Map showing the major Varangian trade routes: the Volga trade route (in red) and the Trade Route from the Varangians to the Greeks (in purple). Other trade routes of the eighth–eleventh centuries shown in orange.

The Varangians or Varyags (Old Norse: Væringjar; Swedish: Väringar; Greek: Βάραγγοι, Βαριάγοι, Varangoi, Variagoi; Russian and Ukrainian: Варяги, Varyagi / Varyahy; Belarusian: Варагі, Varahi) was the name given by Greeks and East Slavs to Vikings,^[1][2][3][4] who between the 9th and the 11th centuries ruled the medieval state of Rus', and formed the Byzantine Varangian Guard.^[5][6]

According to the 12th century Kievan Primary Chronicle, a group of Varangians known as the Rus' settled in Novgorod in 864, under the leadership of Rurik. Before Rurik, the Rus' might have ruled an earlier hypothetical polity. Rurik's relative Oleg conquered Kiev in 882, and established the state of Kievan Rus', which was later ruled by Ruriks descendants.^[7][8] The name of the Rus' is the origin of the name Russia.

Engaging in trade, piracy and mercenary activities, Varangians roamed the river systems and portages of Gardariki, as the areas north of the Black Sea were known in the Norse sagas. They controlled the Volga trade route (Route from the Varangians to the Arabs), connecting Baltic to the Caspian Sea, and the Dnieper trade route (Route from the Varangians to the Greeks) leading to the Black Sea and Constantinople.^[9] Those were the critically important trade links at that time, connecting Dark Age Europe with wealthy and developed Arab Caliphates and the Byzantine Empire;^[10] via those routes most of the silver coinage came from the East to the West. Attracted by the riches of Constantinople, Rus' Varangians initiated a number of Rus'-Byzantine Wars, some of which resulted in advantageous trade treaties. At least from the early 10th century many Varangians served as mercenaries in the Byzantine Army, comprising the elite Varangian Guard (the personal bodyguards of Byzantine Emperors). Eventually most of them, both in Byzantium and in Eastern Europe, were converted from paganism into Orthodox Christianity, culminating in the 988 Christianization of Kievan Rus'. Coinciding with the general decline of the Viking Age, the influx of Scandinavians to Rus' stopped, and Varangians were gradually assimilated by East Slavs by the late 11th century.

Etymology[link]

Guests from Overseas, Nicholas Roerich (1899).

Greek Várangos and Old East Slavic varęgŭ are derived from Old Norse væringi, originally a compound of vár "pledge" and gengi "companion", i.e. "a sworn person" or "a foreigner who has taken service with a new lord by a treaty of fealty to him, or protégé".^[11][12] Some scholars seem to assume a derivation with the common suffix -ing-.^[13] Yet, this suffix is inflected differently in Old Norse, and furthermore, the word is attested with -gangia- in other Germanic languages in the Early Middle Ages: Old English wærgenga, Old Frankish wargengus, Langobardic waregang.^[14] The reduction of the second part of the word is parallel to that seen in Old Norse foringi "leader" = Old English foregenga, Gothic fauragangja "steward".^[15][16]

Kievan Rus'[link]

The Invitation of the Varangians by Viktor Vasnetsov: Rurik and his brothers Sineus and Truvor arrive in Staraya Ladoga.

Having settled Aldeigja (Ladoga) in the 750s, Scandinavian colonists played an important role in the early ethnogenesis of the Rus' people and in the formation of the Rus' Khaganate. The Varangians (Varyags, in Old East Slavic) are first mentioned by the Primary Chronicle as having exacted tribute from the Slavic and Finnic tribes in 859. It was the time of rapid expansion of the Vikings in Northern Europe; England began to pay Danegeld in 859, and the Curonians of Grobin faced an invasion by the Swedes at about the same date.

Due largely to geographic considerations, it is often argued that most of the Varangians who traveled and settled in the eastern Baltic, Russia and lands to the south came from the area of modern Sweden .^[17]

In the 9th century, the Rus' operated the Volga trade route, which connected Northern Russia (Gardariki) with the Middle East (Serkland). As the Volga route declined by the end of the century, the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks rapidly overtook it in popularity. Apart from Ladoga and Novgorod, Gnezdovo and Gotland were major centres for Varangian trade.^[18]

Longships Are Built in the Land of the Slavs , Nicholas Roerich (1903).

According to the Primary Chronicle, in 862, the Finnic and Slavic tribes in the area of Novgorod rebelled against their Varangian rulers, driving them overseas back to Scandinavia, but soon started to conflict with each other. The disorder prompted the tribes to invite back Varangians "to come and rule them" and bring peace to the region. Led by Rurik and his brothers Truvor and Sineus, the invited Varangians (called Rus') settled around the town of Holmgård (Novgorod). The Primary Chronicle twice names Rus' among the other Varangian peoples, including Swedes, Normans, Angles, Gutes^[19] (Normans was an Old Russian term for Norwegians, while Angles may be interpreted as Danes). In some places the chronicle mention Slavs and Rus' as different groups, but other places it mixes them.

Under the leadership of Rurik's relative Oleg, the Rus' Varangians expanded southwards by capturing Kiev from the Khazars, founding the medieval state of Rus'.^[7] Attracted by the riches of Constantinople and the Arab world, Rus' Varangians initiated a number of Rus'-Byzantine Wars, some of which resulted in advantageous trade treaties. Meanwhile, descendants of Rurik expanded the Russian state and unified the local tribes. Contact with the Byzantine Empire increased, culminating in the 988 Christianization of Kievan Rus' during the reign of Vladimir the Great.

As was the case with the Norse influence in Normandy and the British Isles, Varangian culture did not survive in the East. Instead, the Varangian ruling classes of the two powerful city-states of Novgorod and Kiev were gradually slavicised by the end of the 11th century.^[20] However, the successor descendants of Rurik were the ruling dynasty of medieval Rus', the successor principalities of Galicia-Volhynia (after 1199), Chernigov, Vladimir-Suzdal, Grand Duchy of Moscow, and the founders of the Tsardom of Russia.^[21] The name of the Varangian Rus became that of the land modern Russia and the ethnonym of its population.^[22][23] Russia is thus the only surviving state outside Scandinavia which was founded by Norse people.

Most historians tend to agree with the Primary Chronicle that the Varangians organized the native settlements into the political entity of Kievan Rus' in the 880s and gave their name to the land. However, many Russian scholars are opposed to this theory of Germanic influence, and have suggested alternative scenarios for this part of Eastern European history. Russian historiography includes a number of Anti-Normanist theories, antagonistic to the Normanist theory of a Scandinavian origin of Varangians. For example, according to Yu. Shilov, Varangians ( Vargi) were supposed to be a tribe of Baltic Slavs without roots to Norse Vikings.^[24] While the dispute continues, the event of Rurik's arrival in 862 to Northern Russia on the request of its peoples, known as the Invitation of the Varangians (Russian: Призвание Варягов), continues to be regarded as the traditional starting point of Russian history.

Islamic world[link]

Ship burial of a Rus chieftain as described by the Arab traveler Ahmad ibn Fadlan who visited Kievan Rus in the 10th century.
Henryk Siemiradzki (1883)

Initially, the Rus' appeared in Serkland in the 9th century traveling as merchants along the Volga trade route, selling furs, honey, and slaves. Hoards of 9th century Baghdad minted silver coins have been found in Sweden, particularly in Gotland. The first small-scale raids took place in the late 9th and early 10th century. The Rus' undertook the first large-scale expedition in 913; having arrived on 500 ships, they pillaged Gorgan, in the territory of present day Iran, and the adjacent areas, taking slaves and goods. On their return, the northern raiders were attacked and defeated by Khazar Muslims in the Volga Delta, and those who escaped were killed by the local tribes on the middle Volga.

During their next expedition in 943, the Rus' captured Barda, the capital of Arran, in the modern-day Republic of Azerbaijan. The Rus' stayed there for several months, killing many inhabitants of the city and amassing substantial plunder. It was only an outbreak of dysentery among the Rus' that forced them to depart with their spoils. Sviatoslav, prince of Kiev, commanded the next attack, which destroyed the Khazar state in 965. Sviatoslav's campaign established the Rus's hold on the north-south trade routes, helping to alter the demographics of the region. Raids continued through the time period with the last Scandinavian attempt to reestablish the route to the Caspian Sea taking place in 1041 by Ingvar the Far-Travelled.

Byzantine Empire[link]

Varangian Guardsmen, an illumination from the 11th century chronicle of John Skylitzes.

The earliest Byzantine record of the Rus' may have been written prior to 842. It is preserved in the Greek Life of St. George of Amastris, which speaks of a raid that had extended into Paphlagonia. Contemporary Byzantine presence of the Rus are the mentioned in the Frankish Annals of St. Bertin. These relate that Emperor Louis the Pious' court at Ingelheim, in 839, was visited by a delegation from the Byzantine emperor. In this delegation there were two men who called themselves Rhos (Rhos vocari dicebant). Louis enquired about their origins and learnt that they were Swedes. Fearing that they were spies for their brothers, the Danes, he incarcerated them.

In 860, from Kiev, that the Rus under Askold and Dir launched their first attack on Constantinople. The result of this initial attack is disputed, but the Varangians continued their efforts as they regularly sailed on their monoxyla down the Dnieper into the Black Sea. The Rus' raids into the Caspian Sea were recorded by Arab authors in the 870s and in 910, 912, 913, 943, and later. Although the Rus had predominantly peaceful trading relations with the Byzantines, the rulers of Kiev launched the relatively successful naval expedition of 907 and the abortive campaign of 941 against Constantinople, as well as Sviatoslav I's large-scale invasion of the Balkans in 968–971.

These raids were successful in the sense of forcing the Byzantines to re-arrange their trading arrangements; militarily, the Varangians were usually defeated by the superior Byzantine forces, especially in the sea and due to the Byzantines' use of Greek fire.

Varangian Guard[link]

Varangian Guardsmen, an illumination from the Skylitzis Chronicle.

The Varangian Guard (Greek: Τάγμα των Βαράγγων, Tágma tōn Varángōn) were a part of Byzantine Army and personal bodyguards of the Byzantine Emperors from the 9th to the 14th centuries. Initially the guard was composed of Varangians who came from in the Kievan Rus.

The guard was first formed under Emperor Basil II's after 988, following the Christianization of Kievan Rus' and union with Vladimir I of Kiev, who sent 6,000 men to Basil as a part of military assistance agreement. Basil's distrust of the native Byzantine guardsmen, whose loyalties often shifted with fatal consequences, as well as the proven loyalty of the Varangians, many of whom served in Byzantium even before, led the Emperor to employ them as his personal guard. Over the years, new recruits from Sweden, Denmark, and Norway kept a predominantly Scandinavian cast to the organization until the late 11th century. So many Scandinavians left to enlist in the guard that a medieval Swedish law from Västergötland stated that no one could inherit while staying in "Greece" — the then Scandinavian term for the Byzantine Empire.^[25] In the eleventh century, there were also two other European courts that recruited Scandinavians:^[26] Kievan Rus' c. 980–1060 and London 1018–1066 (the Þingalið).^[26]

Composed primarily of Scandinavians for the first 100 years, the guard began to see increased inclusion of Anglo-Saxons after the successful invasion of England by the Normans. By the time of the Emperor Alexios Komnenos in the late 11th century, the Byzantine Varangian Guard was largely recruited from Anglo-Saxons and "others who had suffered at the hands of the Vikings and their cousins the Normans". The Anglo-Saxons and other Germanic peoples shared with the Vikings a tradition of faithful (to death if necessary) oath-bound service, and after the Norman Conquest of England there were many fighting men who had lost their lands and former masters and looked for a living elsewhere.

The Varangian Guard not only provided security for the Byzantine Emperors, but participated in many wars involving Byzantium and often played a crucial role, since they were usually used at the critical moments of a battle. By the late 13th century Varangians were mostly ethnically assimilated by Byzantines, though the guard operated until at least mid-14th century and in 1400 there were still some people identifying themselves as "Varangians" in Constantinople.

In popular culture[link]

• Rosemary Sutcliff's 1976 historical novel Blood Feud depicts the formation of the Varangian Guard by Basil II, from the point of view of a half-Saxon orphan who journeyed to Constantinople via the Dnieper trading route.
• Henry Treece's Viking Trilogy which describe the adventures of Harald Sigurdson.
• Michael Ennis's Byzantium ISBN 978-0-330-31596-8 is a fictionalised version of the life of Harald Hardrada, much of which is spent in the Varangian Guard
• The John Ringo Paladin of Shadows series, features a fictional, long forgotten enclave of the Varangian Guard in the mountains of Georgia.
• Turisas's second studio album The Varangian Way is a concept album that tells the story of a group of Scandinavians travelling the river routes of medieval Russia, through Ladoga, Novgorod and Kiev, down to the Byzantine Empire. Their third album, Stand Up and Fight, describes the history of the Varangian Guard's service to the Byzantine Empire.
• Bearded axe-wielding Easterlings known as Variags, inspired by the elite Viking mercenaries, are described in the fantasy novel Return of the King.
• In the PC game series Mount&Blade, the name and location of the Vaegirs is used to represent this group of people. The unique unit for this race is called the Guard.
• In the PC games Medieval: Total War and Medieval II: Total War the Varangian Guard is an axe-wielding elite infantry unit of the Byzantine Empire.
• Track 5 of Amon Amarth's seventh studio album Twilight of the Thunder God is titled "Varyags of Miklagaard."

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

Rus' Varangians[link]

• Russian Primary Chronicle

Varangian Guard[link]

See also[link]

	Ancient Germanic culture portal
	Middle Ages portal

v t e Garðaríki Names in italics are settlements whose Norse names are not recorded Volkhov-Volga trade route Lyubsha Aldeigja Álaborg Duboviki Hólmgarðr Sarskoe Timerevo Balymer Dvina-Dnieper trade route Pallteskja Gnezdovo Chernigov Kænugarðr Other locations Bjarmaland Khortitsa White Shores Miklagarðr Særkland Varangians Kylfings Rus' Slavs Merya Bulgars Khazars

Harald Hardrada
King of Norway
Reign	1047 – 25 September 1066
Predecessor	Magnus the Good
Successor	Magnus Haraldsson
Spouse	Elisaveta Yaroslavna Tora Torbergsdatter
Issue
Magnus Haraldsson Olaf Kyrre Ingegerd of Norway
Full name
Harald Sigurdsson
Father	Sigurd Syr
Mother	Åsta Gudbrandsdatter
Born	1015 Norway
Died	25 September 1066 (aged 50–51) Stamford Bridge, Yorkshire, England
Burial	Mary Church, Trondheim, Norway

Harald Sigurdsson (1015 – 25 September 1066), later given the epithet Hardrada (Old Norse: Haraldr harðráði, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler", Hardråde in modern Norwegian) was the king of Norway from 1047^[1] until 1066. He also claimed to be the King of Denmark until 1064, often defeating King Sweyn's army and forcing him to leave the country. Many details of his life were chronicled in the Heimskringla and other Icelandic sources. Among English speakers, he is generally remembered for his failed invasion of England in 1066. Harald's death at the Battle of Stamford Bridge which brought an end to that invasion is often recorded as the end of the Viking Age.

Biography[link]

Early life and wandering in the East[link]

Harald was the youngest of King Olaf II of Norway's three half-brothers born to Åsta Gudbrandsdatter. His father was Åsta's second husband Sigurd Syr. The Icelandic sources, in particular Heimskringla, state that Sigurd, like Olaf's father, was a great-grandson of Harald I of Norway (Harald Fairhair) in the male line. However, many modern scholars believe that the ancestors attributed to Harald, along with other parts of the Fairhair genealogy, are inventions reflecting the political and social expectations of the time of the authors rather than historical reality.^[2]

Harald took part, on the side of Olaf, in the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030. Although wounded, he managed to escape, thus leaving Norway in exile. He was able to form a band of warriors out of men who had also been exiled as a result of Olaf's death.

In 1031 Harald and his men reached the land of the Kievan Rus, where they served the armies of Yaroslav I the Wise, the Grand Prince of the Rus, whose wife Ingigerd was a distant relative of Harald. Harald is thought to have taken part in Grand Prince Yaroslav's campaign against the Poles, and was appointed joint commander of defense forces. Sometime after this, Harald and his retinue of some five hundred warriors moved on to Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire, where there had been at least since 1034 an elite royal guard composed largely of Scandinavian Rus called the Varangian Guard. Harald served in the guard until 1042. In a Greek book written in the 1070s, Kekaumenos's Strategikon, Harald is described as "son of the king of Varangia" and is said to have performed so bravely in Byzantine campaigns in Sicily and Bulgaria that the Emperor appointed him first as manglabites, or member of a special section of the Emperor's personal bodyguard, and then to the title of spatharocandidate (Greek: σπαθαροκανδιδᾶτος).^[3] It appears he may have been imprisoned for some time on the orders of the Empress Zoe, it is suggested on charges of misappropriation of funds, but was released, or escaped imprisonment, on the ascension of the new Emperor Constantine IX.^[4]

Sometime in 1042, Harald requested permission from the emperor to return to his homeland, but it was denied. "Nonetheless", remarks Kekaumenos, "he secretly escaped and ruled over the land instead of his brother [Olaf]". It is likely that the money Hardrada made whilst serving in Constantinople allowed him to fund his claim for the crown of Norway: some later Scandinavian sources note that aside from the significant spoils of battle he had retained, Harald had participated three times in polutasvarf, a term which implied either a pillaging of the palace exchequer on the death of the Emperor, or perhaps the disbursement of funds to the Varangians by the new Emperor in order to ensure their loyalty.^[5] Harald had been in Constantinople through the reigns of Romanos III, Michael IV, and Michael V, and thus perhaps had three opportunities, beyond his legitimate revenues, to carry off immense wealth (with Yaroslav of Rus acting as safekeeper for his fortune ^[6]). Despite this, Kekaumenos lauds the "loyalty and love" Hardrada had for the Empire.^[3]

Elisiv of Kiev

In 1045, in Rus, where he stayed two or three years before returning to Scandinavia, Harald married Elisabeth, daughter of Yaroslav and granddaughter of King Olof Skötkonung of Sweden (referred to in Scandinavian sources as Ellisif).^[7] Sources claim they were engaged before his departure but Yaroslav declined to confirm the marriage until Harald distinguished himself [Which Sources?]. During his service in the Byzantine Empire, Harald wrote a love poem addressed to Elisabeth, citing his many heroic deeds and complaining that "a golden-haired maiden of Gard does not like me".^[8]

Rise to the throne of Norway[link]

In Harald's absence, the throne of Norway had been restored to Magnus the Good, illegitimate son of Olaf II. When Harald arrived, he felt his claim to the throne was stronger than Magnus', and the two came close to war. Magnus' advisors, however, recommended the young king not fight his uncle, and a compromise was reached where Harald would jointly rule with Magnus, and Harald would share half of his wealth with Magnus.^[9] Less than a year later, in 1047, Magnus was dead, and Harald became sole ruler of Norway.

Having gained sole rule of Norway, Harald then sought the throne of Denmark for himself. In this endeavour, however, he was opposed by an earl named Einar Tambarskjelve, the "chief leader of the farmers in all the districts of Trondheim".^[10] Harald had Einar killed, with negative repercussions to his image: according to Sturluson, he was "so strongly detested on account of his deed that the only reason the king's stewards and the farmers did not... do battle with him was the lack of a leader".^[11] After killing Einar, Harald embarked on several campaigns against the Danish King Svein Ulfsson none of which were successful. Karen Larsen comments that "there was no background for a union between the two countries and no demand for it among the people".^[12] After fifteen years of fighting, Harald finally gave up on trying to conquer Denmark, and he and Svein agreed to a lifetime truce.

Harald's Denmark campaigns were unpopular at home, most notably in Trøndelag in the north, and this was manifested in some districts' withholding taxes to show their displeasure. Harald dealt with this opposition with brutal force. Sturluson comments that he "had the farmers seized. Some he had maimed, others killed, and of many he confiscated all of their property".^[13] Harald maintained control of his nation through the use of his hird, a private standing army maintained by Norwegian lords. Harald's contribution to the strength of Norway's monarchy was the enforcement of a policy that made it so only the king could retain a hird, thus centralising power away from local warlords.^[14]

Invasion of England[link]

Harald (bottom, just left of centre) is struck in the throat by an arrow during the Battle of Stamford Bridge on 25 September 1066.

With the truce and the recognition that he would not conquer Denmark, Harald turned his attention instead to England. England had, in the early 1040s, belonged to Harthacnut, the son of Cnut the Great. Harald based a claim to the throne of England on an agreement supposedly made by Magnus and Harthacnut, which stated that if either died, the other would inherit the deceased's throne and lands. When Harthacnut died, Magnus assumed the crown of Denmark, but did not press his claim on England, allowing Edward the Confessor to take the throne. The claim was very thin, and Harald likely would not even have pursued it independently. He was pressed to do so by Earl Tostig Godwinson, brother of King Harold Godwinson of England. Tostig pledged his support to Harald, stating, "If you wish to gain possession of England, then I may bring it about that most of the chieftains in England will be on your side and support you".^[15]

In September 1066, Harald landed in Northern England with a force of around 15,000 men and 300 longships. Tostig was with him. At the Battle of Fulford, two miles (3 km) south of York, on 20 September, he won a great victory against the first English forces he met. Believing that King Harold was prepared to surrender and the English to accept his claim to the throne, Harald took about two thirds of his army to collect tribute from the local people, carrying light weapons and wearing only light armour, and left the rest at the ships.

However, Harold Godwinson was not prepared to give up his throne. At the Battle of Stamford Bridge, outside York, on 25 September 1066, Godwinson's forces surprised Harald's as they collected the tribute from the locals. Godwinson's forces were heavily armed and armoured, and greatly outnumbered Harald's. Although one of Harald's men, who was a berserker, single-handedly blocked the English from the bridge for some time and was reported to have killed at least 40 of the housecarls, Harold Godwinson's best men, he fell after one sneaked under the bridge and stabbed upwards; King Harold's forces then easily broke through and both Harald and Tostig were killed. Harald's army was so heavily beaten that only 24 of the 300 longboats used to transport his forces to England were used to carry the survivors back to Norway. Harold Godwinson's victory was short lived, however, as only a few weeks later he was defeated by William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings. The fact that Harold had to make a forced march to fight Hardrada at Stamford Bridge and then move at utmost speed south to meet the Norman invasion, all in less than three weeks, is widely seen as a primary factor in William's hard-fought victory at Hastings.

According to Snorri Sturluson, before the battle a man bravely rode up to Harald Hardrada and Tostig and offered Tostig his earldom if he would but turn on Harald Hardrada. When Tostig asked what his brother Harold would be willing to give Harald Hardrada for his trouble, the rider replied that he would be given seven feet of ground as he was taller than other men. Harald Hardrada was impressed with the rider and asked Tostig his name, Tostig replied that the rider was none other than Harold Godwinson.^[16] According to Henry of Huntingdon, "Six feet of ground or as much more as he needs, as he is taller than most men", was Harold's response.

Legacy[link]

Harald was the last great Viking king of Norway and his invasion of England and death at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066 proved a true watershed moment. It marked the end of the Viking age and beginning of the High Middle Ages.

Harald's invasion of England likely helped lead to the English defeat at the Battle of Hastings, as the English army had to force march to meet the Norman army after defeating the Norwegians. The English arrived at the site of battle tired and worn out, while the Norman army was rested and ready to fight.

Snorri writes, "One year after King Harald's fall, his body was transported from England north to Nidaros [the present Trondheim], and was buried in the Mary Church, which he had built. It was common observation that King Harald distinguished himself above all other men by wisdom and resources of mind; whether he had to take a resolution suddenly for himself and others, or after long deliberation. He was, also, above all men, bold, brave, and lucky, until his dying day, as above related; and bravery is half victory".

To be remembered was one of the most important wishes for a Viking. About a hundred years later his body was reinterred in Elgeseter Priory, which was demolished sometime in the 17th century.

On 25 September 2006, the 940th anniversary of Harald's death, the newspaper Aftenposten published an article on the poor state of Norway's ancient royal burial sites, including that of Harald Hardrada, which is reportedly located underneath a road built across the monastery site. In a follow-up article on 26 September, the Municipality of Trondheim revealed they would be examining the possibility of exhuming the king and reinterring him in Nidaros Cathedral, currently the burial place of nine Norwegian kings, among them Magnus I and Magnus II, Harald's predecessor and successor respectively.

In fiction[link]

Monument of Harald Hardrada in Oslo

• Henry Treece wrote an historical novel about Harald Hardrada called The Last of the Vikings, first published in 1963. He also appears in his Man With a Sword.
• In 1980, the Danish American science fiction and fantasy author Poul Anderson published The Last Viking, a three-volume historical novel about Harald.
• Michael Ennis' epic adventure Byzantium, published 1989, is based on Harald Hardrada's life in Constantinople and eventual return to Norway. The subject receives an initial humorist treatment: Hardrada and his men plan to capture and pillage Constantinople, but when they arrive there they are fined and brushed off by a busy customs official, and then they get lost in the vast, crowded city. By then they conclude that their plan was unrealistic, and turn into mercenaries.
• Harald makes a notable appearance in Thomas Holt's novel Meadowland (2005), where the tale of Vinland's discovery is used as the plotline.
• Harald is a major character in book three of Tim Severin's Viking Series, King's Man (2005). This book meets Harald as he joins the Varangian Guard and follows him until his death at Stamford Bridge.
• Harald Hardrada is featured in Helen Hollick's novel Harold the King (2006), which follows the history of Harold Godwinson from his first establishment as an Earl to the Battle of Hastings.
• In 2006, the archeologist-author David Gibbins, in his novel Crusader Gold uses Hardrada in his plot trying to follow the lost Jewish treasure "the Menorah" (candelabrum of the Temple in Jerusalem), by having the king escape from the battle in England to seek refuge in Vinland, having with him the treasures of Miklagard, (Constantinople ).
• Harald Hardrada is the main character of the novel Harald and the Holy Cross, written by Al Bas in 2008.
• Harald appears in the novel Mercenaries by Jack Ludlow, during his service in the Varangian Guard
• Harald was portrayed by actor Richard Long in an episode of the British educational TV series Historyonics entitled "1066" (2004).
• Harald is included in the historical real-time strategy game, Age of Empires II: The Conquerors.
• The "Old Town of King Harold Haardrada" was mentioned in H.P. Lovecraft's The Call of Cthulhu as being the preserver of the name "Oslo" during times when the city was known as "Christiana."
• The song, The Great Escape, on the 2011 album 'Stand up and Fight' by Turisas recounts Hardrada's service in the Varangian Guard as well as his escape from Constantinople.

Ancestry, according to the kings' sagas[link]

Fagrskinna and Heimskringla, both written nearly two centuries after Harald's time, give him the following ancestry. Individuals whose existence is disputed by modern scholars are noted.