Olav Magnusson (1099 – 22 December 1115) was
king of Norway
The Norwegian monarch is the head of state of Norway, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The Norwegian monarchy can trace its line back to the reign of Harald Fairhair and the previous petty king ...
in 1103–1115. He was the son of King
Magnus Barefoot
Magnus III Olafsson (Old Norse: ''Magnús Óláfsson'', Norwegian: ''Magnus Olavsson''; 1073 – 24 August 1103), better known as Magnus Barefoot (Old Norse: ''Magnús berfœttr'', Norwegian: ''Magnus Berrføtt''), was the King of Norway ...
and Sigrid, daughter of Saxe of Vik.
Olav became king together with his half-brothers
Sigurd Jorsalfar
Sigurd the Crusader (; ; 1089 – 26 March 1130), also known as Sigurd Magnusson and Sigurd I, was King of Norway from 1103 to 1130. His rule, together with his half-brother Øystein (until Øystein died in 1123), has been regarded by historian ...
and
Øystein Magnusson
Eystein Magnusson (, ; – 29 August 1123), also called Eystein I, was King of Norway from 1103 to 1123 together with his half-brothers Sigurd the Crusader and Olaf Magnusson, although since Olaf died before adulthood, only Eystein and Sigurd w ...
when his father
Magnus Barefoot
Magnus III Olafsson (Old Norse: ''Magnús Óláfsson'', Norwegian: ''Magnus Olavsson''; 1073 – 24 August 1103), better known as Magnus Barefoot (Old Norse: ''Magnús berfœttr'', Norwegian: ''Magnus Berrføtt''), was the King of Norway ...
died in 1103. He was king of Norway for twelve years, but unlike his brothers he did not leave a lasting impression on the nation. Since he was still very young, his older brothers acted as regents for his part of the kingdom. In 1107, King Sigurd was to lead a Norwegian crusade in support of the newly established crusader
Kingdom of Jerusalem
The Kingdom of Jerusalem, also known as the Crusader Kingdom, was one of the Crusader states established in the Levant immediately after the First Crusade. It lasted for almost two hundred years, from the accession of Godfrey of Bouillon in 1 ...
, returning to Norway in 1111. During this period, King Øystein served as regent for his brother, using his energy and willpower to create a strong and stable country.
In 1115, Olav fell ill and died when he was only 17 years old. He was succeeded by his co-ruler brothers. He was counted as "Olav III" until 1957 (when
Olav V became king, who otherwise would have been IV), and counting him was dropped from the official Norwegian list of monarchs.
References
1099 births
1115 deaths
12th-century Norwegian monarchs
House of Hardrada
Monarchs who died as children
Medieval child monarchs
Burials at Nidaros Cathedral
Sons of kings
Illegitimate children of Norwegian monarchs
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