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The Seventeen and One Monarchs
of the Ysgramor Dynasty

Book XIV: Hjalmer the Unworthy

by High Chronicler Valerius of Winterhold

A history of Skyrim's early High Kings

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Hjalmer was the eldest son of the King Harald Hand-Free and Skerd-Queen Fura Jurgendottir. He ascended to the throne in 1E 221 after the death of his father and was charged to continue Harald's numerous campaigns to expand the kingdom into Morrowind, Cyrodiil, and the Western Reach.

Despite his noble heritage, the young King Hjalmer has been widely accepted as both an unpopular king and inept military leader, whose short reign was characterized by conflict and poor decision-making.

Although he swore to uphold his father's wishes on his deathbed, upon becoming High King he completely reneged on his promise in favor of his own military campaigns - much to his court's surprise. Hjalmer was very careful to never explicitly declare he had other plans (to do so would have given any of the three Houses of Skerd the authority to depose him immediately for breaking a royal death-oath). Instead, he would make various excuses (ranging from reasonable to outright ridiculous) as to why he couldn't commit troops and resources to his father's campaigns. Promising that Harald's "Exalted Crusade" was merely delayed - not rescinded - was enough to keep the Skerd appeased, albeit begrudgingly.

The Failed King

One of Hjalmer's most infamous failures was losing the significant military gains his predecessors had made in Morrowind. The defeat of his forces at the hands of an Ashlander army at the Battle of Ash Mountain was a humiliation that helped drive Nordic forces from eastern Stonefalls.

His attempts to quash opposition at home proved equally unsuccessful. Hjalmer alienated many of Skyrim's jarls by promoting unsuitable and unpopular personal favorites, who were widely believed to hold a negative influence over him. He made several unpopular changes to the laws of the kingdom, including increased taxation on inherited property, gaining him the ire of the kingdom's wealthy landowners. Six months into his reign discontent within Skyrim had reached breaking point and Hjalmer was on the verge of civil war with rebel Jarls.

Exactly how the Hjalmer was ever named as High King has baffled historians and scholars for centuries. He was neither a noteworthy warrior or mastermind tactician. He was completely illiterate in the Thu'um, and some accounts even claim he didn't undertake the Proving (an ancient rite-of-passage in honor of Child-King Jafnhar) at the summit of Snow-Throat as all his predecessors did. Many agree that its entirely possible that word of King Harald was so respected among the royal family that no one dared openly question his choice of successor, despite many among the court favoring his brother Vrage. This inevitability leads to the question of why Harald chose Hjalmer? Such scholarly conundrums will possibly never be answered and we can only speculate the motives of the ancient kings.

Baseborn

Although the royal court largely remained loyal to the new king, his younger brother Prince Vrage was one of his most vocal critics and protested against many of his decisions. Chroniclers speak of the brothers quarreling with each other so fiercely that their mother, Skerd-Queen Laransdottir, was called to the throne room on several occasions to bring order to the court.

Prior to Hjalmer's rule, there had long been rumors among the royal family that King Harald may not have the father of Hjalmer. Shortly after Harald's coronation, his wife was kidnapped and held for ransom by the notorious Hatchet-Hand bandits. Harald arranged for her safe return before hunting down and exterminating the entire group, but some weeks later she was reportedly with child. No one in the royal family dared suggest the unborn child of the High King was illegitimate (indeed such accusations were punishable by death), but there was always an unspoken air of uncertainty surrounding the young prince.

The ancient journals of Prince Vrage reveal he was among those who believed Hjalmer was indeed the misbegotten son of some long-dead bandit chieftain. Vrage supposedly had obtained proof of this through some form of blood-ritual performed by the witches of the Smokefrost Wyrd. While this alone would have been enough to dethrone Hjalmer, his refusal to follow Harald's campaign of expansion since becoming ruler angered Vrage immensely and sealed his fate.

A King Usurped

While Prince Vrage desperately sought to depose his brother, he vowed not say a word as long as his mother (who he still loved dearly) lived. He didn't have to wait for very long as almost a year after Hjalmer's coronation did Skerd-Queen Laransdottir pass on to Sovngarde. Not three days had passed after her funeral did Vrage march into the Palace of the Kings and deliver a lengthy admonishing speech to his brother before challenging him for the crown.

Hjalmer was no match for his battle-hardened brother and was slain in the throne room in front of his own court. Vrage immediately assumed the throne and ushered in a new era for the Nordic people. His father's long-planned "Exalted Crusade" (more commonly known as the Skyrim Conquests) would forever change Tamriel and transform the kingdom of Skyrim into a vast continent-spanning empire.

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