b o ok 104a, claimed the crown o f Denmark in right o f his mo-
i—t J j th e r ; for which reafon he is generally known by the appellation
o f Sweyn the fon of Eftrida. The ftates, however,
gave the preference to Magnus the Good king of Norway ;
but he dyingin 1047, they unanimoufly eleCted Sweyn,who
feems, by his abilities, to have deferved his elevation. In a
Latin infcription, he is called king o f England as well as
of Denmark and Norway ; although the former crown had
been reftored to the Saxon line in the perfon o f Edward the
Confeflor, and was afterwards feized by William the Con-
queror. Sweyn fent a fleet againft England, in order to aflert
his right to the throne, as a lineal defcendant from Canute
the Great; but his troops were either defeated by William,
or obliged to evacuate the ifland through the treachery o f his
brother.
Sweyn is defcribed by a contemporary hiftorian *, who
perfonally knew him as a prince polite to foreigners, o f elegant
manners, and great literary accompliihments. He died
in 1074, leaving thirteen fons and two daughters : five o f
the fons fucceffively filled the throne o f Denmark; and his
pofterity, in the male line, held it in ppfleflion until 1387,
when Valdemar III. dying without male iflue, the female
branch fucceeded ; firft in the perfon o f Oloff 11. fon o f the
celebrated Margaret; and, upon his deceafe, in that o f Margaret
herfelf, whofe aihes are alfo interred in this cathedral.
The fepulchre o f this remarkable woman, who is generally
ftyled the Semiramis o f the North, ftands confpicuous
in the middle of the church: it is enclofed within a baluf-
trade; the monument is o f ftone painted black, and upon it
lies the figure o f the queen in alabafter, a whole length, and,
as we were informed, her exaCl fize when alive. I f this
* See the quotation from A d am l Bremen in Pontopidan’s Mar. D an . p. a.
i tradition
tradition be true, it was obvious to remark, that ihe muft CHAP-
have been very ihort in her perfon. An infcription * .
upon the torpb, inftead of enlarging in long fulfome flatteries,
fuch as are ufually paid to fovereigns, after recording
the time o f her death, only adds, that “ it was raifed at the
“ expence o f Eric o f Pomerania, in memory o f a princefs
“ whom pofterity could never fufficiently honour as lire de-
“ ferves.” Nothing lefs could be faid o f a perlbnage who fo
juftly claims our refpeCt and veneration, and whofe glorious
reign has fcarcely its parallel in the records o f hiftory. This
Margaret, daughter o f Valdemar III. and Hedwige his queen,
was born in 1353 ; and, i f we may give credit to fome o f
the Danifti hiftorians, owed her being to a circumftance
as lingular as her whole life was illuftrious and eminent.
Valdemar, in returning from an hunting party, chanced
to repair to the caftle o f Seborg, where he had confined
his confort Hedwige on account o f fome ill-grounded fuf-
picions. Being pleafed with one o f the queen’s attendants,
he propofed an interview : the woman feigned compliance,
but fubftituted her miftrefs in her ftead, and Margaret was the.
fruit o f their meeting ; which has led a Daniih hiftorian *
to remark, in the high ftyle o f panegyrick, that the good
which he unconfcioufly performed that night in begetting
Margaret, amply compenfated for all the evil a&ions o f his
life. In the fixth year o f her age ihe was betrothed to Ha-
quin, king of Norway, fon o f Magnus king o f Sweden, which
was the firft ftep to her future greatnefs. This marriage,
* “ R e gin a eadem fui mariti & p e lle x , & “ ra t malt j qui prtetiofiilimam vitam donaw
u x o r , & concub ina. Q u id ad hanc fee- “ v it orbi tot regnorum compotem futurara
** nam He rcu lis nav ita tis, au t in Alcmena: “ M a rg a re tam , & legem tranfgrediendo, f e -
“ finu Ju p p ite r decumbens. Sane autem “ licem Daniam e ffe cit.” B e ren g ii Fiorus-
44 plus ea n o£ e Vald em aru s fec it boni in- D an icu s, p . 506.
“ fcius, quam p e r omnem v itam fciens feceafter