Jon Kuvlung

Last updated

Jon Ingesson Kuvlung (died 1188) was a pretender to the Royal Crown during the civil war era in Norway. He was a rival of the reigning King Sverre of Norway. [1]

Contents

Background

Jon Ingesson was claimed to be a son of former King Inge I of Norway, although the Sverris saga , the main source of information for this period of Norwegian history, claims this to have been false. Jon Ingesson was a young cleric when he was set up to the task of figurehead. He was then living as a monk at Hovedøya Abbey on the island of Hovedøya outside Oslo. The nickname Kuvlung derives from Old Norse word kuvl meaning monk cloak. Jon Kuvlung ruled in the region of Viken as rival king until killed by Birkebeiners in Bergen in 1188. [2]

Kuvlungs

During the autumn 1185, former supporters of King Magnus V of Norway from Viken met with Jon Kuvlung. Jon Kuvlung was subsequently declared to be king at Haugating in Tønsberg. The leading man was Símon Kárason whose wife, Margrete Arnesdotter (Margrét Arnadóttir), had been the half-sister of King Inge I of Norway and the granddaughter of dowager Queen Ingrid Ragnvaldsdotter. Margrét Arnadóttir was additionally the full sister of Nikolás Arnason, Bishop of Oslo and a prominent opponent of King Sverre. Símon Kárason and Margrét Arnadóttir were also the parents of Philippus Simonsson, a future pretender to the throne of Norway. [3] [4]

This group was in many ways the direct successor of the Heklung party which had previously challenged the rule of King Sverre. The Heklungs had a close connection with the Church. Although the Church did not openly support the Kuvlungs, it at least gave its silent approval. The Church never spoke up against Jon for leaving his monastery, while his opponent King Sverre was heavily criticised for abandoning his prior duties as a priest on the Faroes. The Kuvlungs soon gained control of eastern and western Norway which had been the old Heklung strongholds.

During the Autumn of 1186, the Kuvlungs attacked Nidaros. This offensive took King Sverre by surprise. He took refuge in the recently constructed stone castle Sverresborg. Unable to take the castle, the Kuvlungs were forced to retreat. In 1188, King Sverre sailed south with a large fleet. They first met at Tønsberg, but neither side dared to offer battle. The Kuvlungs slipped away to Bergen. King Sverre attacked Bergen just before Christmas. Jon's boat became stuck on a rock when he was rowed out on the harbor to face the enemy. Here Jon Kuvlung was killed, ending the Kuvlung uprising.

Historic context

Since 1130 there had been several interlocked civil wars of varying scale and intensity. The background for these conflicts were the unclear Norwegian succession laws, social conditions and the struggle between Church and King. The rallying point regularly was a royal son, who was set up as the head figure of the party in question, to oppose the rule of king from the contesting party. In 1184 King Sverre I of Norway and his party the Birkebeiners had defeated King Magnus V of Norway and the Heklungs at the Battle of Fimreite. In this battle King Magnus was killed and King Sverre had ruled as uncontested King of Norway for several years. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birkebeiner</span> Norwegian political faction during the Civil War era, active from 1174 to the 1210s

The Birkebein Party or Birkebeinar was the name for a rebellious party in Norway, formed in 1174 around the pretender to the Norwegian throne, Eystein Meyla. The name has its origins in propaganda from the established party that the rebels were so poor that they made their shoes of birch bark. Although originally a pejorative, the opposition adopted the Birkebeiner name for themselves, and continued using it after they came to power in 1184.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sverre of Norway</span> King of Norway from 1184 to 1202

Sverre Sigurdsson was the king of Norway from 1184 to 1202.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inge Bårdsson</span> King of Norway

Inge II was King of Norway from 1204 to 1217. His reign was within the later stages of the period known in Norwegian history as the age of civil wars. Inge was the king of the birkebeiner faction. The conclusion of the settlement of Kvitsøy with the bagler faction in 1208 led to peace for the last nine years of Inge’s reign, at the price of Inge and the birkebeiner recognising bagler rule over Viken.

Magnus Sigurdsson, also known as Magnus the Blind, was King of Norway from 1130 to 1135 and again from 1137 to 1139. His period as king marked the beginning of the civil war era in Norway, which lasted until 1240.

Guttorm Sigurdsson was the king of Norway from January to August 1204, during the Norwegian civil war era. As a grandson of King Sverre, he was proclaimed king by the Birkebeiner faction when he was just four years old. Although obviously not in control of the events surrounding him, Guttorm's accession to the throne under the effective regency of Haakon the Crazy led to renewed conflict between the Birkebeiner and the Bagler factions, the latter supported militarily by Valdemar II of Denmark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bagler</span>

The Bagli Party or Bagler was a faction or party during the Norwegian Civil Wars. The Bagler faction was made up principally of the Norwegian aristocracy, clergy and merchants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sverresborg</span> Ruin. of medieval fortification in Norway

Sverresborg or Sverre Sigurdsson's castle was a fort and residence built in the medieval city of Nidaros by King Sverre Sigurdsson. The fortification was built in support of Sverre Sigurdsson's struggle against his rival King Magnus Erlingsson to claim the throne of Norway. The site now forms part of the Sverresborg Trøndelag Folk Museum, an open-air museum for the region of Trøndelag.

Sigurd Sigurdsson Markusfostre was a pretender and rival king during the Civil war era in Norway.

Sigurd Magnusson was a Norwegian nobleman who campaigned against King Sverre of Norway during the Civil war era in Norway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inge Magnusson</span>

Inge Magnusson or Inge Baglar-king was from 1196 to 1202 the Bagler candidate for pretender to the Norwegian throne during the Civil war era in Norway.

Erling Magnusson Steinvegg or Erlingr Magnússon Steinveggr was the candidate of the Bagler for the Norwegian throne from 1204 until his death. His candidacy resulted in the second Bagler War which lasted until 1208, when the question of the Norwegian succession was temporarily settled.

Philip Simonsson was a Norwegian aristocrat and from 1207 to 1217 was the Bagler party pretender to the throne of Norway during the civil war era in Norway.

Haakon the Crazy was a Norwegian jarl and Birkebeiner chieftain during the civil war era in Norway. Håkon Galen was born no later than the 1170s and died in 1214. His epithet "the crazy" or "the mad" can also be translated as frenzied, furious or frantic and probably refers to ferociousness in battle.

The Bagler Sagas are kings' sagas relating to events which occurred between 1202–17 and are a primary source of Norwegian history during this period. There are two versions, one shorter and one longer, which are in modern editions usually printed as one saga. The authors of both versions are unknown. There are indications that both of them were Icelanders, although this cannot be said for certain.

Eysteinn Erlendsson was Archbishop of Nidaros from 1161 to his death in 1188.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Civil war era in Norway</span> Period of Norwegian history from 1130 to 1240

The civil war era in Norway began in 1130 and ended in 1240. During this time in Norwegian history, some two dozen rival kings and pretenders waged wars to claim the throne.

Ingrid Ragnvaldsdotter was born a member of the Swedish royal family, became a member of Danish royalty by marriage and later was Queen consort of Norway as the spouse of Harald IV of Norway. Married four times, Ingrid had a number of children who played prominent roles in Swedish and Norwegian history.

Nicholas Arnesson was a Norwegian bishop and nobleman during the Norwegian civil war era. He was a leader in the opposition against King Sverre of Norway and founder of the Bagler party. He is a chief antagonist in Sverris saga. and also appeared in The Pretenders, an historic drama written by Henrik Ibsen in 1863.

Sigurd Erlingsson Ribbung was a Norwegian nobleman and pretender to the throne of Norway during the civil war era in Norway.

Events in the year 1202 in Norway.

References

Other sources

Preceded by
Magnus Erlingsson (King of Norway)
Viken-party pretender to the Norwegian throne Succeeded by