Defeat and Death of Magnus 285 



were quite unprepared for battle. Sverri accordingly 

 betook himself with all his followers to Throndhjem. 

 Thither he was before long followed by Magnus ; who, 

 however, could not force his way into the town. But 

 he could largely diminish the supply of provisions, and 

 Sverri was obliged to carry a portion of his array across 

 country to Oslo (Christiania). 



In this forward and backward fashion the war went 

 on, until the year 1184, when the rivals came to a 

 decisive naval engagement in the Sogne Fjord. As 

 usual it was a case of surprise. Magnus had been driven 

 away, and had gone to Denmark. Now he came sailing 

 up from the south — fought a battle at Bergen, and then 

 came to the Sogne Fjord, within which Sverri was known 

 to be, with but few ships. There had been one evil 

 omen for Magnus. A flight of crows (rooks ?) alighted 

 upon his ship as it sailed out of Bergen, Magnus 

 heard that Sverri was in the Nore Fjord, a branch of 

 the Sogne Fjord, and eventually the two fleets came 

 into action near Femreite. Magnus' fleet was not much 

 the larger ; and, on the whole, the two parties were fairly 

 equal in strength, and they were animated by almost 

 equal animosity against their enemies, and determina- 

 tion not to yield. Magnus desired, above all things, 

 to come to a personal encounter with his rival ; and 

 he made dispositions that his own ship and three others 

 should surroimd Sverri's ship, a vessel of unusual size 

 and strength. ' I was but five years old,' Magnus 

 thus addressed the comrades in arms who stood by 

 him as he gave tliem his final orders, ' when I was 

 chosen to fill the throne ; and only seven when Arcli- 

 bisliop Eystein anointed me king. I had no care about 



