Background
Thorfinn was the youngest of the five known sons of Earl Sigurd Hlodvirsson, but the only son of Sigurd's marriage to a daughter of Máel Coluim mac Cináeda. His elder half-brothers Einar, Brusi and Sumarlidi survived to adulthood, while a brother called Hundi ("the Dog") or 'Hvelp ("the Whelp") died in Norway, a hostage at the court of King Olaf Trygvasson.
Earl Sigurd was killed at the Battle of Clontarf on 23 April 1014. Before setting out for Ireland, he had sent Thorfinn, then aged five, to be fostered by his maternal grandfather, the King of Scots. When the news of Sigurd's death came, Thorfinn's older half-brothers divided Orkney and Shetland between them. King Máel Coluim set Thorfinn up as ruler of Caithness and Sutherland with Scots advisors to rule for him. The lands in the Hebrides which Earl Sigurd had held appear to have escaped control of the earls of Orkney at this time.
The Orkneyinga Saga gives this description of Thorfinn:
He was unusually tall and strong, an ugly-looking man with a black head of hair, sharp features, a big nose and bushy eyebrows, a forceful man, greedy for fame and fortune. He did well in battle, for he was both a good tactician and full of courage.
Read more about this topic: Thorfinn The Mighty
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