Bard White
Warrior at Hafr's Firth whose deathbed bequest to Thorolf drives Egil's Saga conflicts.
Bard White is attested in Egil's Saga as a warrior who fought alongside Thorolf at the Battle of Hafr's Firth. Both men were badly wounded in the fighting, Bard even worse than Thorolf (Egil's Saga, Chapter 9). Knowing his wounds were mortal, Bard named Thorolf as heir to all his heritage, lands, and chattels, entrusting him also with his wife and the upbringing of his son (Egil's Saga, Chapter 9). Bard died of his battle wounds and was buried with much mourning (Egil's Saga, Chapter 9).
Bard White's significance in Egil's Saga lies less in his own deeds than in the bonds his death creates. His deathbed bequest to Thorolf — heritage, lands, wife, and the care of his son — establishes the relationship that drives subsequent narrative. The intimacy between Sigurd and Bard led Sigurd to give Thorolf a warm welcome at Sandness after Bard's death (Egil's Saga, Chapter 9). Bard's legacy also generates conflict: Thorolf rejected the inheritance claim of Hildirida's sons, calling them illegitimate just as Bard had done (Egil's Saga, Chapter 9). Bard's judgment on legitimacy thus outlives him, becoming the basis for a dispute that Thorolf inherits along with the property.
Appears in: Beings, Entities in Egil's Saga, Norse Tradition