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Magnus the Strong ( sv, Magnus Nilsson; da, Magnus Nielsen Bricka, Carl Frederik, ''Dansk Biografisk Lexikon'', vol. XI aar – Müllner 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 Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...
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'', c. 100 AD (the king of the Suiones). Ho ...
as Magnus I.
Snorri Sturlason Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of the ...
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 , establish ...
from 15 April 1134 and until his death.


Youth and appearance

Magnus was the son of King Niels I of Denmark 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 h ...
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 Denmark ...
, 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 Inge the Younger was King of Sweden in c. 1110–c. 1125 and probably the youngest son of king Halsten.The article ''Inge d.y.'' in ''Nationalencyklopedin'' (1992).The article Inge, section 2. I. den yngre' in '' Nordisk familjebok'' (1910). Accord ...
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 Denmark ...
, 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 Swedes ( sv, svenskar) are a North Germanic ethnic group native to the Nordic region, primarily their nation state of Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countr ...
, 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 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. Väs ...
, Karl of Edsvära, governed his province around this time and is occasionally known in the sources as
jarl Jarl is a rank of the nobility in Scandinavia. In Old Norse, it meant "chieftain", particularly a chieftain set to rule a territory in a king's stead. ''Jarl'' could also mean a sovereign prince. For example, the rulers of several of the pet ...
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 fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Located north of the ca ...
, Siwardus, was appointed by the
archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen This list records the bishops of the Roman Catholic diocese of Bremen (german: link=no, Bistum Bremen), supposedly a suffragan of the Archbishopric of Cologne, then of the bishops of Bremen, who were in personal union archbishops of Hamburg (sim ...
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 referr ...
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 his ...
, and appears as a strong supporter of Magnus. The alterations also indicate the clerical rivalry between Hamburg-Bremen 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, and ...
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, where ...
. 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 a ...
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 position ...
, 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 polici ...
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 Skån ...
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 The Rurik dynasty ( be, Ру́рыкавічы, Rúrykavichy; russian: Рю́риковичи, Ryúrikovichi, ; uk, Рю́риковичі, Riúrykovychi, ; literally "sons/scions of Rurik"), also known as the Rurikid dynasty or Rurikids, was ...
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 se ...
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 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