Biography of King Valdemar II of Denmark 1170-1241

Paternal Family Tree: Estridsen

Before 1159 [his father] Valdemar "Great" I King of Denmark [age 27] and [his mother] Sophia of Minsk [age 18] were married.

On 9th May 1170 King Valdemar II of Denmark was born to [his father] Valdemar "Great" I King of Denmark [age 39] and [his mother] Sophia of Minsk [age 30].

On 12th May 1182 [his father] Valdemar "Great" I King of Denmark [age 51] died. His son [his brother] Canute [age 19] succeeded VI King of Denmark.

On 15th August 1193 [his brother-in-law] King Philip II of France [age 27] and [his half-sister] Ingeborg Estridsen Queen Consort France [age 19] were married. She by marriage Queen Consort of France. She the daughter of [his father] Valdemar "Great" I King of Denmark. He the son of Louis VII King of the Franks and Adèle Queen of the Franks.

Around November 1193 [his brother-in-law] King Philip II of France [age 28] and [his half-sister] Ingeborg Estridsen Queen Consort France [age 19] marriage annulled on the spurious grounds of her consanguinity with his first wife Isabelle Flanders Queen Consort France. She was kept, more or less, a prisoner for the remainder of her life being held in difference French castles.

On 5th May 1198 [his mother] Sophia of Minsk [age 58] died.

On 12th November 1202 Canute VI King of Denmark [age 39] died. In 1202 His brother Valdemar [age 32] succeeded I King of Denmark.

Chronicle of Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke

Baker was a secular clerk from Swinbroke, now Swinbrook, an Oxfordshire village two miles east of Burford. His Chronicle describes the events of the period 1303-1356: Gaveston, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, the murder of King Edward II, the Scottish Wars, Sluys, Crécy, the Black Death, Winchelsea and Poitiers. To quote Herbert Bruce 'it possesses a vigorous and characteristic style, and its value for particular events between 1303 and 1356 has been recognised by its editor and by subsequent writers'. The book provides remarkable detail about the events it describes. Baker's text has been augmented with hundreds of notes, including extracts from other contemporary chronicles, such as the Annales Londonienses, Annales Paulini, Murimuth, Lanercost, Avesbury, Guisborough and Froissart to enrich the reader's understanding. The translation takes as its source the 'Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke' published in 1889, edited by Edward Maunde Thompson.

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In 1205 King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 34] and Dagmar of Bohemia [age 19] were married. He the son of Valdemar "Great" I King of Denmark and Sophia of Minsk.

Around 1209 [his son] Valdemar the Young King of Denmark was born to King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 38] and [his wife] Dagmar of Bohemia [age 23]. He married 24th June 1229 Eleanor of Portugal Queen Consort Denmark, daughter of Alfonso "Fat" II King Portugal and Urraca Ivrea Queen Consort Portugal.

On 24th May 1212 [his wife] Dagmar of Bohemia [age 26] died.

In 1214 King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 43] and Berengaria Burgundy Queen Consort Denmark [age 16] were married. She by marriage Queen Consort Denmark. The difference in their ages was 27 years. She the daughter of Sancho "Populator" I King Portugal and Dulce Barcelona Queen Consort Portugal. He the son of Valdemar "Great" I King of Denmark and Sophia of Minsk.

Around 1216 [his son] King Eric IV of Denmark was born to King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 45] and [his wife] Berengaria Burgundy Queen Consort Denmark [age 18]. He married 17th November 1239 Jutta of Saxony and had issue.

In 1218 [his son] King Abel of Denmark was born to King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 47] and [his wife] Berengaria Burgundy Queen Consort Denmark [age 20].

In 1219 [his son] King Christopher I of Denmark was born to King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 48] and [his wife] Berengaria Burgundy Queen Consort Denmark [age 21].

On 27th March 1221 [his wife] Berengaria Burgundy Queen Consort Denmark [age 23] died.

On 24th June 1229 Valdemar the Young King of Denmark [age 20] and Eleanor of Portugal Queen Consort Denmark [age 18] were married. She the daughter of Alfonso "Fat" II King Portugal and Urraca Ivrea Queen Consort Portugal. He the son of King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 59] and Dagmar of Bohemia.

On 28th November 1231 [his son] Valdemar the Young King of Denmark [age 22] died in a hunting accident at Refsnæs, near Kalundborg.

Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes

Récits d’un bourgeois de Valenciennes aka The Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes is a vivid 14th-century vernacular chronicle written by an anonymous urban chronicler from Valenciennes in the County of Hainaut. It survives in a manuscript that describes local and regional history from about 1253 to 1366, blending chronology, narrative episodes, and eyewitness-style accounts of political, military, and social events in medieval France, Flanders, and the Low Countries. The work begins with a chronological framework of events affecting Valenciennes and its region under rulers such as King Philip VI of France and the shifting allegiances of local nobility. It includes accounts of conflicts, sieges, diplomatic manoeuvres, and the impact of broader struggles like the Hundred Years’ War on urban life in Hainaut. Written from the perspective of a burgher (bourgeois) rather than a monastery or royal court, the chronicle offers a rare lay viewpoint on high politics and warfare, reflecting how merchants, townspeople, and civic institutions experienced the turbulence of the 13th and 14th centuries. Its narrative style combines straightforward reporting of events with moral and civic observations, making it a valuable source for readers interested in medieval urban society, regional politics, and the lived experience of war and governance in pre-modern Europe.

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On 29th July 1237 [his half-sister] Ingeborg Estridsen Queen Consort France [age 63] died.

On 17th November 1239 King Eric IV of Denmark [age 23] and Jutta of Saxony [age 16] were married. He the son of King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 69] and Berengaria Burgundy Queen Consort Denmark.

On 28th March 1241 King Valdemar II of Denmark [age 70] died.

Royal Descendants of King Valdemar II of Denmark 1170-1241
Number after indicates the number of unique routes of descent. Descendants of Kings and Queens not included.

King Eric IV of Denmark [1]

King Abel of Denmark [1]

King Christopher I of Denmark [1]

Ancestors of King Valdemar II of Denmark 1170-1241

Great x 1 Grandfather: Eric I King of Denmark

GrandFather: Canute Lavard

Father: Valdemar "Great" I King of Denmark

King Valdemar II of Denmark

Mother: Sophia of Minsk