Knut Håkonsson

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Knut Håkonsson (* around 1208; † 1261 in Bergen ) was a Swedish - Norwegian counter-king of the rebellious Ribbungene.

His parents were Jarl Håkon Galen and his wife Kristina Nilsdotter, daughter of the Swede Nils Simonsson and granddaughter of the Swedish king Erik the Saint . In 1227 he married Ingrid Skulesdatter († in winter 1232/1233), daughter of Skule Bårdsson and his wife Ragnhild Nikolasdatter (last mentioned in 1247).

After Sigurd Ribbungs death in 1226 he was proclaimed king by the Ribbungene, but had to compare himself to Håkon Håkonsson the old one the following year . He was later made a jarl . He was now believed to be the most distinguished man after the king, but apparently still had little political influence.

After his father's death in 1214, his mother returned to Götaland and married the lawyer Eskil, a nephew of Jarl Birger Brosa .

In 1226 messengers came from the Ribbungene and the Birkebeinern . The Ribbungene asked if he wanted to become their new leader. The country is open to him if he follows them to Norway. The mother had great confidence in the messengers of the Ribbungene and left her son to them. She had always had high hopes for him, because according to the succession treaty between Inge Bårdsson and Håkon Galen of 1212, he was to receive the royal dignity if Inge died without a legitimate son. Knut did not become king after Inge's death in 1217, but only after the death of Sigurd Ribbung in 1226.

After the death of King Sigurd, Knut's men ruled all of Oppland and parts of Viken , and Knut was proclaimed king in both Romerike and Oslo . But in Viken the people rejected a leader with Swedish parents. The farmers in Aker had had such a bad experience with the Ribbungen that they offered King Håkon Håkonsson double the war tax, i.e. four times the normal tax, and also offered hostages if he protected them from the Ribbunge. The hostage offer shows that there was a natural enmity between peasants and the warrior aristocracy at the time. The king refused the offer; because he was advised against wintering in Oslo because the farmers could not be trusted. In order to maintain his position, Knut had to seek the decision in battle. But at first he suffered a defeat and later he could not win any victories. In contrast to his predecessor, he had no military success. Unlike his predecessor, he stayed more in Götaland and the neighboring areas than in Oppland. This eventually led to a break with the local residents. The local farming community now kept their distance. Effective foreign aid was also not to be expected. Therefore, Knut decided in 1227 to enter into a settlement. The last great uprising against the Birkebeiner was over.

In comparison, Knut became half of Ryfylke , half of Sogn and, after 1240, four more Fylke in Trondheim and Namdalen . He married Ingrid, daughter of Skule Bårdsson and sister of Queen Margaret . After her death five years later, his friendship between him and Jarl Skule broke up. He was of the opinion that he had been disadvantaged compared to Skule in the division of the empire. In 1239 he turned down Skule's offer of the dignity of Jarl , but accepted it from the king. So he became commander in chief in Østlandet . From 1240 he was considered the most distinguished man in the empire after the king. But he hardly played a special political role. At the coronation of King Magnus Lagabætir in September 1261, he was still wearing the Jarl's crown, but was already so sick that he had to be supported by two stable masters. Soon after, he died. The Håkon Håkonssons saga attributes his death to his considerable alcohol consumption.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The fact that Ribbungene were also against Knut can be seen from a letter from Ribbung to King Håkon Håkonsson, asking him to prevent Knut from taking power over the Ribbunge. Regesta Norvegica 1 No. 542 .
  2. ↑ Lunden pp. 174-176.
  3. ↑ The request for comparison and the king's acceptance in Regesta Norvegica vol. 1 no. 566 , 567.
  4. ↑ "Stallmeister" was the highest office in the king's entourage. The equerry was in charge of the king's or jarl's bodyguard.

literature

See also: Norway in the Christian Middle Ages

personal data
SURNAME Knut Håkonsson
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Norwegian rival king
DATE OF BIRTH around 1208
DATE OF DEATH 1261
Place of death Mountains