Skule Bårdsson

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Skule Baardsson or Duke Skule (Old Norse Skúli Bárðarson) was an earl and a duke in Norway, and claimant to the royal throne itself against his son-in-law king Haakon Haakonsson.

Skule was born around 1189. He was a son of Baard Guttormsson and half-brother of king Inge Baardsson who in his last years elevated Skule to be Norway's jarl.

Haakon Haakonsson, of the Birkebeiner party, became king from 1217 when he was 13 years old, after Inge. Skule, who held the title of jarl (earl), held much of the royal power. It was sort of power sharing between Skule and Haakon. Skule's center of power was mostly in Nidaros. In order to facilitate compromise between the two powerfuls, Skule's elder daughter Margret of Norway was in 1225 married to king Haakon.

Skule thought he had too little of the power and intermittently participated in opposition against king Haakon. As another attempt of compromise, in 1237 Skule was given the title duke (hertug), first such in Norway.

After a while, he restarted to rebel against king Haakon. Among others, the Icelander writer Snorre Sturlason allied with Skule in the conflict.

Henrik Ibsen's play "Kongsemnerne" 1863 is about the dispute between Duke Skule and king Haakon.

In 1239 duke Skule allowed his supporters to proclaim him king of Norway at the traditional Øyrating. Skule also tried, unsuccessfully, to have jarl Knut Haakonsson, his other son-in-law to his side. He raised a military host against king Haakon IV of Norway and won a battle at Låka in Nannestad, but lost in Oslo.His party was called the "Vårbelgs"(spring pelts i.e. bad quality fur=poor people) In May 1240 he was defeated by king Haakon and his supporters. He sought refuge in Elgeseter monastery in Nidaros but Haakon's men burned down the monastery and killed Skule.

Skule's rivalry for kingship was the last phase of the civil wars period of Norwegian history, which lasted from around 1130 to 1240. During that long warring period there were several interlocked conflicts of varying scale and intensity. Norway was accustomed to royal sons fighting each other in order to wrest kingship to himself. The background for these conflicts were the unclear Norwegian succession laws, social conditions and the struggle between Church and King. There were then two main parties, firstly known by varying names or no names at all, but finally condensed into parties of Bagler and Birkebeiner.