The conversion of Iceland - a political event

The Conversion of Iceland: a political event

The conversion of Iceland in the year 1000 A.D.^[1] was doubtlessly an event of great importance in the history of the country. This is reflected in the number of sources that give an account of the happenings; here especially the Islendigabok, written by Ari the Wise, has to be named foremost, since it is our oldest and also most reliable source (Stömbäck 18; Aðalsteinsson 55). Ari wrote the Islendigabok some time in the years between 1122 and 1132. He himself states that “it is our duty to give preference to that which is proved to be most correct” (Ari 59). The Islendigabok can indeed be seen as the first work of Historiography in Iceland. One reason for this is that Ari names his major sources and refers to them when he talks about singular events. Here is not the place to name and discuss all his sources, but we can state that they have to be ranked as reliable. All the sources are oral, though. There was a strong oral tradition in Old Iceland, so that oral reports are no disadvantage or necessarily a weak point. Another strength of Ari is his chronology: all events are set in a time frame. Although Ari’s account is of historical value, we should take into consideration that he may have omitted something or that he stressed certain factors at the expense of others. It can easily be that Ari did not explain certain things because they did not need an explanation during his lifetime, but for us these things appear strange because we do not no their original context anymore. Indeed, Ari’s report about the conversion raises more questions than it solves, as we will see further down. After all, Ari is our only reliable source for these events; therefore this essay will be based on his report. The other sources that deal with the conversion are all written in the late12th and 13th century, mostly in monasteries. They usually contain a core of historical fact, but they are often closer to historical novels. Therefore their content has to be approached very critically. The other sources used here are Njal’saga and Kristni saga. Njal’s saga, probably written in 1280 (Aðalsteinsson 61), definitely belongs to the category mentioned above. It gives us some information that can be considered as factual, mostly because it is in congruence with Ari. However, large parts are written from a biased perspective, particulary in favor of Christianity. In Njal’s saga we find six chapters dealing with the missionary activities of Thangbrand and the Conversion itself. Apart from the Islendigabok, the main-source for the author of the saga was, with great probability, the now lost history of Olaf Tryygvason, written by a monk named Gunnlaugr. However this is a matter of controversy amongst scholars (Aðalsteinsson 61). It might be that the work of Gunnlaugr was also an important source for the Kristni saga, of which the Islendigabok is also the other major source. This work was written in the 13th century and provides a history of the missionary activities in Iceland, the Conversion and ends with the events of the year 1118, the year in which bishop Gizur Isleifson died. But “as far as its source value is concerned Kristni saga [is] one more example of uncritical history writing in the service of the church and religion, and it must be judged on that basis” (Aðalsteinsson 59). In the most important points, however, the latter sagas correspond with Ari.

Ari and his later successors give us a clear idea of the actual events; but we cannot accept Ari’s account as it stands, since it explores them on a superficial level only and therefore needs further analysis and explanation to get to the core of what the Conversion actually was. Furthermore, we can hardly assume that, with the official acceptance of Christianity, the new religion was established. The sources might describe the event, but not the impact. However, in this essay we cannot discuss all the events that led to the conversion of Iceland and its subsequent consequences. The question I would like to arise is: was the introduction of Christianity really a conversion? And to give the answer right away: I doubt it.

At this point a closer look at the actual events in 1000 A.D. is necessary.

I would like to start with the Christian King Olaf Tryggvason of Norway, as he was to a large degree the initiator of the Christianization of Iceland. King Olaf was very eager to promote Christianity in Iceland and Greenland, after he successfully introduced it to Norway. He did not hesitate to use violence, if necessary. He sent several missionaries to Iceland, but their success was very limited. The first missionary to single out here is Thangbrand, who was in Iceland for one or two years and left in 999 A.D. He managed to convert some chieftains, namely Siðu-Hallr Thorsteinsson, Gizur the White and Hjalti Skeggjason. Ari mentions the conversion of many other chieftains, but there were more who opposed or refused Christianity and according to Thangbrand “ it was beyond hope that Christianity yet would be received [in Iceland]” (Ari 65/52)^[2]. King Olaf reacted furiously to these news and his first reaction was to seize all Icelanders in Norway during that time and kill or maim all the heathen ones. At that time Gizur and Hjalti were with Olaf; they persuaded him to desist from such drastic measures. They came to the agreement that Gizur und Hjalti should go back to Iceland with the mission to convert Iceland once and for all. They arrived just in time to attend the Althing, the general assembly of the Icelanders^[3]. At the assembly place it came to a confrontation between the Christians and the heathens, since the heathens tried to prevent the Christians from being there. Only the intervention of some respected and moderate men kept them from fighting. The next day Gizur and Hjalti gave a speech in front of the assembly. The interesting point here is that Hjalti was found guilty of lesser outlawry for blaspheming the gods the previous year. Even if we leave this circumstance aside, it is remarkable that they could deliver their speech at all. After the speech the Christians and the heathen declared themselves out of law with each other. The Christians requested their spokesman Siðu-Hallr to declare the law for them. Hallr, a very respectable and influential man, and in addition quite moderate, refused. He put the decision in the hands of Thorgeir, a heathen and the lawspeaker at that time; Hallr also handed over some money to Thorgeir. Thorgeir agreed to declare the law and retrieved into his booth where he lay under his cloak for one day and one night. Then he gave a speech in front of the assembly. He stressed the necessity of one law and of unity. He demanded that both sides accept his decision. Both sides agreed. Then Thorgeir proclaimed that Christianity should by law be the new religion and that everybody should be baptized. However most of the old laws were preserved, including child exposure and the eating of horseflesh, which was abhorred by Christians. Also, the worship of the old gods in private was still legal. This is how Christianity came to Iceland.

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^[1] It is possible that the actual conversion was in the year 999 A.D. Ari might have used September 1st as the beginning of the year. The Alðing took place in June, therefore in 999. See Strömbäck 2 Fn 1.

^[2] All quotes of Ari refer to the Islendigabok. Here the edition contained in Islandica is used. I will quote the English translation and refer to it with the first page number, but also give the page number of the original text on second position.

^[3] The assembly was not only the meeting of all chieftains of Iceland, but also the place to discuss the laws, settle feuds, meet friends and do some trading. Usually the chieftains came with a retinue, so that quite a big number of men were gathered there.