Äldsta bevarade avdrag av S:t Erikssigillet, 1376
Saint Eric de Suède
Roi de Suède (+ 1160)
ou Henri. Martyr d'origine anglaise.
Éric IX, gendre du Roi de Suède Smercher, élu pour lui succéder en 1141. Il montra grand soin pour l'administration de la justice. Il usa de toute son influence pour évangéliser ses sujets par la codification des lois de son royaume qu'il rédigea dans un esprit chrétien, sans vouloir les forcer à la conversion. Il travailla à la conversion des Finlandais et les ayant subjugués, décida de conquérir la Finlande, autant pour l'expansion de son domaine que pour y porter l'Évangile.
Il fut assassiné en haine de la Foi, à sa sortie d'une messe, le 18 mai 1160, à Turku, port situé au sud-ouest de la Finlande.
À Upsala en Suède, l’an 1160, saint Éric IX, roi et martyr. Il s’employa à gouverner le peuple dans son royaume avec sagesse et à protéger les droits des femmes, il envoya saint Henri comme évêque en Finlande pour y propager la foi du Christ et enfin, attaqué par les Danois alors qu’il assistait à la messe, il tomba sous les coups de ses ennemis.
Martyrologe romain
SOURCE : http://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/1177/Saint-Eric-de-Suede.html
Possibly Hermen Rode (1430–1504), Former altarpiece of Salem Church, Sweden. Today in the Swedish History Museum, Stockholm, circa 1480
One of the side panels of the former altarpiece of Salem Church, Sweden. Sant'Eric IX. Possibly Hermen Rode (1430–1504), Former altarpiece of Salem Church, Sweden. Today in the Swedish History Museum, Stockholm, circa 1480
Saint Éric
Éric IX, roi de Suède,
appartenait à une famille de riches paysans. Il épousa Christine, fille du
roi Ingon IV. La dignité royale étant élective, ses vertus le firent
choisir pour succéder à son beau-père (1150).
Tous les efforts d’Éric
eurent pour but d’assurer le bonheur du peuple. Il veilla à ce que la
justice fût équitablement rendue, écoutant lui-même les plaintes de ses
sujets, faisant droit à leurs réclamations. Non content de répandre
d’abondantes aumônes, il allait en personne visiter les malades.
Quoiqu’il
détestât la guerre, il fut néanmoins obligé de marcher contre les Finnois,
qui venaient ravager la Suède. Il remporta sur eux une victoire complète, et
soumit à ses armes tout leur pays. Ce fut alors qu’il chargea saint Henri,
évêque d’Upsala, d’aller évangéliser la Finlande, encore plongée dans
l’idolâtrie. Une partie des Suédois, encore païens, fomentaient une révolte
contre Éric. Magnus, roi de Danemark, qui avait des vues ambitieuses
sur la couronne de Suède, se mit à la tête des mécontents, et la mort
du saint roi fut décidée.
Il assistait à la Messe lorsqu’on vint lui annoncer l’approche de Magnus. Après avoir entendu paisiblement l’office jusqu’au bout, il sortit et s’avança seul au devant des rebelles, qui le saisirent et lui tranchèrent la tête. C’était le 18 mai 1162, Alexandre III étant pape, Frédéric Barberousse empereur et Louis VII roi de France. On rapporte qu’une fontaine miraculeuse jaillit de l’endroit où le sang du martyr avait été répandu.
Le
blason de saint Éric IX a trois couronnes d’or qu’on retrouve encore sur les
« petites armoiries » de la Suède placées par exemple sur les
avions de l’armée de l’air et bien sûr dans les « grandes armoiries »
dont elles sont un des éléments constitutifs.
Châsse
de saint Éric à la cathédrale d'Uppsala.
Silver-gilt reliquary of Erik the Saint, Uppsala Cathedral
Châsse
de saint Éric à la cathédrale d'Uppsala.
Silver-gilt reliquary of Erik the Saint, Uppsala Cathedral
Saint Éric
Éric était roi de Suède au milieu du XIIe siècle. Fondateur d'une dynastie suédoise rivale de celle des Sverker, le prince Éric succède à son père le roi Jedward en 1156. Il se montre vaillant défenseur de l'Église, menant une croisade pour la conversion de la Finlande restée païenne. Il veille à améliorer la condition des femmes et des épouses, souvent traitées en esclaves. Cependant, la Suède est attaquée par Magnus Henriksson, roi du Danemark, lequel prétend avoir des droits sur le royaume d'Erik. Le roi assistait à la Messe en la cathédrale d'Upsal. On vient l'avertir que son ennemi approche pour l'attaquer. Il ne bouge pas et continue à suivre l'Office jusqu'au bout. Il tombera sous les coups de son adversaire le 18 mai 1161.
Rédacteur: Frère Bernard Pineau, OP
SOURCE : http://www.lejourduseigneur.com/Web-TV/Saints/Eric
King
Eric the Holy of Sweden is thought to have looked like this wooden bust from
Roslagsbro Church, circa 1400. From Svenska Kungliga bildstoder och sigill P.
E. Hedman, Duvnäs, 1905
Also
known as
Henry of Sweden
Eric The Lawgiver
Eric IX
Erico IX, King of Sweden
Profile
King of Sweden.
Defended his country from Finnish invasions.
Codified Swedish law under
Gospel principles. Used his throne to
spread the Gospel through his kingdom. Built the first large church in Sweden at
Old Uppsala. Murdered by
conspiratorial, anti–Christian Swedish nobles; martyr.
Never formally canonized,
his cultus developed
almost immediately upon his death.
Due to his zeal in the defense of his country and his faith,
his banner has been carried by Swedes,
including non-Catholics,
for centuries.
beheaded on 18 May 1161 as
he left Mass
—
Additional
Information
Book
of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Alban
Butler
Roman
Martyrology, 1914 edition
Saints
of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
books
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
Oxford Dictionary of Saints, by David Hugh Farmer
other
sites in english
1001 Patron Saints and Their Feast Days, Australian
Catholic Truth Society
Christian
Biographies, by James Keifer
images
sitios
en español
Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
sites
en français
fonti
in italiano
Martirologio Romano, 2005 edition
MLA
Citation
“Saint Eric of
Sweden“. CatholicSaints.Info. 5 April 2024. Web. 13 May 2025.
<https://catholicsaints.info/saint-eric-of-sweden/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-eric-of-sweden/
Erik
den helige. Kulturhistoriskt lexikon för nordisk medeltid, band 4, 1959.
Erik
den helige. Kulturhistoriskt lexikon för nordisk medeltid, band 4, 1959.
Article
ERIC (Saint) King, Martyr
(May 18) (12th century) Eric (a name identical with Henry), son-in-law of
Smercher, King of Sweden, was elected to succeed him in 1141, and is described
as both the father and the servant of his people. Having in battle subdued the
Finns, he laboured to convert them to Christianity, and is reckoned the Apostle
of their country. A man of prayer, he built many churches, but always out of
the proceeds of his own patrimony. A Pagan faction, headed by Magnus, son of
the King of Denmark, compassed his death, A.D. 1151, when he was struck down
from his horse and beheaded as he was leaving the church after hearing Mass,
his last thought being to save his followers. His memory is yet held in
benediction among the Swedes.
MLA
Citation
Monks of Ramsgate.
“Eric”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info.
1 January 2013. Web. 13 May 2025.
<https://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-eric/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-eric/
Sant'Eric
IX
Eric IX of Sweden in Överselö kyrka, circa 1400
Erik den helige i Överselö kyrka, circa 1400
St. Eric IX of Sweden
Feastday: May 18
Patron: of Sweden
Death: 1160
Eric IX of Sweden King
of Sweden from
1150, Eric did
much to aid Christianity in
his realm and was responsible for codifying the laws of his kingdom, which
became known as King Eric's Law (also
the code of Uppland). He led a victorious expedition against the marauding
Finns and persuaded English bishop Henry
of Uppsala to remain in Finland to evangelize the Finns. Eric was
killed and beheaded near Uppsala by rebelling Swedish nobles in the army of
Magnus, son of the King of Denmark, who had invaded his territory, on May 18.
Though never formally canonized, Eric was
long considered the Patron of Sweden. His feast day is May 18th.
SOURCE : https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=439
Portalfigur för Apoteket Sankt Erik som låg vid Fleminggatan 75, 1903-1987
Portalfigur
för Apoteket Sankt Erik som låg vid Fleminggatan 75, 1903-1987
Eric of Sweden, King M
(RM?)
(also known as Henry)
Died at Uppsala, Sweden,
on May 18, 1160. Eric IX, son of Jedvard of Vastergotland, claimed the throne
of Sweden in 1150 through his marriage to Princess Christine and reigned as
king for ten years. During that time he did much to consolidate Christianity in
his realm and spread the faith into Finland. In an effort to conquer and
convert them, he led a victorious expedition against the marauding Finns and
persuaded English Bishop Saint Henry of Uppsala to remain in Finland to
evangelize the natives.
He was responsible for
codifying the laws of his kingdom, which became known as King Eric's Law (also
the Code of Uppland). Additionally, he established a monastic chapter in Old
Uppsala, which had come from the Danish abbey of Odense.
In reaction to Eric's insistence
that tithes be paid to support the Church as they were elsewhere in Europe,
some Swedish nobles joined forces with Magnus, son of the king of Denmark. Eric
was accosted near Uppsala at Ostra Aros as he was leaving church after hearing
Mass on Ascension Day by the rebelling Swedish nobles. He was thrown to the
ground from his horse, tortured, ridiculed, then beheaded.
The king was buried in
the church of Old Uppsala, which he had rebuilt around the burial mounds of his
pagan predecessors. In 1167, his body was enshrined; and his relics and regalia
were translated to the present cathedral of Uppsala, built on the site of
Eric's martyrdom, in 1273.
In an effort to
consolidate his position, Eric's son Knud encouraged the cultus of his father
as a martyr. The translation of Eric's relics extended the depth of his cultus.
On his feast there were processions from the cathedral to Old Uppsala to
petition for a good harvest. Oftentimes politically motivated cults have little
merit; however, King Eric was a man of much personal goodness, who sincerely
desired to spread the faith in Sweden.
The ancient belief in a
special heavenly destiny, Valhalla, for those killed in battle doubtless had a
part in the idealization of Eric and other Scandinavian heroes. Though never
formally canonized, Eric has long been considered the patron of Sweden
(Attwater, Attwater2, Benedictines, Delaney, Farmer).
Saint Eric is portrayed
in art as a young king being murdered during Mass with the bishop Henry of
Uppsala (Roeder). In Uppsala cathedral there is a series of late medieval
paintings depicting Eric and Henry of Uppsala (Farmer).
SOURCE : http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0518.shtml
Statue
of Erik IX in Uppsala Cathedral
Staty
av Erik den helige i Uppsala domkyrka
Saint Eric IX of Sweden
Jul 03, 2015 /
Written by: America
Needs Fatima
Feast May 18
King, Martyr and Patron
Saint of Sweden
Eric the Holy or Erik the
Saint was acknowledged king in most provinces of Sweden in 1150, and his family
line subsisted for a hundred years.
He did much to establish
Christianity in Upper Sweden and built or completed at Old Uppsala the first
large church to be erected in the country. It is said that all the ancient laws
and constitutions of the kingdom were, by his orders, collected into one volume,
which came to be known as King Eric’s Law or The Code of Uppland.
The king soon had to take
up arms against the heathen Finns. He vanquished them in battle, and at his
desire, St. Henry, Bishop of Uppsala, who had accompanied him on the
expedition, remained in Finland to evangelize the people.
The king’s zeal for the
Catholic Faith was far from pleasing to his nobles, and we are told that they
entered into a conspiracy against him with Magnus, the son of the king of
Denmark.
King Eric was hearing
Mass on the day after the feast of the Ascension when news was brought that a
Danish army, swollen with Swedish rebels, was marching against him and was
close at hand. With unwavering calm he answered, “Let us at least finish the
sacrifice; the rest of the feast I shall keep elsewhere”.
After Mass was over, he
recommended his soul to God, and marched forth in advance of his guards. The
conspirators rushed upon him, beat him down from his horse, and beheaded him.
His death occurred on May 18 in 1161.
The relics of St. Eric IX
of Sweden are preserved in the Cathedral of Uppsala, and the saintly king's
effigy appears on the coat of arms of the city of Stockholm.
SOURCE : https://americaneedsfatima.org/articles/saint-eric-ix-of-sweden
St. Eric, King of Sweden,
Martyr
See Israelis Erlandi
liber de vitâ et miraculis S. Erici Regis, ex editione et cum notis
Joan. Schefferi,
in 8vo. Holmiæ, 1675; and
Henschenius, t. 4, Maij, p. 186.
A.D. 1151.
ERIC 1 was
descended of a most illustrious Swedish family: in his youth he laid a solid
foundation
of virtue and learning,
and took to wife Christina, daughter of Ingo IV. king of Sweden. Upon the death
of King Smercher in 1141, he was, purely for his extraordinary virtues and
qualifications, placed on the throne by the election of the states, according
to the ancient laws of that kingdom. His first care in that exalted and
dangerous station was to watch over his own soul. He treated his body with
great severity, fasting and watching much, in order to keep his domestic enemy
in due subjection to the spirit, and to fit himself for the holy exercises of
heavenly contemplation and prayer, which were his chief delight. He was truly
the father and the servant of all his people. With indefatigable application he
himself administered to them justice, especially to the poor, to whose
complaints his ears were always open, and whose grievances and oppressions he
took care himself to redress. He often visited in person the poor who were
sick, and relieved them with bountiful alms. Content with his own patrimony, he
levied no taxes. He built churches, and by wholesome laws restrained the
brutish and savage vices of his subjects. The frequent inroads of the
idolatrous Finlanders upon his territories obliged him to take the field
against them. He vanquished them in a great battle; but after his victory he wept
bitterly at the sight of the dead bodies of his enemies which covered the
field, because they had been slain unbaptized. When he had subdued Finland, he
sent St. Henry, bishop of Upsal, to preach the faith of Christ to that savage
infidel nation, of which he may be styled the apostle. Among the subjects of
this good king were certain sons of Belial, who made his piety the subject of
their ridicule, being mostly obstinate idolaters. Magnus, son of the king of
Denmark, blinded by ambitious views to the crown of Sweden, put himself at the
head of these impious malecontents, and engaged them in a conspiracy to take
away the life of their sovereign. The holy king was hearing mass on the day
after the feast of the ascension, when news was brought him that the rebels
were in arms, and on the march against him. He calmly answered: “Let us at
least finish the sacrifice; the remainder of the festival I shall keep
elsewhere.” After mass he recommended his soul to God, made the sign of the
cross, and, to spare the blood of the citizens, who were ready to defend his
life at the expense of their own, marched out alone before his guards. The
conspirators rushed upon him, beat him down from his horse, and struck off his
head with a thousand indignities in derision of his religion. His death
happened on the 18th of May, 1151. God honoured his tomb with many miracles. It
remains to this day at Upsal undefaced. St. Eric was honoured as chief patron
of the kingdom of Sweden till the change of religion in the sixteenth century. He
ordered the ancient laws and constitutions of the kingdom to be collected into
one volume, which bears the title of King Eric’s Law, or the Code of Uppland,
highly respected in Sweden: it was confirmed in the thirteenth century by the
learned king Magnus Ladulas, who compiled and published in 1285 another code
under the title of Gardsrætte.
All power and authority
among men is derived from God, as Christ declared to Pilate, 2 and
as the wise man often repeats. Whence St. Paul teaches us, that “he who
resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God.” 3 On
no men doth he confer the least degree of jurisdiction but with the most severe
injunction and obligation, that they employ it according to his will, and in
the first place for the advancement of his divine honour. Hence every father,
master of a family, magistrate, or king, is accountable to God for those under his
charge, and will be condemned as a traitor on the last day, if he employ not
all the means in his power that God may be known, praised, and faithfully
served by them. This is the primary obligation of those whom God hath vested
with authority. In the faithful discharge of this trust the glorious St. Eric
laid down his life.
Note 1. Eric, Erric,
and Henry, are in the northern nations the same name, which in the Teutonic
language signifies rich lord. St. Eric was the ninth of that name
among the kings of Sweden. [back]
Rev. Alban
Butler (1711–73). Volume V: May. The Lives of the Saints. 1866.
SOURCE : http://www.bartleby.com/210/5/181.html
Monument
to Saint Eric IX of Sweden,Torsgatan, Stockholm,
Sweden
Erik IX
Erik IX Jedvardsson was ruler of much of Sweden from 1150 to 1160. He was the
head of a Christian kingdom with nearby pagan kingdoms, all sharing an old
tradition of fighting. Around 1155, he headed an expedition into Finland, then
loosely under Swedish rule, to consolidate Swedish authority there and to
establish a protected Christian mission, headed by Henry of Uppsala, now considered
the founder of the Church in Finland (see 19 Jan). Erik is also known for
undertaking to provide Sweden with fair laws and fair courts, and for measures
designed to assist the poor and the infirm. As he was in church on 18 May 1160,
the day after Ascension Day, he was told that a pagan Danish army was
approaching to kill him. He replied, "Let us at least finish the
sacrifice. The rest of the feast I shall keep elsewhere." As he was
leaving the church, the pagans rushed upon him and killed him.
Erik was honored both as
an upholder of the Christian faith and as a national hero, the ancestor of a
long line of Swedish kings. Within thirty years after his death his name
appeared on the Swedish Calendar, and he is accounted the principal patron of
Sweden, as (for example) Patrick is of Irelend. The silver casket with his
remains still rests in the cathedral at Uppsala.
PRAYER (traditional
language)
O God, who didst call thy
servant Erik of Sweden to an earthly Throne that he might advance thy heavenly
kingdom, and didst give him zeal for thy Church and love for thy people:
Mercifully grant that we who commemorate him this day may be fruitful in good works,
and attain to the glorious crown of thy saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and
ever.
PRAYER (contemporary
language)
O God, who called your
servant Erik of Sweden to an earthly Throne that he might advance your heavenly
kingdom, and gave him zeal for your Church and love for your people: Mercifully
grant that we who commemorate him this day may be fruitful in good works, and
attain to the glorious crown of your saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who
lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
SOURCE : http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/159.html
King Magnus II attacks King Eric the Holy of Sweden, From
book Monumenta Uplandica by Johan Peringskiöld, circa 1719
Sant' Erik IX Re di
Svezia
Svezia, XII sec. – Ostra
Aros (Uppsala), 18 maggio 1161
Erik era figlio di
Jedward (Edward) da cui il patronimico Jedvardsson e fu nominato re dai popoli
dello Svealand nel 1150. Cristiano animato da grande zelo, organizzò una
spedizione nella vicina Finlandia pagana, lasciandovi Enrico, vescovo della
vecchia Uppsala (Gamla Uppsala) per continuarvi l'evangelizzazione. La
tradizione presenta Erik IX come il fondatore del dominio svedese sulla
Finlandia, che portò all'unione dei due Stati per quasi 650 anni fino al 1809.
Durante una guerra che coinvolgeva i Paesi Scandinavi e la Danimarca, il 18
maggio 1161, re Erik IX «il Santo», in lotta contro il principe danese Magnus
Henriksson, mentre partecipava alla Messa nella chiesa della Trinità di Ostra
Aros (Uppsala di oggi), fu attaccato dai nemici. Il re volle continuare ad
assistere alla celebrazione della Messa fino alla fine e solo dopo si volse
contro gli assalitori. Morì per un colpo alla gola durante la battaglia. Fu
sepolto nel duomo di Gamla Uppsala e il popolo cominciò da subito a venerarne
le reliquie. (Avvenire)
Martirologio
Romano: A Uppsala in Svezia, sant’Eric IX, re e martire, che durante il
suo regno si prodigò nel governare con saggezza il popolo e nel tutelare i
diritti delle donne; mandò in Finlandia il vescovo sant’Enrico per diffondervi
la fede di Cristo e, infine, aggredito mentre partecipava alla celebrazione
della Messa, cadde pugnalato per mano dei suoi nemici.
Nel 1526, quando il
luteranesimo si stabilì in Svezia, tutte le manifestazioni in onore di
sant’Erik furono soppresse, come del resto per tutte le manifestazioni, culto
delle reliquie, immagini, processioni, ecc. inerenti i santi venerati fino
allora dalla Svezia cattolica.
Quindi tutte le notizie
che lo riguardano, compreso quelle per le reliquie, sono antecedenti a tale
periodo.
Erik era figlio di
Jedward (Edward) da cui il patronimico Jedvardsson (bisogna aggiungere che il
nome Jedward, secondo alcuni storici, sarebbe la testimonianza dell’attività
missionaria, svolta dall’Inghilterra in Svezia) e fu nominato re dai popoli
dello Svealand nel 1150.
Cristiano tutto d’un
pezzo e spinto da grande zelo, organizzò una crociata nella vicina Finlandia
pagana, lasciandovi Enrico, vescovo della vecchia Uppsala (Gamla Uppsala) per
continuare come missionario, l’evangelizzazione dei popoli finni occidentali.
La tradizione presenta
Erik IX come il fondatore del dominio svedese sulla Finlandia, che ebbe un
benefico risultato sull’unione dei due Stati e popoli; unione durata per quasi
650 anni e che in certo modo è continuata anche dopo il distacco nel 1809,
della Finlandia dalla Svezia.
Altro Stato vicino alla
Svezia e nei tempi lontani in continua lotta con la stessa Svezia, era la
Danimarca, i cui principi avevano mire espansionistiche (nel secolo XI i Danesi
avevano conquistato anche l’Inghilterra e la Norvegia).
E fu durante una di
queste guerre che coinvolgeva i Paesi Scandinavi e la Danimarca, che il 18
maggio 1161, re Erik IX il Santo, in lotta contro il principe danese Magnus
Henriksson, mentre ascoltava la Messa nella chiesa della Trinità di Ostra Aros
(Uppsala di oggi), fu attaccato dai nemici.
Il re volle continuare ad
assistere alla celebrazione della Messa fino alla fine e solo dopo, si volse
contro gli assalitori più numerosi e forti; nella mischia che ne seguì, fu
ucciso con un colpo di spada alla gola (come risulta dalle ricognizioni delle
reliquie).
Fu sepolto nel Duomo di
Gamla Uppsala e il popolo cominciò da subito a venerarne le reliquie,
considerandolo la figura più rappresentativa del Cristianesimo in Svezia.
Trentotto anni dopo la sua
morte, era citato come santo, nel famoso diario della chiesa di Vallentuna; tre
anni dopo l’uccisione, il papa Alessandro III unì le quattro diocesi svedesi in
una sola archidiocesi (Uppsala), nominando come primo arcivescovo il monaco
cistercense Stefano del monastero di Alvastra, consacrato in Francia.
Verso il 1245 la
cattedrale di Gamla Uppsala fu in gran parte distrutta da un incendio; inoltre
la vecchia Uppsala si trovò a perdere d’importanza, in quanto il delta del
fiume Fyris si spostò verso Ostra Aros, perdendo così il porto fluviale; per
queste ragioni la sede arcivescovile fu spostata ad Ostra Aros (Uppsala di
oggi) e nel 1271 si iniziò la costruzione della magnifica cattedrale, cui
parteciparono maestranze francesi.
Il 24 gennaio 1273, le
reliquie di s. Erik IX, poterono essere traslate nella nuova cattedrale,
partendo in processione da Gamla Uppsala; ogni anno il 18 maggio, si teneva una
solenne processione delle reliquie attraverso i campi, unendo i due centri di
Uppsala; la tradizionale cerimonia si tenne per circa tre secoli, fino al 1526,
quando subentrò in Svezia il luteranesimo.
Le reliquie hanno avuto
una storia a parte nelle vicende reali svedesi e nonostante la Riforma
Protestante, il culto per il santo re continuò in varie forme.
Nel Medioevo era talmente
importante per gli svedesi, che ogni nuovo re pronunciava il suo giuramento,
poggiando le mani sulle sue reliquie.
È considerato da secoli
l’eroe e santo nazionale svedese; la città di Stoccolma porta nello stemma la
sua immagine. La festa si celebra il 18 maggio e il 24 gennaio si ricorda la
traslazione delle reliquie.
Autore: Antonio
Borrelli