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Historical Places in Nothwest Iceland




Historical Places in Hunavatnssyslur.. Click here to see historical places in Skagafjordur

Bjarg in Miðfjörður
Breiðabólstaður
Efri Núpur
Forsæludalur
Hof í Vatnsdal
Illugastaðir
Spánskanöf
Þingeyrar
Þingeyrarkirkja
Þingeyrarklaustur
Þrístapar




Bjarg in Miðfjörður
Bjarg in Miðfjörður is the birthplace of the greatest outlaw in Icelandic history, Grettir Ásmundarson the strong. At Bjarg Grettir always had refuge with his mother Ásdís, and despite how improbable it seems for an outlaw, his home was at Bjarg. Grettir was born sometime around the year 1000 and he did not become an old man. Many place names in the neighbourhood of Bjarg and indeed throughout the county bear the name of the outlaw e.g. Grettishaf, Greetistak and Grettishöfði at Arnarvatn. Grettir dwelt at Grettishöfði for several winters and was uncomfortable there because he was afraid of the dark. Grettir was killed on the island of Drangey in Skagafjörður and his killers brought the head of the champion to his mother Ásdís who buried it under a stone in the field at Bjarg. A memorial was erected to Ásdís at Bjarg in1974. The memorial displays relief from Grettirs saga made by Halldór Pétursson.

Breiðabólstaður
In Vesturhóp is the church and historical site Breiðabólstaður. The first laws of Iceland were written at Breiðabólstaður. In earlier times a print shop was located here and the farm was considered exceptionally good, among the best benefice in the north of Iceland. The bar association of Iceland has erected a memorial by the farm. In recent years archaeological research has been carried out at the farm.

Efri Núpur
A church is located at Efri Núpur and in its cemetery lays at rest the Poetess. Tourists often visit her grave, but Rósa is known for her love poems, which she wrote to her lover Natan Ketilsson who was murdered at Illugastaðir at Vatnsnes.

Forsæludalur
Forsæludalur is a farm inside Vatnsdalur, which is the closest to the highlands of the east. According to the book Landnáma Friðmundur the man whom Friðmundarvötn (Lakes of Friðmundur) are called after, lived at Forsæludalur. Friðmundará runs through several waterfalls on its way from Auðkúluheiði down to Vatnsdalsá just by the farm Forsæludalur. It was at Forsæludalur that Grettir wrestled with Glámur.



Hof í Vatnsdal
Hof is a farm in east Vatnsdalur. Here lived Old Ingimundur Þorsteinsson who settled the whole of Vatnsdalur from Helgavatn and Urðarvatn. Ingimundur was among the settlers of Iceland who did not flee out of Norway. Ingimundur was a friend and a supporter of the Norwegian king Harlaldur Hárfagri. One night at a mid winter ceremony a prophetess predicted to Ingimundur that he would settle in a land called Iceland and there he would become a respected man and his family would grow greatly. Ingimundur is considered to have settled in Vatnsdalur around the year 900. He was the chieftan of the Vatnsdælir while he was alive. In the field at Hof is a knoll Goðhóll that is believed to be the place where Ingimundur's temple stood. There is also a beautiful grove at this site, which includes Icelandic aspen trees planted in 1927.

Illugastaðir
Illugastaðir is mostly known as the scene of the tragedy prior to the last execution in Iceland but also for its extensive Eider duck laying area, one of the largest in the country. The ruins of the workshop of Natan Ketilsson still stand there among the other sites that played large role in the dramatic events, which occurred in Illugastaðir early in the 18th century.

Spánskanöf
Spánskanöf is situated in Skagaströnd just to the north of the estuary of Laxá in Refasveit. There can be found a very steep drop to the beach, about 40-50 meters. A lot of bird life is in the cliffs and several reefs out from the shore. It is worthwhile to do this route. The Sagas tell that at this spot Spanish pirates came to land and headed for the vicarage at Höskuldsstaðir. The priest gathered his men and stallions, had brushwood tied to the stallions and set on fire. The stallions were then pushed towards the pirates and some of the pirates died on the field and others fell into the cliffs. The name derives from this encounter.

Þingeyrar
Þingeyrar was known as one of the largest farms and church sites in Húnaþing. From Þingeyrar church is one of the widest and most beautiful views in the county. No farm in the county was as large as Þingeyrar and rich men and chieftains lived there throughout the ages. Þingeyrar lies close to Miðhóp and from there lies a reef almost to the other side of the lake. It is likely that these are the estuary /eyrar from which the name Þingeyrar is derived.



Þingeyrarkirkja
Þingeyrarkirkja - the church at Þingeyrar gives it a grand look and it is now the only visible reminder of the ancient dignity of the place. The congressman Ásgeir Einarsson had the church built. Prior to this there was an old turf church the site. Ásgeir decided to build the church with stone, but suitable material was not available in the vicinity so in the winter 1864 - 1865 Ásgeir had stone moved from Nesbjörg to the church site. The stone was taken by sled over the ice-covered lake Hóp, an 8 km long journey. A Stonemason by the name of Sverrir Runólfsson built the church walls. Each stone in the walls was put in stowage or tied down and also glued with chalk, therefore the stones have not moved to this day. Ásgeir and Sverrir arranged most of the plans for the church and its building took 13 years. On The 9th of September 1877 the Reverend Eiríkur Briem from Steinnes consecrated the church. Objects from the old church were moved to the new one. The church has many valuable objects. The oldest of these is an altarpiece made of alabaster probably from the 13th century. The pulpit is probably of Dutch origin and from the year 1696. The pulpit was a gift from Lárus Gottrúp lawyer, who resided at Þingeyrar monastery from 1683 - 1721. He also gave a bounteous silver baptismal font with the date 1663 and the date 1697. The church also owns a silver chalice and an alter linen with the date 1763. Between the church and the old church site is an oval shaped garden called Lögrétta. It is 25 meters in diameter from the east to west and 20 meters from north to south. It is a protected site and is believed to be the ancient assembly place (þing) for the Húnavatn region.

Þingeyrarklaustur
In the Saga of Jón the saint Bishop of Hólar is told times when famine constricted people and the weather was so cold that the earth was frozen long into the summer. The Bishop went to the spring assembly at Þingeyrar and with the approval of all the assembly he vowed to build a church and farm at Þingeyrar. The same week the ice melted and vegetation began to flourish so it was possible to leave the animals out to browse. This is supposed to have happened early in the 11th century. The decision was made to build a monastery at Þingeyrar probably on the advise of Bishop Jón. The monastery was founded in 1133 and was the first in Iceland. It followed the monastic order of Benedicts of Nurcia but the church was dedicated to Saint Nicholas. The monks vowed to dwell for life in the monastery and upheld its customs and obey the orders of their superior. They could not marry nor own anything - big or small. The time of the foundation of the monastery is the beginning of the age of literature in Iceland and the literary pursuits were great in Þingeyrar monastery. The Abbot Karl Jónsson recorded the Saga of King Sverrir. The monks Gunnlaugur Leifsson and Oddur Snorrason wrote the Saga of King Ólafur Tryggvason and also the holy Saga of King Ólafur Haraldsson. The Abbot Árngrímur Brandson wrote the Saga of Bishop Guðmundur the Good, which is thereby the oldest portrayal of Iceland. It is probable that the Sagas of Húnavetningar were written in Þingeyrar that is: Heiðarvíga Saga, Vatnsdæla, Hallfreðar Saga, Kórmáks Saga, Bandamanna Saga and Grettis Saga (Yearbook of the Travel Association of Iceland 1964, p. 182). The monastery stood from 1133 until the reformation - for about 400 years and by then it owned most of the farms in the region. With the coming of the new religion Þingeyrar monastery was closed. The King appropriated its properties and his agents controlled them. Most men who resided in cloisters became prosperous and wealthy men. No one who sat in Þingeyar did so with the extent of generousity of Lárus Gottrúp. In 1638 he attained the monastery due to a feud and had power over half the county. He was tough to deal with and had disputes with chieftains but he fought for rights of the Icelandic people before the King and helped achieving many useful things. He was a wealthy man and he resided with honour at the ancient manor.

Þrístapar
Westernmost in Vatnsdalshólar and north of route 1 (the main highway) are a number of unique small hills and at one specific place stand three adjoining ones- Þrístapar. It is here that the last execution in Iceland was held. On the 12th of January in 1830 Friðrik Sigurðsson and Agnes Magnúsdóttir were beheaded for the murder of Natan Ketilsson and Pétur Jónsson from Illugastaðir in West Húnavatn County. The execution block and axe have been preserved by the National Museum of Iceland. A memorial stone has been erected at the execution site.

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