In 1988 it was 550 years since Hallvard Gråtopp the "Norwegian storbonde in Drangedal raised a band of rebels in Lower Telemark, made a raid through Vestfold and led an unsuccessful attack on Oslo in the summer of 1438". This is how that revolt is described in our newest encyclopedia. Cappelen's History of Norway gives the same picture of the events where they are discussed on a scant half page.

This chapter of our saga has not particularly interested historians. Hallvard and his men are referred to as wealthy bønder and other bønder who plundered and ravaged and refused to pay taxes. In connection with the Jubilee in the summer of 1988, there was a little local interest in Hallvard Gråtopp. The Drangedal community published a book, Hallvard Gråtopp and the 1438 Revolt of the Bønder, by Stian Henneseid. Claus Krag later wrote "Another Look at Hallvard Gråtopp" in the 1988 issue of the journal called "Telemark History". Since then, these two authors have written a couple of articles in the newspaper "Varden".

The first person who discussed this subject was Professor Ludvig Daae in 1877 in an article in "The Historical Journal". He says, among other things, that Hallvard Gråtopp "possibly" was the nobleman Hallvard Toresson who participated in the revolt of Amund Sigurdsson Bolt two years earlier. Daae combines the tradition about "Lord Halvor" on Vrålstad in Drangedal with the ruins of "a citadel called Gråtopp's castle". He concludes that "it seems therefore that there is no doubt that Drangedal was the home district of the historical man Hallvard Gråtopp". Daae also reports that the common people in Telemark, as far as the Oslo Diocese extended, were fined but he did not mention which districts were included.

Those who later considered the subject largely agreed with Daae's account. Henneseid does so also but concludes that Hallvard was not a "Lord", that is, a nobleman, but only an ordinary wealthy bonde and that he was not identical with Hallvard Toresson, the man who participated in the revolt which was led by Amund Sigurdsson Bolt.

Claus Krag departs much more from Daae and finds no basis for the idea that Hallvard was from Vrålstad. Perhaps he was not from Telemark at all, says Krag. Hallvard Gråtopp is only a man who appeared as the leader of the revolt in 1438 and then disappeared again.

The question I want to attempt to answer is whether one knows as little about Hallvard and his revolt as Claus Krag believes or if we can be so certain that he was from Vrålstad as Daae, Henneseid and several others claim or if there is documentary evidence for an alternative conclusion.

Introduction

Table of Contents

Chapter I

Home