Rikissa of Denmark
Encyclopedia
Queen consort
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles. Historically, queens consort do not share the king regnant's political and military powers. Most queens in history were queens consort...
of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, spouse of King Eric X of Sweden
Eric X of Sweden
Eric "X" of Sweden, Swedish: Erik Knutsson; Old Norse: Eiríkr Knútsson was the King of Sweden between 1208 and 1216. Also known as Eric the Survivor when he became King, he was the only remaining son of King Canute I of Sweden and his queen of an undetermined name, who probably was Cecilia...
and mother of King Eric XI of Sweden
Eric XI of Sweden
Eric "XI" of Sweden, or Eric the Lisp and Lame Swedish: Erik Eriksson läspe och halte; Old Norse: Eiríkr Eiríksson was king of Sweden in 1222–1229 and 1234–1250.-Background:...
.
Biography
Richeza was a daughter of King Valdemar I of DenmarkValdemar I of Denmark
Valdemar I of Denmark , also known as Valdemar the Great, was King of Denmark from 1157 until 1182.-Biography:...
and Sophia of Minsk. She received her first name, originally a Lotharingian-Burgundian
Duchy of Burgundy
The Duchy of Burgundy , was heir to an ancient and prestigious reputation and a large division of the lands of the Second Kingdom of Burgundy and in its own right was one of the geographically larger ducal territories in the emergence of Early Modern Europe from Medieval Europe.Even in that...
female name, in honor of her maternal grandmother, the late Richeza of Poland.
In c. 1210 the new king Eric X of Sweden
Eric X of Sweden
Eric "X" of Sweden, Swedish: Erik Knutsson; Old Norse: Eiríkr Knútsson was the King of Sweden between 1208 and 1216. Also known as Eric the Survivor when he became King, he was the only remaining son of King Canute I of Sweden and his queen of an undetermined name, who probably was Cecilia...
, who had deposed his predecessor Sverker II of Sweden
Sverker II of Sweden
Sverker II was King of Sweden from 1196 to 1208.-Biography:...
, desired to build cordial and peaceful relations with Denmark, which had traditionally supported the House of Sverker
House of Sverker
After the extinction of the House of Stenkil and the ascension of Sverker I of Sweden in 1130, a civil war commenced. In the beginning, there were several pretenders, of whom Sverker I emerged as victorious, for a time...
, against the Norwegian-supported dynasty of Eric. That was why Richeza, sister of the then reigning Valdemar II of Denmark
Valdemar II of Denmark
Valdemar II , called Valdemar the Victorious or Valdemar the Conqueror , was the King of Denmark from 1202 until his death in 1241. The nickname Sejr is a later invention and was not used during the King's own lifetime...
, was married to king Eric.
When she arrived at the Swedish coast, the legend
Legend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
says, she expressed her surprise that she was expected to ride and not travel by carriage, as she had been used to in her birth country, and the Swedish noblewomen and ladies-in-waiting had encouraged her to adapt the customs of her new home country instead of trying to establish her own "Jutian" customs.
Queen Richeza bore exclusively daughters as long as her spouse was alive. King Eric died in 1216. Dowager Queen Richeza was pregnant at the time and then gave birth to her only surviving son, the future Eric XI of Sweden
Eric XI of Sweden
Eric "XI" of Sweden, or Eric the Lisp and Lame Swedish: Erik Eriksson läspe och halte; Old Norse: Eiríkr Eiríksson was king of Sweden in 1222–1229 and 1234–1250.-Background:...
, after the death of her spouse. The family of King Eric X, however, was driven to exile from Sweden as the House of Sverker heir, John I of Sweden
John I of Sweden
John I of Sweden was a Swedish king elected in 1216. -Background:John was the son of King Sverker II of Sweden of the House of Sverker and Queen Ingegerd of the Bjälbo dynasty. King Sverker had been beaten in the Battle of Lena and later killed in the Battle of Gestilren in 1210...
, was elected king there, to succeed Richeza's husband. It was in Denmark where Richeza herself died, without seeing her son's accession to the throne (in 1222), nor her daughters' marriages.
Children
- Sophia Eriksdotter (died 1241), married Henry III of Rostock
- Martha EriksdotterMartha EriksdotterMartha Eriksdotter is supposed to have been the daughter of Erik X, King of Sweden. However, her existence has been doubted by modern Swedish historians, and she can have been made up by Charles VIII or his chroniclers to provide him with a more impressive background.She was supposed to have...
married the MarshalMarshalMarshal , is a word used in several official titles of various branches of society. The word is an ancient loan word from Old French, cf...
Nils Sixtensson (Sparre) - Ingeborg EriksdotterIngeborg Eriksdotter of SwedenIngeborg Eriksdotter , was a Swedish Princess and Duchess, daughter of king Eric X of Sweden, eldest sibling of king Eric XI of Sweden, wife of Birger Jarl and mother of king Valdemar I of Sweden.- Biography :...
(died 1254), married to Birger JarlBirger jarl, or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland. Additionally, he is traditionally attributed to have...
, regent of Sweden - Marianna, who married a duke of Pomerania
- Eric XI of Sweden (1216––1250)