| Astrid Olofsdotter | |
|---|---|
 Astrid as imagined by artist Christian Krohg in 1899 | |
| Queen consort of Norway | |
| Tenure | 1019–1028 |
| Died | 1035 |
| Spouse | Olaf II of Norway |
| Issue | Wulfhild of Norway |
| House | Munsö |
| Father | Olof Skötkonung of Sweden |
| Mother | Edla |
Astrid Olofsdotter (Norwegian: Astrid Olavsdatter; English: Aestrith) (died 1035) was the queen consort of King Olaf II of Norway. [1]
Astrid was born to King Olof Skötkonung of Sweden and his Obotritian mistress Edla. She was the half sister of King Anund Jacob of Sweden and sister of King Emund the Old of Sweden. It is said that she and her brother Emund were not treated well by their stepmother, Queen Estrid, and that they were sent away to foster parents. Astrid was sent to a man named Egil in Västergötland. [2]
In 1016, it had been decided that Norway and Sweden should come to more peaceful relations by a royal marriage alliance. Noblemen of both countries tried to arrange a marriage between King Olaf of Norway and Astrid's legitimate half-sister, Princess Ingegerd Olofsdotter of Sweden, but Ingegerd was instead married to Yaroslav I the Wise, Grand Prince of Novgorod and Kiev. [3] Instead Astrid was married to King Olaf in Sarpsborg in 1019. [4] Some sources say that Astrid replaced Ingegerd by the wish of her father, while others say that the marriage took place against the will of her father, through the cooperation of King Olaf and the Swedish jarl Ragnvald Ulfsson. [5]
Astrid was described as beautiful, articulate and generous, and well liked by others.[ citation needed ] She was the mother of Wulfhild of Norway (1020–1070), who married Ordulf, Duke of Saxony, [6] and the stepmother of King Magnus the Good, with whom she had a good relationship. In 1030, she was widowed when her husband was killed. She left Norway and returned to the Swedish court, where she had a high position. When her stepson Magnus visited Sigtuna on his way to claim the Norwegian throne, she gave him her official support and encouraged Sweden to do so as well.
Estrid of the Obotrites was Queen of Sweden in the Viking age, a West Slavic princess married to Olof Skötkonung, King of Sweden c. 1000–1022. She was the mother of King Anund Jacob of Sweden and the Kievan Rus' saint and grand princess Ingegerd Olofsdotter.
Magnus Olafsson, better known as Magnus the Good, was King of Norway from 1035 and King of Denmark from 1042 until his death in 1047.
Olaf III or Olaf Haraldsson, known as Olaf the Peaceful, was King of Norway from 1067 until his death in 1093.
Olof Skötkonung, sometimes stylized as Olaf the Swede, was King of Sweden, son of Eric the Victorious and, according to Icelandic sources, Sigrid the Haughty. He succeeded his father in c. 995. He stands at the threshold of recorded history, since he is the first Swedish ruler about whom there is substantial knowledge. He is regarded as the first king known to have ruled both the Swedes and the Geats. In Sweden, the reign of king Olov Skötkonung is considered to be the transition from the Viking age to the Middle Ages, because he was the first Christian king of the Swedes, who were the last to adopt Christianity in Scandinavia. He is associated with a growing influence of the church in what is today southwestern and central Sweden. Norse beliefs persisted in parts of Sweden until the 12th century.
Ragnvald Ulfsson the Old was a jarl of Västergötland or Östergötland and was married to a sister of King Olav Tryggvason.
Ingvar the Far-Travelled was a Swedish Viking who led an expedition that fought in Georgia.
Austrfararvísur is a skaldic poem composed by the Icelandic skald Sigvatr Þórðarson c. 1019. It is written in the meter dróttkvætt.
Bjørn Stallare was an 11th-century Norwegian diplomat and civil servant during the reign of King Olaf II of Norway.
Euphemia of Rügen was Queen of Norway as the spouse of Håkon V of Norway. She is famous in history as a literary figure, and known for commissioning translations of romances.
Malmfred of Kiev was a Norwegian and Danish queen consort, wife first to King Sigurd I of Norway and second to king Eric II of Denmark.
Ingeborg Eriksdotter was a Danish princess. She was married to King Magnus VI of Norway and was Queen consort of Norway. As queen dowager, she played an important part in politics during the minority of her son King Eirik II of Norway in 1280-82.
Bridget Haraldsdotter, also Brigida was Queen of Sweden as the spouse of King Magnus II.
Ingegerd Haraldsdotter was a Norwegian princess who, by her successive marriages, became queen of Denmark and Sweden. Her husbands were Olaf I of Denmark and Philip of Sweden.
Elisiv of Kiev was a Princess of Kiev and Queen Consort of King Harald III of Norway.
Ingerid Swendsdatter of Denmark was a Danish princess who became Queen of Norway as the spouse of King Olaf III of Norway.
Ingebjørg Guttormsdatter was a medieval Norwegian Queen consort and spouse of King Eystein I of Norway.
Edla, was a Slavic Viking Age woman. She was the mother of King Emund of Sweden and Queen Astrid of Norway.
Wulfhild of Norway, Old West Norse: Úlfhildr Ólafsdóttir, Swedish: Ulfhild Olofsdotter, was a Norwegian princess, and a duchess of Saxony by marriage to Ordulf, Duke of Saxony.
Tora Torbergsdatter was a Norwegian royal consort. She was the mother of two kings of Norway. It is possible, but unconfirmed, that she was also queen of Denmark or Sweden.
Ingegerd Olofsdotter of Sweden, also known as Irene, Anna and Saint Anna , was a Swedish princess and a Grand Princess of Kiev. She was the daughter of Swedish King Olof Skötkonung and Estrid of the Obotrites and the consort of Yaroslav I the Wise of Kiev. She is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church. Ingegerd or Saint Anna is often confused with the mother of Saint Vladimir “the Enlightener” of the Rus. This is mainly because Ingegerd and Yaroslav also had a son named Vladimir. However, Saint Vladimir was the father of Ingegerd’s husband Yaroslav I “the Wise”, thus making her Saint Vladimir’s daughter-in-law. Saint Vladimir was the son of Sviatoslav and Malusha.