CANADA HISTORY

Thorstein Erikisson

Meanwhile, in Greenland>, Thorstein Eiriksson of Eiriksfjord had married Gudrid Thorbjorn's-daughter, the widow of Thorir the Easterner, who was mentioned earlier.

Thorstein Eiriksson was now eager to go to Vinland to fetch back the body of his brother Thorvald. He made the same ship ready and selected the biggest and strongest men available. He took a crew of twenty-five and his wife Gudrid as well.

When they were ready they put to sea and were soon out of sight of land. But throughout that summer they were at the mercy of the weather and never knew where they were going. Eventually, a week before winter, they made land at Lysufjord in the Western Settlement of Greenland. Thorstein looked for accommodation and found lodgings for all his crew, but he and his wife could find none, so the two of them stayed on board the ship for a few days.

At this time, Christianity was still in its infancy in Greenland. Early one morning some people came to their tent, and their leader asked who was inside.

'Two people.' replied Thorstein. 'Who is asking?'

'My name is Thorstein,' said the other. 'and I am called Thorstein the Black. I have come here to invite you and your wife to come and stay with me.'

Thorstein Eiriksson replied that he wanted to consult his wife; but Gudrid left the decision to him and he accepted the invitation.

'Then I shall be back tomorrow with a cart to' fetch you,' said Thorstein the Black. 'There is no lack of means to provide for you but you will find life at my house very dull, for there are only the two of us there, my wife and myself, and I am very unsociable. I am also of a different faith from yours, although I consider yours to be better than mine.'

Next morning he returned with a cart to fetch them. They moved over to his house to stay and were well looked after there. Gudrid was a woman of striking appearance; she was very intelligent and knew well how to conduct herself amongst strangers.

Early that winter, disease broke out amongst Thorstein Eiriksson's crew and many of them died. Thorstein ordered coffins to be made for the dead and had the bodies laid out in the ship: 'For I want to have all their bodies brought to Eiriksfjord in the summer,' he said.

Not long afterwards the disease spread to Thorstein the Black's house and the first to fall ill was his wife, Grimhild. She was a huge woman, powerful as any man, but the disease laid her low just the same. Soon Thorstein Eiriksson caught the disease, and for a time the two of them were in bed ill, until Grimhild died. Her husband Thornstein the Black went outside to fetch a board on which to lay the corpse.

'Don't be too long, dear friend,' said Gudrid.

He said he would be back soon.

Then Thorstein Eiriksson said, 'There is something very odd about Grimhild. She is raising herself on her elbow and pushing her feet out of bed and groping for her shoes.'

At that moment Thorstein the Black returned to the room and Grimhild fell back on the bed so heavily that every beam in the house creaked.

Thorstein the Black made a coffin for Grimhild's body, laid her out, and took her away for burial. He was a big, powerful man, yet he needed all his strength to get her out of the house.

Thorstein Eiriksson's illness grew worse until he died. His wife Gudrid was grieved at his death. All three of them had been together in the room when he died, and Gudrid had been sitting on a stool beside her husband's bed. Now Thorstein the Black picked her up in his arms and sat down with her on his lap on the bench opposite her dead husband; he tried to comfort her and console her in every way he knew, and promised that he would take her to Eiriksfjord with her husband's body and the bodies of his crew. 

'And I shall bring some more servants here,' he said, 'for your comfort and pleasure.'

She thanked him. Then the corpse of TholStein Eiriksson suddenly sat up and said, 'Where is Gudrid ?'

He said this three times, but Gudrid gave no answer. Then she said to Thorstein the Black, 'Should I answer him or not ?'

He told her not to reply. Then he walked across the room and sat down on the stool with Gudrid on his knee and said. 'What is it you want, namesake ?'

After a pause Thorstein Eiriksson replied, 'I am anxious to tell Gudrid her destiny, so that she may resign herself better to my death, for I have now come to a happy place of repose. I have this to say to you, Gudrid : you will marry an Icelander and you will have a long life together and your progeny will be great and vigorous, bright and excellent, sweet and fragrant. You and your husband will go from Greenland to Norway and from there to Iceland, where you will make your home and live for a long time. You will survive your husband and go on a pilgrimage to Rome, then return to your farm in Iceland; a church will be built there and you will be ordained a nun and stay there until you die.'

Then Thorstein fell back. His body was laid out and taken to the ship.

Thorstein the Black fulfilled all the promises he had made to Gudrid. In the spring he sold up his farm and livestock, took Gudrid and all her possessions to the ship, made the ship ready, engaged a crew, and then sailed to Eiriksfjord. All the dead were buried at the church there.

Gudrid went to stay with her brother-in-law Leif Eiriksson at Brattahlid. Thorstein the Black made his home in Eiriksfjord and lived there for the rest of his life. He was considered a man of great spirit..