Sigrid* Storråda / Sigrid the Haughty Storrada (940 - 1014)

B.Brox: Don't mix her with Świętosława, Saum-Aesa, Gunnhilda, daughter of Mieszko I, sister to Bolesław I Chrobry, King of Poland. as several Wikipedia and other sources does.
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Sigrid the Haughty, also known as Sigrid Storråda, was a Nordic queen of contested historicity. She is generally held to be apocryphal in modern scholarship, see e.g. Birgitta Fritz.

She is a character who appears in many sagas and historical chronicles. It is unclear if she was a real person or a compound person (with several real women's lives and deeds attributed to one compound person).

Sigríð married the first time, wedding Eiríkr the Victorious (King Eiríkr VI Sigrsæll) of Sweden. She had one son by this marriage: King Óláf II Eiríksson of Sweden, also called Olof Skotkonung. It was in 994 she wed Sweyn Forkbeard under her Scandinavian name, Sigrid Storråda, and the marriage bore five daughters, half-sisters of Danish princes Harald and Canute the Great.

The most commonly-held understanding is that Harald and Canute brought back Świętosława from Poland after their stepmother Sigrid left upon the death of their father.

Contemporary chroniclers

Theories hold that Sigrid was the daughter of a mythical Burislav (possibly Mieszko I of Poland and Dubrawka). The medieval chroniclers who were Sigrid's contemporaries seem to support the hypothesis that her father was Mieszko, though recent analysis suggests they confused her with Gunhild, the Polish princess who changed her name from Świętosława when she married Swein Forkbeard.

Several medieval chronicles state that the mother of Harald II of Denmark and Canute the Great was either a Pole or possibly a member of a closely related Slavic tribe. Arguments which support this assertion include:

* Thietmar mentions that the daughter of Mieszko I of Poland and sister of Boleslaw I of Poland married Sweyn Forkbeard and gave him two sons, Canute the Great and Harold II of Denmark, but he does not mention her name. Thietmar is probably the best informed of all medieval chroniclers, since he was contemporary with described events and well-informed about the events in Poland and Denmark.

* Adam of Bremen writes that a Polish princess was the wife of Eric the Victorious and that she was the mother of Canute the Great and Harold II of Denmark. Adam's information here is considered unreliable by some historians.

* Gesta Cnutonis regis mentions in one short passage that Canute and his brother went to the land of the Slavs, and brought back their mother, who was living there. This does not necessarily mean that his mother was Slavic, but nevertheless this chronicle strongly suggests that she was.

* There is an inscription in "Liber vitae of the New Minster and Hyde Abbey Winchester", that king Canute's sister's name was "Santslaue" ("Santslaue soror CNVTI regis nostri"), which without doubt is a Slavic name. J. Steenstrup suggests that Canute's sister may have been named after her mother, hence coining (the now generally agreed upon) hypothesis, that her Slavic name is Świętosława, but only as a reconstruction based on a single mention of her daughter's name and the hypothesis that she named her daughter after herself. This statement also supports the theory that Sigrid was the daughter of Mieszko I.

The information in Scandinavian sources is different from that of contemporary chroniclers, which suggest, Sigrid was a Slav, yet confusion amongst contemporaries should tend to lean historians towards the corroborative sources.

Additionally, the things we can see the monastic scribes do to the facts surrounding the two wives conundrum should be seen as putting the 'contemporary chronicles' under a heavy cloud of unreliability on such matters. King Knutr and the two Aelfgifus being the perfect example, with obvious contrivance over the legitimacy of the children the marriages bore. Similarly, "Scandinavian sources" are mainly the sagas, which are famous for twisting the names and facts, having been written almost two centuries after the events.

The mother of Harald and Canute?

The assertion that Harald and Canute's mother was Boleslaw's sister may explain some mysterious statements which appear in medieval chronicles, such as the involvement of Polish troops in invasions of England.

The idea that Swiatoslawa's name changes twice is ingenuous, and the Scandinavian sources refer to Sigrid the Haughty alone - this is a name which does not appear in any other source than later sagas, though. Gunhild then was the name given the Polish princess to take the slurs away from Danish pronunciations. However, some historians find it hard to accept the idea that saga writers living many generations later were better informed than contemporary chroniclers, leading them to conclude that "Sigrid" is simply a name invented by saga writers who could not pronounce or write her Slavic name.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigrid_the_Haughty
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Noter : C.F.Bricka: Dansk biografsk lexikon, bd. XV, side 575:
Sigrid Storraade, -o. 1000-, Dronning, var en Datter af den mægtige og rige Bonde og Viking Skaagul-Toste i Gøtaland, efter hvem hun arvede mange Ejendomme. S. ægtede den svenske Konge Erik Sejersæl, med hvem hun havde Sønnen Olaf (Skotkonge) og Datteren Holmfrid, der blev gift med Hakon Jarls Søn Svend. Efter at være skilt fra Erik drog hun til sine Besiddelser i Gøtaland og havde her mange Bejlere, saaledes den norske Konge Harald Grænske og en russisk Konge Vsevolod, men hun lod begge indebrænde "for at gjøre Smaakonger lede af at fri til hende". Et Giftermaal med Olaf Tryggvason blev aftalt, men da han forlangte, at hun skulde antage Kristendommen, afslog hun at forlade sine Fædres Tro, hvorfor Olaf haanende slog hende i Ansigtet med sin Handske og kaldte hende en hedensk Hund. S., der paa Grund af sine højtstræbende Planer havde faaet Navnet Storraade, ægtede derpaa Kong Svend Tveskjæg; hun havde med ham Datteren Estrid. S. ophidsede sin Ægtefælle mod den norske Konge, der desuden havde taget Svends Søster Thyre til Ægte uden hans Samtykke. I Forening med sin Stifsøn Kong Olaf overfaldt Svend Olaf Tryggvason ved Svold, og denne faldt (1000). Vi vide intet om S.s senere Skæbne eller hendes Dødsaar. I "Kong Valdemars Jordebog" nævnes endnu Sigridlef blandt den danske Konges Besiddelser i Sverige.
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Sigrid kjennes kun fra den sene sagalitteratur, og det er meget vanskelig å avgjøre om det i fortellingene om henne finnes trekk av historisk verdi. Sannsynligvis levde det omkring år 1000 en svensk høvdingdatter, Sigrid, hvis far Skogul-Toste var en stormann, rik på gods. I den norrøne tradisjon minnes hun som "Storråde", den som legger vidstrakte planer. I den svenske overlevering kalles hun "den rike", idet det henvises til hennes utstrakte eiendommer, det såkalte "Sigridlev", som var en del av den danske kongeætts arvegods i Sverige. Disse få og lite informative trekk er alt som kan henføres til en historisk Sigrid Storråde. Beretningene om hvordan hun brendte inne sine friere, den norske konge Harald Grenske og den russiske Vsevolod, synes ikke å hvile på noen pålitelig tradisjon. Den dramatiske fortelling om Olav Trygvessons frieri til henne, og den voldsomme strid det medførte, er ren og skjær sagadiktning.

Hun har heller ikke, som sagaene beretter, først vært gift med kong Erik Segersäll og deretter med Svend Tjugeskjegg. Her har sagaskriverne byttet ut disse kongers virkelige "felles" dronning, den polske hertugdatteren Gunhild, med Sigrid. Dette utelukker imidlertid ikke at Svend før eller etter dette giftet kan ha ektet Skogul-Tostes datter.

I den middelalderlige sagnutvikling er Sigurddiktningens praktfulle skildring av Brynhild Budlesdatter (Die Nibelungensaga) trekk for trekk blitt overført til Sigrid. Brynhilds og Sigrids karakterer og omgivelser blir så godt som identiske i sagaene. Derved har detaljer som kan tenkes å ha tilhørt en historisk Sigrid Storråde gått tapt.
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Sigrid Storråda var en apokryfisk nordisk drottning omkring år 1000, som skall ha varit gift med Erik Segersäll och Sven Tveskägg.

Hon ska enligt isländska berättelser ha varit dotter till en västgötsk storman vid namn Skoglar-Toste.

Det mesta kring hennes person är dock oklart, eftersom Eriks gemål i andra källor kallas "Gunhild" eller sägs vara polsk prinsessa (se Swiatoslawa av Polen).

(Annan källa)

Sigrid Storråda. Drottning. Född 970 i Polen. Sigrid Storråda drottning först av Sverige och sedan av Danmark. Hon är känd främst från de isländska sagorna och ska ha varit dotter till en västgötsk storman vid namn Skoglar-Toste. Med sin förste make, sveakungen Erik Segersäll, fick hon sönerna Olof Skötkonung och Emunde. Erik Segersäll skiljde sig dock från henne, sagorna ger olika förklaringar till varför han gjorde detta, och satte henne i stället att styra över Gautland (Västergötland) tillsammans med Emunde. Som härskarinna över Västergötland var hon eftertraktad av flera småkungar som önskade gifta sig med henne. Två av dessa friare var så efterhängsna att hon till slut lät bränna dem inne, nämligen Opplänningakungen Harald Grenske (far till Olav Haraldsson) och östervägskungen Vissivald (troligen den ryske prinsen Vsevolod). Med detta illdåd ville hon visa att småkungarna gjorde säkrast i att hålla sig borta från henne och det gav henne tillnamnet Storråda (på engelska kallas hon "the Haughty" - den högmodiga). En kung som hon dock inte hade något emot att gifta sig med var Norges Olav I Tryggvason. Bröllopsplanerna fick emellertid ett abrupt slut i Kungahälla när Sigrid förklarade att hon inte ville bli kristen. Olav Tryggvason blev då så ilsken att han slog henne i ansiktet och sa att han inte tänkte gifta sig med en hundhedning. Efter denna oförrätt blev Sigrid Storråda en bitter fiende till Olav Tryggvason. Hon gifte om sig med Danmarks kung Sven Tveskägg och hetsade honom och sonen Olof Skötkonung som nu var svensk kung att gå i krig mot Olav Tryggvason. Detta skedde också och resulterade i den norske kungens död i slaget vid Svolder år 1000. Med Sven Tveskägg fick Sigrid dottern Estrid som blev mor åt den danske kungen Sven Estridsson vars ättlingar skulle regera Danmark fram till 1448. Källkritik Historikern Lauritz Weibull som var representant för en skola som bedrev en mycket nitisk källkritik hävdade i början av 1900-talet att Sigrid Storråda var en helt påhittad person och denna syn blev snart den etablerade uppfattningen. De senaste årens distansering från alltför extrem källkritik har däremot fått pendeln att svänga igen och hon har blivit allt mer accepterad som en historisk drottning av Sverige och Danmark. Den Weibullska källkritiken gick ut på att de isländska sagorna och Saxo Grammaticus som skrevs ned på 1100- och 1200-talet ansågs vara helt opålitliga medan uppgifterna från Adam av Bremen, vars verk skrevs ned ca 1075, konsekvent betraktades som mer trovärdiga. De förstnämnda källorna hade uppgifter om Sigrid Storråda medan Adam av Bremen hävdade att Olof Skötkonung och hans danske kollega Knut den store var söner till en icke namngiven vendisk prinsessa. I ett senare tillägg till Adams verk angavs hennes namn vara Gunhild. Thietmar av Merseburg som var samtida med denna drottning skrev också att hon hette Gunhild. Detta namn liksom Sigrid förklarades då av de källkritiska forskarna vara en förvanskning av det polska namnet Swietoslawa (se Swiatoslawa av Polen). Men den troliga förklaringen till varför det finns två varianter på den kvinna som både Erik Segersäll och Sven Tveskägg var gifta med är nog inte att de yngre historieskrivarna har hittat på den västgötska stormannadottern Sigrid Storråda. Snarare är det så att Sven Tväskägg var gift två gånger och att Adam av Bremen inte kände till detta, vilket då gav upphov till missuppfattningen att Knut den store och Olof Skötkonung var halvbröder. Thietmar av Merseburg som också omtalar den vendiska prinsessan Gunhild nämnde inte att hon tidigare skulle ha varit gift med den svenske kungen, och det borde han rimligen ha gjort ifall så var fallet. Det som starkt talar för att Sigrid var en verklig person är att de danska kungarnas egendomar i Sverige kallades för "Syghridslef" (Sigrids arvegods). Till detta ska också läggas till det faktum att Sven Tveskägg försköt Gunhild som därefter levde i Vendland tills hennes söner blev kungar i Danmark och hämtade hem henne. Hade även Olof Skötkonung varit hennes son förefaller det märkligt att hon inte valde Sverige som tillflyktsort istället. Den här artikeln är hämtad från http://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigrid_Storr%C3%A5da

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Sigrid lived on her estates and was known far and wide for her beauty, wisdom and riches. King Harald Grenske came from Norway to West Gothland to court her, but she refused his request and immediately left to one of her other estates. Harald followed her, against the advice of others and when he found her there was King Wifawald from Russia who was attempted to court her too. Both kings were invited to a large hall, where Sigrid instructed her servants to provide them with plenty of mead and ale, until they became intoxicated and fell asleep. She then instructed her guards to lock the doors and set the hall on fire and the kings with their servants were burned to death. Sigrid said, "Thus, she would teach petty Kings to come making love to her." by Fryxell, Schoultz, Botham, The History of Sweden, pg. 135.

http://books.google.com/books?id=6B4CAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA135&dq=skotkonung&lr=&ei= pmPYSNiILJbQzATd9_DrDg

After her husband Styrbjorn died King Burislaf wanted to marry her, but she refused because he was a heathen and she a Christian. Burislaf didn't give up and pressured Tyri's brother King Sven into bringing her to him against her will. The king prepared a great wedding feast and then took her as his Queen, but she refused to eat or drink for seven days. One night she ran away into the forest and where she took paths that were not frequently used. She made it to Norway and explained her situation to King Olof Tryggwason, so he gave her protection in his kingdom. The King was attracted to her, because she was fair and spoke eloquently. She became King Tyri because she admired the King Sven for his fame and his ability to protect her. After she had been Queen of Norway for a time, she persuaded King Olof to go to Windland and demand her dowry, because it included some precious items she wanted. King Olaf's counselors warned him against going through Norway to get the dowry, because Queen Sigrid would attack Olof.

One day the king brought Tyri a rare rose, but found her crying. She put the rose aside and chided him for his fear of traveling through Norway, which angered him, so he gathered his men and 60 well armed ships to travel to Windland. He took Queen Tyri with him on this expedition.

Fryxell, Schoultz, Botham, The History of Sweden, pg 138.

http://books.google.com/books?id=6B4CAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA135&dq=skotkonung&lr=&ei= pmPYSNiILJbQzATd9_DrDg#PPA138,M1
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Sigrid the Haughty
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"Gunnhilda" redirects here. For other uses, see Gunnhild.

Sigrid StorrådaSigrid the Haughty, also known as Sigrid Storråda, was a Nordic queen of contested historicity. She is generally held to be apocryphal in modern scholarship, see e.g. Birgitta Fritz.[1]

She has been variously identified as Świętosława, Saum-Aesa, Gunnhilda, daughter of Mieszko I, sister to Bolesław I Chrobry, King of Poland.

She is a character who appears in many sagas and historical chronicles. It is unclear if she was a real person or a compound person (with several real women's lives and deeds attributed to one compound person).

It is possible that some accounts confuse one Sigríð, second wife to King of Denmark, Sweyn Forkbeard, and the daughter of Toste, with Saum-Aesa (Świętosława) of Poland, his first wife, also known as Gunhilda in her marriage.

Sigríð married the first time, wedding Eiríkr the Victorious (King Eiríkr VI Sigrsæll) of Sweden. She had one son by this marriage: King Óláf II Eiríksson of Sweden, also called Olof Skotkonung. It was in 994 she wed Sweyn Forkbeard under her Scandinavian name, Sigrid Storråda, and the marriage bore five daughters, half-sisters of Danish princes Harald and Canute the Great.

One daughter, Astrid Margaritte was the second wife of Richard II of Normandy (married 1017) after his first wife Judith (mother of three daughters & three sons, one of whom was Robert I, father of King William I, the Conqueror). Astrid later married Ulf Jarl, son of Thorgils Spragalaeg (the last king of Danish Scania (Ohlmarks), died at Svold 1005), great-grandson of Harald Bluetooth, King of Denmark. They had two sons: Bjorn and Sweyn II of Denmark.

The most commonly-held understanding[citation needed] is that Harald and Canute brought back Świętosława from Poland after their stepmother Sigrid left upon the death of their father.

Contents [hide]
1 Contemporary chroniclers
1.1 The mother of Harald and Canute?
2 Scandinavian sources
2.1 Refusal to marry Olaf Trygvasson
2.2 The cognomen "Haughty"
3 Polish sources
4 Archaeology
5 In literature
6 External links
7 References

[edit] Contemporary chroniclers
Theories hold that Sigrid was the daughter of a mythical Burislav (possibly Mieszko I of Poland and Dubrawka). The medieval chroniclers who were Sigrid's contemporaries seem to support the hypothesis that her father was Mieszko, though recent analysis suggests they confused her with Gunhild, the Polish princess who changed her name from Świętosława when she married Swein Forkbeard.

Several medieval chronicles state that the mother of Harald II of Denmark and Canute the Great was either a Pole or possibly a member of a closely related Slavic tribe. Arguments which support this assertion include:

Thietmar mentions that the daughter of Mieszko I of Poland and sister of Boleslaw I of Poland married Sweyn Forkbeard and gave him two sons, Canute the Great and Harold II of Denmark, but he does not mention her name. Thietmar is probably the best informed of all medieval chroniclers, since he was contemporary with described events and well-informed about the events in Poland and Denmark.
Adam of Bremen writes that a Polish princess was the wife of Eric the Victorious and that she was the mother of Canute the Great and Harold II of Denmark. Adam's information here is considered unreliable by some historians.
Gesta Cnutonis regis mentions in one short passage that Canute and his brother went to the land of the Slavs, and brought back their mother, who was living there. This does not necessarily mean that his mother was Slavic, but nevertheless this chronicle strongly suggests that she was.
There is an inscription in "Liber vitae of the New Minster and Hyde Abbey Winchester", that king Canute's sister's name was "Santslaue" ("Santslaue soror CNVTI regis nostri"), which without doubt is a Slavic name. J. Steenstrup suggests that Canute's sister may have been named after her mother, hence coining (the now generally agreed upon) hypothesis, that her Slavic name is Świętosława, but only as a reconstruction based on a single mention of her daughter's name and the hypothesis that she named her daughter after herself. This statement also supports the theory that Sigrid was the daughter of Mieszko I.
The information in Scandinavian sources is different from that of contemporary chroniclers, which suggest, Sigrid was a Slav, yet confusion amongst contemporaries should tend to lean historians towards the corroborative sources.

Additionally, the things we can see the monastic scribes do to the facts surrounding the two wives conundrum should be seen as putting the 'contemporary chronicles' under a heavy cloud of unreliability on such matters. King Knutr and the two Aelfgifus being the perfect example, with obvious contrivance over the legitimacy of the children the marriages bore. Similarly, "Scandinavian sources" are mainly the sagas, which are famous for twisting the names and facts, having been written almost two centuries after the events.

[edit] The mother of Harald and Canute?
The assertion that Harald and Canute's mother was Boleslaw's sister may explain some mysterious statements which appear in medieval chronicles, such as the involvement of Polish troops in invasions of England.

The idea that Swiatoslawa's name changes twice is ingenuous, and the Scandinavian sources refer to Sigrid the Haughty alone - this is a name which does not appear in any other source than later sagas, though. Gunhild then was the name given the Polish princess to take the slurs away from Danish pronunciations. However, some historians find it hard to accept the idea that saga writers living many generations later were better informed than contemporary chroniclers, leading them to conclude that "Sigrid" is simply a name invented by saga writers who could not pronounce or write her Slavic name.

[edit] Scandinavian sources
According to the theory based on Norse sagas, Sigrid the Haughty was the daughter of the powerful Swedish Viking Skoglar Toste. She married Eric the Victorious, King of Sweden, and together they had a son Olof Skötkonung. She later divorced Eric and was given Götaland as a fief. After Eric's death, she married Sweyn Forkbeard, King of Denmark.

The Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus confirms some of the information from the Norse sagas, when he writes that Eric the Victorious' widow Syritha had married Sweyn Forkbeard after having spurned Olaf Trygvasson.

[edit] Refusal to marry Olaf Trygvasson

Olaf Tryggvason proposes marriage to Sigrid the Haughty, imposing the condition that she must convert to Christianity. When Sigrid rejects this, Olaf strikes her with a glove. She warns him that this might lead to his death.[2]In 998, when it was proposed that Sigrid, daughter of the Swedish king, marry Olaf Trygvasson, the king of Norway, she rebelled because it would have required that she convert to Christianity. She told him to his face, "I will not part from the faith which my forefathers have kept before me." In a rage, Olaf hit her. It is said that Sigrid then calmly told him, "This may some day be thy death." [1] Sigrid proceeded to avoid the marriage, and created instead a coalition of his enemies to bring about his downfall. She accomplished this by allying Sweden and Denmark against Norway. She achieved her purpose when Olaf fell fighting against Sweden and Denmark in the year 1000 during the Battle of Swold. Queen Sigríð won her vengeance that day, for King Óláf saw his Norwegian forces defeated and he himself leapt into the sea to drown rather than face capture by his enemies.

[edit] The cognomen "Haughty"
Sigrid got the Scandinavian style cognomen Haughty when she had Harald Grenske burnt to death in order to discourage other petty kings from proposing to her.

[edit] Polish sources
The vast majority of Polish historians consider Sigrid and Swiatoslawa to be the same person. In Polish encyclopedias, "Sigrid" is presented as another name for "Swiatoslawa". More specialised (Polish) history books mostly agree that Swiatoslawa was Polish, and consider the Swedish "Sigrid" to be a fantasy created by Scandinavian saga writers

[edit] Archaeology
From 1835 to 1977, the Haraldskær Woman, discovered in a peat bog in Jutland, was mistaken as the body of a woman from the 1000s, thought to be Sigrid (or Gunhild). The advent of radiocarbon dating proved this theory incorrect. This mistake was intertwined with numerous episodes of Scandinavian intrigue, as the theory was elaborated to serve a variety of agendas of kings and nobles during that era.

[edit] In literature
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow composed a poem with the title Queen Sigrid the Haughty of which this is the first verse.

Queen Sigrid the Haughty sat proud and aloft
In her chamber, that looked over meadow and croft.
Heart's dearest,
Why dost thou sorrow so?
Karen Blixen, in the short story "The Deluge at Norderney" in Seven Gothic Tales, refers to Sigrid, claiming that she invited all her suitors to her house and burned them in order to discourage other suitors.

The Viking Answer Lady

References
^ Birgitta Fritz (2004), "Sigrid Storråda", Svenskt Biografiskt Lexikon, 32
^ Snorri Sturluson 1991:200-1.

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Spouse Eric the Victorious
Sweyn Forkbeard
Issue
with Erik:
Olof Skötkonung
Holmfrid Eriksdotter
with Sweyn:
Harald II of Denmark
Cnut the Great
Gytha Svensdotter
Santslaue Svensdotter
Estrid Margaret Stensdotter
Dynasty Piast (by birth)
Munsö (by 1st marriage)
Scylding (by 2nd marriage)
Father Mieszko I of Poland
Mother Dobrawa of Bohemia
Born 960/972
Died c. 1016

Sigrid the Haughty, also known as Sigrid Storråda, was a Nordic, Polish or Pomeranian queen of contested historicity.

However, she also may have been the daughter of Skoglar Toste or Skoglar Tosti, a chieftain from the Swedish province of West Götaland.
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Død efter 2 februar 1014
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Noteringar
Sveakungen Erik Segersäll hade enligt sagorna en gemål som hette Sigrid och som var mor till Olof Skötkonung. Hon sägs ha varit dotter till en svensk hövding vid namn Skoglar Toste, som enligt vissa forskare kan vara identisk med en Toste som uppburit danagäld i England och omnämns på en uppländsk runsten. Andra forskare menar att drottningen ifråga överhuvudtaget inte är någon historisk person, vilket troligt är att gå alltför långt.
Enligt vissa uppgifter i sagorna hade kung Erik låtit skilja sig från Sigrid för hennes stormodighets skull och gett henne Götaland. Enligt andra vågade hon inte vara gift med honom eftersom han snart förväntades dö och hon då riskerade att bli begravd att bli begravd tillsammans med honom. Hur det än förhållit sig med den saken så var hon fri att välja en annan make när Erik Segersäll dött omkring år 995.
Eftersom Sigrid varit drottning och ägde stora rikedomar blev hon förstås ett eftertraktat parti. Den norske småkungen Harald Grenske, som varit stridskamrat med Skoglar Toste och kände Sigrid sedan dess, blev bjuden till henne på ett storslaget gästabud. Han återkom sedan för att fria men fick nej med hänvisning till att han redan hade en hustru. Trots varningar från sina män gav han dock inte upp utan red med ett stort följe tillbaka till Sigrid för att göra ett nytt försök.

Nu ville det sig inte bättre än att en annan konung också kom dit samtidigt i samma ärende. Han hette Vissivald och var från Gårdarike, säger Snorre Sturlasson. Bägge kungarna och deras följen fick nu logi i en gammal sliten byggnad på Sigrids gård, där de blev väl undfägnade med starka drycker. Både dryckerna och platsen för inkvarteringen borde ha gjort dem misstänksamma, men såväl kungarna som deras män och vakter blev berusade och somnade utan att ana oråd. På natten sände Sigrid dit sina män och satte eld på huset, och gästerna blev antingen innebrända eller nedhuggna när de försökte ta sig ut. Detta skulle vänja småkungar av med att fria till henne, menade Sigrid, som på grund av detta fick tillnamnet Storråda. Till slut fick hon också motta ett anbud som var mer efter hennes sinne och gifte sig med den danske kungen Sven Tveskägg.
Källa: Vikingar i österled s.58-59, av Mats G. Larsson

Sigrid kan ha varit 20-25 år när hon skildes från Erik. Efter att ha skilt sig från Erik, flyttade Sigrid förmodligen en tid till sina gods i Västergötland, men därefter till Danmark. Sonen Olof följde med i en form av landsflykt till Danmark, där Sigrid gifte om sig med Danmarks kung Sven Tveskägg. Hon bör då ha varit c:a 25 år gammal.

Hon var dotter till en svensk storman, som antagligen bodde i Västergötland, är en stor historisk kvinna, som bör få ett eftermäle i historien bland den heliga Birgitta och unionsdrottningen Margareta.

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ABT 0950 - ____
BIRTH: ABT 0950
Father: Skoglar-Toste
Ifølge oplysningerne i sagaerne var Sigrid Storråde datter af den svenske stormand Skoglar Toste. Hun giftede sig i første omgang med den svenske konge Erik Sejrsæl, med hvem hun fik den senere konge Olof Skötkonung. Hun blev senere skilt fra kong Erik, men blev tildelt Götaland som len. Efter Eriks død giftede hun sig med den danske konge, Svend Tveskæg.

Sagaerne fortæller også, at den norske konge Olaf Trygvasson i 998 friede til hende, men hun afslog hans tilbud, da han også krævede at hun konverterede til kristendommen. Hun fortalte ham, at hun ikke ville opgive den tro, hendes forfædre havde haft før hende. I raseri slog Olaf hende i ansigtet med sin handske, hvorpå hun roligt sagde, at det kunne føre til hans død.[4][5] Sigrid samle nu en koalition af Olafs fjender for at bringe ham til fald. Det lykkedes hende at skabe en alliance mellem Danmark, Sverige og den mægtige Jarl i Lade mod den norske konge. Hendes forehavende lykkedes, da Olafs hær blev besejret, og da hans selv fandt døden i slaget ved Svold omkring år 1000.

Saxo bekræfter dele af denne historie, når han beretter, at Erik Sejrssæls enke, Syritha, havde giftet sig med Svend Tveskæg efter at have afvist Olaf Trygvasson.

[redigér] Tilnavnet "Storråde"
Det fortælles, at Sigrid fil sit tilnavn storráda (hovmodige, stolte) da hun lod Harald Grenske indebrænde, for at afskrække andre småkonger fra at fri til hende.

Kilde: Wikipedia
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Family 1 : Erik VII SEGERSÄLL
+Olof Eriksson SKÖTKONUNG
Holmfrid ERIKSDOTTER
Kilde: nermo.org
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Sigrid the Haughty, also known as Sigríð Storråda, is a queen of contested historicity appearing in Norse sagas as wife first of King Eiríkr VI Sigrsæll of Sweden, and then Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark. While given a Nordic ancestry in the sagas, she has been hypothesized to be identical to historically attested queens of Polish or Pomeranian origin. Alternatively, she is held to be apocryphal by some modern scholars, e.g. Birgitta Fritz.[1]

Sigrid appears in many sagas composed generations after the events they describe, but there is no reliable evidence as to her existence as they describe her. It is unclear if she was a real person, a compound person (with several real women's lives and deeds attributed to one compound person), or a complete invention of the saga authors.

The Heimskringla describes Sigrid as the beautiful but vengeful daughter of Skogul-Tosti, a powerful Swedish nobleman. As widow of Eric the Victorious, she held many great estates, and was living with her son Olav the Swede, when her foster-brother Harald Grenske, a king in Vestfold sought her hand, but she had him and another royal wooer, Vissavald of Gardarik burned to death in a great hall following a feast to discourage other suitors. Her hand was next sought by Olaf Trygvasson, the king of Norway, but he would have required that she convert to Christianity. She told him to his face, "I will not part from the faith which my forefathers have kept before me." In a rage, Olaf struck her with a glove, and Sigrid calmly told him, "This may some day be thy death." Sigrid then proceeded to create a coalition of his enemies to bring about his downfall. She allied Sweden with Denmark, marrying the widower Sweyn Forkbeard who had already been feuding with Olaf. Swein had sent his sister Tyri to marry the Wendish king Burislav, who had been father of Swein's first wife, Gunhild. Tyri fled and married Olaf, goading him into conflict with her brother, while Sigrid inflamed Swein against her former suitor. This shared animosity would lead to the Battle of Swold, in which Olaf fell.

The Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus would repeat this information, writing that Eric the Victorious' widow Syritha had married Sweyn Forkbeard after having spurned Olaf Trygvasson.

There is scant material in medieval chronicles to provide details regarding the marriages of Swein of Denmark and Erik of Sweden:

Thietmar mentions that the daughter of Mieszko I of Poland and sister of Boleslaw I of Poland married Sweyn Forkbeard and gave him two sons, Canute the Great and Harold II of Denmark, but he does not mention her name. Thietmar is probably the best informed of all medieval chroniclers, since he was contemporary with described events and well-informed about the events in Poland and Denmark. The assertion that Harald and Canute's mother was Boleslaw's sister may explain some mysterious statements which appear in medieval chronicles, such as the involvement of Polish troops in invasions of England.
Adam of Bremen writes that a Polish princess was the wife of Eric the Victorious and that she was the mother of Canute the Great and Harold II of Denmark. Adam's information here is considered unreliable by some historians.
Gesta Cnutonis regis mentions in one short passage that Canute and his brother went to the land of the Slavs, and brought back their mother, who was living there. This does not necessarily mean that his mother was Slavic, but nevertheless this chronicle strongly suggests that she was.
There is an inscription in "Liber vitae of the New Minster and Hyde Abbey Winchester", that king Canute's sister's name was "Santslaue" ("Santslaue soror CNVTI regis nostri"), which without doubt is a Slavic name. J. Steenstrup suggests that Canute's sister may have been named after her mother, hence coining (the now generally agreed upon) hypothesis, that her Slavic name is Świętosława, but only as a reconstruction based on a single mention of her daughter's name and the hypothesis that she named her daughter after herself.

These data have been used for alternative reconstructions. One would interpret the saga account of Sigrid as a confused rendering of a historical Polish princess, 'Sviatoslava', daughter of Mieszko, who married in succession Erik and Swein, being mother of Olaf (by Erik), Harald and Canute (both by Swein). Sigrid would either be a contemporary name adopted by the Princess to conform to her new linguistic context, or else simply a name invented by saga writers who did not know or could not comprehend her Slavic name. This solution may further make her identical to Swein's first queen in the saga, 'Gunhilda' daughter of Burislav, suggested to be a confused rendering of the same historical marriage to the sister of Boleslav of Poland. Alternatively, the attributed Polish marriages of Swein and Eric may have been to different women, with 'Gunhilda' being the daughter of Mieszko, while Eric's widow, the model for Sigrid then marrying Swein after her death. Finally, some consider "Sigrid" to be a fantasy created by Scandinavian saga writers.

Archaeology:
Further confusion has been introduced by dated interpretations of an archaeological discovery. In 1835, the Haraldskær Woman was discovered in a peat bog in Jutland. This body of a woman was dated to the 1000s, and it was identified with Sigrid (or Gunhild). Radiocarbon dating later proved this dating incorrect. However, the erroneous dating became intertwined with numerous episodes of Scandinavian intrigue, as the theory was elaborated to serve a variety of agendas of kings and nobles prior to its redating.

In literature:
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow composed a poem with the title Queen Sigrid the Haughty of which this is the first verse.

Queen Sigrid the Haughty sat proud and aloft
In her chamber, that looked over meadow and croft.
Heart's dearest,
Why dost thou sorrow so?

Karen Blixen, in the short story "The Deluge at Norderney" in Seven Gothic Tales, refers to Sigrid, claiming that she invited all her suitors to her house and burned them in order to discourage other suitors.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigrid_the_Haughty
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Sigrid Storråda drottning först av Sverige och sedan av Danmark. Hon är känd främst från de isländska sagorna och ska ha varit dotter till en västgötsk storman vid namn Skoglar-Toste.
Enligt sagorna fick hon sönerna Olof och Emunde med sin förste make, den svenske kungen Erik Segersäll. Erik Segersäll skilde sig dock från henne, vilket sagorna ger olika förklaringar till, och satte henne i stället att styra över Gautland (Västergötland) tillsammans med Emunde. Som härskarinna över Västergötland var hon eftertraktad av flera småkungar som önskade gifta sig med henne. Två av dessa friare var så efterhängsna att hon till slut lät bränna dem inne, nämligen Opplänningakungen Harald Grenske (far till Olav Haraldsson) och östervägskungen Vissivald (troligen den ryske prinsen Vsevolod). Med detta illdåd ville hon visa att småkungarna gjorde säkrast i att hålla sig borta från henne och det gav henne tillnamnet Storråda (på engelska kallas hon "the Haughty" - den högmodiga). En kung som hon dock inte hade något emot att gifta sig med var Norges Olav I Tryggvason. Bröllopsplanerna fick emellertid ett abrupt slut i Kungahälla när Sigrid förklarade att hon inte ville bli kristen. Olav Tryggvason blev då så ilsken att han slog henne i ansiktet och sa att han inte tänkte gifta sig med en hundhedning. Efter denna oförrätt blev Sigrid Storråda en bitter fiende till Olav Tryggvason. Hon gifte om sig med Danmarks kung Sven Tveskägg och hetsade honom och sonen Olof Skötkonung som nu var svensk kung att gå i krig mot Olav Tryggvason. Detta skedde också och resulterade i den norske kungens död i slaget vid Svolder år 1000.

Med Sven Tveskägg fick Sigrid dottern Estrid som blev mor åt den danske kungen Sven Estridsson vars ättlingar skulle regera Danmark fram till 1448.