Einar Thambarskelfir - Olaf Haraldsson's Reign

Olaf Haraldsson's Reign

King Olaf Tryggvason disappeared during the battle, though his corpse was never found after the Battle of Svolder. Einar, however, survived, and spent the next decades maneuvring through shifting political waters. Einar, together with Erling Skjalgsson, supported Lade jarl Sveinn Hákonarson against Olaf Haraldsson at the Battle at Nesjar in 1016. While Sveinn had to flee the country after the battle, and Erling was forced to join an uneasy alliance with the new king, Einar remained unscathed. He returned to Melhus and remained an opponent of the king. Therefore, when Danish influences sought to overthrow Olaf Haraldsson in 1028, he supported them. However, he did not join the peasants' army at the Battle of Stiklestad. This was more due to luck than calculation – when news of Olaf's presence in Trøndelag broke, Einarr was in England, making a political visit to the Anglo-Danish King Cnut the Great. However, this move would later pay off handsomely.

After Stiklestad, many Norwegian noblemen felt that King Cnut had promised to install them as rulers of Norway in his place. Einar Thambarskelfir expected that he would be the natural choice, being the oldest opponent of Olaf. However, the Anglo-Danish king instead made his son Sveinn a viceroy, in effect placing his mother Ælfgifu in charge of his recent conquest. This greatly infuriated Einar.