Saint Canute Lavard

Saint Knud, also known as Canute Lavard (Danish: Knud Lavard; cognate with English Lord; 12 March 1096 – 7 January 1131) was a Danish prince. Later he was the first Duke of Schleswig and the first border prince who was both a Danish and a German vassal, a position leading towards the historical double position of Southern Jutland. He was killed by his cousin Magnus the Strong (c. 1106 – 1134), who saw him as a rival to the Danish throne. Canute Lavard was canonized in 1170. He was an ancestor of the Valdemarian kings (Valdemarerne) and of their subsequent royal line. Canute Lavard was the father of King Valdemar I of Denmark (Valdemar den Store) and grandfather of King Valdemar II of Denmark (Valdemar Sejr). Canute was the only legitimate son of King Eric I of Denmark (died 1103) and Boedil Thurgotsdatter, but as a minor he was bypassed in the election of 1104. He grew up in close contact with the noble family of Hvide, who were later on to be among his most eager supporters. In 1115, his uncle, King Niels of Denmark, placed him in charge of the Duchy of Schleswig (jarl af Sønderjylland) in order to put an end to the attacks of the Slavic Obotrites. During the next fifteen years, he fulfilled his duty of establishing peace in the border area so well that he was titled Duke of Holstein (Hertug af Holsten) and became a vassal of the Holy Roman Empire. He seems to have been the first member of the Danish royal family who was attracted by the knightly ideals and habits of medieval Germany, indicated by his changing his title to Duke of Schleswig (Hertug af Slesvig). His appearance made him a popular man and a possible successor of his uncle, but he also acquired mighty enemies among the Danish princes and magnates, who apparently questioned his loyalty and feared his bond with Emperor Lothair III, who had recognized him as sovereign over the western Wends.