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Introduction

There is no doubt that during the Viking-Age all of Scandinavia experienced great cultural, economical and socio-political changes. Among other factors, it was the time of evolution of power structures which led to the rise of new central authorities, gradually accumulating political as well as economical control in various areas. New elites tried to strengthen these processes by the promotion of Christianity and the establishment of a lucrative long-distance trade.

The significance of this period is also underlined by the fact that the memory of events and noteworthy persons of that time was preserved by following generations. This memory about ancestors, their lives and deeds resulted in the rise of a whole tradition embracing this great and memo-rable past.

Originating almost contemporary to the events it described, this tradition first took shape in an exclusively oral dimension which was in the course of time supplemented and replaced by literary works which linked native and foreign artistic elements.

Various historiographic and literary works, mainly composed in Iceland and in other parts of the north during the 12th and 13th centuries undoubtedly constitute the heyday of this tradition. It includes various forms of artistic activity: skaldic and Eddic poetry, short narratives called þættir, the synoptic histories1, chronicles and fully developed sagas.

Interestingly, this tradition also included two closely related motives, that of Jomsborg (the Danish stronghold situated in the land of the Slavs) and the Jomsvikings (the group of warriors who originated from there). As we will see, both motives were closely connected with certain events and persons in Viking-Age Scandinavia. The main aim of this book is to investigate the role of these motives in Old Norse tradition, represented by various narratives. The procedure tries to answer several basic questions: - What is the role of both motives in the descriptions of particular events? - What elements influenced authors of particular narratives to include both motives in their works?

1 Following scholarly conventions (see e.g. Jónas Kristjánsson, Eddas and

Sagas, 4th edition, Reykjavik 2007, 154-156), I apply this name to three historio-graphic narratives composed in the second half of 12th century: the Historia de Antiquitate Regum Norwagiensum by Theodoricus Monachus, the Historia Norwegie and Ágrip af Nóregskonungasǫgum.

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- What elements influenced the way in which both motives are used in particular narratives?

I omit in this work all controversies connected with the identification of the whereabouts of Jomsborg2. I follow other scholars3 who find it very likely that it was the Scandinavian name of Wolin, one of the biggest and most important trading ports in the Baltic zone, located at the Dziwna river in the Oder estuary. Archeological excavations made in Wolin since the 19th century almost until the present day, confirm that the contacts (mainly cultural and economical) of this early urban complex with Scandinavia were both intensive and long-lasting. Paradoxically, these very lively and important mutual links which strongly influenced the development and profile of the settlement in Wolin did not have any affect on the Old Norse narratives.

Nevertheless, we come across both motives in various accounts, present in three main themes: - Jomsborg as the central point of the Danish jarldom and the seat of the group of warriors – the Jomsvikings. It includes: the foundation of Joms-borg by Harald Gormsson; the Jomsvikings’ expedition to Norway and the battle of Hjørungavåg, as well as Styrbjörn Olafsson’s and Olaf Tryggvason’s links with Jomsborg. - The battle of Svoldr. It includes: Olaf Tryggvason’s expedition to Joms-borg, the treachery of Olaf by Jarl Sigvaldi and the participation of Slavs in the battle. - Magnus góði’s attack on Wolin in 1043, including the circumstances of the expedition and its effects on the decline of Wolin as a trading port.

In the following chapters I attempt to show how both motives are used in literary presentations of the themes listed above. Chapter I focuses on

2 This case was very thoroughly discussed by R. Kiersnowski, Legenda

Winety, Kraków 1950, and, very recently, by B. M. Stanisławski, „Jómsvikinga saga” w świetle źródeł archeologicznych (in press).

3 L. P. Słupecki, Jómsvikingalog, Jómsvikings, Jomsborg/Wolin and Danish circular strongholds, in: P. Urbańczyk (ed.), The Neighbours of Poland in the 10th Century, Warsaw 2000, 49-59; G. Labuda, Mieszko I, Wrocław, Warszawa, Kraków 2002, 129-131; W. Filipowiak, Some aspects of the development of Wolin in the 8th-11th centuries in the light of the results of new research, in: P. Urbańczyk (ed.), Polish Lands at the Turn of the First and the Second Millenia, Warsaw 2004, 69; idem, Z badań nad obroną wybrzeży i portów ujścia Odry w IX-XIII wieku, in: E. Cnotliwy, A. Janowski, K. Kowalski, S. Słowiński (red.), Nie tylko archeologia, Szczecin 2006, 167; A. Finlay, History and Fantasy in Jóms-víkinga saga, in: J. McKinnell; D. Ashurst; D. Kick (eds.), The Fantastic in Old Norse/Icelandic Literature, Papers of the 13th International Saga Conference, Durham 2006, 252.

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the Danish king Harald Gormsson and his place in the legend of Joms-borg and the Jomsvikings. This part includes a short analysis of Harald’s reign (especially in the context of his relations with the Ottonian empire and Norway); descriptions of Jomsborg and the circumstances of its foundation; an analysis of elements that would first influence the linking of the legend of Jomsborg and the Jomsvikings to the Danish king, and secondly, were decisive for his removal as the founder of the stronghold. The main aim of the chapter is to show that Harald’s policy could in fact have influenced the shape of the legend. On the other hand, both the bitter end of his reign and the weak position of Danish dynasty in the first half of the 12th century could be decisive for the fact that later accounts de-prived him of the role of founder of Jomsborg.

Chapter II focuses first of all on the Jomsvikings and the legend about them. This is mainly the story about the leaders of the group whose destiny leads to the battle of Hjørungavåg, which unquestionably con-stitutes the grand finale of the whole legend. Skaldic accounts describing the encounter also refer to a Slavic participation and these remarks can be especially important in attempts to understand the way(s) in which the legend was shaped. Other great chieftains like Styrbjörn Olafsson and Olaf Tryggvason were also associated with Jomsborg. Although both only stayed there for a relatively short time, it nevertheless had some important consequences in their later lives. The chapter ends with the significance of recent archaeological investigations of Wolin. This makes up the main aim of the chapter. The exclusively masculine and warlike profile of the legend is reflected in a series of very recent finds from Wolin which may be linked without any doubt whatsoever with a similar milieu of military and political elites of Scandinavian origin, located temporarily in the Oder estuary.

Chapter III is dedicated to the events that preceded the battle of Svoldr, according to the tradition, and the historical encounter itself. The presentation of the battle in skaldic poetry and in the later sagas is fol-lowed by an analysis of the factors which would have an influence upon the way in which the motive of Jomsborg was made into a crucial part of the Svoldr legend. Among them are: the question of the actual location of the battle as well as the participation of Jarl Sigvaldi and some Slavic troops in the battle. The main aim of this chapter is to show potential ways in which the whole tradition concerning the battle took shape.

Chapter IV focuses on Magnus goði’s attack on Wolin in 1043. This expedition ended with the ravaging and burning of the town which col-lapsed soon after this. The circumstances of the beginning of Magnus’ reign in Norway and in Denmark and, above all, his wars with Jarl Sveinn Ulfsson are described so as to show why he decided to attack the Oder

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estuary area. Particular sagas and chronicles and especially skaldic poems composed for Magnus seem to indicate that his expedition against Wolin was strictly connected with his constant conflict with Sveinn. Contrary to previous scholarly opinions one can assume that the inhabitants of Wolin were punished for their unspecified help for the jarl, similarly to those Danes who were eager to support Magnus’ most serious enemy.

Obviously, this book is not the first attempt to analyse Old Norse nar-ratives describing both Jomsborg and the Jomsvikings, as this question has its own rich history. One should begin with Johannes Steenstrup4, who was one of the first scholars who tried to define the historicity of the Jomsborg tradition in the context of the political history of the 10th and 11th centuries. He was followed by Aleksander Bugge5 and Sven Ellehøj,6 although their works concentrated on particular aspects alone. Their re-search was marked by a completely uncritical attitude to the sagas which they treated as reliable historical sources. Their view was criticised by Lauritz Weibull7 and his approach strongly influenced following genera-tions of scholars. The motive of Jomsborg found its place among others legends, but deprived of any historical value.

One can observe a similar tendency in Polish scholarship. A growing interest in the motive of Jomsborg can be dated from the beginning of the 20th century as the effect of wider access to Old Norse literature.8 Works of Kazimierz Wachowski,9 Józef Widajewicz10 and Leon Koczy11 made the case for Jomsborg being another important element in the research on the early history of the Piast state and its relations with the north. Those scholars also considered various sagas as completely trustworthy histori-cal sources. This trust went very often hand in hand with limited access to particular narratives and a wrong interpretation of their original meaning, as was also the case with skaldic poetry. It led to conclusions that could not stand up to thorough critical analsysis. This critical stance was led

4 J. Steenstrup, Venderne og de Danske før Valdemar den stores tid, Køben-

vavn 1900. 5 A. Bugge, Sandhed og digt om Olav Tryggvason, Aarbørger for nordisk old-

kyndighet og historie 25 (1910), 1-34. 6 S. Ellehøj, Olav Tryggvesons fald og Venderne, (Dansk) Historisk Tidskrift

11/4-1 (1953), 1-51. 7 L. Weibull, Kritiska undersökningar i Nordens historia omkrimg år 1000,

Lund 1911. 8 However it was limited to either German or Latin translations. 9 K. Wachowski, Jomsborg, Warszawa 1914. 10 J. Widajewicz, Burysław, Rocznik Gdański 7-8 (1933-1934), 23-36; idem,

Kontakty Mieszka I z państwami nordyjskimi, Slavia Antiqua 4 (1953), 131-149. 11 L. Koczy, Polska i Skandynawia za pierwszych Piastów, Poznań 1934.

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mainly by Gerard Labuda,12 who completely rejected the research of pre-vious scholars. His hypercriticism towards Old Norse narratives, which he admittedly not always understood properly, led him to consider the motive of Jomsborg as a totally fictitious fairy-tale.

The tendency represented and influenced by Weibull and Labuda has had its effects on further research. The case of Jomsborg was completely abandoned by Polish historiography, while elsewhere it was studied only by historians of literature and philologists, who included Jómsvikinga saga in their research13.

New trends in Old Norse studies, emphasizing, among others, the role of oral culture in the development of the literary tradition also had its effects on the research about both motives of Jomsborg, the Jomsvikings and the whole legend. The articles of both Władysław Duczko14 and Leszek Słupecki15 can certainly be treated as the first on Polish ground which take the same approach. As Błażej Stanisławski’s16 studies can be seen as a development of it on the field of archeology, the present book aspires to a similar role in historical studies. In other words, the aim of this study is to present and analyze motives of Jomsborg and the Joms-vikings in agreement with the present state of research on Old Norse literature. For historians this means a complete rejection of the previously adopted perspective whether particular accounts are reliable or not, i.e. whether they report factual truth or not. The obvious fact is that we are dealing with a legend rooted in the historical reality of the 10th and 11th centuries, although it has developed in time and been influenced by

12 G. Labuda, Saga o Styrbjörnie, jarlu Jomsborga, Slavia Antiqua 4 (1953),

283-337; idem, Polska a Skandynawia w IX-X w., in: Początki Państwa Polskiego. Księga Tysiąclecia, 1, Poznań 1962, 300-323; idem, Fragmenty dziejów Słowiańszczyzny Zachodniej, 2, Poznań 1964.

13 See J. Megaard, Studier i Jómsvikinga sagas stemma. Jómsvikinga sagas fem redaksjoner sammenlignet med versjone i Fagrskinna. Jómsvikingadrápa, Heimskringla og Saxo, Arkiv for Nordisk Filologi 115 (2000), 125-182 (with further references).

14 W. Duczko, Obecność skandynawska na Pomorzu i słowiańska w Skandynawii we wczesnym średniowieczu, in: L. Leciejewicz, M. Rębkowski (eds.), Salsa Cholbergiensis, Kołobrzeg 2000, 23-44.

15 L. P. Słupecki, Jómsvikingalog, 49-59. 16 B. M. Stanisławski, The Mammen style from West Pomerania (Wolin and

Kamień Pomorski), Viking Heritage Magazine, 3\03 (2003), 3-5; idem, Obecność skandynawska w Wolinie a kwestia Jómsborga, Wędrowiec Zachodniopomorski 15 (2005), 10-16; idem, Sztuka wikińska z Wolina, in: „Średniowiecze polskie i powszechne” 3, I. Panic; J. Sperka (eds.), Katowice 2004, 28-50; idem, „Jómsvikinga saga”, (in press).

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various native and foreign elements. This should not be forgotten at any stage of research. Nowadays historians do not have to consider whether Styrbjörn Olafsson actually stayed in Jomsborg and whether he was Jarl there. The task today is to consider why those who shaped the legend of the Swedish prince included the motive of Jomsborg as its important part and what its role in the whole story is. Thus questions of historical reality should be replaced by questions of motives and influences. It is not only much safer ground but it lets us be much more open for other, e.g. literary, philological or archeological, approaches. The legend of Joms-borg and the Jomsvikings, as hardly any other, demands and deserves such a wider, complex perspective.

This book could not have been written nor published without the help of many people I would like to thank now. I could experience their sup-port, dedication, understanding and trust at every stage of my research and I can only say that I appreciate it very much. Especially, I would like to express my gratitude to the following: Professors Ásdis Egilsdóttir, John McKinnell, Leszek Słupecki, Idzi Panic, Jerzy Strzelczyk, Lech Leciejewicz, Władysław Filipowiak; my dear colleagues Bożena Czwojdrak, Jerzy Sperka, Ryszard Skowron, Tomasz Gronowski, Fjodor Uspienskij, Sirpa Aalto, Ármann Jakobsson, Błażej Stanisławski, Anna Kowalska. Special thanks go to Professor Rudy Simek for inviting me to publish the book in his series. I am also indebted to the Dean of Depart-ment of Human Sciences of Silesian University and the Foundation for Polish Science for financial support that made the translation of the manuscript and publication of this book possible

Last but not least I would like to thank my all family for all their love, support and understanding.