The
Dark Ages
The Poisoned Tooth - Revenge from Beyond the Grave
Revenge is a common theme throughout history, but none so extraordinary
as this Dark Age tale of revenge.
The scene is set during a truce meeting between the Viking
warlord, Earl Sigurd the Powerful - who had conquered
Caithness, along with much of Argyll, Moray and Ross -
and M忙lbrigte, Earl of the Scots.
In
way of insurance, against treachery and ambush, each
earl was to appear at the meeting place with 40 men.
Sigurd, however, not trusting the Scots brought a
total of 80 men, mounted on 40 horses. This was immediately
noticed by Earl M忙lbrigte.
The Orkneyinga Saga (that famous medieval chronicle)
picks up the tale -
When M忙lbrigte realised Sigurd's deception he spoke
to his men,‘Now,’
he said, ‘Sigurd has made fools of us. I can
see two men’s legs on the flanks of each horse,
so there must be twice as many men as there are horses.
Still, we must show our courage. Each of us must try
to kill at least one man before we die ourselves.’
But as the Scots prepared themselves to face the enemy,
Sigurd saw what they had in mind.
‘Now,’he said, ‘I want half
our men to dismount and outflank them when we come
to blows, while the rest of us ride at them as hard
as we can and break their ranks.’
Fighting ensued which, according to the saga, Sigurd
quickly won. As trophies of his victory and for all
to see, he beheaded his adversaries and strapped their
heads to his saddle.
Sigurd rode home triumphant, the head of M忙lbrigte
bouncing off his saddle. Then, as Sigurd spurred his
horse, he struck his calf against a tooth protruding
from M忙lbrigte's mouth - a tooth which turned out
to be poisonous. The Viking's leg began to swell causing
him great pain and eventual death.
Even beyond the grave M忙lbrigte had his revenge for
Sigurd's treachery, and one can imagine a ghostly
smile of satisfaction from the severed head as it
hung from its victim's saddle. A dark tale of revenge
for a Dark Age audience obsessed by the notion of
revenge. Revenge and justice came hand in hand - and
justice from beyond the grave was all many people
could hope for in that era.
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