Sweyn II of Denmark

Sweyn II Estridsson Ulfsson. (c. 1019 – April 28, 1074 or 1076) was the King of Denmark from 1047 until his death. He was the son of Ulf Thorgilsson and Estrid Margarete Svendsdatter, daughter of Sweyn I of Denmark and sister of Canute the Great. He was married three times.

He is known in Denmark as Svend Estridsen. His first name is also spelled as Sven, Svein and Swen and his last name as Estridson, Estridsson or Estridsøn.

Because of his relationship to Canute the Great he was a pretender to the throne from his early years. When king Harthacanute died in 1042, he claimed the Danish throne, but lost to Norway's King Magnus, who made Svend a "jarl" (earl or viceroy) instead.

He soon rebelled against Magnus and had the Danish nobles crown him king, but was defeated by Magnus and fled to Sweden. The war between Magnus and Sweyn lasted until 1045, when Harald Hardråde returned to Norway from exile. Harald and Sweyn joined forces and forced Magnus to share the throne with Harald.

In 1047 Magnus died, having stated on his deathbed that his kingdom would be divided up: Harald would get the throne of Norway, while Svend would be king of Denmark. Upon hearing of Magnus' death Sweyn said, "Now so help me God, I shall never yield Denmark." [Hvitfeldt, Arild. Danmarks Riges Krønike] Harald, unwilling to relinquish Denmark, attacked Sweyn and fought a long war. Hedeby was sacked in 1050. That same year Sweyn almost captured Harald of Norway when he attacked the coast of Jutland and loaded his ships with goods and captives. Sweyn's flotilla caught up with the Norwegians and Harald ordered his men to throw out the captured goods thinking the Danes would stop to get the goods. Sweyn ordered his men to leave the goods and go after Harald. Harald then ordered his men to throw the captives overboard. For them Sweyn was willing to let Harald slip away. [Hvitfeldt, Arild. Danmarks RIges Krønike]

Sweyn came close to losing Denmark and his life at the naval battle of Niså off the coast of Halland. The fleets met a night and the Danes seemed to be winning, but when the Norwegians received reinforcement ships, the Danes began to sail away. Ship after ship was captured and Sweyn at last was forced to abandon his own sinking ship and row to the coast with a few retainers. They reached land and stopped at the house of a peasant to ask for something to eat. "What was the terrible rumbling in the night?" she asked. "Didn't you know the two kings were fighting all night?" asked one of Sweyn's men. "Who won, then?"." the woman asked. "Norwegians," came the reply. "It's a shame on us, for a king we already have. He limps and is timid." "No," King Sweyn explained, "Timid the king of the Danes is assuredly not," defended another of the king's men, "but luck isn't with him and he lacks a victory." The housecarl brought the men water and a towel to clean themselves. As the king was drying his hands, the woman tore the cloth from him, "You should be ashamed of yourself for using the whole towel for yourself," she scolded. "The day will come when I will have your permission to use the whole cloth," was the king's comment. Her husband gave the king a horse and Sweyn continued on his way to Zealand. Sometime later the peasant was called to Zealand and given lands there for his service to the king, but his wife had to remain behind in Halland. [ibid.] Sweyn had a reputation for generosity and kindness that helped him on several occasions win the trust of his people. Harald relinquished his claims to Denmark in 1064 and sailed away to England to try to enforce his claim on England's crown.

After Harald was defeated and killed at the Battle of Stamford Bridge and William the Conqueror in turn defeated Harold Godwinson, Sweyn turned his attention to England, once ruled by his uncle Canute the Great. He joined forces with Edgar Atheling, the last remaining heir of the Anglo-Saxon royal house, and sent a force to attack King William in 1069. However, after capturing York, Sweyn, accepted a payment from William to desert Edgar, who then returned into exile in Scotland.

Sweyn was loath to have the Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen fill the upper ranks of Denmarks churches with Germans, so he brought Anglo-Danes over from England to keep Denmark Danish. He also was determined to bring men to Denmark to teach him and his people Latin so they could converse with the rest of Europe on equal terms. Adam of Bremen traveled to meet this learned king and came away with greater respect for the kings patience and wisdom. He encouraged the building of churches all over Denmark. Adam of Bremen reported that here were 300 churches in Skåne alone. When Archbishop Adalbert died in 1072, King Seyn was able to deal directly with the Holy See for the division of Denmark into eight dioceses, including Roskilde and northern Jutland.

Sweyn could also be ruthless. One New Year's Eve it was reported to the king that several of his guests and hired men had ridiculed him and talked behind his back. The king was so angry that he had them murdered in the church on New Year's Day. When the king arrived at the cathedral for mass, his friend, Bishop Vilhelm met him at the door and forbade the king and his party to enter. "You stand condemned before God, a murderer, who has defiled the house of God with blood!" cried the bishop and pushed the king back with his shepherd's crook. He declared the king excommunicated from the church. The king's men drew their swords and stepped forward to hack the bishop down, but Bishop Vilhelm held his ground. "Let him be," shouted the king and withdrew to his farm. There he removed his New Year's fine clothing and weapons and dressed in sackcloth. Then he walked back to the cathedral in his bare feet and cast himself face down in front of the entrance. Bishop Vilhelmn had just begun the mass when he was told the king lay humbled at the door. Bishop Vilhelm stopped the service and went to he door to hear the king's abject confession. When the bishop realized the king was truly repentant, he raised him up, lifted the excommunication and led Sweyn into the cathedral. They were fast friends ever after.

King Sweyn died at his farm, Søderup, near Urnehoved Tingsted, near the town of Åbenrå. The king's body was carried to Roskilde where he was interred in a pillar of the choir next to the remains of Bishop Vilhelm. He was called after his death the "father of kings" because of his fifteen sons, five would become kings of Denmark. [ibid.] One of the legacies of King Sweyn was a fundamental change in Danish society which had been based on whether a person was free or a bondsman. A strengthened church in connection with the land-owning noble families begin to pit their power against the royal family. The peasants were left to fend for themselves. [Danmarks Historie II perbenny.dk]

Sweyn's second marriage was to Gunild, who was a stepmother of his former wife whose name is unknown). The pope ordered that he dissolve the union, which he did, only to take one mistress after another during the rest of his life. Sweyn fathered at least 19 children, probably more, none of them were born in wedlock, nor are their mothers now known.

*Harald III (Harald Hén) d. 1080
*Canute IV the Saint (Knud den Hellige) d. 1086
*Oluf I (Oluf Hunger) d. 1095
*Eric I (Erik Ejegod) d. 1103
*Niels d. 1134
*Sweyn the Crusader d.1197 husband of Florine of Burgundy
* Sigrid d.1066 wife of Gottschalk Fürst der Obodriten.
* Ingrid wife of Olav III of Norway.
* Thorgisl
* Sigurd
* Benedikt d.1086.
* Bjorn
* Sven
* Guttorm
* Eymund
* Ulf d.1104.
* Ragnhild wife of Sven Askelsson
* Helen (Gunhild)

Legacy

Sweyn is often considered to be Denmark's last Viking king as well as the first medieval one. His skeleton shows him to have been a tall, powerfully built man who walked with a limp.

Sweyn built a strong foundation for royal power through cooperation with the church. He completed the final partition of Denmark into dioceses by corresponding directly with the pope bypassing the Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen. During his reign hundreds of small churches were built throughout the kingdom. Many of them still standing, although with later additions and changes in style. Adam of Bremen was astounded that there were 300 churches in Skåne alone, more than all the other countries of the north put together.

Sweyn seems to have been able to read and write, and he is the source of much of our current knowledge about Denmark and Sweden in the 9th and 10th centuries, having told the story of his ancestry to historian Adam of Bremen around 1070.

See also

* List of Danish monarchs

References