Notes |
- BIOGRAPHY
Svantepolk was born about 1230, the son of Knud Valdemarsen, duke of Estland, Blekinge and Lolland, and (Hedwig) of Pomorze Gdanskie. Svantepolk's father was a bastard son of Valdemar II Sejr, king of Denmark with a high born Swedish lady Helene Guttormsdotter, daughter of Guttorm, Jarl in Sweden. Svantepolk's brother was Erik Knudsen, duke of Sudjutland, who died in 1304.
Svantepolk settled in Sweden in the mid-13th century. Before 1253 he married Benedikte Sunadotter of Ymseborg, the younger of the daughters of Helena Sverkersdotter and Sune Folkason, a grandson of Birger Brosa, Jarl in Sweden. Benedikte's mother Helena Sverkersdotter was the only daughter of Sverker II 'den yngre', king in Sweden and his first wife Bengte Ebbesdatter of the Galen family of Denmark. Benedikte's elder sister Katarina Sunadotter of Ymseborg was wife of Erik Eriksson 'Laspe', king in Sweden, making Svantepolk the late king's brother-in-law. Svantepolk became the lawspeaker (justiciar) of Östergötland and a wealthy feudal lord in Sweden.
Svantepolk and Benedikte had a son Knut (who died childless about 1304) and four daughters, of whom three would have progeny, marrying lords of Swedish high nobility and becoming the ancestresses of several Swedish noble families. Svantepolk himself, with royal ancestry and rights to ducal dignity of Halland and Revalia, was a valued ancestor, well-remembered in his Swedish descendants' pedigrees and family lore. The name Svante, a shortened version of Svantepolk, was given to many Swedish descendants. He died before 21 February 1310.
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In contemporary documentation, he carries title/honorific 'miles dominus', it means ~lord knight~.
Owner of Strömsrum in Alsterå rivermouth in Ålem in Stranda near Mönsterås near Kalmar.
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Why the Danish-born Svantepolk settled to reside in Sweden (chiefly in Östergötland) for all his life, over half a century? His marriage with Benedikte seems to be an outcome of, and not a reason, for his move to Sweden.
For almost a century, there had been a matter that disturbed governments of Sweden: the King of Denmark had inherited a vast pile of originally Sverker-family landed properties. Such holdings are a potential danger, as not infrequently Denmark and Sweden were as much as in war against each other. This has come into being when Burislev Sverkson, owner of that share of his father's Ostgote properties, died sometime around 1170. His only surviving sibling and therefore universal heir is his half-sister, Queen Sofie. Valdemar II of Denmark inherited them from his mother. To avoid further problems, upon Valdemar's death (1241), his heirs agreed that his son Knud and Knud's son Svantepolk receive these among their share of inheritance. Although Knud is born outside of marriage, he is permitted as one of the heirs. This presumably come from the fact that Knud mwas born when both his parents were widowed, and therefore Knud is not an adulterine child - instead looks like his birth is to an marriage-engaged couple who only later broke their engagenment, so that Valdemar II marries Berengaria only after this.
Swedish government of King Eric XI is happy about the arrangement and Svaltepolk tkes it upon himself to be (& become) a Swede. Moreover, the princely-born Svantepolk has no real commitments to any old factions and parties of Sweden's internal politics, and thus he supports the government of King Eric, jarl Birger, king (Swedish) Valdemar, Magnus ladulås and King Birger. Also Svaltepolk is permitted to marry the heiress whose husband could cause havoc and even continue Sverkerian dynasty.
As Svantepolk's properties come from Sverker family, however through not being related by blood, there existed a custom of the time and culti=ure that his obligation is to marry a Sverker descendant so that his own heirs will again carry Sverker blood in their veins. [Author: Sjöström]
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