ENTRY 20 -- Kristland

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An Excerpt from the Travel Journal of Nigel Fox circa 1925

Entry 20 -- Kristland



It was late spring when I decided to ask for Norah's hand in marriage. We had been growing ever closer as we worked together on her 'quest'. Passing so much time in each other's company, it had been amazing to me that neither of us seemed to tire of the other.

Sipho had spent most his time with the crew giving Norah and I the privacy we craved. At first I had been the perfect gentleman, indulging only in hand holding. However, our passion for each other grew in leaps and bounds. I began to feel like a schoolboy again: unable to wait until I caught sight of her every morning, delighting in each change of clothing, each subtle glance, each boisterous laugh, each sweet moment we could be together, alone. Norah seemed to be mirroring my feelings. She often caught me off-guard by kissing me on the lips. These stolen kisses were extraordinary!

We did have a somewhat distorted view of the North Atlantic; our voyages took us surprisingly little time. Norah loved Greenland. The local people were a great source of information about the 'Dane-Saxon monk from the Hebrides' and 'Leif the Lucky known as the Greenlander'. Our problem was that the Vinland sagas were often contradictory which made it difficult to separate fact from fiction. There were, however, common threads.

The Common Threads

A powerful Nordic king had commissioned Leif the Lucky to evangelise a new world. This Greenlander had a magic touch, for everything he came in contact with blossomed and bore much fruit. He established a kingdom on the edge of the world, naming it Vinland the Good; in some sagas, Kristland.

According to the sagas, this was the greatest kingdom the world had ever known. Day and night were more equal in length than in Greenland. Golden cluster-grapes made a wine so sweet the bees would mistake it for honey. The land was rich in game for meat and clothing; seas overflowed with seal, cod, salmon, lobster, sea eggs, et cetera. The local folk, the Skraelings, warmly embraced the Krist. (Pronounced Krīst with a hard k). Trade with them enabled the small kingdom to flourish. They named the capital Leifsbudir.

Leif the Lucky persuaded Skraeling missionaries to preach the gospel to the ends of the earth. Whether it was due to Leif's great love of God or the mystical power of his Bishop (the Dane-Saxon), the new kingdom became the light of the world. The people had great material wealth, but only used what they needed. They began to fashion their dwellings after those of the Skraelings and not plunder the earth. All lived simple, spiritual lives. Tales of Kristland reached the Vatican; Pope Pascal II sent Eric Gnupsson to Vinland as papal legate. He baptized Karlsefni's son, who is believed to have been the first child of European descent to be born in North America (outside of Greenland). The papal legate stayed in Leifsbudir for a couple of years and made many visits to the thriving nearby villages. Upon returning to Rome he made a detailed report about this new "extensive and most wealthy country.”




The sagas also tell of the tragic ruin of Vinland. It would appear that the arch-villain in the story was Leif's wicked sister Freydis. Very unlike her brother, Freydis was the epitome of evil, cunning, treachery and destruction. She hated the Jewish Kristgod with a passion and worshiped only the Dark Gods of the Hammer. Many of the sagas involve her weak husband. This second, lesser villain of the Vinland Sagas was Thorhall. He hated the Kristgod and the Skraelings. There were many great stories of derring-do between the 'Kristmen of the Hearth' and the 'Kinder of the Hammer'.

Although there are several contradicting accounts of how Vinland came to an end, the common thread is that the wicked Freydis and her husband turned the Skraelings against the settlement. The Dane-Saxon Bishop managed to save the Kingdom several times with his 'magical abilities' to bring peace to any conflict. However, after his death, peace never returned to Vinland. Freydis, who had become Queen, eventually was driven from the land by the Skraelings.

After collating all the Icelandic documents, Norah noted that the 'talisman' is never mentioned after the death of the Dane-Saxon monk and Freydis' return home. Norah's conclusion: the talisman, if it ever existed, was left in Leifsbudir!

Links:



Vinland

Kristland Sagas

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Comments

[N.B.]

Sagas
I loved Greenland and the Sagas.