| Stenkil | |
|---|---|
| King of Sweden | |
| Reign | c. 1060–1066 |
| Predecessor | Emund the Old |
| Successor | Eric and Eric |
| Born | Västergötland, Sweden |
| Died | 1066 (1067) Svitjod, Sweden |
| Spouse | Daughter of Emund the Old |
| Issue | Halsten Stenkilsson Håkan the Red (?) Inge the Elder |
| House | Stenkil |
| Father | Ragnvald the Old |
| Religion | Chalcedonian Christianity |
Stenkil (Old Norse:Steinkell; died 1066) was aKing of Sweden who ruled c. 1060 until 1066.[1][2][3] He succeededEmund the Old and became the first king from theHouse of Stenkil.[4] He is praised as a devout Christian, but with an accommodating stance towards the oldPagan religion. His brief reign saw an armed conflict withNorway.[5]
TheHervarar saga (13th century) describes Stenkil as the son of Ragnvald the Old andAstrid Njalsdotter, the daughter of Njal Finnsson fromHålogaland inNorway and a cognatic descendant ofHarald Fairhair. Later historians have identified the father of Stenkil asRagnvald Ulfsson who was the earl ofLadoga and the grandson of the legendary VikingSkoglar Toste, but this presumed family-connection is not supported by any other sources and must therefore be regarded as very uncertain.[6] The Icelandic sagas mention a wife and two sons of Ragnvald Ulfsson but none are identified with Stenkil and his mother Astrid. The contemporary chroniclerAdam of Bremen says Stenkil was the nephew (nepos) or stepson (privignus) of the former King Emund the Old,[7] while theHervarar saga asserts that he was related to the previous dynasty by marriage toEmund's daughter.[2]
Stenkil was probably fromVästergötland rather thanUppland or theMälaren area.[1] The short chronicle appended to theWestrogothic law (c. 1240) clearly states that he spent time in Levene inVästergötland where he was long remembered as the king who "loved West Geats before all his other subjects",[8] and he was lauded as a great archer whose hit marks were long shown with admiration.[1][2] The tradition that Stenkil was beloved by the Geats appears to be supported bySnorri Sturluson'sHeimskringla. In a speech by Thorvid, thelawspeaker (lagman) ofVästergötland before a battle withHarald Hardrada (see below), the lawspeaker expresses the Geats' (Gautland people) loyalty to Stenkil:
The lagman of the Gautland people, Thorvid, sat upon a horse, and the bridle was fastened to a stake that stood in the mire. He broke out with these words: "God knows we have many brave and handsome fellows here, and we shall let King Steinkel hear that we stood by the good earl bravely. I am sure of one thing: we shall behave gallantly against these Northmen, if they attack us; but if our young people give way, and should not stand to it, let us not run farther than to that stream; but if they should give way farther, which I am sure they will not do, let it not be farther than to that hill."[9]
The statement of theHervarar saga that Stenkil was originally Jarl inSvíþjóð (in the first hand, the provinces around Lake Mälaren) nevertheless calls for some caution. HistorianPeter Sawyer argues that the traditions associating Stenkil with Västergötland may not be reliable, but rather express a later need to advocate Västergötland as the hub of the Swedish kingdom. His active advocacy for a bishopric inSigtuna may speak for a strong association with theMälaren Valley.[10]
Stenkil appears in history around 1056, during the reign of Emund the Old. At that time he provided support and protection for a delegation from theArchdiocese of Bremen which had been turned away by King Emund and his bishopOsmundus. Later on, a reconciliation between the king and Bremen took place, and Sweden receivedAdalvard the Elder as its new bishop. Emund died shortly after, in about 1060. As his son and heir Anund was already dead, Stenkil succeeded to the throne without any known commotion. Adam characterises Stenkil as God-fearing and pious. A much less flattering image of the new king is provided by the Icelandic manuscriptMorkinskinna (c. 1220), which says: "King Stenkil was a portly man and heavy on his feet. He was much given to drinking parties and not much involved in the business at hand ... he himself liked to be left in peace."[11]
The king duly supported theChristianization of Sweden[2] and cooperated with bishops from theArchbishopric of Hamburg-Bremen.[3] With the help of Stenkil's emissaries,Adalvard the Younger created the Sigtuna bishopric, oneday's journey from the old cult center ofUppsala. According to a historically much-debated passage in Adam's chronicle, Uppsala was the site of a renownedpagan temple where sacrifices of humans and animals were performed every ninth year.[12] After having formally converted the population around Sigtuna, Adalvard the Younger suggested to BishopEgino inScania that they should proceed to raze or burn down the temple. This, they hoped, would have the effect of pushing the population into conversion. However, Stenkil apprehended that the people in the area resented the aim of the bishops, and managed to talk them out of the project. As he argued, the bishops would be executed and he himself deposed since he had allowed miscreants into the land. Moreover, those already Christian would surely revert to paganism.[3] The fears were probably justified. According to theHervarar saga, Stenkil's sonInge the Elder was deposed and exiled for wanting to cancel the pagan sacrifices at the temple.[13][14] As it was, Adalvard and Egino reluctantly had to follow Stenkil's advice. Instead, they traversed the lands of theGeats which were apparently less resistant to the new faith, and broke any pagan idols they found, making thousands of converts in the process.[15]
The later Norse sagas relate that a brief but serious conflict flared up with the Norwegian kingHarald Hardrada in 1064–65. One of Harald's foremost menHåkon Jarl, was married to the king's niece Ragnhild and followed Harald on his military expeditions against the Danish rulerSweyn Estridsen. According toSnorri Sturluson'sHeimskringla the Norwegians were victorious at theBattle of Nissan in 1062, but Håkon Jarl secretly allowed the defeated Sweyn to escape alive. When this was later reported to Harald Hardrada, the enraged king gave orders to kill Håkon, who however managed to escape to Sweden. The escapee stayed with King Stenkil who made him Jarl ofVärmland.[16] According to another saga,Morkinskinna, Håkon Jarl left Norway forDenmark where he was created Jarl ofHalland. Meanwhile, Harald Hardrada concluded peace with Sweyn Estridsen in 1064 and then started to harry in Stenkil's realm inGötaland. The worried Stenkil arranged a meeting with King Sweyn and asked for his support. Sweyn replied that he could not break the recent peace treaty, but advised Stenkil to appoint the valiant Håkon Jarl as sub-ruler of Västergötland, from where he could confront King Harald. This was arranged, and Håkon assembled men from Denmark as well as from the two Geatic provinces. He spoke to his troops at an assembly, where he self-assuredly said: "Even though I have a lesser title than King Stenkil, it may be that I will be of no less assistance, for he is used to an easy life, while I am accostumed to battles and hard conditions".[17]
According to all the saga versions, Harald Hardrada reacted to Håkon Jarl's Swedish position by assembling a fleet and invading Stenkil's kingdom in the cold of the winter. At the entrance of theGöta älv, he took the lighter boats and brought them upriver, to LakeVänern. The ships then rowed eastwards, to the place where he heard that Håkon's troops had assembled. With Håkon was the law-speaker (lagman) of the Geats, Thorvid. However, the Geats were lightly clothed, "as is always the case with the Geats", while Harald's troops were more numerous and better equipped. The Geatic law-speaker lost his head and took to his heels before the battle had begun. In the fight that followed, Håkon's troops were defeated with losses. Nevertheless, Harald did not push his advantage further, but returned to the lake shore with his men. The end of the expedition was inauspicious. Part of Harald's troops were led into a trap, ambushed and massacred by Håkon's men. As the Norwegians sailed down the Göta älv, some more were killed by Geatic archers.[18] In the following year 1066 Harald Hardrada undertook hisill-fated invasion ofEngland, which left the striking power of the Norwegian kingdom crippled. Håkon Jarl ended his life as a magnate in Denmark. It is not clear how much of the internally differing saga accounts can be regarded trustable, but a preserved scaldic verse byþjóðólfr Arnórsson confirms the outlines:
Morkinskinna indicates that the relations between Stenkil and Sweyn Estridsen were amicable. It is likely that the Swedish ruler had an interest in supporting Sweyn against the attempts of Harald Hardrada to subjugate Denmark between 1047 and 1062. Historian Aksel E. Christensen has concluded that the Norwegian-Danish peace treaty of 1064 was a success for the Swedish policy to prevent one king from ruling the kingdoms to the north and the south ofSkagerrak.[20] Strangely, theKnytlinga Saga tells that "King Sweyn also had a dispute with the Swedish King Stenkil, who went with his army against King Sweyn, although he did not appropriate any of his territories".[21]
Adam of Bremen, Snorri Sturluson and theHervarar saga all state that Stenkil died at the time of theBattle of Hastings in England (1066).[22] His death triggered a violent civil war, perhaps caused by rising tension between Christianity and adherents of the pagan religion.[23] According to a legend Stenkil was buried in the "royal hill" nearLevene inVästergötland.[2] His two sonsHalsten andInge the Elder would both become kings of Sweden. In a letter to Halsten and Inge from c. 1081,Pope Gregory VII apparently praised Stenkil, since he expressed hope that they might compete with their "predecessor" in honourable lives and deeds.[24]
TheHervarar saga has a great deal to tell about Stenkil:
Steinkell hét ríkrmaðr í Svíaríki ok kynstórr; móðir hans hét Ástríðr, dóttir Njáls Finnssonar ins skjálga af Hálogalandi, en faðir hans var Rögnvaldr inn gamli. Steinkell var fyrst jarl í Svíþjóð, en eptir dauða Eymundar konungs tóku Svíar hann til konungs. Þá gekk konungdómr ór langfeðgaætt í Svíþjóð inna fornu konunga. Steinkell var mikill höfðingi. Hann átti dóttur Eymundar konungs. Hann varð sóttdauðr í Svíþjóð nær því, er Haraldr konungr fell á Englandi. Ingi hét sonr Steinkels, er Svíar tóku til konungs næst eptir Hákon.[25] | There was a great man of noble family in Sweden called Steinkel. His mother's name wasAstrith, the daughter of Njal the son of Fin the Squinter, fromHalogaland; and his father was Rögnvald the Old. Steinkel was anEarl in Sweden at first, and then after the death ofEmund the Old, the Swedes elected him their King. Then the throne passed out of the line of the ancient kings of Sweden. Steinkel was a mighty prince. He married the daughter of King Eymund. He died in his bed in Sweden about the time that KingHarold fell in England. Steinkel had a son calledIngi, who became King of Sweden afterHaakon.[13] |
Stenkil was married to adaughter of Emund the Old, and had at least two children:
It has been speculated that one of thetwo pretenders called Eric (around 1066–67) was his son, although there is nothing to support this assumption.[26] A later king,Håkan the Red (1070s), is associated with Stenkil's abode Levene in Västergötland and might have been a close kinsman.[8]
Stenkil Born: 1030 Died: 1066 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | King of Sweden c. 1060–1066 | Succeeded by |
