alternatehistory.com

Maybe a mistake, but I'm going to give it another shot. A Norway TL has always been a goal of mine. My track record on actually continuing threads isn't so good of AH.com, but I've already gotten 10,000 words written and, while nervous, think I better get a few opinions and comments before continuing any further.

Magnus Olafsson had become King of Norway as Magnus III in 1093, as the only son of Olaf III. His rule was initially contested by his cousin, Haakon Magnusson, and the two ruled uneasily side-by-side till Haakon’s death in 1095. Subsequently Magnus had to deal with Haakon’s foster-father Tore Tordsson, who alongside a number of noblemen raised a pretender to the throne. After a brief period of fighting, Magnus captured the noblemen and had them hanged. With the final domestic hurdle overcome when Magnus negotiated peace with Sveinke Steinarsson, Magnus was now the uncontested king of Norway.

This gave Magnus the opportunity in 1098 to start a campaign in the Irish Sea. His goal was to extend Norwegian rule to the Kingdom of Isles, Suðreyjar. First securing Orkney, Magnus then led a series of raids against the Hebrides. Eventually he led a major assault against Mann, killing the earl Óttar in a battle and capturing the King of the Isles, Lagman Godredsson. Magnus spent a period enforcing Norwegian control of the islands, building several forts using timber from subdued areas of Galloway and encouraging immigration from Norway.

Possibly at the urging of Gruffudd ap Cynan, King of Gwynedd, Magnus moved to Anglesey where a Norman force had just defeated the Welsh. While it is uncertain whether Magnus intended to fight a battle against the Normans, the situation devolved into an archery battle the Norwegians won due to Hugh of Montgomery being shot through the eye with an arrow. The demoralized Normans retreated. Some say Magnus regretted the event, having been looking to cooperate with the Normans. Regardless, Magnus came to view Anglesey as now the southernmost territory of Norway despite his influence and control there never approaching appreciable levels. Eventually he seemingly removed his claim to Anglesey in favor of a beneficial partnership with Gruffudd ap Cynan.

The last event of Magnus’ First Irish Sea Campaign was an agreement with King Edgar, one of the claimants for King of the Scots, recognizing the Hebrides and Mann as Norwegian territory. Interestingly, there is debate over whether this agreement actually happened or not. Some claim it to have been a Norwegian fable to justify their control over the Hebrides and Mann, the issue coming to light later.

Once back in Norway, the always expansionist Magnus turned east. By claiming an ancient border that utilized the Göta älv as the border between Norway and Sweden, he claimed all land west of Vänern. The Swedish king Inge Stenkilsson refuted the claim and conflict broke out. Magnus won a devastating victory over the Swedish forces at Fuxerna through a surprise attack, but a wooden fort Magnus built was burned by the swedes over the winter. A hasty campaign by Magnus was then ambushed by Swedish forces, and were forced to flee back to their ships with heavy losses. The conflict was ended when the Danish king, Eric Evergood, who feared the conflict would escalate to eventually drag his kingdom into it as well. The three kings met, and after a constructive meeting a deal was made. Magnus would marry Inge’s daughter Margaret, and her dowry would be the province of Dalsaland Magnus desired.

With peace made between the Nordic kings, Magnus set out on his Second Irish Sea Campaign. Moving with an even larger force this time, sources say Magnus set out to invade Ireland. Receiving reinforcements from Orkney, Magnus set up a base to survey Ireland on Mann. Despite initial tension with Muirchertach Ua Briain, called Mýrjartak in the Norse sagas, Magnus eventually came to an accord with him against Domnall Ua Lochlainn. Muirchertach recognized Magnus’ control of Dublin and Fingal. In return Magnus’ second son Sigurd, who Magnus had reportedly been grooming to rule Suðreyjar, would marry Muirchertach’s daughter, Bé Binn. Referenced as Bjaðmynja in the sagas. This alliance was set to expand the sway of both in Ireland through mutual cooperation.

However the alliance was plagued by an abundance of bad luck. Their raids in 1102 weren’t particularly successful, and Muirchertach failed to subdue Domnall at the Battle of Mag Coba. The fighting stopped during the winter of 1102-1103, and during that spring Magnus fell sick. After recovering, he was similarly incapacitated for a time. How remains debated between his being attacked by a wolf, unlikely, an assassin successfully cutting his hands with a dagger, also unlikely, being tricked into eating rancid food to result in serious food poisoning, possible, and a simple accident where he broke an arm or a leg, highly possible. Regardless of how, Magnus was incapable of leading his forces. He was instead forced to engage in a more conservative campaign, largely focusing on encastelling Dublin and Fingal to enforce his power. Muirchertach was dissatisfied with this, and refused to provide cattle as originally promised. This lack of provisions led Torgrim Skinnluve to leave with his contingents, Magnus’ campaigns having been unpopular with many in Norway. Angered and bitter, Magnus was forced to allow the leidang to return to Norway. This left Magnus with solely his royal and baronial forces, just over a third of his original force.

This seemingly was the deciding event for Muirchertach. He declared Magnus had broken the alliance, and set out with his own forces alongside some Norman mercenaries. Magnus, finally able to lead his forces, set out boldly to confront his previous ally. Despite those voices arguing for Magnus to abandon Dublin or at least use his numerous wooden fortresses in a defensive war, Magnus claimed that ‘Kings are made for honor, not for long life.’ This boldness surprised Muirchertach, who had grown use to Magnus’ conservative moves of the campaign, and suffered heavy losses from Magnus’ fierce attacks. However Magnus was eventually injured enough in following skirmishes for his men to drag him back to Dublin in the face of Muirchertach’s still numerically superior forces. The Norwegians thus started a defensive war against Muirchertach, which obviously proved a slow grind for both.

The conflict ended indecisively though when Domnall gathered forces from Ulaid and other areas of northern Ireland, and moved to take advantage of the conflict. Magnus and Muirchertach entered negotiations. The previous alliance was reinstated, but Muirchertach ceded land of Mide and Leinster around Dublin and Fingal enough to double Magnus’ lands in Ireland. In turn Magnus would lead his forces against Domnall.

The campaign against Domnall proved successful, if indecisive. Magnus supposedly won a number of skirmishes, and assisted Muirchertach in winning a close unnamed battle through supposedly flanking Domnall’s force. However the Irish and Norwegian forces were said to have bitterness from their brief conflict, and the two forces campaigned separately for the most part. When Domnall retreated, Magnus also refused to assist Muirchertach in a campaign in northern Ireland. Magnus had fulfilled his part in fighting Domnall, and his goals of enhancing Norwegian power in Ireland was a success. However Muirchertach supposedly always regarded Norwegian Dublin with caution, fearing the threat Magnus posed till his death.

Now setting to return to Norway, Magnus left enough men to hold his new lands before setting out. No doubt hoping to increase his success quickly, Magnus made a quick deal with Gruffudd before leaving. Magnus officially sold his claim to Anglesey for a greater sum than warranted, in return for Magnus’ forces raiding the Norman positions in southern Wales. This sum alongside loot taken in the raids allowed Magnus to return to Norway in 1104 with definitive monetary results of his expeditions.

So when trying to figure out a good POD for this TL, I decided to not go with the obvious (Harald III successfully taking England, the Black Death, the Kalmar Union, or anything to do with viking). I also decided to start after the Christianization of Norway. While religion will play a part in this TL like it should all good TL's, I did not want to get sucked into the pagan vs Christian debate. After researching, I thought Magnus Barefoot seemed to present good potential. He had decent success, even being considered by some the final viking king, and died rather young in battle.

For those of you not familiar, Magnus OTL died in his Second Irish Sea Campaign in a skirmish in northern Ireland. Here, disease and accidents hindered his movements and so things turned out differently.
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