Rikissa Birgersdotter facts for kids

Rikissa Birgersdotter (born around 1237, died after 1288) was an important woman in medieval Scandinavia. She became the Queen of Norway when she married Haakon Haakonson, who was a co-king of Norway. Later, she became a Princess in Werle (part of modern-day Germany) through her second marriage to Henry of Werle. She was also known by other names like Rixa, Richeza, Richilda, and Regitze.

Early Life and Family

Rikissa Birgersdotter was born around 1237 in Sweden. Her parents were Birger Magnusson of Bjelbo (known as Birger Jarl) and Princess Ingeborg Eriksdotter of Sweden. Birger Jarl later became a powerful leader in Sweden, acting as a regent for the king. Rikissa's mother, Ingeborg, was the older sister of King Eric XI of Sweden.

Rikissa was named after her grandmother, Rikissa of Denmark, who had been a queen of Sweden. In Scandinavian tradition, it was common to name the first daughter after her maternal grandmother, especially if the grandmother had passed away.

Royal Marriage in Norway

In 1250, Rikissa's uncle, King Eric XI, died without any children to take his place. Her younger brother, Valdemar of Sweden, became king through their mother's royal family line. Because Valdemar was still young, their father, Birger Jarl, became the regent, meaning he ruled the country until the king was old enough.

Birger Jarl wanted to keep peace between the three kingdoms of Scandinavia: Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. He also wanted to make his own family even more powerful. His children were seen as Swedish princes and princesses because of their mother's royal background and their father's important position.

In 1251, Rikissa married Haakon Haakonsson the Young (born 1232, died 1257). He was the heir to the throne of Norway and ruled alongside his father, King Haakon IV of Norway. Rikissa became the Queen of Norway.

Rikissa and Haakon had one son named Sverre Håkonsson (born 1252, died 1261). Sadly, Sverre died when he was still young. Rikissa's husband, King Haakon, also died in 1257, before his own father passed away in 1263. This meant that Haakon's younger brother, Magnus VI of Norway, became the next heir to the Norwegian throne.

Second Marriage and Later Life

After her first husband's death, Rikissa was known as the Dowager Queen of Norway. In 1262, she married for a second time to Henry of Mecklenburg, Prince of Werle (died 1291). Werle was a principality in what is now northern Germany. Rikissa had several children with Henry in her second marriage. She lived until after 1288.

Children

Rikissa had children from both of her marriages:

• From her marriage to Haakon Haakonsson the Young:
  • Sverre Håkonsson (1252–1261)
• From her marriage to Henry I of Werle:
  • Heinrich II von Werle (died 1308)
  • Nikolaus von Werle (died 1298)
  • Rikissa av Mecklenburg-Werle (died 1312), who married Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Göttingen