About a law book of the medieval Kingdom of Sweden (Magnus Erikssons Landslag)

(Magnus Erikssons Landslag)

Abstract

The development of the medieval kingdom of Sweden took centuries, and for a time Christian and pre-Christian faiths coexisted in parts of the country. An important legal element in the unification of the various territories into one kingdom was Magnus Eriksson’s law code (Magnus Erikssons Landslag), which was written in the middle of the 14th century. The article first discusses the situation before the unification of law: all three northern European kingdoms had in common that their inhabitants had long lived under different legal systems in different territories. The second part quotes from the laws of two of Magnus Eriksson’s paternal ancestors. These two ancestors were connected with national legislation. Finally, the structure, the chapters and the most important
provisions of the 14th century code are presented. The Magnus Erikssons Landslag remained in force in its original form, revised in 1442, for almost four centuries, until 1736.