I apologize in advance for the length of the track, I chopped out as much as I thought I could. This account of St. Magnus is from both the historical record and from the Orkneying Sagas, and was written by a true heathen (hail Thor and Odin!) — I have no faith-based interest in the story. It occurs on Easter and the following Monday, most likely year being 1117 AD, and in the years that followed, and through his subsequent canonization.
The Martyrdom of St. Magnus (February 27, 2022; FAWM; DADGAD)
Magnus and Hakon were cousins, both sired by noble lords
They grew up with power and privilege, as such a life affords
They ruled a kingdom divided, an Orkney with two Earls
And as is common in such times, the flag of war unfurls.
Nine years of peace were thrown away, and warlords tramped each road
Rape and ruin, theft and fire, it all had been foretold
The blood and waste grew sickening, the chieftains cried “no more!”
A peace must come, these islands cannot thrive while there is war.
The talks would be on Egilsay, a neutral, barren isle, each Earl with two ships
A journey easy, across calm seas with gentle winds, and lacking tidal rips
But as Magnus crossed with his two ships, a giant wave appeared
And in this wave he saw an omen of his fate as toward his ship it neared
Then when his unarmed vessels reached the shore, he went to kneel and pray
At the humble Kirk on Egilsay, since it now was Easter Day.
On Easter Monday the next morn, the eastern glow revealed
The Earl Hakon, with eight armed ships, and the fate of Magnus sealed
The chieftains were now tired of words, there would be no more talk
From Egilsay this crimson day only one Earl would walk.
(Strum and hold chords)
The sagas tell how Magnus blessed the man who did his slaughter
He breathed his last on Egilsay, leaving neither son nor daughter
Hakon buried him where he fell, upon the barren hillside
The peace secured, ten ships departed neatly on the tide
But then wondrous things presented, after the martyr’s death, his brown grave turned verdant green
And when buried again on Birsay, they say a mystic evening light was seen
Not a generation later, the Orkney bishop did decree
The slain Earl was now St. Magnus, whose blood was offered free
His cathedral now in Kirkwall still holds his shattered bones
A relic, timeless, but made of time, for Orkney sin atones
@roddy Mar 2022
This is very good. The melody is just right for this kind of song and you tell the complex tale very well. I like the line 'Nine years of peace were thrown away.'
@feb21sundari Feb 2022
This is real bardic work to play back a heroic saga musically. I really like how you narrated the story. A piece of advice: put a pop filter in front of the microphone, because the noise of the popping sounds is a bit irritating.