Haakon III of Norway (1182-1 January 1204) was King of Norway from 9 March 1202 to 1 January 1204, succeeding Sverre of Norway and preceding Guttorm of Norway.
Biography[]
Haakon was the illegitimate son of King Sverre of Norway and a Faroese mistress, and he was one of his father's commanders during the Norwegian Civil War, defeating the Baglers at Oslo in 1197. In 1202, he became King on his father's death, and he resolved to settle the dispute with the Catholic Church. He was on friendly terms with the farmers and the common people, and the Baglers lost much of their support. In 1202, the Bagler king Inge Magnusson was killed, and the Bagler party in Norway dissolved, leading to peace returning to the land. Haakon had a troubled relationship with his stepmother Margaret of Sweden, however, and she poisoned him to death on 1 January 1204. His son Guttorm of Norway died that same year, but his illegitimate son Haakon IV of Norway by his mistress Inga of Varteig later succeeded him as King.