Of Knights and Bishops: Part I

Pirates of the North Sea

A central character in the first five years of the Vikings television program mentioned in the chapter on Angry Anglos and Dastardly Danes, was a man named Rollo Sigurdsson, supposed brother of Ragnar Lothbroke. Many liberties were taken regarding his history for the sake of entertainment, but the fact remains there was a Viking named Rollo and he did become the first Duke of Normandy. We are descended from him.

Our ancestor's full name was Rolf "Rollo" Ragnvaldsson. Rolf is from the Old Norse Hrólfr (English Rudolph or Ralph). I suspect Rolf is equivalent to Rudolf and Rollo is more equivalent to Rudy. Norse surnames took the name of their father, so Rollo was the son of Ragnvald, sometimes spelled Rögnvald (English Ragnall). Rollo was also known as Ganger-Hrólfr, meaning "Walking Rolf"—so named because he was so large that no horse could carry him. He conquered the region of northern France that became Normandy, named for the Normans ("Northmen"), and became the first ruler of Normandy.

Scandinavian Rulers

The Viking line of Rollo Ragnvaldsson is the oldest I've been able to trace back. The progenitor was Fornjót, King of Kvenland. This region, also called Cwenaland, is a difficult area to pin down because there are many conflicting ancient accounts, as well as some discrepancies with the compasses used by the Vikings. However, most experts now agree it included the northern portion of Finland, probably northeast of the Gulf of Bothnia, and possibly even part of northern Sweden. The Kvens (Cwenas) often crossed the northern mountains of modern Sweden and Norway to attack the Northmen there. They used small and light, portable boats to travel over land and across the numerous mountain lakes called meres.

Even though Kvenland is thought to have existed, these earlier ancestors may have been more myth than reality. Fornnjót was called "The Ancient Giant" and his sons were Hiér (meaning "sea"), Logi (meaning "fire"), and Kári (meaning "wind"). Kári's son was Frosti (called the "Father of Frost") and his grandson was Snær (called the "Father of Snow"). All of this comes from an ancient document called The Orkneyinga Saga. [1] It sounds almost like the stuff of myths and legends and may well be just that, but it's interesting nonetheless.

That line that descends to Rollo Ragnvaldsson is as follows:

 ¹ Fornjót (b.abt.160), King of Kvenland
 ² Kari Fornjótsson (b.abt.189), King of Kvenland
 ³ Frosti (or Jøkull) Karasson (b.abt.240), King of Kvenland
 ⁴ Snaer den Gamle

"The Old"

(b.bet.245-286), King of Kvenland ▼

There are old, but still popular, genealogies that have the wrong information about Frosti. They list Frosti as father of Jøkull, denoting them as two different persons. There is no known source that supports this speculation. Several ancient sagas list Frosti as the son of Kári, others that Jøkull was the son, but both are listed as the father of Snær den Gamle. There may be confusion in which name is correct, but there is clearly only one person between Kári and Snær.

 ⁵ Thorri Snærsson (b.bet.266-326), King of Kvenland
 ⁶ Gor Thorasson (b.bet.342-402), Sea King ▼

According to legend, Thorri had two songs, Nor and Gor, and one daughter named Goi. One day, Goi disappeared, so Nor and Gor left Kvenland to search for her. Gor searched the islands of the Baltic. He went all the way to Denmark, but found no trace of Goi.

Nor went west either along the isthmus between the Gulf of Bothnia and the White Sea to the north or across the northern reaches of the Gulf of Bothnia itself (it may have been iced over). From there he crossed over the Scandinavian mountains where he fought the Sami (Lapps). He eventually came to where the rivers began to flow west and eventually attacked the local inhabitants of an area called Trondheim in what is now central Norway.

Nor eventually settled by the North Sea. There Gor met up with him after conquering all the southern areas of the land. Gor and Nor divided the lands among themselves. Gor got all the islands he had conquered and became the first "Sea King," settling in Ramsdale. Nor got the continental areas.

Afterward, Nor traveled east toward Sweden, where he met King Hrolf and found that Hrolf had kidnapped Goi. Hrolf and Nor had a long and furious duel, but neither prevailed. So, they made an agreement that Hrolf would marry Goi and Nor would marry Hrolf's sister. Nor returned to his land, which has ever since been called Norge, or "Nor's Way"(Norway).

 ⁷ Heytir Gorrsson (b.abt.509), Sea King
 ⁸ Svidri Heytirsson (b.bet.514-574), Sea King
 ⁹ Sveidi Svidrisson (b.abt.649), Sea King
¹⁰Halfdan den Gamle

"The Old"

Sveidasson (b.bet.715-755) ▼

Halfdan seems to have ended the family's rule as Sea King because his father, Sveidi, is listed as the last Sea King. It was probably because Halfdan was a brutal ruler, to such an extend that his son, Ivar, was driven out. However, Ivar became the Jarl (Earl) for the region called Oppland (Upland) in Norway

¹¹ Ivar Halfdansson (b.abt.780), Earl of Upland, Norway
¹² Eystein Glumra "The Clatterer (noisy)" Ivarsson (b.abt.810),
         Earl of Upland and Hedemarken (area around Oslo)

^13.1 Ragnvald Eysteinsson (b.825), Earl of Möre and Romsdal ▼

Ragnvald was called "The Mighty and the Wise in Council" and became a supporter of King Harald I Hårfagre "Fairhair", King of Norway. He was a friend of the King and it was actually Ragnvald who caused Harald to be given his name "Fairhair" by cutting and dressing it, which had been uncut for ten years because of Harald's vow never to cut it until he was ruler of all Norway.

King Harald had granted Ragnvald the districts of Möre and Romsdal after his victory at Solskiel in 869 against Hunthiof, King of Möre, and Nokve, King of Romsdal. He accompanied King Harald on his conquest of the Shetland Isles and Scotland. He ws given rule of them when his son, Ivar, was killed in battle, but turned them over to his brother Sigurd.

Back in Norway, Ragnvald was killed with 60 of his men in a longhouse. Two of King Harald's jealous sons, Hálfdan Hålegg "Longlegs" and Gudrød Ljome "The Gleaming," ambushed him and burned the longhouse down with everyone still in it. Gudrød seized Möre and placed it under their authority. King Harald, appalled by his sons' actions, overthrew Gudrød and restored Ragnvald's lands to his son, Thorir. Hálfdan fled westwards to Orkney and for a while displaced Einarr.

   (1) from an unknown mistress:
   ^14.1 Hallard Ragnvaldson ▼

After the death of his uncle, Sigurd, Hallad was sent to the Orkney Islands by his father, where he was given the title of Earl by King Harald. However, following complaints by farmers about raids by Danish pirates, Hallad tired of ruling. He resigned the earldom and returned to Norway as a common landholder, which made him a laughing stock. His failure supposedly led to his father flying into a rage.

   ^14.2 Hrollaug Ragnvaldson ☜ Our Ancestor ▼

Supposedly Hrollaug traveled to Iceland, though that remains uncertain. What is certain is that he settled at least for a time in North Trondelag, Norway, took a wife named Emina, and had one child named Rolf Thurstan Brico. Rolf eventually traveled to Normandy, perhaps to join his Uncle Rollo, met Gerlotte de Blois of Tillers, Normandy, and had a daughter named Ertemberge (the fourth of seven children). This Ertemberge was our 33rd great-grandmother. So we can trace our roots back to Ragnvald two different ways.

   ^14.3 Einarr Ragnvaldson ▼

After the failure of Hallard, Ragnvald summoned his sons and asked which of them wanted the islands. Einarr, the youngest of his illegitimate sons, came forward and offered to go. Ragnvald supposedly said, "Considering the kind of mother you have, slave-born on each side of her family, you are not likely to make much of a ruler. But I agree, the sooner you leave and the later you return the happier I'll be." More than likely, it was because his other sons were more amenable, while Einarr was more dangerous and posed a threat.

Ragnvald agreed to provide Einarr with a ship and crew in the hope that he would sail away and never return. Despite his father's misgivings, on arrival in the Scottish islands, Einarr fought and defeated two Danish warlords, Thorir Treebeard and Kalf the Scurvy, who had taken residence there. Supposedly tall, ugly, and one-eyed, he succeeded in imposing his authority in Orkney and established himself as Earl of a territory that comprised the two archipelagoes of Orkney and Shetland.

For a time, Einatt was displaced but Hálfdan, the son of King Harald who had killed his father, Ragnvald. From a base in Caithness, however, Einarr resisted Hálfdan's occupation of the islands. After a battle at sea and a ruthless campaign on land, Einarr spied Hálfdan hiding on North Ronaldsay, the northernmost island in the Orkneys. He captured Hálfdan an supposedly sacrificed him to Odin as a blood-eagle.

The blood eagle was a gruesome way to die. The victim was placed face down and their flesh cut on either side of the spine. The rib bones connecting to the spine were severed, pulled apart, and the lungs were pulled out and laid upon the victims back, like eagles wings. It was said that anyone who could endure such torture without crying out would enter Valhalla. However, it's important to note that this form of torture may simply be the stuff of legends, intent on striking fear in enemies rather than actually being carried out.

   (2) from mariage to Ragnhild (Hilde) dau. Hrolf Nefjaa

"The Nose"

:
   ^14.4 Ivar Ragnvaldson ▼

Accompanied his father when King Harald began his expeditions to Ireland and Scotland, but was killed during one of the battles in the Scottish islands.

   ^14.5 Rollo Ragnvaldsson (b. abt. 846) ☜ Our Ancestor ▼

Rollo was banished from Norway by King Harald and travelled to the Hebrides, settling first in Orkney before moving southwards through Scotland. He eventually found his way to northern France where he captured Rouen around 900 in the region called Nuestria. There, he was chosen by lot to be leader of the Viking colonists and intensified the Viking raids in northern France.

Although Rollo was defeated after raiding Chartres in 911, Charles III "The Simple" King of the West Franks granted him the land around Rouen in which to settle as a peace offering. They did so, renaming it Normandy. Conflict between the Vikings and the Crown continued, however, because Charles claimed that the Vikings had been given land in exchange for a pledge of service, for which the ruler was owed allegiance. The Normans claimed it was land owned unconditionally and not subject to any rent, service, or other right of an overlord—for which no allegiance was owed.

   ^14.6 Thorir Ragnvaldson ▼

Ragnvald predicted that Thorir's path would keep him in Norway, which it did. When King Harald's jealous sons ambushed and killed Thorir's father King Harald overthrew his own sons and returned Ragnvald's lands to Thorir.

^13.2 Sigurd Eysteinsson ▼

When Ivar was killed in battle, King Harald granted to Sigurd's brother, Ragnvald, the islands of Orkney an Shetland in compensation. Instead, Ragnvald returned to Norway, giving the isles to Sigurd. Sigurd defeated and then beheaded the Earl of the Scots, Mælbrigte. However, Sigurd had strapped Mælbrigte's head to his saddle and a tooth in Mælbrigte decaying head scratched his leg and it became infected. Sigurd died from the infection. I guess the lesson is not to flaunt your victories.

Rollo was the 14th descendent of Fornjót. While Rollo and his descendants are referred to as the Dukes of Normandy, that appears to be a case of revisionist history. Not until Richard II was the ruler of Normandy referred to as Duke. Before that, they used the title Count of the Normans, defying Norman pretensions to a ducal title. Although, Richard I was once called dux pyratorum, meaning "Leader of Pirates."

In our family's case, the eponymous "Leader of the Pirates" may be more appropriate, because our connection can hardly be called noble—more like ignoble. Our ancestral D'Eu line that branches from the Dukes of Normandy are connected through illegitimacy (Figure 1).

Figure 1—Relationship of the Wharton family to the Dukes of Normandy.

Rollo's son William, called William Longue Epâee "Long Sword," had a son named Richard Sans-Peur "The Fearless." It was this Richard that had at least two illegitimate sons and one daughter through an unknown mistress. The oldest son was Godfrey (or Geoffrey) and the younger son was our ancestor, named William de Hiémois (of Hiémois), a village in central Normandy. The name of Richard's mistress has been lost to history, but she must surely have held his interest to have borne him three children.

While William de Hiémois may have been an illegitimate son of Richard, such designations carried little of the stigma during that time period that they began to later. In fact, Richard's relationship with William's unknown mother was called more danico. ▼

A medieval latin expression that meant "in the Danish manner" (formerly "in the Norse manner"). It was a type of informal marriage similar to handfasting in which a relationship could be entered into and dissolved at the wishes of the husband, commonly employed by those in Scandinavian and northern Germany regions.

In this form of relationship, the husband could have an informal marriage that was either temporary or held in the background while he married a higher ranking woman. Obviously it was discouraged by the Christian Church and the practice gradually died out.

The children of such marriages were in no way considered to be of maligned rank or disadvantaged with respect to inheritance. Many sons of more danico went on to become dukes or kings by succession or conquest. Such was the case with William de Hiémois who became the third Count de Eu.

In 966, Richard created the county of Eu partially as a borderland to protect Normandy from an eastern invasion, and partially as an inheritance for his illegitimate sons (Figure 2). ▼

Eu is a municipality located near the English Channel in northeastern corner of Normandy, France. It was named after the river on which it stands, originally called the Ou River. The river's named changed to Bresle and the village to Eu. William I, then the Duke of Normandy, married Matilda of Flanders at the chapel of the castle in Eu. Joan of Arc sent the night in Eu as a prisoner of the English. Today, Eu is chiefly known for its nearby national forest, the Eu Forest; the Renaissance style Château d'Eu; and its college.

Figure 2—Location of Eu in medieval Normandy.

The oldest of Richard's illegitimate children, Geoffrey (or Godfrey), became the First Count D'Eu. He was followed by his son, Gilbert (or Giselbert). The title then passed to Richard's second son, William de Hiémois, who became the 3rd Count D'Eu. He was my 32nd great-grandfather.

Five generations after William de Hiémois, Ida D'Eu married into the famous Hastings family when she married William de Hastings. And then, six generations later, Emma Hastings would marry into the Wharton familyr. Thus completed the connection from the Wharton family to the Norse Vikings through Rollo, first ruler of Normandy.

William I, a 2nd great-grandson of Rollo, who would lead the Norman invasion of England in 1066 and ultimately unite it under Norman rule, was also an illegitimate child (Figure 1). So, his line and our D'Eu line would have been half-cousins, or if you don't mind me saying, half-bastards.

Oh, what you find when you shake the family tree.

While its well-know that the Norman Invasion of 1066 changed England forever, the genesis of it began long before William I stormed across the English Channel in 1066. As a matter of fact, the actual invasion took only a flash of time in comparison. What led up to it involved the lack of a royal heir, court intrigue, broken promises, revenge, and the fact that royal succession in Northern Europe at the time was determined more by military power than birthright. A son could inherit the crown, but then have to defend it.

These were all the ingredients necessary for upheaval. It's important to understand why it all happened because our Wharton ancestors were heavily invested in the outcome. They participated in it both financially and militarily. As a matter of fact, it was through the Norman Invasion that most of our ancestors arrived in jolly old England, but its hardly a simple story to tell.

The Roots of the Norman Invasion

For successive generations, the House of Wessex ruled England. All that was about to change, and at the center of the coming turmoil was Queen Emma of Normandy (Figure 3). She was the daughter of Richard "The Fearless," Duke of Normandy. Emma was married off to Æthelred as a concession to keep the Normans from continually raiding England from northern France. She ended up being married to two kings of England and having two sons become kings of England.

Figure 3—Path of Succession to the Crown of England, 978-1066.

When Emma's husband Æthelred died in 1016, she struggled to hold the country together. She was trying to hold off "Cnut The Great," King of the Norway and Denmark, who had invaded England and was waiting just outside London to deliver the final blow. He wanted to consolidate his rule as King of Norway and Denmark with that of England to form a "North Sea Empire."' To bring about a peaceful conclusion, she was able to arrange a marriage to Cnut, which ended the conflict and gave him the crown. It also probably saved the lives of her children by Æthelred, one of whom was Edward, the future king,

Following the wedding, there was a period of Danish rule under Cnut and, after his death, for a short time, his sons—first Harold "Harefoot" from his first marriage and then Harthacnut from his marriage to Emma. Cnut ruled for eighteen years, but combined, his sons ruled for only seven years.

Harold "Harefoot" was a temporary King—the crown rightfully rested with Harthacnut and for a time, they ruled different portions of England together. Harthacnut had to race off to Denmark to defend it from incursions by Norway and Sweden, at which time Harold took over for a short time as de facto King. After Harold died, however, Harthnacut returned and assumed his royal duties. He served only two years, dying in 1042 at which time power again returned to Wessex through Emma's son by her first marriage, Edward "The Confessor."

Oh, what a tangled web. But wait, the real intrigue is yet to come.

For twenty-four years, Edward "The Confessor" ruled and all seemed stable, though a storm was brewing. Because, when he died in January of 1066, England was immediately thrown into turmoil. The reason: he had no heir. With no heir and in the waning years of his life, Edward thought about who would inherit the crown. Regardless of those he thought to be worthy, several contenders sat in the wings:

1. Waiting across the English Channel was William I, Duke of Normandy, the illegitimate great-grandson of Richard "The Fearless" ▼

William had been making a name for himself on the continent. He desired the throne once Edward died and had the strongest bloodline to support him—Queen Emma was his great aunt. His only drawback was that he was an illegitimate son of Robert. While illegitimacy mattered less in those day, being called William “The Bastard” was enough to overshadow his right to the crown.

2. In England, Harold II Goodwinson, chief counsel to King Edward, had the ear of the King ▼

Harold claimed the throne because ...
a) he was the strongest and most wealthy of the English nobles,
b) with some impressive hubris, claimed his right as an Anglo-Saxon from Wessex where all the most recent English kings had been from,
c) claimed to have a blood connection, though it was hardly noteworthy—his uncle, Ulf Thorgilsson, was the brother-in-law of Queen Emma's second husband (Cnut). His sister was married to King Edward, but that carried considerably less weight than a royal connection through ancestry.

3. Off to the north in Norway was Harald Sigurdsson (also called Hardrada), now the King of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark ▼

Harald "Hardrada" longed to duplicate the title that King Cnut had held, that of the "North Sea Empire." Cnut's son, Harthacnut, had promised that if he had died childless (which he did), Hardrada would inherit the crown of England. The crown had gone to Edward "The Confessor" instead, but Harald had to put his ambitions on hold as he was in the middle of an exhaustive fight defending Denmark. However, he had both the military prowess and the resources to claim the throne of England, which he believed belonged to him.

4. Smouldering in Flanders, France, was a vengeful Tostig Goodwindon, brother of Harold II ▼

Tostig had been sent into exile by King Edward, a decision backed by his own brother. As the Earl of Northumbria, a rebellion had risen against him, which accused him of robbing churches, depriving men of their lands and lives, and acting against the law. So, he had lost his title and been exiled, though it has been claimed that Harold's interest in exiling Tostig was less because his brother was a bad ruler and more to get rid of a contender to the crown. Tostig had as much right to the throne through ancestry as his brother and he was spoiling for a fight.

All waited to see how events would unfold. Then Edward, who had dangled the prospect of the crown to William I, on his deathbed supposedly recanted and named Harold II Godwinson as his heir. This inflamed William of Normandy, especially since there had been no witnesses. William contended Harold had just helped himself to the crown. The other principals involved were equally unconvinced of Harold’s right to be King.

The War for the Crown

Tostig was the first to strike (Figure 4), raiding southern England in the spring of 1066. He was finally repulsed at the Battle of Linsey by two brothers, Earls Morcar and Edwin of Northumbria. He retreated north to Scotland and then made contact with King Harald "Hardrada" of Norway, impressing the Norwegian king and his court. Tostig managed to persuade the King to invade England. In partnership, they lead a fleet of 300 Viking ships from Norway, first to Scotland and from there, invaded England by sailing up the Humber Estuary to York. There they defeated Morcar and Edwin who had only a hastily gathered army at the Battle of Fulford Gate on September 20.

Figure 4—Battles for the Crown of England, 1066.

Harold II had heard of Hardrada's plan and was marching an army north to meet the challenge in late September of 1066. He had not arrived in time to join the Battle of Fulford Gate and by the time Harold did arrive, Hardrada and Tostig had successfully taken York and moved toward the Stamford Bridge area. There the forces met on September 25 and battled for hours. Both Tostig and Hardrada were killed and the Vikings retreated.

Only three days after the battle at Stamford Bridge, William, who had been amassing his fleet and armies all summer, saw his opportunity and stormed across the English Channel to invade England. Harold II rushed south to face the new challenge, but was defeated by William at the Battle of Hastings ▼

William landed in England at Pevensey, marshaled his troops, and marched to favorable ground near the town of Hastings a little more than 10 miles away. There he waited for Harold's weary army, who were swiftly marching to face the new threat. Harold hoped to surprise William, but was unable to do so and the two forces met near the town on the morning of October 24. The battle raged on with neither side gaining an advantage until late in the day when Harold was killed supposedly by an arrow in his eye. Harold’s troops retreated and William had won the battle.

The country was not yet his, but after several more battles, William triumphed and was crowned King of England on December 25, 1066. It can be argued that William would not have won had Harold's army not be so spent by the previous battle. Nevertheless, William went on to put down other contenders, pretenders, and rebels anywhere in England and became known as William "The Conqueror."

Over the next several years, the sons of Harold II fought to regain the realm without success. William was perhaps more ruthless, but also more organized, unifying England and setting up a system of taxation based largely on the census taken through the Domesday Book.

Harold II had reigned for only 10 months, and became known as the last Anglo-Saxon King. England would be forever changed, ruled by Normans, who were descendants of Viking invaders. So, in a very real sense, England could be considered to have been eventually conquered by the Vikings.

What had all this to do with our family? All these shenanigans by the royals had a significant impact on our ancestors, on both sides of the English channel. While I have yet to find any Celtic ancestors that occupied early England and only one ancestor that may have been either Anglo-Saxon or Danish royalty, we have numerous ancestors from Normandy that all played a significant role. They are as follows:

1. An officer who served under William who was the direct ancestor of the Wharton line and originates our pedigree.

2. Robert D'Eu, grandson of the illegitimate child of Richard "The Fearless," commanded 60 ships in the fleet supporting the landing of William I. Around 1068, he was given the Hastings Castle and the adjacent territories. He was the forefather of the Hastings line that would also marry into the Wharton family.

3. Ernulf (Arnulf) de Hesdin, who was a French knight from the Artois region of France—a vassal state of Flanders. Most likely he fought the early Viking invaders from Normandy since they ravaged most of Europe, and particularly West Flanders. Traditional tactics were insufficient to stop them, so a new "non-noble" class of knight was born, the "ministeriales." The ministeriales manned cavalry units throughout Flanders, thus solving the problem of fast response to Viking assaults and creating a new social class. Ernulf may well have been one of these ministerials since his ancestry cannot be traced and so was most likely non-noble. He would have fought the Normans and Vikings attempting to conquer the Netherlands, Belgium, and northern France. Although previous at odds with the Normans, Ernulf figured prominently in the Norman Invasion, proving the old adage: "The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

4. And, of course, all the daughters of famous Norman lines that married into our Wharton line. Such luminary lines that include de Musgrave, de Mornay, de Warrene, and so forth. Is it any wonder that I've labelled the Wharton side of our family history as "Knights."

That the Whartons are of predominantly Norman stock came as quite a shock to me. When I was young, Robin Hood had always been portrayed as an Anglo-Saxon freedom fighter standing up to the evil Normans who were ruling England (Prince John was the son of Henry II Plantagenet—a Norman). Naturally, I sided with Robin Hood, only to find out years later that our family is of Norman descent. Now I have to view Robin Hood as a lawless hooligan.

———————

FOOTNOTES

[1] Anderson, Joshep, ed. The Orkneyinga Saga   translated by Jon A Hjaltalin and Gilbert Goudie. Edmonton and Douglas; Edinburgh, Scotland. 1873.

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