, birth_date =
, birth_place =
, death_date = 4 June
, death_place = Near The Bay of Fotevik,
Scania
Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skå ...
, house =
Estridsen
, spouse =
Richeza of Poland
, issue =
Canute V of Denmark
Canute V Magnussen ( da, Knud V Magnussen) ( – 9 August 1157) was a King of Denmark from 1146 to 1157, as co-regent in shifting alliances with Sweyn III and Valdemar I. Canute was killed at the so-called ''Bloodfeast of Roskilde'' in 1157. Noth ...
Niels
, father =
Niels I of Denmark
Niels ( la, Nicolaus, English exonym Nicholas; – 25 June 1134) 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 ...
, mother =
Margaret Fredkulla
Margaret Fredkulla (Swedish: ''Margareta Fredkulla''; Danish: ''Margrete Fredkulla''; Norwegian: ''Margret Fredskolla''; 1080s – 4 November 1130) was a Swedish princess who became successively queen of Norway and Denmark by marriage to kings ...
Magnus the Strong ( sv, Magnus Nilsson; da, Magnus Nielsen
[ Bricka, Carl Frederik, ''Dansk Biografisk Lexikon'', vol. XI ]aar – Müllner
AAR or Aar may refer to:
Geography
*Aar, a river in Switzerland, tributary of the Rhine
*Aar (Lahn), a tributary of Lahn river in Germany, descending from the Taunus mountains
*Aar (Dill), a tributary of Dill river in Germany, also in the basin ...
1897, pp.45
Available online
/ref>) (about 1106 – 4 June 1134 in the Battle of Fotevik) was a Danish duke who ruled Gothenland in southern Sweden from the 1120s to c. 1132. It is disputed whether he was elected king by the Swedes, but he is nevertheless sometimes found in the modern list of Swedish monarchs
This is a list of Swedish kings, queens, regents and viceroys of the Kalmar Union.
History
The earliest record of what is generally considered to be a Swedish king appears in Tacitus' work ''Germania (book), Germania'', c. 100 AD (the king of t ...
as Magnus I. Snorri Sturlason gives him the epithet ''Magnus the Strong''.
He was also briefly co-king of Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establishe ...
from 15 April 1134 and until his death.
Youth and appearance
Magnus was the son of King Niels I of Denmark
Niels ( la, Nicolaus, English exonym Nicholas; – 25 June 1134) 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 ...
and Margaret Fredkulla
Margaret Fredkulla (Swedish: ''Margareta Fredkulla''; Danish: ''Margrete Fredkulla''; Norwegian: ''Margret Fredskolla''; 1080s – 4 November 1130) was a Swedish princess who became successively queen of Norway and Denmark by marriage to kings ...
, the second or eldest daughter of King Inge the Elder
Inge the Elder (Swedish: ''Inge Stenkilsson''; Old Norse: ''Ingi Steinkelsson''; died c. 1105–1110) was a king of Sweden. In English literature he has also been called ''Ingold''. While scant sources do not allow us to paint a full picture of hi ...
of Sweden. His elder brother Inge was killed in a riding accident, leaving Magnus as the sole heir to Niels. He grew up to be a tall and strong young man, a head taller than anyone else. The chronicles give different opinions about his character, depending on their political preferences. The near-contemporary ''Roskilde Chronicle'' calls him merry and generous and a "lover of firmness in character". 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 Denma ...
, on the other hand, says that he was well endowed by nature but still a violent brute.
The road to kingship
When Margaret's first cousin King Inge the Younger died at an unknown time in the 1120s, Magnus claimed the throne as the eldest grandson of Inge the Elder. According to the chronicler 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 Denma ...
, Magnus was recognized by the Geats
The Geats ( ; ang, gēatas ; non, gautar ; sv, götar ), sometimes called ''Goths'', were a large North Germanic tribe who inhabited ("land of the Geats") in modern southern Sweden from antiquity until the late Middle Ages. They are one of t ...
(''Götarna'') of Gothenland, but the prerogatives of selecting a king traditionally lay with the Swedes, another tribe to the north of the Geats.
The brief chronicle incorporated in the Westrogothic law does not mention Magnus, but does say that following the death of Inge, the Swedes had selected Ragnvald Knaphövde Ragnvald Knaphövde was a King of Sweden whose reign is estimated to have occurred in the mid-1120sRagnvald knaphövde'' at the site of the Swedish Museum of National Antiquities, retrieved January 20, 2007. or c. 1130.Ragnvald Knaphöfde' in '' Nor ...
. Ragnvald showed disrespect towards the Geats by not giving hostages when riding his tour of installation. In retaliation, Ragnvald was murdered by the Geatish population, an event sometimes dated to c. 1129. After this, the law-speaker of Västergötland
Västergötland (), also known as West Gothland or the Latinized version Westrogothia in older literature, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish), situated in the southwest of Sweden.
Vä ...
, Karl of Edsvära, governed his province around this time and is occasionally known in the sources as jarl or even "king".[Sawyer, ''När Sverige blev Sverige'', pp. 38-39.]
Saxo does not mention Ragnvald by name, but mentions that the Swedes elected a king in response to the election of Magnus, and claims that he was killed by the Geats, and that "at his death, power was transferred to Magnus". Magnus is not mentioned as king in any Swedish king-list, leaving a question-mark around his actual sphere of power.
Reign
The few sources from this period indicate that Christianity was still not implemented everywhere. The bishop of Uppsala
Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inha ...
, Siwardus, was appointed by the archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen in 1123 but forced to flee "by pagans" in 1130. Another bishop, Henry, was then appointed in Sigtuna
Sigtuna () is a locality situated in Sigtuna Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 8,444 inhabitants in 2010. It is the namesake of the municipality even though the seat is in Märsta.
Sigtuna is for historical reasons often still ref ...
by the Danish Archbishop Asser
Asser (; ; died 909) was a Welsh monk from St David's, Dyfed, who became Bishop of Sherborne in the 890s. About 885 he was asked by Alfred the Great to leave St David's and join the circle of learned men whom Alfred was recruiting for hi ...
, and appears as a strong supporter of Magnus. The alterations also indicate the clerical rivalry between Hamburg-Bremen
The Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen (german: Fürsterzbistum Bremen) — not to be confused with the modern Archdiocese of Hamburg, founded in 1994 — was an ecclesiastical principality (787–1566/1648) of the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic ...
and the Danish archbishopric. There is also a story in Saxo's chronicle that Magnus at one time undertook a belated Viking expedition to a part of Sweden, and brought back a few heavy Thor's Hammer
Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing ...
s which he had robbed on a holy island. The still insufficiently Christianized Swedes henceforth saw him as a temple defiler who had robbed the gods.
Around 1127, Magnus married Richeza, daughter of Boleslaw III of Poland. The couple had two sons, Canute
Cnut (; ang, Cnut cyning; non, Knútr inn ríki ; or , no, Knut den mektige, sv, Knut den Store. died 12 November 1035), also known as Cnut the Great and Canute, was King of England from 1016, King of Denmark from 1018, and King of Norway ...
(born 1129, later to become king of Denmark) and Niels (born 1130). In 1130, Magnus backed Boleslaw III in conquering Rügen
Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, w ...
. The Polish forces together with a Danish fleet compelled the Rani
''Rani'' in Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, sometimes spelled ''Ranee'', is a Hindu/Sanskrit feminine given name. The term is the female form of the term for princely rulers in South and Southeast Asia and applies equally to the wife of ...
to recognize Polish rule over the island.
Civil war in Denmark
In 1131, Magnus had his cousin and potential rival for the Danish throne, Canute Lavard
Canute Lavard ( Danish: Knud Lavard; cognate with English Lord) (12 March 1096 – 7 January 1131) was a Danish prince. Later he was the first Duke of Schleswig and the first border prince who was both a Danish and a German vassal, a positio ...
, murdered.[ After this deed he had to return to Gothenland, where he was still recognised as king. Though he was eventually backed by Niels, Magnus found himself in a ]civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polic ...
against Lavard's half-brother Eric Emune.[ The civil war weakened Magnus's position in Sweden. The Swedes chose a landowner from ]Östergötland
Östergötland (; English exonym: East Gothland) is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish) in the south of Sweden. It borders Småland, Västergötland, Närke, Södermanland and the Baltic Sea. In older English ...
, Sverker I, to be their king. According to Saxo's chronology of events this happened around 1132.[
Magnus and his father Niels eventually engaged the enemy in the Battle of Fotevik in ]Scania
Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skå ...
on 4 June 1134. According to Saxo, Niels panicked and fled when Eric approached, but Magnus confronted his adversaries with a small troop of determined followers. "He preferred death to escape in order not to eclipse his old reputation for courage. Finally, when he had fought rashly and killed many enemies, he fell over the heap of corpses that had piled up around him."[Saxo Grammaticus, ''Danmarks kronike'', II, p. 84.] After the decisive defeat, Niels escaped with his ships but was killed later the same year.
Legacy
After Magnus's death, his widow Richeza returned to the other side of the Baltic Sea where she married Volodar of Minsk, a Rurikid ruler of Viking
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and s ...
origins. She later returned to Sweden and thirdly married the man who defeated Magnus, King Sverker I.
Magnus's son, Canute V, contested the Danish throne with his second cousin, Svend III. When Canute died in 1157, Magnus's legitimate descent became extinct. Canute's elder son Niels
Niels is a male given name, equivalent to Nicholas, which is common in Denmark, Belgium, Norway (formerly) and the Netherlands. The Norwegian and Swedish variant is Nils. The name is a developed short form of Nicholas or Greek Nicolaos after Saint ...
died in 1180. Canute's illegitimate posthumous son, Valdemar, bishop of Schleswig
The List of the Bishops of Schleswig contains the names of the bishops of the see in Schleswig ( da, Slesvig, en, italic=yes, Sleswick) in chronological order. Also Lutheran bishops, who officiated after 1542, superintendents and general superin ...
and prince-archbishop of Bremen, died in 1236 as the last direct male descendant of King Magnus.
References
Literature
*Bricka, Carl Frederik, ''Dansk Biografisk Lexikon'', vol. XI aar – Müllner
AAR or Aar may refer to:
Geography
*Aar, a river in Switzerland, tributary of the Rhine
*Aar (Lahn), a tributary of Lahn river in Germany, descending from the Taunus mountains
*Aar (Dill), a tributary of Dill river in Germany, also in the basin ...
1897. http://runeberg.org/dbl/11/0047.html
*Gillingstam, Hans. "Magnus Nilsson", ''Svenskt biografiskt lexikon'', https://sok.riksarkivet.se/sbl/Presentation.aspx?id=10158
*Kosiarz, Edmund, ''Wojny na Bałtyku X–XIX w.'' Gdańsk, 1978.
*Sawyer, Peter. ''När Sverige blev Sverige''. Alingsås: Viktoria, 1991.
*Saxo Grammaticus. ''Danmarks kronike'', Vol. I-II. Kobenhavn: Aschenfeldt's, 1985 ().
*Tunberg, Sven. ''Sveriges historia till våra dagar. Andra delen. Äldre medeltiden''. Stockholm: P.A. Norstedt & Söners Förlag, 1926.
*''Västgötalagen'', http://project2.sol.lu.se/fornsvenska/01_Bitar/A.L5.D-Vidhem.html
{{DEFAULTSORT:Magnus 01 Of Gothenland
1100s births
1134 deaths
12th-century Swedish monarchs
Kings of the Geats
House of Estridsen
Dukes of Schleswig
Burials at Vreta Abbey
Persecution of Pagans
Sons of kings
Swedish military personnel killed in action
Monarchs killed in action