kingdom · Scandinavia and the Baltic

Hedmark

750 CE – 880 CE (approx.)

Inland kingdom around Lake Mjøsa, one of the core lands of Halfdan the Black, where petty kings survived until Olaf Haraldsson.

Origins

Hedmark, the farming land on the eastern shore of Lake Mjøsa, was one of the richest districts of inland Norway. The sagas say Halfdan the Black of Vestfold gained it by war and inheritance in the 9th century, making it part of the base from which Harald Fairhair built his kingdom.

Rule and society

Hedmark's wealth came from grain, cattle and iron from the surrounding forests. It shared the Eidsivating law assembly with the other Uppland districts. Local kings kept their position under the high kings, and the sagas name Hrørek as king of Hedmark in the early 11th century.

Decline and legacy

Around 1018 Olaf Haraldsson crushed a revolt of the Uppland kings and had Hrørek blinded, ending the line of local kings. Hedmark became part of the Kingdom of Norway, and Hamar, on Lake Mjøsa, became the seat of a bishop in 1152.

Few sources survive for this state; details are uncertain.

Lineage

HedmarkKingdom of Norway 872 CE – present

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Hedmark. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hedmark
MLA
“Hedmark.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hedmark. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Hedmark.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hedmark.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Hedmark’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/hedmark (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻