Misplaced Pages

#828171

28-436: Sverker may refer to: Sverker I of Sweden (c. 1100 – 1156), King of Sweden from 1132 Sverker II of Sweden (before 1167 – 1210), King of Sweden from 1195/1196 House of Sverker , medieval Swedish royal dynasty Sverker (album) , 2011 studio album by Corvus Corax Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with

56-832: A civil war ensued between Niels and the supporters of Canute's half-brother, Eric (Emune). Niels had his strongest base of support in Jutland , and the church also supported him. He secured support from the Holy Roman Empire by agreeing to subordinate the Danish Archdiocese of Lund in Scania to the German Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen , which prompted Archbishop Asser of Lund to support Eric. Eric made little progress in Denmark and moved on to

84-401: A competent ruler. He carried through reforms of his personal hird retinue, separating it into a military and an administrative branch responsible for tax collection. He placed family members as his jarls , including his son-in-law Jarl Ubbe and his nephews Eric (Emune) and Canute Lavard , who were the sons of Eric Evergood. Niels supported the canonization of his brother Canute IV

112-710: A fleet of traders. The further circumstances of the expedition are entirely lacking; it may have aimed to subdue non-Christian peoples east of the Baltic Sea . A more serious confrontation took place in another direction in the 1150s. Sverker received his stepson, the Danish co-ruler Canute V when the latter was in trouble at home. This support was a threat to Canute's rival, Sweyn III of Denmark . Moreover, Sverker's son Johan abducted two noblewomen in Halland in Denmark "in order to satisfy his lust", although his father and

140-534: A large part of the horses of the invaders died from exhaustion and lack of fodder. Although the inhabitants of Värend submitted, Sweyn was forced to sneak back to Denmark in early 1154. Part of the army returned via Finnveden whose peasantry invited the soldiers to a feast, then assaulted and massacred them. The incident might have inspired the 17th-century local legend of Blenda . The war thus abruptly came to an end, and did not stop Sverker's association with Canute V. Sweyn III had hitherto been closely allied with

168-533: A while, although the extent of his actual power is not clear. However, Magnus's involvement in the civil strife in his homeland gave opportunities for Sverker to act. According to the partial account of Saxo Grammaticus , "the Swedes, when they heard that Magnus was busy with war in Denmark, took one of their fellow countrymen, a man of modest ancestry by the name of Sverker, as their king; not because they appreciated him in particular, but since they would not stand under

196-582: Is even termed "king" in a source. The same goes for the provinces around Lake Mälaren where Magnus still had adherents. Bishop Henrik of Sigtuna was expelled from Sweden and fell at the side of Magnus in the Battle of Fotevik in 1134. Sverker was acknowledged in the Mälaren provinces by 1135, when he received the Danish pretender Oluf Haraldsen , whom he supported in his quest for power in Skåne . At least by

224-632: The 1140s the authority of Sverker was generally acknowledged in the loosely structured kingdom. The basis of his power was the central plain of Östergötland with the church of Kaga, Alvastra Abbey and Vreta Abbey as religious supporting sites. Sverker took care to anchor his legitimacy through his marriage policy. According to the hostile account of Saxo Grammaticus, " Niels [of Denmark] married Ulvhild from Norway ... Sverker sent envoys to her and asked for her love. Shortly afterwards, he clandestinely brought her from her husband and made her marry him". The outrageous behaviour of Sverker may be explained by

252-562: The Holy by bestowing gifts on the clergy of Odense as he sought to enlarge the power and influence of the monarchy through the aid of the church. However, it is likely he did not win the full support of the magnates on Zealand . He also campaigned against the Wends in alliance with Poland . According to Saxo Grammaticus , Niels' son Magnus was elected King of Geats in 1220s. His wife, Margaret, died in 1128 or 1129, and his son, Magnus,

280-627: The background of Ulvhild; she had previously been married to Inge II of Sweden , the last of the House of Stenkil, and therefore represented the influence and properties of the extinct dynasty. After the death of Ulvhild he married the widow of his old enemy Magnus the Strong, the Polish princess Richeza , presumably in an effort to bring over the last adherents of Magnus to his side. The marriage gave him control over Richeza's daughter Sophia of Minsk , who

308-545: The battle for Scania in 1134. Niels and Magnus landed at Fotevik Bay in Scania in June 1134 seeking to deal Eric a decisive defeat. At the Battle of Fotevik on 4 June 1134, Niels and Magnus were taken by surprise by a contingent of German soldiers on horses. Niels escaped, while Magnus was slain. Niels sought refuge with Holy Roman Emperor Lothar III of Germany, but did not make it past the city of Schleswig . Niels ventured into

SECTION 10

#1732779796829

336-463: The highest clerical dignity". When he later on visited Denmark, Breakspear promised the archbishop of Lund the primacy over any future Swedish archbishop. This was later confirmed when Breakspear became pope under the name Hadrianus IV . An archbishopric was only installed in 1164 in the reign of Sverker's son Karl Sverkersson . Swedish relations with the Russian principalities had been good for

364-532: The incompetence of his sons or the high birth of the distinguished wooer." Thus Canute V was betrothed to his host's daughter Helena . It also appears that Canute as well as Valdemar owned landed property in Sweden at the time. With the alliance with Sverker in their back, the two pretenders were able to attack Sweyn III successfully in the same year. The short chronicle of the Västgöta Law says that Sverker

392-423: The last surviving brother, was elected king the following year ahead of Evergood's chosen deputy Harald Kesja . He married Margaret Fredkulla , the daughter of Inge I of Sweden . She was believed to have wielded considerable influence during his reign. During the majority of Niels' reign, the country had internal peace. The contemporary Chronicon Roskildense describes him as mild and forthcoming, though not

420-512: The other Danish pretender Valdemar , the future King Valdemar the Great, but the latter was now drawn to Canute's side. Realizing the adverse attitude of Sweyn, Canute and Valdemar visited Sverker in 1154 with an eye to a marriage alliance. According to the probably exaggerated account of Saxo, "Sverker received them so friendly, that he, hoping for a future son-in-law, offered to make them his heirs while passing over his own children, either because of

448-521: The past century or more, but in the reign of Sverker there was a turn towards enmity. According to a Russian chronicle, the newly founded Republic of Novgorod had its first confrontation with Sweden at this time, breaking a century-long peace that had been guaranteed by marriages between the ruling families. The Swedish " knyaz " (Russian for ruling prince) and bishop arrived in the Finnish Gulf with 60 boats in 1142, and made an abortive attack on

476-452: The people forced him to eventually return the ladies. Nicholas Breakspear tried in vain to dissuade King Sweyn from invading Sweden, since "the land was difficult for waging warfare and the people were poor, so there was no advantage to seek there." However, Sweyn believed it was the right moment to strike, since Prince John had been slain by the peasantry at a Thing and, as a result, a conflict arose between them and Sverker. Moreover, Sverker

504-576: The rule of a foreigner." From the order of events in Saxo's chronicle, this took place in c. 1132. It appears that Sverker was only slowly recognized by the various provinces of the kingdom. Norwegian sources speak of several separate actions taken by the elite of Västergötland in the 1130s, indicating a high degree of separatism. The jarl of Västergötland, Karl of Edsvära, settled the Norwegian-Geatish border with King Harald Gille in 1135 and

532-460: The title Sverker . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sverker&oldid=1226046824 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Sverker I of Sweden Sverker

560-610: Was a wealthy landowner from Östergötland . According to the Västgöta Law (c. 1240), his father's name was Cornube , but according to the Icelandic Skáldatal , his father's name was Kol . A later pedigree has the filiation Kettil – Kol – Kornike (Cornube) – Sverker. He rose to power after the extinction of the House of Stenkil in the 1120s. The Danish prince Magnus Nielsen was acknowledged as king in Götaland for

588-451: Was born around 1063, married in 1105, and died in 1134. His parents were King Sweyn II Estridson and an unknown concubine . Four of Niels' brothers ascended the throne before him. He is first mentioned in history in 1086 when he was sent to Flanders to take the place of his exiled brother, King Olaf I . When his brother Eric Evergood died in July 1103 during a pilgrimage, Niels, who was

SECTION 20

#1732779796829

616-454: Was by now an old man with little taste for war. King Sweyn proceeded to lead an expedition into the forested province Småland in southern Sweden in 1153, with the professed aim to subjugate Sweden. Sverker kept passive and did not meet the invaders in open battle, but the local populations resisted furiously and ambushed the Danes where they could. The war was fought in the cold of the winter;

644-677: Was engaged with the future king Valdemar the Great of Denmark in 1154, and married him after Sverker's death. Sverker based much of his royal authority on his patronage of the Church. The Cistercians were called in on the initiative of Queen Ulvhild and founded a number of abbeys: Alvastra in Östergötland, Varnhem in Västergötland, and Nydala in Småland . The king also strove to achieve Swedish ecclesiastic autonomy. The papal delegate Nicholas Breakspear toured Scandinavia in 1152 and

672-572: Was forced from the Swedish throne in 1130. After 26 years of internal peace, conflict erupted between Magnus and his cousin Canute Lavard. Canute was popular in the Duchy of Schleswig where he was jarl and was seen as a potential successor to Niels. On 7 January 1131, Magnus slew Canute near Haraldsted just north of Ringsted . Niels initially condemned Magnus but eventually supported him, and

700-501: Was murdered in his own coach at the Alebäck bridge near Alvastra priory, going to the early religious service on Christmas Day , 1156. The assassin was his trusted servant, a detail that is confirmed by a papal letter. This was considered a shocking crime, even by medieval standards. According to Saxo, the pretender Magnus Henriksen , a Danish prince, "made the servant commit this murder out of clandestine desire to become king". Sverker

728-588: Was received by Sverker with great honours. During a meeting in Linköping , the installation of Peter's pence (papal tax) for Sweden was probably decided. However, the plans of installing a Swedish archbishopric were stalled, according to Saxo since "the Swedes and Geats could not agree what town and person was worthy of the dignity". Therefore, Nicholas Breakspear "refused the quarreling parts this honour and did not endow these still religiously ignorant barbarians

756-837: Was succeeded in parts of Sweden by a pretender from another family, Eric the Saint , under very obscure circumstances. However, Sverker's son Karl Sverkersson emerged as king in Östergötland by c. 1158. Skáldatal reports the names of two of Sverker's skalds : Einarr Skúlason and Halldórr skvaldri . By first wife Queen Ulvhild Håkansdotter , widow of Inge the Younger , and who escaped from her second husband, King Niels of Denmark : By second wife Queen Richeza (after Ulvhild's death), previously married to Magnus Nielsen and to Volodar of Minsk. Attested son of this marriage was: By one of these queens or an unknown woman: Niels of Denmark Niels ( c.  1065 – 25 June 1134)

784-510: Was the King of Denmark from 1104 to 1134. Niels succeeded his brother Eric Evergood and is presumed to have been the youngest son of King Sweyn II Estridson . King Niels actively supported the canonization of Canute IV the Holy and supported his son Magnus after he killed his rival for the succession, Knud Lavard . His secular rule was supported by the clergy. Niels was killed in an ensuing civil war and succeeded by Eric II Emune . Niels

#828171