5 x Ingeborg

Ingeborg, –1319, queen, was a daughter of the Swedish king Magnus Ladelaas (+ 1290) in his marriage to grev Gerhard(Gert) of Holsteins daughter Helvig and was probably born shortly after her parents' wedding in November 1276. In 1288 she became betrothed to the little older Danish king Erik Menved, and in 1296 their wedding was held in Helsingborg; the papal dispensation, which was necessary caused by their close family-relations, came first several years later, because Erik had a feud with archbishop Jens Grand. Ingeborg is praised by the contemporary historians, who call her lovely and friendly, the Swedish Erik-Chronicle calls her "Danebod", and in Denmark her wedding was sung about in a folk song similar to the Dagmar-song. (about queen Dagmar). In the politics of that time she plays no part, but she was probably sad about the endless fight in Sweden among her brothers, king Birger and the dukes Erik and Valdemar, which ended in the two duke's death in prison, ordered by their brother king Birger, who came to Denmark in exile. Her own marriage was unhappy, she had several children, some sources say 8, some say 14, but most of them were embryonic, and the few who lived after birth, died as babies; the last and youngest child, 14 weeks old, was killed when falling out from the queen's wagon under the drive from Abrahamstrup (Jægerspris) to Holbæk in 1318. After this last tragedy Ingeborg withdrew to Clara Kloster in Roskilde, or she might have been shut up by her husband; she was afraid of what might happen next; in a dialogue with the Roskilde bishop Oluf she foretold that both her own, the king's and the bishop's death were soon to come. She died 15 August 1319 a few months before her husband and was buried at his side in Ringsted.

Suhm, Hist. af Danmark XI, 32. 36. 222. 389. 828. 839 f.
From Kr. Erslev's Danish text: grethe bachmann.
Dansk Biografisk Lexicon
Carl Fr. Bricka
Project Runeberg.

Ingeborg, –1131–, daughter of the Russian prince Mstislav and Christine , a daughter of the Swedish king Inge; she married Knud Lavard (ab. 1116). The legendary story about Knud's courting her via the merchant Vidgaut is not historical; the marriage was due to Ingeborg's aunt, her mother's sister queen Margrethe Fredkulla, who even gave Ingeborg a part of her own Swedish paternal estate as a dowry. Ingeborg advised Knud against going to the Christmas feast in Roskilde (1130-) -, eight days after his murder she gave birth to the son Valdemar (January 1131). She and Knud had also three daughters, Margrethe, Kirsten and Cathrine. When the høvdingen (chief) Christiern Svendsen after king Erik Emune's kill wanted to make the little Valdemar king, Ingeborg opposed strongly. From this time she is not mentioned anymore.

H. Olrik, Knud Lavard.

From Hans Olrik's Danish text: grethe bachmann.
Dansk Biografisk Lexicon
Carl Fr. Bricka
Project Runeberg

Ingeborg, –1267, a daughter of Esbern Snare and his third wife, Helene; Ingeborg was married to the respected magnate Peder Strangesen (+ 1241). While he had a judicial feud with Sorø kloster about the ownership of the estate, which Ingeborg's brother Johannes Marsk had given the kloster, fru Ingeborg showed to be a benefactor of Sorø kloster during her widowhood. With the consent of her family, among those her halfbrother hertug Knud, she conveyed all her estate in Bringstrup and Ørslev to the kloster. (1250). Likewise she gave Århus domkirke gifts in honour of Hellig Niels. Ingeborg is mostly called Ingeborg of Kalundborg after her father's borg, where she lived as a mighty lady. But during the tension between the Danish royalty and hertug Erik Abelsen, Ingeborg's son Anders, who once was Abel's marsk, was on the hertug's side, he was in his entourage after his victory at Lohede (1261), and Ingeborg herself also favoured Abel's family; so she was the next year driven out of Kalundborg and died in Schleswig in 1267. .

From Hans Olrik's Danish text: grethe bachmann.
Dansk Biografisk Lexicon
Carl Fr. Bricka
Project Runeberg

Ingeborg, queen of France, ab.1175-o.1237. Ingeborg was a daughter of king Valdemar I and his wife Sophie. When she was marriageable, bishop Stephan of Noyon and other messengers from king Philip August of France arrived in order to ask her hand in marriage at her brother king Knud. King Philip had thoughts about attacking England, why his suggestions were that his bride's dowry was the Danish kings' right to the English throne and leave him the Danish army and navy for one year. But king Knud and his men wouldn't accept this; a marriage was however arranged on the condition that Ingeborg brought a dowry of 10.000 Mark silver. Ingeborg was sent to France in a prominent entourage; bishop Peder Sunesen of Roskilde was there, and maybe also Abbed Vilhelm of Æbelholt kloster, who had worked eagerly in favour of the marriage.

Ingeborg was by all contemporaries described as a graceful and amiable woman, pious, modest, chaste, while the groom, who was a widower since 1190, when his queen, Elisabeth of Hainault died, was described as a capricious husband, who had even threatened to repudiate his wife. It was also known that Philip was a skilled, but calculating and self-willed regent. Ingeborg arrived at Amiens 14 August 1193, and the wedding took place the same day; the next day both husband and wife were crowned in a great ceremony. But already during this the king's aversion to his bride was obvious; he was pale and trembled, and as soon as the ceremony ended, he thought about divorce. He later claimed that black magic had been brought on him and made him feel an invincible detest of Ingeborg; people whispered that the king had found bodily faults , but this seems to be a fabrication from the imaginative Philip. He wanted to send Ingeborg home at once, but the Danish messengers as well as Ingeborg declined to do so, and now the king commanded her entourage to leave France. Philip then tried to have the marriage dissolved by proving a too close kinship between his first wife, Elisabeth and Ingeborg: a false family tree was put up and after an assembly of bishops and barons, all obedient servants of Philip and partly bribed by him, had sworn the family tree's correctness, the archbishop of Reims declared the marriage dissolved.

Ingeborg ,who did not understand French, hardly knew what was going on; when the judgment ws proclaimed she was assigned a residence in or at the kloster Cysoing at Douai, where she spent her time with prayers, reading and needlework. But the hard-hearted king wouldnt' even give her enough for her support. King Knud started moving in order to come to his sister's assistance; the old abbed Vilhelm and kansler Anders Sunesen went to Rome, and when Ingeborg also sent her complaints, pope Celestin III declared the judgment null and void. (1195); but the weak and anxious pope dared only adressing king Philip with admonitions. When the Danish messengers came to France, they were held prisoners for 6 weeks by the duke of Burgund, until clerical friends succeeded in getting them free; but their negotiations with the French king were futile. Philip married shortly after Agnes of Meran (June 1196), while Ingeborg was imprisoned at a castle, and later in the nunnery Fervaques at St. Quentin-en-Vermandois.

The old man Celestin III died in 1198; his successor the young energetic Innocents III, took at once care of the unhappy princesse Ingeborg's business. But then started a new stale of woe for Ingeborg, who for some years had lived quietly in the kloster. She was brought to a new prison, and first when a papal grant had proclaimed Interdikt over France, which was hard on the French people, Philip gave up his stubbornness and declared that he would show Ingeborg all royal honour; then the Interdikt was broken off. (Sept. 1200). Next year a divorce case started in Soissons, but as it went on, Philip grew afraid of an unfavourable judgment, and he suddenly took Ingeborg with him and declared that he wouldn't divorce her. The divorce case had to stop, but Ingeborg was now sent to a new and harder imprisonment in Étampes, where she got poor support and had to do without the comfort of a priest and the help of a physician, while she was completely without communication to her home. First after many of pope Innocent's political plans failed and he knew he had to reach a better understanding with Philip (1207), a little more favourable conditions began for Ingeborg.

Thus the great European politics influenced on Ingeborg's fate - and at last luckily. Innocents had confiscated Englands' throne from the disobedient Johan uden Land, and king Philip, whom the pope had handed over the job to carry out the judgment, prepared to conquer England. He wanted to support his rights by having a wife, who was a descendant of the kings of England; he therefore declared in Soissons in 1213, that he again took Ingeborg as his wife. (Queen Agnes had died in 1201). Althoug Ingeborg only won an appearant position and a formal right, her unhappy years had ended.

Ingeborg lived in various cities (Pontoise, St.Germain-en-Laye, Orleans) and sacrificed herself for charity and pious deeds; her firmness and patience during all her sufferings had won the respect of everybody. Ingeborg became a widow at Philip's death in 1223. She showed reverence to her husband's memory, and to his son and son's son the kings Ludvig VIII and Ludvig IX with whom she had good relations.When her brother Valdemar Sejr had to be bought out from his imprisonment, she gave her contribution to the ransom. She died 29 (30?) July 1237 (maybe 1238). A beautifully written Psalter with rich miniatures, which had belonged to her and where she had written the date of death of her parents, is still kept.

R. Davidsohn, Philipp II August von Frankreich u. Ingeborg (1888). Udvalg af L. Engelstofts Skrifter I. A. Fabricius, Ingeborg, Philip Augusts Dronning (1870).

From Steenstrup's Danish text: grethe bachmann
Dansk Biografisk Lexicon
Carl Fr. Bricka
Project Runeberg

Ingeborg, Hertuginde af Mecklenborg 1347- ab 1370, daughter of Valdemar Atterdag and Helvig, born 1. April 1347. She was only 3 years old, when her father's politics already decided her fate; instead of an older sister Margrethe, who died, she was betrothed to Albrecht of Mecklenborg's eldest son, Henrik (+ 1383). According to the agreement, the little princess was brought to Germany; already in 1354 she was fetched back, but the marriage was carried out, probably in 1362, when the Mecklenborg- princes gave a receipt for a part of her dowry. Ingeborg died very young, but she had 4 children, the son Albrecth (+1388), whom king Valdemar promised the throne in Denmark, and who also claimed the kingdom, both after Valdemar's and later after king Oluf's death; and three daughters, of whom Maria became the mother of Erik of Pommern, while a daughter by the name Ingeborg later became an abbess in Ribbnitz kloster and was friendly with her aunt queen Margrethe until her own death in 1408.

Suhm, Hist. af Danmark XIII, 176. 227. 229. 233. 298. 462. 690 f.

From Kr. Erslev's Danish text: grethe bachmann.
Dansk Biografisk Lexicon
Carl Fr. Bricka
Project Runeberg