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] came back to Norway with a small band of well-tried men, and went first to his kinsmen in the Uplands, where some of the small kings of Harold s race still remained in a not very close dependence on Denmark. Erik was by this time dead; Olaf succeeded in driving Svend out of the land, and became in a short time more thoroughly king of all Norway than any one had been since Harold Fairhair. He rebuilt Nidaros (the modern Throndhjem), which had been founded by Olaf Tryggvason, and which may be called henceforward the capital of Norway. Like Olaf Tryggvason, he was a zealous adherent of Christianity, and, as soon as he was firmly settled, proceeded to enforce it on his subjects. The previous conversion of the land had been superficial, so that, except in the parts of the country which came most into relations with foreign countries, the old religion had still a strong hold, and in some districts was predominant. Under Olaf heathen worship was suppressed with the utmost severity, and Christianity may be said to have become the professed religion of the land. Olaf's rule was firm and powerful. Equal justice was dealt out, as far as practicable, to every one, often in a summary fashion. The great families had flourished under the earls, and seem to have been almost wholly independent within their own districts, but, as they one after the other came into collision with the king, they had to yield. Olaf was in many ways a greater man than Olaf Tryggvason: his aims were higher, and he understood them more thoroughly; but he lacked some of the gifts of his brilliant predecessor. Olaf Tryggvason was the very incarnation of the old popular ideal, and, had the times been favourable, might well enough have passed into tradition, Christianity and all, as one of the Æsir who had come back again to earth. But the other Olaf was in some ways a new force in Norway. He was aiming at a united Christian kingdom under a strong central power, and these ideas, in so far as they were intelligible, were repugnant to the Norse chiefs. And, besides, his character was somewhat still and reserved, not always destitute even of traits of cunning, so that altogether, though every one was forced to respect his courage and ability, and his own followers were devotedly attached to him, most of the Norwegian chiefs never wholly understood or trusted him. In one way or another he incurred the enmity of many of the most powerful men in the west and north, and he had a dangerous foreign enemy. Canute was at the height of his power, had claims, he thought, upon Norway, and was, moreover, deeply irritated by an expedition which Olaf had made upon Denmark along with the king of Sweden. He had connexions with many of the chiefs, which he fostered as much as possible, and in 1028 he came with a great force to Norway; Olaf could make no head against him, and was compelled to fly to Kussia. But after a while Olaf heard that there was for a time no ruler in Norway, and resolved to attempt to win back his kingdom. He obtained assistance in Sweden, gathered his friends from Norway, and then went over the mountains into the Throndhjem country. The chiefs who were most bitterly opposed to him drew together a great force and met him at Stikklestad, and there, when only thirty-five years old, he was defeated and slain in August 1030. There is a singular change to be observed in the narrative of this latter part of Olaf's life. He seems to have become more devoted to Christianity, and in every way more thoughtful and gentle. The stories about him look as if his adversities had forced him to take a retrospect of his life and prepare for a new career; and if he had been the victor at Stikklestad it is hard to say what influence he might not have exercised upon subsequent history.

A short experience of Danish rule under Svend, the son

of Canute, made Norway bitterly regret the loss of Olaf. The resentments which had been awakened by his stern, just rule passed out of sight, and men only remembered his great qualities, and that in his time the land was free from foreign interference. His devoted adherence to Christianity, especially in his later days, gave a definite direction to these reminiscences; he was regarded as a martyr and saint, and miracles were reported to have been wrought by him even under the very nose of his Danish successor. Olaf was rightly regarded as the patron saint of the new Christian monarchy. It was he who not only had Christianized the land, but had for the first time thoroughly united the kingdom. His reign had given rise to a feeling of unitedness and independent existence which the country never had before and never afterwards wholly lost. For nearly a century afterwards Norway was ruled in internal peace by the kings of his race. The church was organized and became powerful. The private viking expeditions gradually ceased, for it began to be considered a scandal to plunder in Christian lands; and possibly also the practice grew more dangerous. Swein Asleifson, in the middle of the 12th century, is the last recorded viking of the old type, and he dwelt in the Orkneys. At the same time several of the kings made greater foreign expeditions, which probably afforded a sufficient vent for their more restless subjects. The central authority of the king grew stronger and more stable. His court and personal following were better organized. The lendermenn, although still remaining chiefs of the landed aristocracy, ceased to exercise the same semi-independent power in their own districts, and came into closer relations with the king and court.

In 1035 Magnus, Olaf's son, who had remained in Russia, was sent for by some of the leading men, and was readily accepted as king. Magnus, or rather the chiefs in his name, for he was still very young at the time, had settled the quarrel with Denmark by coming to an agreement with Hardicanute, that when one died the other should succeed to his crown. In 1042 Hardicanute died, and Magnus peacefully took possession of his kingdom. But troubles soon arose from Svend Estridsen, nephew of Canute the Great, who attempted to seize Denmark, and who had entered into terms with a formidable Norse ally. Harold,

Sigurd's son, known sometimes as Hardrada (hard counsel), the half-brother of Olaf, was one of the last and most famous of the great viking chiefs. His father was a small Upland king of Harold Fairhair's race; he had fought when a boy at Stikklestad, had gone to the East and taken service with the Greek emperor, and was now come back to the North with great wealth and fame. For a short time he entered into league with Svend, but an arrangement was soon brought about by which he and Magnus were made friends, and Harold became joint king of Norway. Magnus died in the following year (1047), leaving Denmark to Svend and Norway to Harold; Harold was not, however, inclined to relinquish Denmark, and wasted it year after year by terrible incursions; at last he undertook a more formidable task, and fell in England in 1066 with the very flower of Norway at the battle of Stamford Bridge.

Harold's son, Olaf Kyrre (the quiet), ruled Norway in peace for twenty-seven years, a peace which may in some respects have been due to the way in which the country had been drained of its hottest blood by Harold's expeditions. During this reign the country attained considerable prosperity, trade increased, and, among other merchant towns, Bergen, which soon attained the first place, was

founded. But Olaf's son Magnus (known sometimes as Magnus Barefoot), who succeeded his father in 1093, reigned in a manner more like his grandfather. He was