Magnus III of Norway
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Magnus Barefoot (1073-1103), son of Olaf Kyrre, was king of Norway from 1093 until 1103 and King of the Isle of Man from 1095-1102. His nickname, Barfot, means barefoot or bareleg and is commonly understood to come from his habit of wearing Gaelic-style clothing, leaving lower legs bare - this Scottish style is a precursor of later kilts.
In 1098, he conquered the Orkney Islands, the Hebrides and the Isle of Man. According to the Sagas, this expedition was promoted because he violated the tomb of Saint Olaf.
In 1101, at Kungahälla, he married Margareta, the daughter of his former enemy Inge Stenkilsson, king of Sweden. They did not have surviving children. His extant sons at his death were Olaf Magnusson, Øystein Magnusson and Sigurd Magnusson (later known as Sigurd Jorsalfar or Crusader) who all together succeeded him. After his death, Harald Gille and Sigurd Slembedjakn later came forward and both claimed to be his illegitimate sons (and thus heirs to the throne).
Magnus died in battle in near Downpatrick in what is now Northern Ireland in 1103.
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External links
- Who was Magnus? from the Magnus Vikings re-enactment group website http://www.magnusvikings.org/history/magnus.htm
- Magnus Barefoot's Saga, from Heimskringla (English translation): http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/OMACL/Heimskringla/barefoot.html
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