Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 17

From a heroic mission to save a prince to an
annual test of endurance, the epic tale of
the Birkebeiners lives on. BY SARAH ASP OLSON
T
his March, 17,000
skiers from around
the globe will gather
in Rena, Norway, to test
their strength and endurance
in the Birkebeinerrennet.
This 54-kilometer crosscountry
ski race has been a
Norwegian tradition since
1932 and has inspired similar
races in the United States,
Canada and Australia.
The race's true origin,
though, dates back more
than 800 years to the tale of a
young prince and a heroic ski
trek through the mountains
that would change the course
of Norwegian history.
A Country in Conflict
By the turn of the 12th
century, Norway had been
embroiled in civil war for
nearly 70 years. Factions
rose and fell, mostly owing
to succession customs that
allowed any of a king's sons-
legitimate or illegitimate-to
rule after his death.
" There were two parties,
the Birkebeiners and the
Baglers, " says Rolf Kjærnsli,
a retired teacher in Norway
who has written five books
about the Birkebeinerrennet.
" The Baglers were upperclass
people supported
by the church-the word
" bagler " is derived from an
old Norse word meaning 'a
Bishop's staff.' "
By contrast, the Birkebeiners
were peasants, a
ragtag group who couldn't
afford proper armor and
instead strapped birch bark
to their legs before going
into battle. That's how they
got their name: birkebeiner
literally means " birch
leggers. "
Conflict continued, and it
looked like the Birkebeiners
finally had the upper hand.
But when the Birkebeiner
king, Haakon Sverresson,
was poisoned in 1204, the
Baglers were determined to
seize control.
The Baby and the
Birchleggers
On Christmas Eve of 1206,
more than a year after King
Haakon's death, a young
woman carrying a small
boy knocked on the door
of a Birkebeiner governor
in Lillehammer, seeking
protection. Inga of Varteig
claimed that her son,
Haakon Haakonsson, was
the son of King Haakon
and prince and heir to his
father's throne. Inga and the
boy had been in hiding for
18 months, but the Baglers
had caught wind of the
young heir and were in hot
pursuit.
The Birkebeiners kept
Prince Haakon and Inga
hidden as long as they could,
but as the new year dawned,
it became clear that young
Haakon needed to flee to
Trondheim, a Birkebeiner
stronghold, where he would
be safe. Two Birkebeiner
warriors, Torstein Skevla
and Skervald Skrukka, the
fastest and strongest skiers in
Norway, set out on skis from
Lillehammer with Inga and
Haakon in tow.
" [They went] through
a frightful storm, " says
Kjærnsli. " [Haakon]
was carried across the
mountains to a valley about
60 kilometers further east
to a place where he was
safe " before traveling on to
Trondheim.
Thanks to the Birkebeiners'
arduous journey, Haakon
survived to claim the throne
in 1217. He reigned until
1263, during which time he
rescued Norway from civil
war, instituted a clear right of
succession and ushered in a
golden era for the nation.
sonsofnorway.com VIKING FEBRUARY 2014 17
http://www.sonsofnorway.com

Viking Magazine - February 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Viking Magazine - February 2014

Contents
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - Cover1
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - Cover2
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - Contents
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 4
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 5
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 6
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 7
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 8
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 9
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 10
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 11
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 12
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 13
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 14
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 15
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 16
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 17
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 18
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 19
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 20
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 21
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 22
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 23
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 24
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 25
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 26
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 27
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 28
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 29
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 30
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 31
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 32
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 33
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 34
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 35
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 36
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 37
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 38
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 39
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 40
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 41
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 42
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 43
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 44
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 45
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - 46
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - Cover3
Viking Magazine - February 2014 - Cover4
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