Kári Sölmundarson ( Modern Icelandic: ;

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlemen ...

: ) was a

Hebridean The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebri ...

viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

and soldier of fortune who lived in the late tenth and early eleventh centuries. He is a major character in '' Njál's Saga''. Kári was the son of Solmund, who was the son of Thorbjorn "Jarl's Champion," an Icelander exiled before the establishment of the

Althing The Alþingi (''general meeting'' in Icelandic, , anglicised as ' or ') is the supreme national parliament of Iceland. It is one of the oldest surviving parliaments in the world. The Althing was founded in 930 at (" thing fields" or "assemb ...

for murder.

Early career

It is unknown where Kári was born (though possibly Iceland). He was, however, a

hird The hird (also named "Håndgangne Menn" in Norwegian), in Scandinavian history, was originally an informal retinue of personal armed companions, hirdmen or housecarls, but came to mean not only the nucleus ('Guards') of the royal army, but also ...

man of

Sigurd the Stout Sigurd Hlodvirsson (23 April 1014), popularly known as Sigurd the Stout from the Old Norse ''Sigurðr digri'',Thomson (2008) p. 59 was an Earl of Orkney. The main sources for his life are the Norse Sagas, which were first written down some tw ...

, jarl of Orkney. He came to the rescue of Helgi Njálsson and Grim Njálsson, the sons of

Njáll Þorgeirsson Njáll Þorgeirsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ) was a 10th and early-11th-century Icelandic lawyer who lived at Bergþórshvoll in Landeyjar, Iceland. He was one of the main protagonists of ''Njáls saga'', a medieval Icelandic saga which ...

of Bergthorshvoll,

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

in the 990's. The brothers, who were on a trading expedition to the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

, had come under attack by the vikings Snaekolf and Grjotgard Mordansson. After killing the raiders, Kári brought the Njálssons to Orkney, where they stayed for a time at Jarl Sigurd's court and fought in his campaigns in northern and central

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. Kári came to the aid of Helgi and Grim again when the brothers were arrested by Hakon Jarl of Norway for indirectly aiding in the escape of their fellow Icelander, Thrain Sigfusson.

In Iceland

When Helgi and Grim returned to Iceland, Kári accompanied them. He bought a landholding at Dyrholmar, but settled at Bergthorshvoll, where he married Njál's daughter Helga and became close friends with Njál's son Skarphéðinn. He likely became at least nominally a Christian when Iceland converted during the

of 1000. Kári became entangled in the Njálssons'

blood feud A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one pa ...

with the clan of Thrain Sigfusson, and participated in Skarphéðinn's ambush and murder of Thrain. In around 1010, Thrain's allies and kinsmen, led by Flosi Þórðarson, attacked Bergthorshvoll and burned it with its inhabitants inside. Kári managed to escape under cover of smoke, but his friends Helgi and Skarphéðinn were both killed. Njál, his wife Bergthora, and Kári's son Thord all refused Flosi's offer of reprieve and died in the flames. Kári's sword was Fjörsváfnir.

Aftermath of the Burning

Kári gathered supporters and prompted the prosecution of the Burners, and there is a legal joust between the parties. Fighting broke out and almost escalated into a full-scale civil war until

Snorri Goði Snorri Þorgrímsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ) or Snorri Goði (O.N.: ; M.I.: ; 963–1031) was a prominent chieftain in Western Iceland, who featured in a number of Icelandic sagas. The main source of his life is the '' Eyrbyggja saga ...

and his followers separated the belligerents. As part of an imposed settlement, the Burners were exiled for three years, but Kári attacked them on their way home, and pursued those who escaped abroad. Kári and a small group of followers spent the next several years taking vengeance on the Burners, following them to Orkney and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. In a particularly brazen display, Kári entered the hall of Jarl Sigurd of Orkney as Gunnar Lambason was telling a

slander Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

ous version of the story of the burning of Bergthorshvoll. Kári killed Gunnar and composed the verse: :''Men bold of battle,'' :''boast of the burning of Njál.'' :''But have you heard,'' :''how we harried them?'' :''Those givers of gold had a good return,'' :''ravens feasted on their raw flesh.''''Njál's Saga'' § 155. Kári stayed in Caithness during the

Battle of Clontarf The Battle of Clontarf ( ga, Cath Chluain Tarbh) took place on 23 April 1014 at Clontarf, near Dublin, on the east coast of Ireland. It pitted an army led by Brian Boru, High King of Ireland, against a Norse-Irish alliance comprising the for ...

in 1014, when Jarl Sigurd and his allies fought against

Brian Boru Brian Boru ( mga, Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig; modern ga, Brian Bóramha; 23 April 1014) was an Irish king who ended the domination of the High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill and probably ended Viking invasion/domination of Ireland. Br ...

, High King of Ireland. During his stay in Scotland his wife Helga died. Flosi returned to Iceland after a pilgrimage to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Kári followed, but was shipwrecked near Flosi's home. Testing Flosi's nobility he went to him for help, and they arranged a final peace. Kári married Flosi's niece Hildigunn, who was the widow of Hoskuld Thrainsson, the son of Thrain Sigfusson and foster-son of Njál.

Descendants

Kári had four children with Helga, his first wife: his son Thord, who died during the Burning of Bergthorshvoll, and the daughters Thorgerd, Ragnheid, and Valgerd. By his second wife Hildigunn, Kári had three sons: Starkadr, Thord and Flosi.

Notes

Resources

*Cook, Robert, ''trans.'' '' Njál's Saga''. Penguin Classics, 2002. *Durrenberger, E. Paul. "Icelandic Saga Heroes: The Anthropology of Natural Existentialists." ''Anthropology & Humanism Quarterly'', February 1984, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 3–8. *Hudson, Benjamin. "Brjan's Saga." ''Medium Aevum'', 22 September 2002. *Miller, William Ian.
Bloodtaking and Peacemaking: Feud, Law, and Society in Saga Iceland
'. Univ. of Chicago Press, 1990. *Thorsson, Ornulfur, and Bernard Scudder, transl. ''The Saga of Grettir the Strong''. Penguin Classics, 2005. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kari Solmundarson Viking warriors Scandinavian Scotland People from Orkney 10th-century Icelandic people 11th-century Icelandic people 11th-century deaths Year of birth unknown