Saint Erik
12th-century Swedish King and Saint
Saint Erik (c. 1125 – 18 May 1160), also called Eric IX or Erik Jedvardsson was King of Sweden from c. 1156 until his death in 1160. The Roman Martyrology of the Catholic Church names him as a saint memorialized on 18 May. He was the founder of the House of Erik, which ruled Sweden with interruptions from c. 1156 to 1250.
Background
As later kings from the House of Erik were consistently buried at Varnhem Abbey near Skara in Västergötland, Erik's family is considered to have Geatish roots like other medieval ruling houses in Sweden. Osteological investigations of Erik's remains suggest that he may have lived the last 10–15 years of his life in Västergötland rather than in Uppland where he died. On the other hand, the only manor he is known to have possessed is situated in Västmanland in Svealand. Eriksberg in central Västergötland has been suggested as the original family manor.
Erik had a brother whose name began with a "J"; this brother has been identified with a Joar Jedvardsson.
The public source identifies “Saint Erik” as 12th-century Swedish King and Saint. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Saint, Erik and 12th-century.
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Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q310152. VIAF identifies the subject as 2438235. The Library of Congress control number is n96058693. 3 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1125, 1160, 1156 and 1250.
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This entry incorporates text from “Saint Erik” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.