a little man,
yet he sat firmly in his stirrups."

It is said that Harald made these verses at this time:--

"Advance! advance!
No helmets glance,
But blue swords play
In our array.
Advance! advance!
No mail-coats glance,
But hearts are here
That ne'er knew fear."

His coat of mail was called Emma; and it was so long that it reached
almost to the middle of his leg, and so strong that no weapon ever
pierced it. Then said King Harald Sigurdson, "These verses are but ill
composed; I must try to make better;" and he composed the following:--

"In battle storm we seek no lee,
With skulking head, and bending knee,
Behind the hollow shield.
With eye and hand we fend the head;
Courage and skill stand in the stead
Of panzer, helm, and shield,
In hild's bloody field."

Thereupon Thiodolf sang:--

"And should our king in battle fall,--
A fate that God may give to all,--
His sons will vengeance take;
And never shone the sun upon
Two nobler eaglet; in his run,
And them we'll never forsake."

95. OF THE BEGINNING OF THE BATTLE.

Now the battle began. The Englishmen made a hot assault upon the
Northmen, who sustained it bravely. It was no easy matter for the
English to ride against the Northmen on account of their spears;
therefore they rode in a circle around them. And the fight at first was
but loose and light, as long as the Northmen kept their order of battle;
for although the English rode hard against the Northmen, they gave way
again immediately, as they could do nothing against them. Now when the
Northmen thought they perceived that the enemy were making but weak
assaults, they set after them, and would drive them into flight; but
when they had broken their shield-rampart the Englishmen rode up from
all sides, and threw arrows and spears on them. Now when King Harald
Sigurdson saw this, he went into the fray where the greatest crash of
weapons was, and there was a sharp conflict, in which many people fell
on both sides. King Harald then was in a rage, and ran out in front of
the array, and hewed down with both hands; so that neither helmet nor
armour could withstand him, and all who were nearest gave way before
him. It was then very near with the English that they had taken to
flight. So says Arnor, the earls' skald:--

"Where battle-storm was ringing,
Where arrow-cloud was singing,