Kettle
Kettle of the Mark, participant in the events surrounding Njal's burning, attested in Njal's Saga.
Kettle, known as Kettle of the Mark, is attested in Njal's Saga as a participant in the events surrounding the burning of Njal. During the planning of the attack on Njal and his sons, Kettle questioned Flosi's logistical claims, challenging how he could "ride from home on the Lord's day, and come the second day of the week to Threecorner ridge" (Njal's Saga, 123. An Attack Planned On Njal And His Sons). At the burning itself, Kettle "caught hold of him, and dragged him out," then asked carefully after his father-in-law Njal, only to be told the full truth of what had transpired (Njal's Saga, 128. Njal's Burning).
Njal's Saga provides four citations from successive chapters, tracing Kettle's involvement across the attack's planning, execution, and aftermath. His questioning of Flosi's travel plans in chapter 123 shows a man attentive to practical detail, while his actions during the burning reveal the tension of a man bound by kinship to both sides — dragging a figure from the fire yet asking after Njal, his father-in-law. In the aftermath, when confronted by Kari and Thorgeir, Kettle reportedly said "We will now run for our horses, for we cannot hold our own here, for the overbearing strength of these men" (Njal's Saga, 145. Of Kari And Thorgeir), acknowledging defeat without disgrace. His final recorded statement accepts fate: "as it is foredoomed; but good go with thee for thy warning" (Njal's Saga, 148. Of Flosi And The Burners).
Appears in: Beings, Entities in Njál's Saga, Celtic Tradition, Norse Tradition
On trail: Genealogies