Eric the Victorious

Who was Eric the Victorious?

Eric the Victorious was the first Swedish king about whom anything definite is known. Whether he actually qualifies as King of Sweden has been debated, as his son Olof Skötkonung was the first ruler documented to have been accepted both by the Svear around Lake Mälaren and by the Götar around Lake Vättern.

Sometimes, Eric the Victorious is referred to as either King Eric V or VI, modern inventions based on counting backwards from Eric XIV, who adopted his numeral according to a fictitious history of Sweden. Whether or not there were any Swedish monarchs named Eric before Eric the Victorious is disputed, with some historians claiming that there were several earlier Erics, and others questioning the reliability of the primary sources used and the existence of these earlier monarchs. The list of monarchs after him is also complicated, which makes the assignment of any numeral problematic.

His original territory lay in Uppland and neighbouring provinces. He acquired the name "victorious" as a result of his defeating an invasion from the south in the Battle of Fýrisvellir close to Uppsala.