Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

Krákumál Krákumál or the Lay of Kraka is a skaldic poem, consisting of a monologue in which Ragnar Lodbrok is dying in Ælla's snake pit and looks back at a life full of heroic deeds. It was composed in the 12th century, almost certainly in the Scottis ...

Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Located north of the c ...

Ragnarssona þáttr The ''Tale of Ragnar's sons'' ( non, Ragnarssona þáttr) is an Old Norse story about Ragnar Lodbrok and his sons. Summary Ragnar Lodbrok When Sigurd Ring dies, Ragnar Lodbrok succeeds him as the king of Sweden and Denmark. Many foreign kings ...

Zealand Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020. It is the 1 ...

Reidgotaland Reidgotaland, Reidgothland, Reidgotland, Hreidgotaland or Hreiðgotaland was a land mentioned in Germanic heroic legend (mentioned in the Scandinavian sagas as well as the Anglo-Saxon Widsith) usually interpreted as the land of the Goths. Etymol ...

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

Öland Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area ...

Ivar the Boneless Ivar the Boneless ( non, Ívarr hinn Beinlausi ; died c. 873), also known as Ivar Ragnarsson, was a Viking leader who invaded England and Ireland. According to the ''Tale of Ragnar Lodbrok'', he was the son of Ragnar Loðbrok and his wife Asl ...

Lejre Lejre is a railway town, with a population of 3,127 (1 January 2022),Sweden, telling him to protect Sweden from his sons. He then went east across the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...

to pillage and to show his own skills. Ragnar's sons Eric and Agnar then sailed into Lake Mälaren and sent a message to king Eysteinn that they wanted him to submit to Ragnar's sons, and Eric said that he wanted Eysteinn's daughter Borghild as wife. Eysteinn said that he first wanted to consult the Swedish chieftains. The chieftains said no to the offer, and ordered an attack on the rebellious sons. A battle ensued and Eric and Agnar were overwhelmed by the Swedish forces, whereupon Agnar died and Eric was taken prisoner. Eysteinn offered Eric as much of

Uppsala öd Uppsala öd, Old Norse: ''Uppsala auðr'' or ''Uppsala øðr'' (''Uppsala domains'' or ''wealth of Uppsala'') was the name given to the collection of estates which was the property of the Swedish Crown in medieval Sweden.The article ''Uppsala öd'' ...

as he wanted, and Borghild, in

wergild Weregild (also spelled wergild, wergeld (in archaic/historical usage of English), weregeld, etc.), also known as man price (blood money), was a precept in some archaic legal codes whereby a monetary value was established for a person's life, to b ...

for Agnar. Eric proclaimed that after such a defeat he wanted nothing but to choose the day of his own death. Eric asked to be impaled on spears that raised him above the dead and his wish was granted. In

Zealand Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020. It is the 1 ...

, his mother

Aslaug Aslaug ( non, Áslaug ), also called Aslög, Kráka (O.N.: ) or Kraba, is a figure in Norse mythology who appears in Snorri's Edda, the Völsunga saga and in the saga of Ragnar Lodbrok as one of his wives. Aslaug in legend According to the ...

and his brothers

Björn Ironside according to Norse legends, was a Norse Viking chief and Swedish king. According to the 12th- and 13th-century Scandinavian histories, he was the son of notorious Viking king Ragnar Lodbrok and lived in the 9th century, between 855 and 858. Bj� ...

and

Hvitserk Hvitserk (''Hvítserkr'', "White-Shirt") was one of the sons of the legendary 9th-century Viking Ragnar Lothbrok and his wife Aslaug. Sources Hvitserk is attested to by the Tale of Ragnar's Sons (''Ragnarssona þáttr''). He is not mentioned in ...

, who had been playing

tafl Tafl games (pronounced avl also known as hnefatafl games) are a family of ancient Nordic and Celtic strategy board games played on a checkered or latticed gameboard with two armies of uneven numbers. Most probably they are based upon the Rom ...

, become upset and sail to Sweden with a large army. Aslaug, calling herself Randalin rides with cavalry across the land. The battle ended with Eysteinn's death. When Ragnar died, Björn Ironside became the king of Sweden.

''Ragnar Lodbrok's saga''

'' Ragnar Lodbrok's saga'' tells that Eysteinn was the king of Sweden and a good friend of

Ragnar Lodbrok according to legends, was a Viking hero and a Danish and Swedish king.Gutenberg Projec ...

. Eysteinn had the most beautiful daughter named Ingeborg. He was also a devout pagan and there were so many

blót ( Old Norse) and or ( Old English) are terms for "blood sacrifice" in Norse paganism and Anglo-Saxon paganism respectively. A comparanda can also be reconstructed for wider Germanic paganism. A ' could be dedicated to any of the Germanic ...

s at

Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Located north of the c ...

that no other place had ever been its equal. The Swedes worshiped a holy cow named Sibilja, and when the Swedes were attacked by enemies, they had the cow walk in front of the battle formation. The cow's magic was so great that when she began to bellow, the enemies began to fight between themselves. When Ragnar Lodbrok was visiting Eysteinn at Uppsala, Eysteinn suggested that Ragnar marry Ingeborg and have her as wife instead of the pauper

Aslaug Aslaug ( non, Áslaug ), also called Aslög, Kráka (O.N.: ) or Kraba, is a figure in Norse mythology who appears in Snorri's Edda, the Völsunga saga and in the saga of Ragnar Lodbrok as one of his wives. Aslaug in legend According to the ...

(Kraka). Ragnar consequently betrothed himself to Ingeborg. Eventually, Aslaug found out from three small birds, and told Ragnar that she was no pauper. She was the daughter of

Sigurd Sigurd ( non, Sigurðr ) or Siegfried (Middle High German: ''Sîvrit'') is a legendary hero of Germanic heroic legend, who killed a dragon and was later murdered. It is possible he was inspired by one or more figures from the Frankish Merovin ...

and

Brynhild Brunhild, also known as Brunhilda or Brynhild ( non, Brynhildr , gmh, Brünhilt, german: Brünhild , label= Modern German or ), is a female character from Germanic heroic legend. She may have her origins in the Visigothic princess Brunhilda ...

. As Ragnar understood that Kraka was of better descent than that of Ingeborg, he decided not to go back to Sweden and wed Eysteinn's daughter. Eysteinn was upset with Ragnar's change of plans and declared that their friendship was no more. This was interesting news to Ragnar's sons Eric and Agnar who decided to go to Sweden and pillage, as their father would not mind anymore. Eysteinn sent the fiery cross in all directions and assembled the Swedish

leidang The institution known as ''leiðangr'' (Old Norse), ''leidang'' ( Norwegian), ''leding'' ( Danish), ''ledung'' ( Swedish), ''expeditio'' (Latin) or sometimes lething (English), was a form of conscription ( mass levy) to organize coastal fleets for s ...

. They also made Sibilja join the army, but they had to

blót ( Old Norse) and or ( Old English) are terms for "blood sacrifice" in Norse paganism and Anglo-Saxon paganism respectively. A comparanda can also be reconstructed for wider Germanic paganism. A ' could be dedicated to any of the Germanic ...

considerably to make her obey. When they had arrived at the location where Eric and Agnar were camped, Eysteinn ordered one third of the Swedish army to attack Eric and Ragnar's men, while the others would attack from all directions after the battle had begun. This was done and Sibilja began to bellow. Eric and Agnar's warriors began to fight between themselves and eventually Agnar died and Eric was taken captive. Eric was offered both peace and Ingeborg but Eric wanted the Swedes to stick spears into the ground and throw him on top of them so that he would die. When Aslaug heard the news of Eric and Agnar's death, she cried blood, and asked Ragnar's sons to avenge their dead brothers.

Ivar the Boneless Ivar the Boneless ( non, Ívarr hinn Beinlausi ; died c. 873), also known as Ivar Ragnarsson, was a Viking leader who invaded England and Ireland. According to the ''Tale of Ragnar Lodbrok'', he was the son of Ragnar Loðbrok and his wife Asl ...

was afraid of the magic that ruled in Sweden, but when his little brother, the only three year old

Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye Sigurd Snake-in-the-eye ( non, Sigurðr ormr í auga) or Sigurd Áslaugsson was a semi-legendary Viking warrior and Danish king active from the mid to late 9th century. According to multiple saga sources and Scandinavian histories from the 12th ...

wanted to attack Eysteinn, the brothers changed their minds. Sigurd's foster-father assembled five longships for him.

Hvitserk Hvitserk (''Hvítserkr'', "White-Shirt") was one of the sons of the legendary 9th-century Viking Ragnar Lothbrok and his wife Aslaug. Sources Hvitserk is attested to by the Tale of Ragnar's Sons (''Ragnarssona þáttr''). He is not mentioned in ...

and

Björn Ironside according to Norse legends, was a Norse Viking chief and Swedish king. According to the 12th- and 13th-century Scandinavian histories, he was the son of notorious Viking king Ragnar Lodbrok and lived in the 9th century, between 855 and 858. Bj� ...

mustered fourteen, while Aslaug and Ivar the Boneless marshalled ten ships each. Ivar would not allow his mother Aslaug to go by sea, but she could join the army of riders that would go across land. She accepted and changed her name to Randalin. When the armies met in battle, Ivar told everyone to make such a din that the bellowing from Sibilja could not be heard. This was of no use, however, and so Ivar shot two arrows in each of Sibilja's eyes. However, the cow could not be stopped. Then Ivar asked his men to throw him on top of the cow. Ivar made himself so heavy as he landed on the cow, that she was crushed. The Swedish leidang was beaten and Eysteinn fell. Ragnar's sons commanded that their brother had been avenged and that the Swedes should be spared pillaging.

''Hervarar saga''

The '' Hervarar saga'' tells that Eysteinn Beli was the son of

Harald Wartooth Harald Wartooth or ''Harold Hiltertooth'' (Old Norse: Haraldr hilditǫnn; Modern Swedish and Danish: Harald Hildetand; Modern Norwegian: ''Harald Hildetann''; flourished 8th century) was a legendary king of Denmark who is mentioned in several ...

. ''Hervarar saga'' made Harald Wartooth the king of Sweden and

Sigurd Hring Sigurd Ring (Old Norse: ''Sigurðr Hringr'', in some sources merely called ''Hringr'') according to legend was a king of the Swedes, being mentioned in many old Scandinavian sagas. According to these sources he was granted rulership over Sweden a ...

the king of Denmark, while other sources have it the other way round. It tells that Eysteinn inherited Sweden from his father Harald Wartooth and ruled it until he was killed by the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok, as told in ''Ragnar Lodbrok's saga''. When Ragnar died,

Björn Ironside according to Norse legends, was a Norse Viking chief and Swedish king. According to the 12th- and 13th-century Scandinavian histories, he was the son of notorious Viking king Ragnar Lodbrok and lived in the 9th century, between 855 and 858. Bj� ...

became the king of Sweden.

''Gesta Danorum''

The ''

Gesta Danorum ''Gesta Danorum'' ("Deeds of the Danes") is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th-century author Saxo Grammaticus ("Saxo the Literate", literally "the Grammarian"). It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark an ...

'' (book 9) by

Saxo Grammaticus Saxo Grammaticus (c. 1150 – c. 1220), also known as Saxo cognomine Longus, was a Danish historian, theologian and author. He is thought to have been a clerk or secretary to Absalon, Archbishop of Lund, the main advisor to Valdemar I of Denmark ...

also mentions Eysteinn, but only in passing. It says that Ragnar Lodbrok's son Agnar learnt that his brother Eric had been slain by Osten, the king of Sweden. He wished to avenge his brother but died in the battle.

''Skáldatal''

''

Skáldatal ''Skáldatal'' (''Catalogue of Poets'') is a short prose work in Old Norse. It is preserved in two manuscripts: DG 11, or ''Codex Uppsaliensis'', which is one of the four main manuscripts of the ''Prose Edda'' (first quarter of the 14th century), an ...

'' says that Eysteinn Beli was the patron of many skalds, including Bragi inn gamli, Grundi prúði,

Erpr lútandi Erpr lútandi was according to ''Skáldatal'' the court skald of the Swedish kings Eysteinn Beli and Björn at Haugi. There are no extant poems by Erpr. ''Skáldatal'' tells that Erpr committed the crime of killing in a sanctuary. He avoided the d ...

, Kálfr þrænzki, Refr ryzki, Ormr oframi, two named Ölvaldi, Ávaldi, Fleinn skáld and Rögnvaldr skáld.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eysteinn Beli Semi-legendary kings of Sweden 8th-century monarchs in Europe House of Munsö

''Krákumál''

Ragnarssona þáttr

''Ragnar Lodbrok's saga''

''Hervarar saga''

''Gesta Danorum''

''Skáldatal''

References