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Chronicon Roskildense (Danish:RoskildekrønikenEnglish:Roskilde Chronicle) is a smallDanish historical work, written inLatin. It is one of the oldest known attempts to write a coherent account ofDanish history by a Danish author, spanning from the introduction ofChristianity in Denmark to the author's own time in the middle of the 12th century.[1]
The original chronicle covers the time frame of 826 toc. 1143. A later addition from the reign of KingValdemar I of Denmark, of a few more pages, takes the chronicle to 1157 when King Valdemar I gains the throne of Denmark; these additional pages are mostly direct quotes from other sources.[2]
The author is unknown, but has been assumed to have had some connection toRoskilde Cathedral. The author is very confident with matters dealing withRoskilde. Churchly matters are not of special interest to the author who writes vividly about all kinds of local matters. Events themselves are only briefly covered while people taking part in them or even causing them are throughout covered with great passion.
UnlikeSaxo'sGesta Danorum orAggesen'sBrevis Historia Regum Dacie,Chronicon Roskildense often covers the 'losing' side in these very same events as told by Saxo Grammaticus and Svend Aggesen. At times the author can seem very bitter and blinded by politic; however, this fact also makes this chronicle a very interesting piece of work.The early part of the work is in many cases based onAdam of Bremen'sDescriptio insularum Aquilonis, sometimes even using direct quotes. However, the author only takes what is needed and the meaning is not always the same.
As with many Danish chronicles, the exact time of writing is not known with certainty. The original chronicle ends very suddenly. The last subject written about concerns the quarrel between BishopRike ofSchleswig and BishopEskil of Lund over theArchbishop seat of Lund between 1137 and 1138.Olaf "II" Haraldsen, the son ofHarald Kesja who is killed in 1143, is still alive as of the writing. With these in mind, the book must have been finishedc. 1143.[3]
The original manuscript is lost today and the chronicle exists now only in copies made in the 13th, 16th and 17th centuries. Copies in Latin reside in: