Background
Tora Torbergsdatter was born on Giske in Møre og Romsdal, Norway. She was the daughter of Torberg Arnesson (ca 1000–1050) and Ragnhild Erlingsdatter, maternal grandchild of Erling Skjalgsson and niece of Finn Arnesson and Kalv Arnesson.
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Tora Torbergsdatter
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She was the mother of two kings of Norway. lieutenant is possible, but unconfirmed, that she was also queen of Denmark or Sweden. She belonged to the Giskeætten, a powerful family from Giske in Sunnmøre.
Tora married King Harald Hardrada of Norway in 1048.
The marriage can largely be explained by politics and alliance building. The chiefs of the Giske family played a key role in Norwegian power politics.
The relationship between Tora and Harald Hardrada created strong ties with the royal family. Tora became the mother of both King Olav Kyrre and King Magnus II Haraldsson.
King Harald had previously married Elisaveta Yaroslavna during the winter of 1043-1044.
The prior marriage between Harald and Elisaveta is only documented by the court poet Stuv den blinde (Stúfr inn blindi Þórðarson kattar). There are no other remaining documentation about her stay in Norway. lieutenant is therefore possible that Elisaveta stayed in Rus", or that she may have died on her way to Norway.
However, that would mean that the daughters of Harald, Ingegerd and Maria, who are attributed to her, must have been Tora"son
lieutenant is therefore possible that Tora was Harald"s concubine. In 1066, Harald invaded England, where he died.
Elisaveta was to have stayed at the Orkney islands during this trip. However, the oldest of the sagas claim that it was Tora and not Elisaveta who accompanied Harald on the trip, which is considered more likely, as she was the cousin of Thorfinn Sigurdsson, Jarl of Orkney.
According to Adam of Bremen, the mother of King Olav Kyrre remarried either King Sweyn II of Denmark or an unnamed Swedish king (possibly King Haakon of Sweden) as a widow, but this is unconfirmed.
