Norwegian Nobility - Ancient Aristocracy - Civil War Era

Civil War Era

Two primary factors, i.e. (1) kings who died without having produced a legitimate male heir and (2) lacking or unclear rules of throne inheritance, caused disagreement about the throne. This contributed to the creation of military conflicts between various pretendents and their supporters, subsequently leading to the civil war (1130–1240).

The Lendman Party (Norwegian: Lendmannsflokken or Lendmannspartiet), which appeared after the 1150s, and its successor, the Baglers, formed in 1196, were movements consisting of persons of the secular aristocracy (feudal lords) and of the clerical aristocracy (bishops), among others Earl Erling ‘the Slanted’ Ormsson, who, preferably with a descendant of Olaf ‘the Holy’, sought to introduce a one-king hereditary monarchy on the continental European model. The civil war, in which various groups fought for their candidate to become king, ultimately led to the victory of the Birchlegs and the House of Sverre, which thereby took over the throne from the previous royal house.

Beginning with the ascent to the throne of King Sverre in 1184, he and his descendants ousted their enemies who belonged to groups like the Baglers (1196–1217) and the Ribbungs (1219–1227), thus eliminating and replacing considerable parts of the ancient aristocracy. Sverre had in fact before battles proclaimed to his soldiers that he who killed a lendman, should himself become a lendman. However, some former enemies swore loyalty to King Sverre and therefore continued into the class which later became the old nobility.