Historia de omnibus Gothorum Sueonumque regibus


The Historia de omnibus Gothorum Sueonumque regibus is a posthumously published, partly pseudo-historical work by Johannes Magnus, Sweden's last Catholic archbishop. It was published in Latin in 1554, ten years after the death of the author by his brother Olaus Magnus.
The Historia was implicitly critical to King Gustav Vasa of Sweden, who had introduced the Protestant Reformation in 1527 and caused the exile of Johannes Magnus. It was nevertheless used widely by Gustav Vasa's sons and successors, to whom it had been dedicated, since it extolled the glorious past of the Swedish kingdom. In particular, the sons used the king-list which began with Magog, grandson of Noah. As a consequence, Eric XIV and Charles IX adopted much higher regnal numbers than warranted by the historical sources. A Swedish translation was published by Ericus Benedicti Schroderus in 1620. A modern Swedish version, translated by Kurt Johannesson and with comments by Johannesson and Hans Helander, was published in 2018 by Michaelisgillet and the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities.

Content

Book One

Noah sets up his three sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth to govern Asia, Africa, and Europe, respectively. Citing Flavius Josephus, Johannes says that a son of Japheth, Magog, is the father of the Scythian peoples, and at first rules over “that part of European Scythia now called Finland”. Eighty-eight years after the Deluge, however, Magog and a great number of people cross the Baltic Sea and reach Götaland on the Scandinavian peninsula, which Magog settles and makes his new seat of power, thus becoming the first King of Sweden. This assertion, Johannes explains, is supported by “our fatherland's most reliable chronicles”.
Of Magog's five sons, Suenno and Gethar are set up to rule over the Swedes and Geats, respectively, while the younger brothers Thor, German, and Ubbo help administer their brother's domains. When Suenno dies around 246 years after the flood, Ubbo becomes ruler of the Swedes, and he builds the city of Uppsala to be his seat of power, its etymology being the Halls of Ubbo. Ubbo is succeeded by Siggo, who builds the city of Sigtuna by Lake Mälaren as a fortress against the Estonians, Finns, and “other peoples in the East”. Already by this point, the runic alphabet has been invented, which Johannes claims are older than both the Greek and Latin alphabets.
While Siggo rules over the Swedes, a man named Eric has been elected King of the Geats. Johannes describes Eric as a man who became renowned for his "good customs" and his "love for the Fatherland", and reproduces a song about the King which he claims dates back from the oldest of times, though latter-day scholars believe it more likely to be a composition of Johannes himself. Already by this point, the Geatish population has grown to such an extent that the Scandinavian peninsula can no longer support them, and to solve this problem, Eric expels all rebels in his realm to isles in the west, where they become the Danes.
After Eric's death in around 425 years after the Deluge, the Golden Age quickly comes to an end, and the Scandinavian peoples soon are converted to paganism. The temple at Uppsala is constructed, “built in such grandeur that all in its walls, roofs, and pillars seemed to be shining of purest gold”. Drawing on Saxo Grammaticus, Johannes gives a brief description of the gods in Norse mythology, which he says are related to the gods of the Roman religion. Over the next four hundred years, the amicable relations between Swedes and Geats deteriorate, and Johannes mentions the kings Uddo, Alo, Odin, Charles, Björn, and Gethar as rulers, of whom he writes that no knowledge has survived, save their names.
Identifying as he does the Geats with the Goths, the author now starts drawing on the Getica of Jordanes, and declares that in around 836 years after the Deluge, Berig, a mythical king of the Goths from the aforementioned work, is unanimously elected king by both the Swedes and the Geats, reuniting the two peoples. Concerned about how Finns, Curonians, and Ulmerugians have been raiding Sweden, Berig rallies the people for a war of conquest against the tribes across the Baltic Sea to seek vengeance and to regain the national honour. Appointing his eldest son Humulphus to rule in his absence, Berig assembles a mighty fleet and sails to the isle called Gothiscandza by Jordanes, which Johannes identifies as Gotland. From thence, they proceed to invade the land of the Ulmerugians, which Johannes identifies as the territory which would later become Prussia. Though the Ulmerguians put up a brave fight, they eventually realize that their forces are inferior to those of the Geats, and so burn their homes and fields and flee into "inner Vandalia". Though the land now is desolate, the Geats nonetheless colonizes it, as well as the neighbouring provinces of Pomerania, Poland, and Mecklenburg.
Johannes goes on to invent a list of regents with six Erics before Eric the Victorious and six Charles before Charles VII. In that way the 16th-century monarchs Eric XIV and Charles IX could boast with ordinal numbers on par with the popes. These fictitious rulers were usually described in positive terms, but the invented King Gostagus is referred as a tyrant: "There was hardly a night throughout the year with him abstaining from fornication, rape, incest and the filthiest sexual intercourse". The account of Gostagus contains hateful hints about Gustav Vasa. The strongly patriotic work also displays strong antipathy towards Denmark.

List of Swedish monarchs appearing in the ''Historia''

No.KingSwedish nameAccession
1MagogMagog2259 BC
2SuennoSven2217 BC
3GetharGötar I2161 BC
4UbboUbbe2101 BC
5SiggoSigge I2000 BC
6EricusErik I1990 BC
7UddoUdde1921 BC
8AloAle1896 BC
9OthenOdin1866 BC
10CarolusKarl I1746 BC
11BiornoBjörn I1695 BC
12GetharGötar II1599 BC
13SiggoSigge II1570 BC
14BericoBerig1511 BC
15HumulphusHumulf1471 BC
16HumelusHumble1367 BC
17GothilasGothil / Totila1292 BC
18SigthuniusSigtun1246 BC
19ScarinusSvarin1213 BC
20SibdagerusSvipdag1173 BC
21AsmundusAsmund1113 BC
22UffoUffe1065 BC
23HunigusHunding1021 BC
24RegnerusRagnar I973 BC
25HothebrotusHödbrodd944 BC
26AttilusAdils879 BC
27HotherusHöder830 BC
28RodericusRörik752 BC
29AttilusAdils II668 BC
30BotuildusBotwild638 BC
31CarolusKarl II596 BC
32GrimerusGrim548 BC
33TordoTord I508 BC
34GotharusGötar III389 BC
35AdulphusAdolf315 BC
36AlgothusAlgöt I292 BC
37EricusErik II263 BC
38LindormusLindorm209 BC
39Alaricus och
Gessillus		Alrik and
Gestumblinde		177 BC
40EricusErik III75 BC
41GetricusGautrekr4 AD
42HaldanusHalvdan I42 AD
43VilmerusFilimer70 AD
44NordianusNordian82 AD
45SivardusSigurd I103 AD
46CarolusKarl III130 AD
47EricusErik IV169 AD
48HaldanusHalvdan II181 AD
49EuginusYngwin194 AD
50RagnaldusRagnvald202 AD
51AmunudusAmund I220 AD
52HachoHake225 AD
53SivardusSigurd II234 AD
54IngoInge I240 AD
55NearchusNjord246 AD
56FrothoFrode I255 AD
57UrbanusUrban I257 AD
58OstenusÖsten I262 AD
59FliolmusFjolner265 AD
60SvercherusSveigder273 AD
61ValanderVanlandi276 AD
62VisburVisbur282 AD
63DomaldeDomalde288 AD
64DomarDomar307 AD
65AttilusAdils III314 AD
66DignerusDyggvi336 AD
67DagerusDag the Wise341 AD
68AlaricusAlrik II356 AD
69Ingemarus, IngoIngemar I, Agne367 AD
70IngellusYngve378 AD
71GermundusJorund382 AD
72Haquinus, RingoAun, Ring387 AD
73EgillusEgil Tunnadolg399 AD
74GotharusOttar Vendelkråka405 AD
75FathoFaste421 AD
76GudmudusGudmud427 AD
77AdelusAdils433 AD
78OstanusÖsten II437 AD
79IngemarusIngvar453 AD
80HolstanusHalsten455 AD
81BiornoBjörn II460 AD
82RaualdusRagnvald II464 AD
83SuartmanusSwartman481 AD
84TordoTord II509 AD
85RodulphusRodulf519 AD
86HathinusHadding527 AD
87AttilusAdils IV547 AD
88TordoTord III564 AD
89AlgothusAlgöt II582 AD
90Gostagus, OftanusGöstag, Östen III606 AD
91ArthusArte630 AD
92HaquinusHåkan649 AD
93CarolusKarl IV670 AD
94CarolusKarl V676 AD
95BirgerusBirger I685 AD
96EricusErik V700 AD
97TorillusToril717 AD
98BiornusBjörn III764 AD
99AlaricusAlrik III776 AD
100BiornusBjörn IV800 AD
101BratemundusBröt-Anund824 AD
102SivardusSigurd III827 AD
103HerotusHerröd842 AD
104CarolusKarl VI859 AD
105BiornusBjörn V868 AD
106Ingevallus, IngellusIngjald Illråde883 AD
107OlausOlof Trätälja891 AD
108IngoInge II900 AD
109EricusErik Väderhatt 907 AD
110Ericus VictoriosusErik Segersäll 917 AD
111Ericus Aorfel, StenchillusErik Årsäll 940 AD
112Olaus SchotkonungOlof Skötkonung980 AD
113AmundusAnund Jacob1018 AD
114AmundusEmund the Old1035 AD
115HaquinusHåkan Röde1041 AD
116StenchillusStenkil1054 AD
117IngoInge I1059 Ad
118HalstanusHalsten1064 AD
119PhilippusPhilip1080 Ad
120IngoInge II1110 AD
121RagualdusRagnvald Knaphövde1129 AD
122MagnusMagnus the Strong1134 AD
123SuercherusSverker I1138 AD
124EricusErik the Saint1150 AD
125CarolusKarl Sverkersson1162 AD
126CanutusKnut Eriksson1168 AD
127SuercherusSverker I1192 AD
128EricusErik Knutsson1208 AD
129IoannesJohan Sverkersson1219 AD
130EricusErik Eriksson läspe och halte1223 AD
131ValdemarusValdemar Birgersson1251 AD
132Magnus LadalosMagnus Ladulås1277 AD
133BirgerusBirger Magnusson1290 AD
134MagnusMagnus Eriksson1319 AD
135AlbertusAlbrekt of Mecklenburg1363 AD
136MargaretaMargrethe I1395 AD
137Ericus PomeranusErik of Pomerania1412 AD
138ChristophorusChristopher of Bavaria1441 AD
139Carolus CanutiKarl Knutsson Bonde1448 AD
140Steno Sture seniorSten Sture the Elder1470 AD
141SvantoSvante Sture1504 AD
142Steno Sture juniorSten Sture the Younger1512 AD
143GostavusGustav Vasa1520 AD