addition, the oblong shape of Norway with it's long coast made national unity difficult
but desirable. Only in small pockets of Norway was the terrain agriculturally oriented. First areas of such settlement
include Romerike, Maere, Ringerike, Tonsberg, Nidaros and others. In these 12 territories, powerful families
emerged and usurped the rights of others, and became self-imposed "Royalty". These royal families continued
to gain power, and devour land. As population increased to near capacity, people began to look elsewhere
to maintain continued prosperity – as did Eyestein.
Most Norwegian homes during this time were communal, presided over by a patriarch who generally had more
than one wife. Polygamy was common among these early Norwegians. This patriarch served as the religious
leader as well as provider for the group. All the people in the community lived together in one large home called
a "longhouse". These homes were frequently covered on the roof with grass. Attached to the house was the
dairy, and the general storehouse. It was a very industrious arrangement since everything was made in the