Page:The Heimskringla; or, Chronicle of the Kings of Norway Vol 1.djvu/300

 Through helm and mail the foemen feel The blue edge of our king's good steel. Who can withstand our gallant king? The Gotland men their flight must wing."

King Harald went far and wide through Gotland, and many were the battles he fought there, and in general he was victorious. In one of these battles fell Hrane the Gotlander; and then the king took his whole land north of the river and west of the Venner, and also Yermeland. And after he turned back therefrom, he set Guttorm as chief to defend the country, and left a great force with him. King Harald himself went first to the Uplands, where he remained a while, and then proceeded northwards over the Dovrefielde to Drontheim, where he dwelt for a long time. Harald began to have children. By Asa he had four sons. The eldest was Guttorm. Halfdan the Black and Halfdan the White were twins. Sigfrode was the fourth. They were all brought up in Drontheim with all honour.

News came in from the south land that the people of Hordaland and Rogaland, Agder and Thelemark, were gathering, and bringing together ships and weapons, and a great body of men. The leaders of this were Eric king of Hordaland; Sulke king of Rogaland, and his brother Earl Sote; Kiotve the Rich, king of Agder, and his son Thor Haklang; and from Thelemark two brothers, Roald Ryg and Hadd the Hard. Now when Harald got certain news of this, he assembled his forces, set his ships on the water, made himself ready with his men, and set out southwards along the coast, gathering many people from every district. King Eric heard of this when he came south of Stad; and having assembled all the men he could expect, he proceeded southwards to meet the force which he knew was coming to his help from the east. The whole met together north of Jeddern, and