1 Introduction
The use of warning beacons and fires on mountain tops in times of conflict has been known since ancient times.1 Skaldic poems from A.D. 1000–50 are the oldest contemporary sources for the beacon tradition in Norway, although according to sources from the 1220s King Haakon the Good (Hákon góði) founded a far-reaching nationwide beacon system already around A.D. 950. The Norwegian coastal beacon system was replaced by an optical telegraph system in 1808, when Denmark-Norway entered the Napoleonic wars.2 The new system was, however, not introduced in the interior, or in northern Norway, where the beacon system was once again activated. After the peace of 1814 the optical telegraph system was dismantled,3 later to be replaced by the wired telegraph (from 1854–5) and telephones (1877) that also replaced the beacon system. In Sweden, the royal personal-union partner country of Norway between 1815 and 1905, the beacon system was activated, and the guard duties sharpened during the Crimean war in 1853.4
In 19th century Norway, beacons consisted of 100–200 logs raised into conical structures. Three to six metre long logs were stacked around a sunken middle log, and an opening was left at the bottom of the beacon to facilitate lighting.5 The associated guardhouses were small, made of lain timbers with apertures providing lines of sight in all directions (Figure 16.1). Apart from their use for local mobilisation, the beacons were also part of larger regional and
Vrågåveten in Numedal, c.1807. This beacon is a remnant from the Napoleonic wars. It has become an important symbol, and appears in the municipality’s coat of arms. It is 6m high, and 6.5m wide.
PHOTO, BOTTOM LEFT: EXCURSION IN THE 1930S, UNKNOWN PHOTOGRAPHER, TOP: NILS HAUGANE, BOTTOM RIGHT: HåKON KNAPPEN, REPRODUCED WITH KIND PERMISSION
It has been discussed whether the use of beacons continued in Norway throughout the population crisis of the late medieval period (1350–1536/7).7 I suggest that there was a significant degree of continuity, although parts of the coastal defences (Old Norse (ON): leiðangr, Norwegian: leidang) were abolished in the 15th century.8 However, it was never formally discontinued and royal attempts were made to deploy the fleet during the war 1611–13.9 Although the beacon system was central to the coastal defences described in the medieval laws, it was also used for mobilising interior defences, as described in Norwegian sources from the 16th century (see below).
This article focuses on the beacon system of Rogaland in southern Norway, available through an exceptional source from c.1643, which deals with the practicalities of the system (Figure 16.2). It is a military ordinance, more specific than contemporary and later laws (Christian IV’s Norwegian law 1604,10 and Christian V’s Norwegian law 168711). The ordinance contains information regarding what may be medieval traditions, providing details about practicalities, but also including chronological references that make it possible to separate older from more recent beacons sites. I will compare this information with other local sources, such as: (1) place-names; (2) antiquarian sources from the 18th century; and (3) oral traditions from the 19th and early 20th centuries. To highlight older and broader traditions I will also be using; (4) saga accounts from the reign of King Haakon the Good (d. A.D. 961), and from the Norwegian civil war period of the 12th century, as well as (5) laws from the 1160s to 1687.
The research area, the county of Rogaland, Western Norway, and places mentioned in the text
MAP: FRODE IVERSEN
2
Most countries in Northern Europe had similar warning systems. Danish bavn and Swedish böte, or vårdkase,12 correspond to the English beacon and German Leuchtfeuer. The Norwegian timber beacons were different to the English and German iron-basket beacons, where wood was burnt in baskets at the end of high poles.
I base my research on the works of the priest and local historian Olaf Olafsen,13 the historian Bernt Lorentzen,14 and the navy captain Rolf Scheen,15 who all discuss information found in laws and sagas, and list the beacon sites of Rogaland. My review reveals that there is great disparity between their respective lists, probably attributed to different uses of the sources.
The ON word varða has several meanings, including ‘to guard’.16 Varder are not beacon sites, but cairns whose primary function is to mark safe routes over sea and land.17 The meaning of ON viti (and consequently vete), however, is ‘sign, mark, or signal’, and refers specifically to the fire warning itself.18
In Christian IV’s Norwegian law of 1604 the word viti was confused with the Norwegian word ved, which means ‘fire wood’,19 and the word varde was misinterpreted to mean ‘beacon’. This is seen in chapter 4 of section 2, with the heading Om vædvarder at holde (about the upkeep of wood beacons), which is a misrepresentation of the 1274 The Laws of the Land:20 Um vita vørd/vørdu, which means ‘about guarding the beacon’.21 This unfortunate confusion is the reason behind the use of varde for beacon in the 17th century sources, instead of the older viti. I use the original term vete, rather than the term varde used in the later sources.
The primary function of the beacons was to warn the population on land of danger. Medieval mobilisation meant that warnings and calls to arms were
Rolf Scheen claimed to have identified 768 beacon sites in Norway (including 20 beacons in the current Swedish county of Bohuslän), although many of these are uncorroborated due to misinterpreted and modern place names, as seen above.26 This is a result of an uncritical review of the onomastic material regarding chronology and tradition. I will study this in detail in the area of Rogaland and compare older sources with Scheen’s list.27
3 Method and Use of Sources
Saga accounts from the 1220s bestow the honour of establishing the nationwide beacon system upon Haakon the Good (A.D. 930–61), between A.D. 953–4.28 The law of the Gulathing29 (representative for c.1160), the law of
As previously mentioned, I base my arguments on a detailed military ordinance regarding beacon procedure in Rogaland, from c.1643. The original document can be found in the Stavanger Amts Archiv in The National Archives of Norway35 and consist of twelve parts. This source has already been addressed by the historian Bernt Lorentzen in his article ‘Vardevakt og strandvern’,36 which I am making extensive use of.
Lorentzen suggests three alternative datings for the Rogaland ordinance: (1) between 1611 and 1613, (2) the 1620s, or (3) the time of the Danish/Norwegian-Swedish wars, between 1643 and 1645. He argues that the latter is most likely, due to the beacon system being revitalised as a part of the military reorganisation that began in the 1620s.37 I see no reason to doubt this chronology. In favour of his dating, I would add that the Gjestal ship district is mentioned in the ordinance under Hå main beacon (Table 16.1, no. 5). This unit was first established in 1635,38 thus, Lorentzen’s dating seems trustworthy.
The beacons of the 1643 ordinance
| No | Areas responsible | Lighting instructions | Supplemental information | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sokndal varde
(main beacon) |
Lund ship district, Heskestad parish, and Sokndal ship district | Not lit after beacon lit in Lista fiefdom (len), mobilisation only once gathering baton is received. After confirmation captain allowed to light beacon. | Mentions a horse, and messages to areas where the beacon cannot be seen. ‘Three quick men’, either in Løgevik, or Århus (= Årstad) should warn Eigersund. Those men need not do guard duty. Mustering place by the beacon or by the farm of the captain. Rifles, gunpowder and bullets to be brought, as well as food and supplies for eight days. |
| 2 | Eigersund
(main beacon) |
Helleland parish, Birkrem parish, and Eigersund ship district | The gathering baton to be readied if the beacon at Sokndal is lit. Beacon to be lit after confirmation from Sokndal, or after own sighting of three to four, or more naval ships. | Rifles, gunpowder and bullets to be brought, as well as eight days worth of food and supplies. Årstad should always have three men (relieved of guard duty) ready to relay warning to the beacon at Ogna. |
| 3 | Ogna
(main beacon) |
Voll ship district, and Kvia ship district south of Sørevarhaug | Not to be lit unless message from Eigersund is received. Message to be relayed to captain of Hå beacon. To be lit after sighting of three to four naval ships. Message to Hå beacon and gathering baton relayed to those who cannot see the beacon. | Rifles, gunpowder and bullets to be brought. Beacon to be equipped with two horses tacked and ready day and night. Beacon to be guarded by the most judicious man living by the waterfront, able to distinguish between merchant and naval ships. Landed enemy should be stopped from crossing Ogna river by sinking barges, also to destroy bridges to Nordvarhaug. |
| 4 | Hårr’s beacon
(auxiliary beacon) |
Not to be manned | Auxiliary beacon to be lit after message from Ogna relayed by men from Hå. Population to mobilise. | |
| 5 | Hå
(main beacon) |
Kvia ship district north of Sørevarhaug, Gjestal, Haugland and Haug ship districts, and Klepp ship district south of Figgjoelven | Beacon not to be lit after sighting of ships heading south or north, but message should be sent. Beacon to be lit after landing at Håvåg, or Obrestadsviken. A fortlet to be built at Håvåg. | Guarded by six men, of which two are for relaying messages on horseback. The people living between Sørevåg and Figgjoelven to gather at the beacon of Obrestad, or Hå, with rifles, gunpowder, bullets and provisions. In case of enemy landing; destroy bridge at Nærheim, and ford sites to be guarded. Small fortlets to be built next to beacons. Enemy advancing further should be pursued on horseback by people with rifles, from Sirevåg. Two horses to be kept with the regional official at Reime ready to message Vigdel’s beacon, and lensmannen at Gand ship district. |
| 6 | Vigdel’s beacon
(main beacon) |
Klepp ship district north of Figgjoelven, Gand ship district outside Riskakverven and mainland part of Høle ship district, as well as Sola ship district. | To be lit if Hå beacon burns. If three or more naval ships are sighted inside Rott and Håstein, a boat shall be readied and equipped on Vigdel, or Ølbor. If the boat is attacked, or shot at, the beacon shall be lit. | Manned by four men with rifles, and two horses, as well as a captain and scribe. When message is received men shall ride with the gathering baton to inform of location of enemy threat, and there the people shall gather, either where enemy ship anchors or makes port. (See Figure 16.4) |
| 7 | Haga beacon
(auxiliary beacon) |
Not to be manned | To be lit if enemy lands in the south of Jæren, and if enemy ship is sighted between Rott and Håstein. | One of the messengers from Sola rides to warn Jåtten, the other rides to the beacon at Randaberg. |
| 8 | Jåtten’s beacon
(auxiliary beacon) |
Not to be manned | To be lit if message comes from Gand about enemy landing in the south, or if any of the beacons at Haga, Randaberg, or Tastad are burning. | All the men living north of Figgjoelven shall gather at Stavanger with provisions and loaded rifles. The farmers at Jåtten to send the gathering baton to the different ship districts. |
| 9 | Tastad beacon
(auxiliary beacon) |
To be guarded by the town’s people (Stavanger) and Jåtten’s ship district. | Not to be lit if any of the beacons at Jåtten, Vigdel, or Haga are burning but message to be sent to town. The beacon at Tastad should follow the lead of the beacon at Randaberg regarding raising flag, or lighting. | Guardhouse is mentioned 1658 |
| 10 | Randaberg’s beacon
(main beacon) |
To be manned and maintained by the ship districts of Goa, Ask, Idse and Høle. | When the beacon is lit the men of the beacon sites at Hodnefjell, Vikedel, Tastad, and Jåtten should gather in town with rifles and provisions for eight days. | Comprehensive regulations regarding warning the town. In peacetime a carthorse to be kept at beacon. Town to receive daily reports of arriving ships. In times of war the beacon is to be manned from the town. Judge, mayor, and town council each to supply guards for three days. A seafarer to be appointed as scribe and responsible for keeping four inspectors at Sande and Bø to check ships. |
| 11 | (Bjørgene) Most northerly beacon of the Karmsund
(main beacon) |
To be manned in times of war by Avaldsnes, Skåre, Vats and Vikedal ship districts and Skjold parish (1657) | Four men to row between the beacons to warn. Two men to row southwards and two northwards. Guardhouse mentioned in 1657 | |
| 12 | Bokn beacon
(main beacon) |
To be manned in times of war by Hetland ship district with help from Jelsa ship district, the parishes of, Sauda and Sand, and Suldal, Leiranger and Stangaland ship districts (info 1657) | As above, but two guardhouses in 1657 | |
| 13 | Hodnefjell
(auxiliary beacon) |
According to the ordinance it was built during ‘the last war with Sweden’. | ||
| 14 | Bandåsen
(auxiliary beacon) |
As above. | ||
| 15 | Finneborg, outermost on Stjernarøy
(auxiliary beacon) |
As above. | ||
Between 1537 and 1660 Denmark-Norway fought eight wars, of which five were against Sweden,39 and the ordinance should be interpreted in this context. Later the ordinance was revised several times before 1710. It contains information about the guard duties of each beacon, how the guards were armed, and which farms were responsible for supplying horses and riders for wider alerts. Its information regarding which administrative unit each beacon belonged to is also of great value.
Lorentzen found the ordinance incompatible with the beacon-procedure traditions and names that Olaf Olafsen (1843–1932) had collected and published ten years earlier.41 Many of the beacons described by Olafsen were part of younger beacon chains established later than the ordinance. Olafsen’s main source was the county governor Bendix Christian de Fine’s Stavanger Amptes udførlige Beskrivelse, from 1743, which includes most of the beacons from the 1643 ordinance.42 In addition, Olafsen used informants and memories of later beacon sites. Combined, these make it likely that Olafsen included a strata of beacons sites established after 1743. I will return to this later.
I propose that the 1643 ordinance should not be interpreted as a qualitative novelty and a break with older tradition, but rather that it reflects practices from the High and Late Middle Ages. Especially interesting is the fact that the ordinance distinguishes between permanent ‘main beacons’ (hovedvarder) and ‘auxiliary beacons’ (løsensvarder), which would normally have been unmanned and used for retransmitting alerts further afield. Another unique feature is that the ordinance establishes which administrative areas were responsible for the individual beacons. Below I will analyse eight main beacons and seven auxiliary ones described in the 1643 ordinance. These beacons will then be compared with the material based on traditions found in Olafsen’s accounts,43 as well as Scheen’s lists,44 which includes onomastic material from modern maps.
4 Results
The ordinance begins with three general aspects of the specified procedures of each of the beacons of Rogaland county, where the specific information regarding Jæren and Dalane (the southern part of the county) contains many details.
The general initial rules in the ordinance state that the beacon and guardhouse maintenance was the responsibility of the respective ship districts (skipreidene). Four guards were to be stationed at each beacon, of which at least two should be equipped with rifles, gunpowder and bullets. Each guard session lasted from noon until noon, and a guard scribe was responsible for the guard roster. A roster from the ship district of Goa in the southern part of Rogaland describes how the farmers of the ship districts in Goa, Ask, Idse and Høle, responsible for the beacon at Randaberg, were divided into 14 groups of four, which would translate into six or seven guard shifts per year for each farmer’s household.46
Each beacon was assigned a captain (hauptmann, hopmandt), i.e. the most judicious man living close to the beacon. Captains were exempt from paying taxes, similar to the regional officials. The captains and the scribes shared the responsibilities of supervising the beacons.
In Table 16.2, I have specified and systematised the information regarding each beacon in Rogaland.
Beacons in Rogaland according to Olaf Olafsen’s (1920) review
| Olafsen’s numbers | Name of beacon | Olafsen’s source | 1643 Ordinance | Suggested dating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sokndal | de Fine 1743 | 1 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 2 | Eigersund | de Fine 1743 | 2 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 3 | Hårr | de Fine 1743 | 4 auxiliary beacon | Before 1643 |
| 4 | Hå/Obrestad | de Fine 1743 | 5 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 5 | Moi | Informant Torkjell Moulanda (TM) | 1743–1808 | |
| 6 | Ogna | TM | 3 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 7 | Kvalhei | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 8 | Vik, Orre | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 9 | Mossige, Time | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 10 | Tangerhaug, Klepp | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 11 | Tuvbakken, Klepp | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 12 | Kleppevarden, Klepp | Informant parish priest Ottesen | 1743–1808 | |
| 13 | Vigddel | de Fine 1743 | 6 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 14 | Vardeåsen by Hafrsfjord | Stedsnavn, Olafsen | Uncorroborated beacon | |
| 15 | Myklebostad, Tananger | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 16 | Randaberg | de Fine 1743 | 10 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 17 | Tasta | No reference | 9 town beacon | c.1200–1643 (?) The name Tastaveden indicate dating before 1604. |
| 18 | Vålandspipen | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 19 | Ullandhaug | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 20 (19, wrong numbering by OO) | Bokn | De Fine 1743 | 12 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 21 (20) | Mostravarden = Hodnefjell? | Informant: agricultural reformer, NN | Same as no. 26 | Uncorroborated beacon |
| 22 (21) | Vardeberget | TM | 1743–1808 | |
| 23 (22) | Finborg | de Fine 1743 | 15 auxiliary beacon | 1620s |
| 24 (23) | Bandåsen | de Fine 1743 | 14 auxiliary beacon | 1620s |
| 25 (24) | The most northerly beacon of the Karmsund (= Bjørgene, Karmøy) | de Fine 1743 | 11 main beacon | Medieval? Before 1643 |
| 26 (25) | Hodnefjell | de Fine 1743 | 13 auxiliary beacon | 1620s |
Possibly the teacher Torkjell Mauland, 1848–1923.
Olafsen identified 26 beacons in Rogaland but the 1643 ordinance only mentions 15, of which at least three were built during contemporary wars with the Swedes, probably in the 1620s.47 Eight of the remaining twelve beacons were main beacons. Olafsen’s sources were the regional official (amtmann) de Fine, and several contemporaneous informants. De Fine seems to have been aware of eleven of the 15 beacons that existed in 1643 making it unclear whether he had a complete grasp of the situation, although it is likely since he was a regional official.48 The four that are missing are the auxiliary beacons at Haga, Jåtten, Tasta and the main beacon at Ogna.49
Of Olafsen’s 26 beacons, it is likely that only eight were early medieval, i.e. the main beacons from the 1643 ordinance. In 1657 it was stated that the Sokndal beacon (Table 16.2, no. 1) was located at Tothammeren since ‘old
Additionally, I have identified eight major administrative areas responsible for the maintenance of the main beacons along the coast (Figure 16.3). In the southern part of the county, these areas correspond to the medieval ship districts and quarters. In the vicinity of Stavanger, the high number of auxiliary beacons suggests that the system had been adjusted to the emergence of the town, and less like the traditional system. We lack information for some
(a): Beacons in Rogaland and the medieval ship districts. (b): The associated administrative areas responsible for each beacon in 1643.
MAPS: FRODE IVERSEN
Scheen lists a total of 44 sites in Rogaland.51 Scheen included at least 13 uncorroborated beacons, identified through place-names in nautical charts, and maps, but without documentary, or traditionary confirmation of beacon activity. Scheen had a special penchant for varde names and individual farm names as indicators for beacon sites. Hence the unproportional discrepancy compared to the number of sites in the methodical review in the 1643 ordinance. In Rogaland the confirmed documented sites from 1643 only constitute a third of the sites in Scheen’s review. A simpler type of unmanned beacon – the auxiliary one, which supported the main beacon system – differs from the main beacon type through its lack of a guardhouse. The auxiliary beacon sites changed over time due to town growth, and evolving settlement patterns.
5 Discussion
It is time to readdress the main query: do the beacon practices of the mid-17th century reflect an older tradition?
Since the battle of Svolder in A.D. 1000 Norway has fought wars in every century – often three or four times and mostly against Sweden. Other adversaries were Denmark, the Hanseatic league, the Holy Roman Empire, Scotland, and mercenary fleets from the Netherlands not to mention naval raids from Novgorod on Northern Norway in e.g. the 15th century. According to the law of 1604 beacons and guardhouses should be readied when ‘war is expected in the kingdom’.52 The 1274 Laws of the Land has a corresponding rule, which states: ‘Now, an army is expected in our country, then people are to appoint a beacon guard’.53 The 1643 ordinance required a sighting of three naval ships for activating the beacon, which is the same as the number stated in 1274: three naval ships or more.54
There are many similarities between the regulations in the 1643 ordinance and the medieval laws. The 1274 Laws of the Land states that a responsible judicious person should be in charge of the daily guard duties, and chosen by one
The 1274 Laws of the Land further states that during threat of war the baron (ON, lendr maðr) or the king’s representative were responsible for the selection of messengers, and the farmers for lighting the beacons. The collaboration between royal representatives and farmers regarding the beacon practices existed throughout the Middle Ages, as well as in 1643. When guards were in doubt, they should send for reliable men to establish whether it really was naval ships they saw, both according to the law of the Gulathing and the Laws of the Land. The instructions of 1643 correspond to these rules, suggesting that there were still direct links to the medieval system.
It is extremely unlikely that a beacon lit by mistake could lead to the activation of an entire beacon chain, the way Icelandic saga writers imagined it in the 1220s. According to Fagrskinna,56 King Haakon introduced death and maiming penalties for anyone triggering a mobilisation by mistake. As a consequence, no one dared to order a mobilisation, even when the enemy was actually approaching. Both Snorri Sturlusson and the anonymous author of Fagrskinna claim that the reason for the successful surprise attack, and lethal wounds inflicted on King Haakon by the sons of Eirik at Fitjar in 961, was the fear of punishment in case of a mistakenly lit beacon. This is, however, probably a literary construct. The 1643 ordinance actually states that failing to light a beacon during enemy landfall was punishable by death.57 According to the medieval laws, general warnings and mobilisation were decided by the barons or the king’s representatives after receiving hærpil, or batons, from messengers. The unchecked processes associated with mistakenly lit beacon chains – as described by Snorri Sturlusson, and in Fagrskinna – cannot be found in later laws and ordinances.
According to the law of the Gulathing (c.1160) the guards were selected through lotteries. They were supposed to light the beacons after sighting five ships or more, and had to pay fines if the beacons were lit by mistake.58 The law had a specific rule for the easternmost beacon under its jurisdiction: if the guards there issued warnings by mistake they were fined 40 marker, which was 14 times more than after mistakes made at other beacons, where the fines
In the 17th century, good systems were in place to avoid mistakenly lit beacons. Warnings from beacons in area 1 led to general mobilisation in area 2 but before the beacons were lit there, confirmation – brought by messengers on horseback – had to be obtained from area 1.62 Officially appointed men living close to the beacons were responsible for having horses at the ready. In 1643, there were examples of immediate lighting of a neighbouring beacon after an initial lighting, e.g. when the main beacon at Vigdel in Rogaland was lit after a beacon lighting at Hå, to gather the public, however, the gathering baton was not sent until confirmation had arrived from Hå (Figure 16.4).63
The Vigdel beacon site. Boats for inspection of potential enemy ships were kept at the farms Vigdel and Ølbør. Two guards should bring horses for further warning to the beacons at Randaberg (main beacon) and Jåtten (auxiliary beacon)
ILLUSTRATION BY FRODE IVERSEN
The historian Audun Dybdahl argues that the beacon system was abolished when the leidang was abolished in the Late Middle Ages.64 The last known leidang, of some 100 ships (of which four were large) took place in 1429, and was followed by battles south of Bergen against a superior German fleet of cogs.65 However, a 1492 diploma from Jämtland (Norwegian at the time) reveals that there was still an up-to-date beacon system there, 63 years later.66
Medieval guardhouse at Ulvedal, Stryn. It is the only preserved guardhouse in Norway at its original location. It is dated to 1198, and has many inscriptions from later times, including the year 1564 when the Nordic seven years’ war was in progress.
PHOTOS: KJELL ANDRESEN, RIKSANTIKVAREN, REPRODUCED WITH KIND PERMISSION
The armament of the guards was obviously different in 1643 compared to that of the Middle Ages as weapon technology had evolved. The guards and public contributed their own bullets, gunpowder, and rifles, but otherwise the rules were surprisingly similar. An event described in King Sverre’s saga
On a general level it is obvious that the beacon system was adjusted to fit into changing settlement patterns, as in the case of an older beacon system from the 11th century that was adjusted to conform with Norwegian towns established during the 11th and 12th centuries. One example is Stavanger, which was elevated to episcopal see around 1110, and is mentioned as a town (boen sialvan Stafang) in 1233.72 It is likely that the beacon chains leading to Stavanger were not established until after this happened. Most of the beacons close to Stavanger were auxiliary beacons.
A significant population decline in the Late Middle Ages probably influenced the system. Throughout the 17th century the number of towns and loading sites increased visibly, especially in eastern Norway, due to an increased timber export to England and the Netherlands. There was, however, no increase of towns in Rogaland at the time, perhaps with the exception of Kopervik, where the already existing beacon at Bokn would have been sufficient. A new chain of auxiliary beacons in the Stavanger area (Hodnefjell→Finneborg→Bandåsen) seems to have been established between islands, primarily to warn the innermost north-easterly parts of the northern region (Ryfylke). Between 1643 and 1800 new beacon chains were established in Rogaland and other parts of the realm as a result of renewed population growth and frequent wars.
In previous research it has been unusual to distinguish between early and late beacons. My study, however, shows that it is likely that several beacon sites in Rogaland were late additions, especially after 1743. It is also likely that the main beacons in the 1643 system were established in the Middle Ages,
On the whole it is obvious that this was a system that changed over time due to evolving settlement patterns, but also that the underlying principles and a group of the main beacons seem to have deep historical roots.
IDENTIFICATION OF BEACONS, 1643
Sokndal main beacon = Tothammeren (1657), a hilltop at the farm Tothammer by Rekefjord (Vedåsen?). Horses for further warnings were kept at the neighbouring farms Løgevik and Århus. The name Århus is confused with Årstad. Previous wrongly associated to Vardefjell near Eigeland.
Eigersund main beacon. Vardåsen on Husabø near Årstad where horses were kept for further warnings.
Ogna main beacon = Veten north of Sirevåg.
Hårr auxiliary beacon. Uncertain location. Sat by Hårr farmstead.
Hå main beacon. Probably by Vetabukten, furthest south on Hå farm on the border to Obrestad. de Fine (1743) calls it Obrestad beacon. The farm Reime, for horse keeping for further warning, is directly south of Obrestad.
Vigdel main beacon. Boats for inspection of potential enemy ships and most likely also horses for further warning were kept at the farms Vigdel and Ølbør (to the north).
Haga auxiliary beacon. Uncertain location here set at the highest point at the farm Haga by Tananger (Store Snøde, approx. 80 masl).
Jåtten auxiliary beacon. Either Jåttånuten or Varaberget close by.
Tasta auxiliary beacon = Tastaveden.
Randaberg main beacon = Bergsagelvarden by Randaberg.
Main beacon “North in Karmsundet”. On the mountain «Bjerge» in 1658 = Bjørgene.
Bokn main beacon. Probably Boknafjellet. Hodnefjell auxiliary beacon. Hodnefjell on Mosterøy. Måstravarden (?).
Bandåsen auxiliary beacon = Bandåsen at Ombo.
Finneborg auxiliary beacon. Finnborg, west of Kyrkjøy, Sjernarøy, “in the outskirts of Sjernarøy” (1657) (see Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” p. 291).
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Kong Christian den Fjerdes norske Lovbog af 1604 [Christian IV’s Law of 1604], eds. Frederik Hallager, and Frederik Brandt. Christiania: Carl Werner, 1855.
Kong Christian den Femtes Norske Lov af 15de April 1687 [Christian Vs Norske lov 1687] [King Christian V’s Norwegian Law of 1687]. Christiania: Chr. Tønsbergs forlag, 1852.
Magnus Lagabøtes Landslov [The National Law of Magnus the Law-mender], ed. Absalon Taranger. Kristiania: Cammermeyers boghandel, 1915.
Magnus the Lawmender’s Laws of the Land, trans. Jóhanna Katrín Friðriksdóttir. London: Routledge, 2024. DOI: 10.4324/9781003460114.
Regesta Norvegica. Kronologisk Fortegnelse over Dokumenter vedkommende Norge, Nordmand og den norske Kirkeprovins, Christiania: Norsk historisk kjeldeskriftinstitutt/Riksarkivet, 1898–present.
Sverres saga, trans. Dag Gundersen Norges kongesagaer 2. Oslo: Gyldendal Norske Forlag, 1979.
The Older Gulathing Law, trans. Eric Simensen. Medieval Nordic laws. London and New York: Routledge, 2021.
Aaland, Jacob. Nordfjord fraa gamle fager til no II, 3. Innvik-Stryn. Søreide: Søreides prenteverk, 1932.
Beutlich, Fredrik. Norges sjøvæbning 1810–14. Oslo: H. Aschehoug & co., 1940.
Bratrein, Halvard Dahl. “Skjøttebåter og leidangsskip i Nord-Norge.” Acta Boralia 1 (1984): 27–37.
Bratrein, Halvard Dahl. “Vetten på Karlsøy: en middelaldersk vaktstasjon i den nordligste skipreida i Hålogaland.” Haaløygminne 86 (2005), no. 4, pp. 69–81.
de Fine, Bendix Christian. Stavanger Amptes udførlige beskrivelse: med eit tillegg, trans. Per Thorson. Stavanger: Rogaland historie – og ættesogelag, 1952.
Dybdahl, Audun. “Vete.” KLNM XIX (1975): 674.
Ersland, Geir Atle, and Terje H. Holm. Krigsmakt og Kongemakt 900–1814. Norsk Forsvarshistorie 1. Bergen: Eide Forlag, 2000.
Fritzner, Johan. Ordbog over det gamle norske sprog 3. Kristiania: Den norske forlagsforening, 1896.
Helle, Knut. Stavanger fra våg til by. Stavanger: Aktietrykkeriet i Stavanger, 1975.
Iversen, Frode, and Jan Brendalsmo. “Den tidlige kirkeorganisasjonen i Stavanger stift.” Collegium Medievale, (2021): 115–66.
Larrea, Beñat Elortza. “Archaic Martial Traditions in High Medieval Scandinavia: A Glimpse of Viking Age Warfare?” Viking 84 (2021), Special volume 1: 105–26.
Lorentzen, Bernt. “Vardevakt og strandvern langs Norges sydvestkyst i det 17de århundre.” Historisk tidsskrift 29 (1930): 277–324.
Nytun, A. E. Å sitte på Viten – Den som lar deg få vite! Ei forskningshistorisk analyse av dei før-reformatoriske varslingssystema med vetar i eitt nordisk perspektiv. Masterthesis. Trondheim: NTNU, 2013.
Olafsen, Olaf. Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet i ældre tider. Kristiania: Norsk folkekultur, 1920.
Scheen, Rolf. “Del 3 Norges viter.” In Den norske leidangen, 235–308. Oslo: Sjøfarosvarets overkommando, 1951.
Steinnes, Asgaut. Styrings – og rettsskipnad i Sørvest-Noreg i mellomalderen. Oslo: Samlaget, 1974.
Tollnes, Roar. “Veter og varder i Vestfold.” Sandar historielag. Kulturminner 6.3 (1984).
Tollnes, Roar. “Veter og varder i Vestfold.” Sandar historielag. Kulturminner 6.3 (1989).
Westerdahl, Christer. “Ancient sea marks: a social history from the North European Perspective.” In Deutsches Schiffahrtsarchiv: Zeitschrift des Deutschen Schiffahrtsmuseums 33, 71–155. Heubergredder: Ernst Kabel Verlag, 2011.
Rolf Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viter,ˮ in Den norske leidangen (Oslo: Sjøfarosvarets overkommando, 1951), pp. 235–308; Bakke, this volume; White, this volume.
Fredrik Beutlich, Norges sjøvæbning 1810–14 (Oslo: H. Aschehoug & co, 1940), pp. 337–44; Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viter,ˮ pp. 260–61.
Roar Tollnes, “Veter og varder i Vestfold,” Sandar historielag. Kulturminner 6.3 (1989).
Roar Tollnes, “Veter og varder i Vestfold,” Sandar historielag. Kulturminner 6.3 (1984), p. 4.
Olaf Olafsen, “Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet i ældre tider” (Kristiania: Norsk folkekultur, 1920).
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet; Bernt Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern langs Norges sydvestkyst i det 17de århundre,” Historisk tidsskrift 29 (1930), pp. 277–324; Arne E. Nytun, Å sitte på Viten – Den som lar deg få vite!: Ei forskningshistorisk analyse av dei før-reformatoriske varslingssystema med vetar i eitt nordisk perspektiv. Masterthesis (NTNU, Trondheim, 2013).
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” pp. 277–324; Audun Dybdahl, “Vete,” KLNM XIX (1975), p. 674; Geir Atle Ersland and Terje H. Holm, Krigsmakt og Kongemakt 900–1814 (Norsk Forsvarshistorie) 1 (Bergen: Eide Forlag, 2000).
Ersland and Holm, Krigsmakt og Kongemakt; Beñat Elortza Larrea, “Archaic Martial Traditions in High Medieval Scandinavia: A Glimpse of Viking Age Warfare?,” Viking 84 (2021), Special volume 1, pp. 105–26.
Halvard Dahl Bratrein, “Skjøttebåter og leidangsskip i Nord-Norge,” Acta Boralia 1 (1984), pp. 27–37. Halvard Dahl Bratrein, “Vetten på Karlsøy: en middelaldersk vaktstasjon i den nordligste skipreida i Hålogaland,” Haaløygminne 86 (2005), no. 4, pp. 76–77.
Kong Christian den Fjerdes norske Lovbog af 1604 [Christian IV’s Law of 1604], eds. Frederik Hallager and Frederik Brandt (Christiania: Carl Werner, 1855).
Kong Christian den Femtes Norske Lov af 15de April 1687 [Christian Vs Norske lov 1687] [King Christian V’s Norwegian Law of 1687 (Christiania: Chr. Tønsbergs forlag, 1852).
Christer Westerdahl, “Ancient sea marks: a social history from the North European Perspective,” in Deutsches Schiffahrtsarchiv: Zeitschrift des Deutschen Schiffahrtsmuseums 33 (Heubergredder: Ernst Kabel Verlag, 2011), pp. 74–75; see also Lemm this volume.
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern”.
Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viterˮ.
Johan Fritzner, Ordbog over det gamle norske sprog 3 (Kristiania: Den norske forlagsforening, 1896), p. 867.
Westerdahl, “Ancient sea marks,” pp. 131–32.
Fritzner, Ordbog over det gamle norske, p. 973; see also Ødegaard this volume.
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet, p. 6.
Magnus Lagabøtes Landslov, ed. Absalon Taranger (Oslo/Bergen: Universitetsforlaget, 1915), chap. III §4; Magnus the Lawmender’s Laws of the Land, trans. Jóhanna Katrín Friðriksdóttir (London: Routledge, 2024).
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet, p. 6.
See also Ødegaard this volume.
Den eldre Gulatingslova [The Gulathing law], eds. Bjørn Eithun, Magnus Rindal and Tor Ulset (Norrøne tekster) 6 (Oslo: Riksarkivet, 1994), § 312; The Older Gulathing Law, trans. Eric Simensen (Medieval Nordic laws) (London and New York: Routledge, 2021), § 312.
On the border between Värmland and Dalarna.
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet, p. 16.
Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viterˮ.
The historians Ersland and Holm have identified some 800 possible beacons in Norwegian place names, but they have also included many uncorroborated varde names on their map. At best, Ersland’s map and Scheen’s list reflect the situation around 1800, when many new beacon chains were established.
Håkon den godes saga [Saga of Haakon the Good], Snorre Sturluson, Norges kongesagaer 1–2, trans. Anne Holtsmark and Didrik Arup Seip (Oslo: Gyldendal norsk forlag, 1979), ch. 20; Fagrskinna, Noregs kononga tal, ed. Finnur Jónsson (København: S. L. Møllers bogtrykkeri, 1902–3), ch. 32.
Den eldre Gulatingslova; The Older Gulathing Law.
Frostatingslova, trans. Jan Ragnar Hagland and Jørn Sandnes (Oslo: Det Norske Samlaget, 1994).
Magnus the Lawmender’s Laws of the Land.
Den nyere By-lov el. Bjarkö-Ret [Magnus Lagabøters bylov] [The Town Law of 1276], King Magnus Haakonsön, in Norges gamle love indtil 1387, II, trans. R. Kayser and P. A. Munch (Christiania: Chr. Gröndahl, 1848), pp. 179– 290.
Kong Christian den Fjerdes norske Lovbog af 1604.
Kong Christian den Femtes Norske Lov.
Designasjonen over Stavanger amtsarkiv 1786.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern”.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” p. 282.
Asgaut Steinnes, Styrings – og rettsskipnad i Sørvest-Noreg i mellomalderen (Oslo: Samlaget, 1974), p. 67.
Ersland and Holm, Krigsmakt og Kongemakt, pp. 157–215.
Kong Christian den Fjerdes norske Lovbog af 1604 (Christian IV’s Law of 1604), eds. Frederik Hallager and Frederik Brandt (Christiania: Carl Werner, 1855), p. I.
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet.
de Fine 1952, p. 55.
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet.
Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viterˮ.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” p. 291.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern”; Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viter,ˮ p. 258.
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet.
Bendix Christian de Fine, Stavanger Amptes udførlige beskrivelse: med eit tillegg, trans. Per Thorson (Stavanger: Rogaland historie – og ættesogelag, 1952), p. 55.
An older place name, Vedafjellet (a beacon toponym containing the Old Norse element -veti), is located on Nordre Eigerøya, about 5 km west of the town. De Fine, and other early sources do not appear to mention this beacon. It may have been relocated to Egersund as the town increased in importance during the Middle Ages.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” p. 291.
These are numbered 309–53 in his list. Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viterˮ.
Kong Christian den Fjerdes norske Lovbog af 1604, §§ 2, 4.
Magnus the Lawmender’s Laws of the Land, Land defence section, 4; Magnus Lagabøtes Landslov, part III, chap. 4,1.
Magnus Lagabøtes Landslov, part III, chap. 4,3.
Magnus Lagabøtes Landslov, part III, chap. 4,4.
Fagrskinna, ch. 32.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” p. 203.
Den eldre Gulatingslova, § 311.
Ersland and Holm, Krigsmakt og Kongemakt, p. 56.
Håkon den godes saga, ch. 22.
Magnus Lagabøtes Landslov, part III, chap. 4,4.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” p. 284.
Lorentzen, “Vardevakt og strandvern,” p. 287.
Dybdahl, “Vete,” p. 674.
Ersland and Holm, Krigsmakt og Kongemakt, pp. 124–27.
Diplomatarium Norvegicum, eds. Chr. C. A. Lange, C. R. Unger et al. Vols I–XXIII. (Christiania/Oslo: P.T. Mallings Forlagshandel, 1847–1990), chap. XIV, no. 180.
Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viter,ˮ p. 256.
ID = Identification number in the Norwegian Cultural Heritage Database, Askeladden.
Aaland, Jacob, Nordfjord fraa gamle fager til no II, 3. Innvik-Stryn (Søreide: Søreides prenteverk, 1932), p. 32; Scheen, “Del 3 Norges viter,ˮ p. 265.
Sverres saga, trans. Dag Gundersen, (Norges kongesagaer) 2 (Oslo: Gyldendal Norske Forlag, 1979), ch. 76.
See also Ersland and Holm, Krigsmakt og Kongemakt, p. 60.
Regesta Norvegica. Kronologisk Fortegnelse over Dokumenter vedkommende Norge, Nordmand og den norske Kirkeprovins (Christiania: Norsk historisk kjeldeskriftinstitutt/Riksarkivet, 1898–present), I, no. 628; Knut Helle, Stavanger fra våg til by (Stavanger: Aktietrykkeriet i Stavanger, 1975), pp. 83–84; Frode Iversen and Jan Brendalsmo, “Den tidlige kirkeorganisasjonen i Stavanger stift,” Collegium Medievale, (2021), pp. 115–66.
Olafsen, Viter paa Sørlandet og Vestlandet.