Ragnhild Eriksdotter (died c. 984) was the daughter of

Eric Bloodaxe Eric Haraldsson ( non, Eiríkr Haraldsson , no, Eirik Haraldsson; died 954), nicknamed Bloodaxe ( non, blóðøx , no, Blodøks) and Brother-Slayer ( la, fratrum interfector), was a 10th-century Norwegian king. He ruled as King of Norway from ...

and his wife, Gunnhild. According to the '' Orkneyinga Saga'', she was an ambitious and scheming woman who sought power through the men of the family of

Thorfinn Torf-Einarsson Thorfinn Torf-EinarssonCrawford (1987) p. 63 also known as Thorfinn Skull-splitterThomson (2008) p. 57 (from the Old Norse ''Þorfinnr hausakljúfr'') was a 10th-century Earl of Orkney. He appears in the '' Orkneyinga saga'' and briefly in '' St ...

, who was

Earl of Orkney Earl of Orkney, historically Jarl of Orkney, is a title of nobility encompassing the archipelagoes of Orkney and Shetland, which comprise the Northern Isles of Scotland. Originally founded by Norse invaders, the status of the rulers of the Nort ...

. The period after Thorfinn's death was one of dynastic strife. Thorfinn had five sons: (Arnfinn, Havard, Hlodvir, Ljot, Skuli) and at least two daughters, each of whom had a son called Einar. In ''Orkneyinga Saga'' it is stated that Ragnhild Eriksdotter first married Arnfinn Thorfinnsson, eldest son of Thorfinn. Her husband was subsequently murdered at

Murkle Murkle (Murchill) is a small scattered hamlet, made up of ''East Murkle'' and ''West Murkle'' located east of Thurso, in Caithness, Scottish Highlands and is in the Scottish council area of Highland. Name The name ''Murkle'' derives from the n ...

in Caithness sometime around 979. Her next husband was Arnfinn's brother, Havard Thorfinnsson who may have been involved in his brother's murder. Havard became Earl of Orkney and promptly married his brother's widow. Next Ragnhild convinced Thorfinn grandson, Einar Klining, to kill Havard for which she would marry him and make him Earl. Havard was killed in

Stenness Stenness (pronounced ) ( non, Steinnes; nrn, Stennes) is a village and parish on the Orkney Mainland in Scotland. It contains several notable prehistoric monuments including the Standing Stones of Stenness and the Ring of Brodgar. Geography S ...

Orkney Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north ...

, though the date is uncertain. Before Einar Klining could marry her, Ragnhild had promised Einar Hardkiopt, another grandson of Thorfinn, the same thing, if he would kill Einar Klining. This he did, but then Ragnhild took Havard's younger brother Liot Thorfinnsson as her husband. After Liot went on to defend Orkney and claim the Earldom, he died of his wounds from the battle of Skidmoor in

Caithness Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded by ...

. No more is heard of Ragnhild after that event. Hlodvir Thorfinnsson then became Earl of Orkney. In time, he was succeeded by his son,

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 ...

References

Other sources

*Crawford, Barbara E. (1987) ''Scandinavian Scotland'' (Leicester University Press) *Muir, Tom (2005) ''Orkney in the Sagas: The Story of the Earldom of Orkney as told in the Icelandic Sagas'' (The Orcadian. Kirkwall) . *Pálsson, Hermann and Edwards, Paul Geoffrey (1981) ''Saga: The History of the Earls of Orkney'' (Penguin Classics) *Thomson, William P. L. (2008) ''The New History of Orkney'' (Edinburgh. Birlinn) People from Orkney Earls of Orkney Norwegian princesses Orkneyinga saga characters 10th-century Norwegian women 10th-century Norwegian people 980s deaths Year of birth unknown Year of death uncertain Daughters of kings {{Orkney-bio-stub