Eric the Memorable

After Niels, the fourth and last of the sons of Sweyn II to become kings of Denmark, died, the throne passed to the next generation; in this case to Eric II "the Memorable," son of Eric the Evergood.Born c. 1090 to King Eric I and an unknown woman (Eric had a wife, but like his father consorted Wirth other women), he rebelled against his uncle, King Niels, because Niels was considered neglectful as a king, leaving much of the administration to his queen, Margaret Fredkulla. Finally winning against Niels, Eric was made king on 25 June 1134.Initially losing several battles against his predecessor, he had been name "Harefoot"; it meant "barefoot" and was a derogatory nickname linked to retreating from battle. Once he was elected king, "Harefoot" was replaced with "the Memorable" because of the extremely decisive victory against Niels in the last battle, the Battle of Fotevik, when German mercenaries on horseback took Niels' army by surprise. Denmark had never seen such a large-scale…