By Fiona Grahame

She arranged to have her first husband killed and went on to marry two of his brothers, but is Ragnhild the ‘femme fatale’ of the Orkney Earls that the Orkneyinga Saga would have us believe?

Ragnhild was the daughter of the mighty Erik Blood-axe and his formidable wife Gunnhild. After the death of King Harald, Erik Blood-axe ruled over Norway for a couple of years but in the power struggles so typical of the time, had to flee when he was ousted from power. He maintained his hold over Northumbria but was eventually killed plundering in other parts of England.

On his death Gunnhild sailed to Orkney with her sons and Ragnhild. They successfully took over the islands from Earl Thorfinn Skull-Splitter but in a canny deal Gunnhild arranged a marriage between her daughter Ragnhild and Thorfinn’s son, Arnfinn. Whilst Gunnhild and her sons left to support King Harald of Denmark, Earl Thorfinn regained control of Orkney.

Arranged marriages were not love matches but were solutions to diplomatic problems thought to be more binding than any treaty. For Ragnhild, there was no choice.

Earl Thorfinn had five sons: Arnfinn, Havard the Fecund, Hlodvir, Ljot, and Skuli. 

According to the Saga, and that’s all we have to go by, Ragnhild plotted to kill her husband, and the deed was done at Murkle in Caithness. As a result of this death what should Ragnhild do now but marry his brother, Havard the Fecund. She is still, therefore, in an influential position as the wife of the powerful Orkney Earls because Havard succeeded to the Earldom.

Life at the top could be precarious in the turbulent times of the Norse Earls in Orkney but the depiction of Ragnhild in the Saga has none of the romantic imagery accorded to the male characters.

“With her appearance we meet the prejudiced opinions of the Saga writer, weaving into his narrative the stereotypical image of the manipulative power-seeking lustful woman who prodded the menfolk into vengeful actions”, Barbara Crawford, The Northern Earldoms.

At a great feast, Ragnhild met with Havard’s nephew, Einar Buttered-Bread. It was more than his bread that Einar wanted buttered.

Taking Einar aside, Ragnhild said:

“ My married life with Havard won’t last much longer and to tell you the truth, though you may not want the honour for yourself, there are men in Orkney who wouldn’t be so high minded about it.”

Einar was well up for this and persuaded by his own lusts – not just for his uncle’s wife but for the power that would come with it – he made a bargain with Ragnhild. He would kill her husband and in return she would marry him.

As Einar was getting ready for the journey to seal the deal, he was approached by a seer who warned him:

“Don’t do your work today, leave it till tomorrow. If you won’t, there are going to be killings in your family for years to come.”

But as is the way with all wise advice from seers, Einar chose to ignore his warning.

Einar and Havard met in battle at Stenness in the West Mainland of Orkney, where the Earl was staying. Havard was killed in the ensuing melee but for Einar it was not a good outcome as people spoke bitterly about him and his part in the death of the Earl. Ragnhild, seeing this turn of events, refused to have anything to do with him and sought to avenge the death of her husband. She turned to another nephew of Havard’s, Einar Hardmouth, and said to him:

“The man who avenges the Earl will earn the respect of all decent people and the one to get the Earldom too.”

This Einar was more up to speed on the wily ways of women folk (if we are to believe the scribe of the Saga).

“ Common talk has it my lady, “ he said, “that you don’t always say quite what you are thinking. Anyone who carries this off will want more than the earldom. He’ll expect other things from you just as important.”

As was to be expected after this encounter, the two cousins fought with Einar Hardmouth killing Einar Buttered-Bread.

Unfortunately for the victor, Ragnhild was not so easily won and she instead married her late husband’s brother, Ljot.

Still filled with the lust for power Einar, not content with killing his cousin, launched a campaign to take Orkney. He was capture and Ljot had him executed.

Ljot was a successful ruler with Ragnhild by his side (probably the wisest place to keep her) but in a victorious battle against the Scots he died from his wounds in Caithness. What happened next to Ragnhild? Her fate is unknown but given her gifts of persuasion and intelligence perhaps she would have found some way to survive in a male dominated society filled with intrigue and betrayal.

This story was first published in iScot Magazine