Eystein I Magnusson (Norwegian

Norwegian language

Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...

: Øystein) was king of Norway from 1103 to 1123.

Biography

Eystein became king, together with his brothers Sigurd

Sigurd I of Norway

Sigurd I Magnusson , also known as Sigurd the Crusader , was King of Norway from 1103 to 1130. His rule, together with his brother Eystein I of Norway , has been regarded by historians as a golden age for the medieval Kingdom of Norway...

 and Olaf

Olaf Magnusson of Norway

Olaf Magnusson was king of Norway 1103–1115. He was the son of King Magnus Barefoot and Sigrid, daughter of Sakse of Vik....

, when his father Magnus Barefoot

Magnus III of Norway

Magnus Barefoot or Magnus III Olafsson was King of Norway from 1093 until 1103 and King of Mann and the Isles from 1099 until 1103.-Background:...

 died in 1103. Olaf died in 1115 at a young age, leaving Eystein and Sigurd as co-rulers until Eystein's death in 1123, when Sigurd became the sole ruler of Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

.

Many historians view Sigurd and Eystein's rule as a golden age for the medieval Kingdom of Norway. The country was able to flourish both in wealth and expansion. While Sigurd was on crusade from 1107 to 1111, Eystein served as regent for the whole country. His relationship to Sigurd was strained, but open conflict was avoided. Whereas Sigurd made Norway known abroad, Eystein worked for economic and cultural progress within Norway. After returning to Norway in 1111, Sigurd came back to a flourishing and prosperous kingdom. King Eystein had used all his energy and willpower to create a strong and stable country, and the church had especially gained from this.

Eystein constructed several churches, a port in Agdenes

Agdenes

Agdenes is a municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre is the village of Selbekken. Other villages in the municipality include Ingdalen, Lensvik, Vassbygda, and Leksa.-General information:...

 at the south end of the mouth of the Trondheimsfjord

Trondheimsfjord

The Trondheimsfjord , an inlet of the Norwegian Sea, is Norway's third longest fjord at long. It is located in the west central part of the country, and it stretches from Ørland in west to Steinkjer in north, passing the city of Trondheim on its way...

 and hostels for travellers. He also brought Jämtland

Jämtland

Jämtland or Jamtland is a historical province or landskap in the center of Sweden in northern Europe. It borders to Härjedalen and Medelpad in the south, Ångermanland in the east, Lapland in the north and Trøndelag and Norway in the west...

 under Norwegian rule, according to the saga of Sigurd and his brothers in the Heimskringla

Heimskringla

Heimskringla is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorri Sturluson ca. 1230...

.

Eystein seems to have been particularly active in Bergen. Among other things, he moved the royal seat from Alrekstad (Årstad) to Holmen outer harbor, and here he erected a royal hall, which according to Snorri was the most imposing wooden building that was erected in Norway. Eystein is also believed to have founded Munkeliv Abbey

Munkeliv Abbey

Munkeliv Abbey was a Benedictine abbey located at Nordnes in Bergen, Norway. It was one of the oldest monasteries in Norway, and also one of the wealthiest and best-documented.-History:...

, which he equipped with a large land. The interest of the King in Bergen had most likely related to the economic development in the early 1100's. The dried fish trade, of which Bergen was a hub, was by then underway between Bergen and the seaport of Grimsby

Grimsby

Grimsby is a seaport on the Humber Estuary in Lincolnshire, England. It has been the administrative centre of the unitary authority area of North East Lincolnshire since 1996...

 in the east of England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

Eystein married Ingebjørg Guttormsdatter

Ingebjørg Guttormsdatter

Ingebjørg Guttormsdatter was a medieval Norwegian Queen consort and spouse of King Eystein I of Norway .Ingebjørg Guttormsdatter was the daughter of Guttorm Toresson from Lillehammer...

, who was from a prominent noble family in Gudbrandsdalen. Their marriage was part of King Eystein's alliance-building in the eastern part of Norway. They ad a daughter, Maria Øysteinsdatter, who was the mother of royal pretender Olav Ugjæva

Olav Ugjæva

Olav Ugjæva was a pretender to the Norwegian throne during the civil war era in Norway. Olaf was named king in 1166, but was subsequently defeated by King Magnus V of Norway and forced to flee the country.-Background:Olav Gudbrandsson was the son of Gudbrand Skavhoggsson and Maria...

 (Olaf the Unlucky). Olaf was named king in 1166, during the civil war era in Norway

Civil war era in Norway

The Civil war era of Norwegian history is a term used for the period in the history of Norway between 1130 and 1240. During this time, a series of civil wars were fought between rival kings and pretenders to the throne of Norway. The reasons for the wars is one of the most debated topics in...

, but was subsequently defeated by Magnus V

Magnus V of Norway

Magnus V Erlingsson was a King of Norway during the Civil war era in Norway.-Biography:Magnus Erlingsson was probably born in Etne in Hordaland. He was the son of Erling Skakke. His father was a Norwegian nobleman who earned his reputation crusading with Rögnvald Kali Kolsson, the Earl of Orkney...

 (Magnus Erlingsson) and forced to flee the country.

A royal bust in marble with the inscription Eystein REX from Munkeliv Abbey is dated to slightly before the middle of the 1100s. The sculpture is now in the Bergen Museum

Bergen Museum

The Bergen Museum is a university museum in Bergen, Norway. Founded in 1825 with the intent of building large collections in the fields of culture and natural history, it became the grounds for most of the academic activity in the city, a tradition which has prevailed since the museum became part...

 (Historisk museum i Bergen).

External links

• The Saga of Sigurd, Øystein and Olaf in the Heimskringla
• Alexander Linklater, 'The King Who Listened', The Guardian
  The Guardian
  The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
  
  , December 23, 2006 (a retelling of Ívars þáttr Ingimundarsonar
  Ívars þáttr Ingimundarsonar
  Ívars þáttr Ingimundarsonar is a short þáttr which emphasizes king Eysteinn's goodness.Ívarr, an Icelander, lived at the court of king Eysteinn, who liked him much. His brother Þorfinnr went to Norway too, but he was jealous of Ívarr and soon came back. Before his departure, Ívarr asked him to...
  
  )

Ancestry