Hárek of Tjøtta

Hårek of Tjøtta (965 in Tjøtta – 1036) was a Norwegian farmer and local chieftain. He was a son of the skald, Eyvindr skáldaspillir, who ruled from Tjøttagodset (a large manor). Hårek resided at Tjøtta in Nordland (north Norway), and had significant influence in the district of Hålogaland. He participated in the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030, where his farmer army defeated Olaf Haraldsson. Six years later when visiting king Magnus Olavsson I also known as Magnus the Good (the son of Olaf Haraldsson) in Trondheim, he was killed by axe in 1036 by rival chieftain Åsmund Grankjellsson, and thus the former king's son got his revenge.^[1][2]

Hárek with Olaf Tryggvason.
1897 drawing by Halfdan Egedius

Further reading

• Birgitta Berglund (1995). Tjøtta-riket: en arkeologisk undersøkelse av maktforhold og sentrumsdannelser på Helgelandskysten fra Kr. f. til 1700 e. Kr. Trondheim: UNIT, Vitenskapsmuseet, Fakultet for arkeologi og kulturhistorie, Arkeologisk avdeling. ISBN 8290896913.
• Ståle Botn (1997). Lendmann og jarl: en historisk roman om Hårek Øyvindsson på Tjøtta. [Oslo]: Landbruksforl. ISBN 8252922481.

References

1. Godal, Anne Marit (ed.). "Hårek fra Tjøtta". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Norsk nettleksikon. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
2. Nielssen, Alf Ragnar. "Hårek Øyvindsson På Tjøtta". In Helle, Knut (ed.). Norsk biografisk leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 30 July 2015.