Anders Sunesen (also ''Andreas'', ''Suneson'', ''Sunesøn'',

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

: ''Andreas Sunonis'') (c. 1167 – 1228) was a Danish

archbishop of Lund List of (arch)bishops of Lund. Until the Reformation in Denmark, Danish Reformation the centre of a great Latin (arch)bishopric, Lund has been in Sweden since the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658. The Diocese of Lund is now one of thirteen in the Ch ...

Scania Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

, from 21 March 1201, at the death of

Absalon Absalon (21 March 1201) was a Danish statesman and prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Roskilde from 1158 to 1192 and archbishop of Lund from 1178 until his death. He was the foremost politician and church father of De ...

, to his own death in 1228. He is the author of the Latin translation of the

Scanian Law Scanian law (, ) is the oldest Danish provincial law and one of the first Nordic provincial laws to be written down. It was used in the geographic region of Danish Skåneland, which at the time included Scania, Halland, Blekinge and the isla ...

and was throughout his life engaged in integrating a Christian worldview into the old legislature. He managed to introduce

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Modern tithes are normally voluntary and paid in money, cash, cheques or v ...

(taxation benefiting the church) despite the resistance this measure had met from the population of Scania during Absalon's time, but his efforts to convince the priests of his day about the merits of

celibacy Celibacy (from Latin ''caelibatus'') is the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both. It is often in association with the role of a religious official or devotee. In its narrow sense, the term ''celibacy'' is applied ...

was based mostly on his own example and relied on oratory rather than legal maneuvering. To educate the priests and to forward his ideas, especially about the integration between church and state, he wrote a didactic poem, '' Hexaëmon'', consisting of 8,040 verses of Latin

hexameter Hexameter is a metrical line of verses consisting of six feet (a "foot" here is the pulse, or major accent, of words in an English line of poetry; in Greek as well as in Latin a "foot" is not an accent, but describes various combinations of s ...

. A nephew of Absalon and a member of the religious and political elite, Sunesen was well-traveled, having received his education in

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and philosophy in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France, and his legal education in

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

, Italy and at

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, England. His encounter with ideas from the European continent about Christian Crusades were incorporated into his thinking. He led a crusade against

Finns Finns or Finnish people (, ) are a Baltic Finns, Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland. Finns are traditionally divided into smaller regional groups that span several countries adjacent to Finland, both those who are native to these cou ...

in 1202 with his brother and lobbied the Pope for a crusade against

Estonians Estonians or Estonian people () are a Finnic ethnic group native to the Baltic Sea region in Northern Europe, primarily their nation state of Estonia. Estonians primarily speak the Estonian language, a language closely related to other Finni ...

Livonians The Livonians, or Livs, are a Balto-Finnic people indigenous to the Livonian Coast, in northwestern Latvia. Livonians historically spoke Livonian language, Livonian, a Uralic language closely related to Estonian language, Estonian and Finnish lan ...

and

Baltic peoples The Balts or Baltic peoples (, ) are a group of peoples inhabiting the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea who speak Baltic languages. Among the Baltic peoples are modern-day Lithuanians (including Samogitians) and Latvians (including Latgalian ...

. He eventually received permission to install a bishop in

Reval Tallinn is the capital and most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and administratively lies in the Harju ''maakond'' (co ...

(

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

), and in 1219, he accompanied

Valdemar II Valdemar II Valdemarsen (28 June 1170 – 28 March 1241), later remembered as Valdemar the Victorious () and Valdemar the Conqueror, was King of Denmark from 1202 until his death in 1241. In 1207, Valdemar invaded and conquered Lybeck and Hol ...

in his war against

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

. According to an old Danish myth supportive of Danish expansionism, the Danish flag (''

Dannebrog Dannebrog (until the mid-20th century often spelled Danebrog) may refer to: Flags and orders * The flag of Denmark * Order of the Dannebrog (), a Royal Danish decoration Places * Dannebrog Island, an island in Greenland * Dannebrog Islands, ...

'') appeared in the sky and fell into the hands of Valdemar II as Sunesen raised his arms and prayed for a Danish victory during the decisive

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

. He lived his last years in northeastern Scania, where he died in 1228 on Ivö Island in

Ivö Lake Ivö Lake ( Swedish: ''Ivösjön'') is the largest and deepest lake of Skåne, Sweden, located in the municipalities of Kristianstad and Bromölla in the northeastern part of Skåne County. It covers an area of just under , with a maximum depth of ...

, Scania's largest lake. It has been speculated that his death may have been attributed to

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

.Øresundstid
"Consolidation Under Anders Sunesen"
. ''Early Middle Ages: King and Church.'' Section 4.6. Retrieved 21 Dec. 2006. He is buried in a

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (: sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a coffin, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek language, Greek wikt:σάρξ, σάρξ ...

Lund Cathedral Lund Cathedral () is a cathedral of the Lutheran Church of Sweden in Lund, Scania, Sweden. It is the seat of the Bishop of Lund and the main church of the Diocese of Lund. It was built as the Catholic cathedral of the archiepiscopal see of all ...

Notes and references

External links

Ivö Church
an
The Bishop's Cellar
the ruins of Anders Sunesen's castle on Ivö Island. Part of a Nature Trail information site by the non-profit organizatio
Humleslingan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sunesen, Anders 1160s births 1228 deaths Roman Catholic archbishops of Lund 13th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Denmark Christians of the Livonian Crusade