ABSTRACT
Egill is a major fi gure in any anthology of Norse occasional poems or sagas, and his story must be considered by any historians of the English tenth century. According to the thirteenth-century Egils saga Skalla-Grímssonar ‘Egill’s Saga’, Egill visited England twice, once to serve King Aðalsteinn and again, thanks to Gunnhildr’s magic, when he encountered his mortal enemy King Eiríkr in York. In the fi rst episode, Egill and his older brother Þórólfr are said to fi ght as mercenaries for King Æthelstan in his battle against King Óláfr of Scotland. In this likely version of the Battle of Brunanburh, at a place called Vinheiðr, Egill leads the best English troops and Þórólfr a division of Norwegians. The details of the saga are muddled by long transmission, for ‘King Óláfr’ here is a blend of Anlaf Guthfrithson and King Con stantine of the Scots. The saga’s account of negotiations between Óláfr and Aðalsteinn (i.e. Æthelstan) are a fi ction. However, Scandinavian tradition has it that Hákon Haraldsson, later king of Norway (946 – 61), was fostered by Æthelstan in his court. He had the nickname Aðalsteinsfóstri (‘Æthelstan’s foster-son’). And Æthelstan had already married off his sister to King Sihtric of Dublin. The second story of Egill in England is equally fabulous, centring on Queen Gunnhildr with the alacrity of a misogynist Saint’s Life. Eiríkr in comparison is made to withdraw into the shadows, perhaps as a shadow of his former self, and the true hero is Arinbjlrn, who really saves Egill’s life.
