38 THE KING'S MIRROR 



chain of ecclesiastical domination. The conflict was long 

 and bitter and the great king died while it was still on; 

 but when it ended the cause of the Croziermen was lost. 

 The church attained to greatjiower in 



state, but it never gained complete domination. 



Sverre was a man of great intellectual strength; he 

 was a born leader of men, a capable warrior, and a re- 

 sourceful captain. When it began to look as if victory 

 would crown his efforts, the archbishop fled to England 

 and from his refuge in Saint Edmundsbury excommuni- 

 cated the king. But exile is irksome to an ambitious man, 

 and after a time the fiery prelate retuned to Norway 

 and was reconciled to the strenuous ruler. System's 

 successor, however, took up the fight once more; and 

 when Sverre made Norway too uncomfortable for him, 

 he fled to Denmark and excommunicated his royal op- 

 ponent. A few years later, Innocent III, who had just 

 ascended the papal throne, also excommunicated Sverre, 

 and threatened the kingdom with an interdict.* But 

 the papal weapons had little effect in the far North; the 

 king forced priests and prelates to remain loyal and to 

 continue in their duties. No doubt they obeyed the ex- 

 communicated ruler with great reluctance and much 

 misgiving; but no other course was possible, jor the w 

 nation was with the king. 



The militant Faroese was a man with strong literary 

 interests; he was educated for the priesthood and it is 

 believed that he had actually taken orders. He was elo- 



* It is usually stated that Innocent III actually did lay an interdict on the 

 land, but this appears to be an error. He authorized the bishops to do so, 

 but they seem not to have made use of the authorization. See Bull, " Inter- 

 diktet mot Sverre": Historisk Tidsskrift, Femte Rsekke, III, 321-324. 



