797 



ERICK. 



ERICK. 



798 



chronicler of PLilip II., Calvete de Estrella, has left a picturesque 

 account He also accompanied Philip in his subsequent travels, and 

 on the occasion of his marriage with Queen Mary, Ercilla came to 

 England in 1554. While in London, he heard of a revolt of the 

 brave Araucaniana (Araucanos) against the Spaniards in Chile, and 

 his military ardour being excited by the news, he volunteered to go 

 to America. It was amidst the incessant toils and dangers of a 

 campaign against barbarians, without shelter and with nothing to 

 write on but small scraps of waste paper, and often only leather, 

 struggling at once against enemies and surrounding circumstances, 

 that, for the first time an iron-clad poet attempted to describe in epic 

 strains the exploits in which he himself participated, and which he 

 often directed. Thus did Ercilla write the first part of his ' Arau- 

 cana,' BO named from the war and country of Arauca. After numerous 

 escapes from the dangers of the war, he was ordered to the scaffold 

 (A.D. 1558) by a young and hasty commander, who thought he per- 

 ceived a premeditated mutiny in a private quarrel which arose in the 

 American city of Imperial, while the people were celebrating the 

 acd'ssion of Philip II. to the crown. Ercilla, who on that occasion 

 had to draw his sword in defence of his honour and life, was saved by 

 the timely discovery of the injustice of the sentence which had been 

 passed on him. Much impaired in health, although then only in his 

 twenty-ninth year, the poet-soldier returned to Spain, but only to 

 experience the continued neglect and disdain of Philip whom he had 

 served all his life, whom he bad already invoked as his Augustus, and 

 whom he celebrated iu the sequel of his poem. To exalt and pro- 

 pitiate his reluctant patron, be introduced into it the episodical 

 battles of St. Quentin and Lepanto. The indignity which lie still 

 experienced induced Ercilla to ramble for some time over different 

 parts of Europe, where the only favour he received was from the 

 emperor Rudolph, who appointed him gentleman of his bed-chamber. 

 At last he settled at Madrid, where he lingered in retirement and 

 penury, writing poetry till his death, the time of which is not clearly 

 ascertained. He was however alive in 1596, for Musquera de Figue- 

 roa, in his ' Comentario de Disciplina Militar,' speaks of Ercilla as then 

 engaged in celebrating the victories of Don Alvaro Bazan, marques 

 de Santa Cruz, in a poem which was never published, and was 

 perhaps left incomplete. 



The 'Parnaao Espanol' contains a short erotic poem, written by 

 Ercilla in his youth, and highly commended by Lope de Vega in his 

 'Laurel de Apolo.' But it is only the ' Araucana' which has recom- 

 mended Ercilla to posterity. He published the first part by itself; then 

 the first and second parts together in 1577 ; and the whole three parts 

 in 1590, many editions of which have appeared successively in different 

 places. The severe censures passed on this poem by a host of bio- 

 graphers or compiler* are in fact only a long file of repetitions, and 

 much of the censure is founded on misconception. 



Nothing short of a sketch, however brief, of the ' Araucana,' could 

 give a just idea of its plan and execution. But it would however be 

 unfair not to remind those who consider Ercilla as a second Lucan, 

 that he undertook a much harder task than the Cordovan poet, who 

 siing a mighty contest for the mastery of the world ; while Ercilla had 

 to contend against two features in his subject, the most unfavourable 

 to an epic a conquest not yet accomplished over a narrow, rocky, and 

 unknown spot, and a brave and injured enemy struggling for their 

 freedom. Still he succeeded in infusing an Homeric spirit into his 

 long narration, which, independently of its other merits, is a real 

 historical record. 



ERICK, in Swedish, is synonymous with the German Heinrich, and 

 the English Henry, and is the name of many kings of Sweden and of 

 Denmark. Of the earlier kings of this name little is known, for the 

 history of the Scandinavian nations previous to the 9th or 10th 

 centuries of our era is very confused, and much of it is semi-fabulous. 

 In the earlier centuries of our era the country now called Sweden was 

 divided into several kingdoms or states, of which Sweden Proper and 

 Oothia were the two principal. Sweden Proper comprised the central 

 part of the present Sweden, and included the provinces of Upland, 

 Sudermanlaml, Westinanland, Nerike, and part of Dalecarlia. The 

 kingdom of Gothia comprised the southern part of the great Scandi- 

 navian peninsula, including the provinces of Ostrogothia and Westro- 

 gothia, divided by the Wetter Lake, Smiiland, Bohusland, Skane, and 

 Klekingen, with the isles of Gothland and Oeland. But the moat 

 southern provinces, especially Skane, were for a long time a subject of 

 contention with the Danes, who frequently occupied them. 



There was also the kingdom of Wiirmeland, north and west of the 

 great Wener Lake, extending to the borders of Norway, and the 

 kingdom of Halsiugland, north of Sweden Proper, which included 

 the provinces of Angermanland, Jamteland, East and West Bothnia, 

 up to the wilderness of Lapland. Most of these provinces had each 

 its separate chief or king, something like the earlier Saxon kingdoms 

 in England ; but the king of Sweden Proper, or of Upeal, as he was 

 also called, was considered in ordinary times as the head of the whole, 

 like the Bretwalda of the Saxon Heptarchy. OJin or Wodin, the 

 conqueror of Scandinavia in the century previous to our era, is said to 

 have kept Sweden for himself, allowing his relatives or companions to 

 settle in the rest of Scandinavia as his vassals ; and this superiority of 

 Sweden was acknowledged for several centuries after, HO that at the 

 great general meetings of the Scandinavian nations the king of Den- 



mark used to hold the bridle and the king of Norway the stirrup of 

 the king of Sweden's horse. (Puffendorf.) 



Among the earlier kings of Sweden, in the 5th and 6th centuries, 

 we fiud several Bricks, of whom little or nothing is known. One of 

 these reigned together with his brother Alrick as kings of Upsal from 

 about 465 to 485. Another Erick and his brother Jorund, being the 

 sons of Yngue Alrickson, were following the then common profession 

 of sea-kinga, or pirates, when a vacancy on the throne of Sweden, to 

 which they had some family claim, recalled them home, about 525. 

 They were opposed by the usurper Haco, when Erick was killed, and 

 Jorund was obliged to escape. In the 9th century we find Erick 

 Biornson reigning together with his father Bioru Jiirnside, about 864. 

 Bib'rn died in 870, and Erick reigned alone till 874, when he died abroad 

 in some expedition. He was succeeded by his son Biorn and his nephew 

 Erick, the sou of Refil, the Sea King, who reigned together for a time. 

 The two kings went with a host to join their Norman friends at the 

 siege of Paris in 886, when Charles the Fat was obliged to conclude a 

 dishonourable peace. Biorn appears to have died at the siege, and 

 Erick Refilson returned home and died somo years after. He was 

 succeeded by Erick, son of the late Biorn, who reigned together with 

 his brother Biorn, called of Iloga, from the place of his residence. 

 After his death Krick Emundson, a grandson of Erick Refilson, was 

 proclaimed king about 910, under the guardianship of hi3 great uncle 

 Biorn of Hoga. Biorn died in 925, and Erick remained sole king of 

 Upsal. He sustained a war against Harald Harfager, king of Norway, 

 and at his death was succeeded by his son, Biorn IV. 



Erick Segereiill, or the Victorious, reigned from 970 to 994. He 

 retook Skane and Halland from the Danes, and at last drove away 

 their king, Sweno, from Denmark itself. He also defeated the Nor- 

 wegians and Finlanders, and conquered Livonia, Esthonia, and 

 Corn-land. Erick was succeeded by his son Olaf, or Olaus, who is 

 mentioned as the first Christian king of Sweden. 



In the year 1155, after the death of Swerker Kolson, tho Otho- 

 gothians chose his son Charles for their king, but the Swedes at their 

 general assembly at Upsal elected Erick Jadwardson, a nobleman 

 connected by alliance with both the royal families of Sweden and 

 Denmark. He is styled Erick IX. by most chrouologists, and he is 

 also called Erick the Pious, or St. Erick, After some demur, the 

 Gothians agreed that ho should reign over both kingdoms, but that 

 after his death Charles Swerkerson should succeed him. Erick 

 brought back the Halsingers and the Jiimmtlandew to the Swedish 

 allegiance. In 1157 he proceeded with troops to Finland, in order to 

 subdue the natives and convert them to the Christian faith, and the 

 Bishop of Upsal accompanied him on this expedition. The Finlanders 

 were defeated, many of them were slaiu, aud the rest were baptised. 

 Christian churches were founded by the bishop, who remained iu the 

 country, while Erick returned to Sweden, where he employed himself 

 in compiling a code of laws out of the ancient constitutions of the 

 kingdom. This compilation is known by the name of St. Erick's law. 

 Erick is remembered in history as a good kiug. In 1161, on the llth 

 of May, as he was in the neighbourhood of Upsal, a party of Danes 

 who had landed on the coast under Prince Magnus, surprised and 

 killed him after a brave defence on his part. Magnus had his head 

 cut off, and afterwards proclaimed himself king ; but the Swedes and 

 Gothians, uniting under Charles Swerkerson, fell upon the Danes and 

 killed them all, together with their prince, and out of the spoil they 

 built a church on the spot. Charles was then acknowledged as kiug 

 of the Swedes and the Goths, the title which the kings of Sweden 

 bear to this day. 



Charles was killed by Knut, St. Erick's son, about 1168, who 

 succeeded him; but after Kuut's death, in 1192, the crown was again 

 disputed between Erick Knutson and Swerker, the son of Charles, 

 who Wij supported by the Gothland After a long war Swerker was 

 killed in battle, 1210, aud left Erick Knutson in quiet possession of 

 the throne. St. Erick's convention was then renewed, and John, the 

 son of Swerker, was constituted heir to the throne, which was after- 

 wards to return to Erick's descendants. Erick died in 1219, at 

 Wisingsoe, which was the usual place of residence of the Swedish 

 kings in those days. 



Erick Eriokson, son of the preceding, succeeded John in 1222, 

 according to the convention, and reigned till 1250. His reign was at 

 first distracted by civil war. The powerful family of Tolekunger, 

 who were allied to the kiug by marriage, revolted against him ; but 

 they were defeated, and two of the leaders were put to death. Under 

 this king Gulielmus Sabincnsis, the pope's legate, first forbade marriage 

 to the Swedish priests. Erick made war upon the Finlanders, who 

 had revolted, and built several fortresses on their frontiers. He died 

 at Wisingsoe without issue, aud was succeeded by Waldemar I., his 

 sister's son. 



Erick, son of King Magnus, and of Blanche, daughter of tlie Flemish 

 Earl of Namur, was made colleague to his father by a powerful party 

 of the nobility in 1344. A war broke out between father and son in 

 1357, and at last tho kingdom was divided between them, Erick having 

 the whole southern part, including Skane, East Gothia, Smitland, &c. 

 Erick was shortly after poisoned at an interview with his father, and, 

 it was reported, by tho agency of his own mother. 



ERICK, styled XIII. The Duke of Pomerania and nephew to Queen 

 Margaret of Waldemar, who had united Sweden, Norway, and Den- 



