Magnus Barefoot
| Magnus Barefoot | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| King of Norway | |||||
| Reign | 1093–1103 | ||||
| Predecessor | Olaf Kyrre | ||||
| Successor | Olaf Magnusson, Eystein Magnusson and Sigurd the Crusader | ||||
| Consort | Margaret Fredkulla m. 1101; wid. 1103 | ||||
| Issue | Eystein Magnusson Sigurd the Crusader Olaf Magnusson Harald Gille (debated) Ragnhild Magnusdatter Tora Magnusdatter | ||||
| |||||
| House | House of Hardrada | ||||
| Dynasty | Fairhair dynasty | ||||
| Father | Olaf Kyrre | ||||
| Mother | Thora (concubine) | ||||
Magnus Barefoot (Old Norse: Magnús berfœttr, Norwegian; Magnus Berrføtt) or Magnus III Olafsson (1073 – 24 August 1103) was King of Norway from 1093 until 1103 and King of Mann and the Isles from 1099 until 1103.[1]
Background
Magnus was the son of King Olaf Kyrre and grandson of King Harald Hardrada. The epithet berfœtt means barefoot or bareleg and according to the Icelandic writer Snorri Sturluson, it came from his habit of wearing Gaelic-style clothing, leaving the lower legs bare. According to the Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, he got the nickname because he was forced to flee from an attack in his bare feet.[2]
Reign
Norway experienced a period of peace during the reign of Magnus' father Olaf Kyrriwho died in the autumn of 1093. Magnus was hailed as king in Viken during September 1093 after his father's death. Initially he had a rival in his cousin, Hakon Magnusson who was the son of Olaf's short-lived brother King Magnus II of Norway. A peaceful settlement between the two was in place, but the relationship was tense. As Håkon was only recognized at Oppland and in Trøndelag, his rule was in practice of limited importance. There was not any armed confrontation between the two before Håkon died suddenly in February 1095.[3]
Magnus Barefoot's rule lasted for 10 years, a period when Norway moved in some respects into the European models of church organisation and more centralised royal rule.
Irish Sea Campaign
Magnus sought to build a Norwegian empire around the Irish Sea. In 1098 Magnus left with a fleet of 60 ships and 5,000 men to Orkney, where the strength of the fleet led to a reinforcement of the Norwegian king's dominion. Magnus Barefoot led his fleet from Mann to Ynys Môn, Gwynedd, and appeared off of the coast at Ynys Seiriol (Puffin Island), interrupting a Norman victory celebration after they had recently defeated the Welsh of Gwynedd.[4]
In the battle that followed between the Norman occupiers and the Norse, known as the Battle of Anglesey Sound, Magnus shot dead the earl of Shrewsbury with an arrow to the eye.[4] The Norse left as suddenly as they had arrived, leaving the Norman army weakened and demoralized.[4] Magnus conquered the Orkney Islands, the Hebrides and the Isle of Man. Edgar, King of Scotland signed a treaty with Magnus setting the boundary between Scots and Norwegian claims in the west. By ceding claims to the Hebrides and Kintyre to Magnus, Edgar acknowledged the practical realities of the existing situation. Magnus returned to Norway in early 1099.
War with Sweden
In 1097 Magnus Barefoot had first moved into Götaland to secure the Norwegian border, and to pacify the areas along the economically important traffic artery. By the big lake Vänern he let build a fortication with a garrison of 300 men. The Swedish king demanded that the Norwegians surrender and they subsequently returned to Norway. In the year 1100, King Magnus began a campaign against Swedish King Inge Stenkilsson of Sweden to support his claim in the countryside west of Lake Vänern. He sacked a larger area of Götaland. But the war did not lead to lasting results. At the peace meeting in 1101 (called the meeting of the three kings) at Kungahälla in Norwegian Båhuslen, now Kungälv, three Scandinavian kings were present; King Inge the Elder of Sweden, King Eric I of Denmark, and King Magnus of Norway. Magnus agreed to marriage with King Inge's daughter Margaret Fredkulla at part of the peace settlement.
Death in battle
According to the sagas, in 1103 Magnus set out again to raid in Ireland. He made an alliance with the powerful Munster king and self proclaimed High King of Ireland, Muirchertach Ua Briain, whose daughter married Magnus's son, Sigurd I Magnusson. Myuirchertach had controlled Dublin since 1093, and at this stage in his career seems to have regarded Magnus as a useful ally with the necessary seapower, in his ongoing war with the Mac Lochlainn dynasty of the north-west. In 1103 they apparently made a joint assault in the north, in the Armagh area, where Muirchertach's forces were routed. Magnus, probably then in the vicinity of the Quoile estuary near Downpatrick, decided to return to Norway. He sent a message with a small group of his men to Muirchertach Ua Briain requesting provisions for the sea journey ahead of them. According to the sagas, while awaiting these supplies, they saw a large dust cloud on the horizon. Unsure as to whether this was an enemy force or the supplies, King Magnus advanced through a marshy area to observe the approach. It was discovered that it was indeed the men with the supplies they were awaiting. Magnus ordered his men back to the camp area to get prepared for the embarkation.
It was at this point that a large Irish force came out from their hiding places in the marsh and copses, putting into action an ambush. The Norse forces being taken by surprise were not in battle order. Magnus attempted to assert control over his disordered army, ordering a portion of his force to seize the high ground and provide archer fire to slow down the Irish. In the ensuing melee, King Magnus received wounds to his legs, being pierced by a spear through both thighs above the knees but fought on, attempting to get his men back to the level ground of the camp site. An axe wielding Irishman charged the King and struck him in the neck, before he was himself killed by Magnus's personal guard. King Magnus died where he fell on St Bartholomew's day 24th Aug 1103, aged 29 years. He was the last Norwegian king to fall in battle abroad.[5] The Norse who escaped the ambush sailed back to Norway.[6] One of Magnus' men who survived the attack took Magnus' famous sword Legbiter back to Norway.[5]
Succession
Magnus' consort was Margaret Fredkulla, daughter of King Inge the Elder of Sweden and Queen Helena, whom he married in 1101 at Kungahälla. The marriage had been arranged as a part of the peace treaty between Sweden and Norway. Margaret was from this point known as Margaret Fredkulla meaning "Margaret the Maiden of Peace". They did not have surviving children. Magnus' illegitimate daughter Ragnhild Magnusdotter married Harald Kesja, an illegitimate son of Eric I of Denmark.
At the time of the death of King Magnus, his known sons were Øystein Magnusson , Sigurd Magnusson and Olaf Magnusson. They all had different mothers. They jointly succeeded Magnus as kings of Norway. Harald Gille and Sigurd Slembedjakn later came forward and both claimed to also be sons of King Magnus and thus heirs to the throne. Harald Gilli became King Harald IV of Norway following the death of his half-brother King Sigurd in 1130.
Place of Death/Burial Site
There is no concrete evidence as to the exact location of his death, but the thirteenth-century Icelandic writer Snorri Sturluson recounts his death while still an ally of Muirchertach. '[7] A
A location on the north coast known locally as the War Hollow, situated near the town of Portrush, County Antrim has been suggested during the last hundred years, but there is no evidence of any reason for a presence in this area.[8]
Magnus appears to have died in the vicinity of Downpatrick, and was probably buried at the church there, as related in the thirteenth-century Chronicle of the Kings of Man and the Isles.
The study of the annals and the folklore of Strangford Lough, in County Down, Northern Ireland tell of Viking dominance over the Lough area from the 9th to the 11th Century, and contains a story of King Magnus' being killed in battle near Downpatrick in 1103.[9] The runestone monument marking the site was erected in March 2003 to mark the 900th anniversary of his death.[10]
The Chronicle of the kings of Man and the Isles tells of Magnus being buried at St. Patrick's Church at Downpatrick, while local folklore has it that Magnus was buried on what is now the site of the towns train station. Until the construction of a new halt at the grave site, this site had been largely inaccessible for anyone wishing to visit it.[11]
Succession
Magnus' consort was Margaret Fredkulla, daughter of King Inge the Elder of Sweden and Queen Helena, whom he married in 1101 at Kungahälla. The marriage had been arranged as a part of the peace treaty between Sweden and Norway, and she was from this point known as Margaret Fredkulla meaning "Margaret the Maiden of Peace". They did not have surviving children. Magnus' illegitimate daughter Ragnhild Magnusdotter married Harald Kesja, an illegitimate son of Eric I of Denmark.
At the time of the death of King Magnus, his known sons were Olaf Magnusson, Øystein Magnusson and Sigurd Magnusson. They all had different mothers and all together succeeded Magnus as kings of Norway. Harald Gille and Sigurd Slembedjakn later came forward and both claimed to also be sons of King Magnus and thus heirs to the throne. Harald Gille became King Harald IV of Norway following the death of his half-brother King Sigurd in 1130.
Descendants in Ireland
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A source discussing who the Irish believed to be descendants of Magnus remaining in Ireland is known to have existed at least as late as the time of the celebrated scholar Duald Mac Firbis (died 1671). According to him, the Great Book of Lecan contained a section on "the pedigrees and wars and battles of the Danes [recte, the Norse in general] in Ireland", and he says specifically that "Magnus of the swift ship, son of the king of Lochlann, and his descendants in Ireland are mentioned in the Great Book of Lecan." Alexander Bugge identified this as Magnus Bareleg, but unfortunately by the 19th century this section had become lost, and he quotes Eugene O'Curry observing that "of these tracts not a vestige remains in this book."[12]
References
- ^ Magnus 3 Olavsson Berrføtt – utdypning (Store norske leksikon)
- ^ Magnus Berrføtt (Magnus Berrføtt's coinage)
- ^ Håkon Magnusson Toresfostre (Store norske leksikon)
- ^ a b c Lloyd, J.E., A History of Wales; From the Norman Invasion to the Edwardian Conquest, Barnes & Noble Publishing, Inc. 2004
- ^ a b Strangford Lough (Area geography & history snippets)
- ^ Magnus Barefoot's saga (Heimskringla or The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway
- ^ The online Medieval and Classical Library - The Chronicles of the Kings of Norway
- ^ KING MAGNUS III of NORWAY 1073 - 1103
- ^ Colmer, A. (2004). The Vikings of Strangford Lough and The death of Magnus Barelegs 1103A.D.. Last accessed 17th Sep 2010
- ^ Downpatrick Station
- ^ History of the Railways (The Belfast & Co. Down Railway)
- ^ Alexander Bugge (ed. & tr.), of Duald Mac Firbis, On the Fomorians and the Norsemen. Christiania: J. Chr. Gundersens Bogtrykkeri. 1905. See Bugge's introduction.
Other sources
- Broderick, George Cronica Regum Mannie et Insularum: Chronicles of the Kings of Man and the Isles (Manx National Heritage, 2004) ISBN 978-0901106216
- Beuermann, Ian. Man amongst Kings and Bishops (Oslo, 2002), 182-91.
- Christansen, Reidar T. The Vikings and Viking Wars in Irish and Gaelic Tradition (Oslo, 1931)
- Curphey, Robert A., Peel Castle on St. Patrick's Isle (Manx National Heritage, 2008) ISBN 978-0901106599
- Krag, Claus Norges historie fram til 1319 (Oslo: Universitetsforlaget, 1995) ISBN 978-8200129387
- Duffy, Seán Duffy, ‘Irishmen and Islesmen in the Kingdoms of Dublin and Man, 1052–1171’. Ériu XLIII (1992), 93–133; and Ireland in the Middle ages (Dublin, 1997).
- Jesch, Judith. ‘Norse Historical Traditions and Historia Gruffud vab Kenan: Magnús berfættr and Haraldr hárfagri’, in Gruffudd ap Cynan: a Collaborative Biography , K. L. Maund (ed) 1996, 117–48.
- Macdonald, R. Andrew. Manx kingship in its Irish Sea setting 1187-1229.
- Power, Rosemary. "Magnús Barelegs’ Expeditions to the West”, Scottish Historical Review lxvi (1986), 107-32; "The Death of Magnus Barelegs", SHR lxxiii (1994), 216-22; and "Magnus Barelegs, the War Hollow and Downpatrick", Ulster Local Studies 15, no.2 (Winter 1993), 40-54.
External links
- Who was Magnus? from the Magnus Vikings re-enactment group website
- "The Magnanimous Enemy" (Jorge Luis Borges, Dreamtigers)
Ancestry
| 8. Sigurd Syr Halfdansson, King of Ringeringe | |||||||||||||||||||
| 4. Harald III of Norway | |||||||||||||||||||
| 18. Gudbrand Kula | |||||||||||||||||||
| 9. Åsta Gudbrandsdatter | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2. Olaf III of Norway | |||||||||||||||||||
| 20. Arne Arnmodsson | |||||||||||||||||||
| 10. Torberg Arnesson | |||||||||||||||||||
| 21. Tora Torsteinsdotter | |||||||||||||||||||
| 5. Tora Torbergsdatter | |||||||||||||||||||
| 22. Erling Skjalgsson | |||||||||||||||||||
| 11. Ragnhild Erlingsdatter | |||||||||||||||||||
| 23. Astrid Tryggvasdotter | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1. Magnus III of Norway | |||||||||||||||||||
| 6. Johan or Árni lági | |||||||||||||||||||
| 3. Thora | |||||||||||||||||||