Pål of Giske witnesses the archbishop's right to mint coins
DN 3/1 · undated [c. 1220.] · uden Sted
What the letter says
Around 1220 King Håkon Håkonsson grants Archbishop Guttorm and his successors in Nidaros the right to keep their own moneyer and strike silver coins of the purity and thickness the king decides. The king also takes the archiepiscopal see and everything it owns under his protection. First among the witnesses stands Pål of Giske.
The letter in modern English (excerpt)
King Håkon, son of King Håkon, sends Archbishop Guttorm and all other friends of God, lendmenn and clergy, living and to come, God's eternal greeting and his own. We wish to make known to all that, for the salvation of our own soul, for the benefit of our realm and our subjects and for good fortune in this world and the next, on behalf of ourselves and those who are lawfully chosen to the land after us, we have granted the following to the see of the holy King Olaf [Nidaros church], to Archbishop Guttorm and to all who in godly manner are chosen after him to the archiepiscopal office and will be friends of the kingdom according to the laws of God and men: that they may have a silver striker [moneyer], a man who knows the work well, and servants with him. It shall be as the archbishop finds most practical, either that they work together with our moneyers and servants, or in his own residence. They shall strike silver for the needs of the see of the holy King Olaf, with such purity and thickness as we decide, or [as] other kings' coinage [has gone] in Nidaros [uncertain interpretation]. We have granted this because we believe that it will be pleasing to God and of benefit to the see of the holy King Olaf, without harm to any good man. We also believe we know for certain that the coinage we want to circulate in our land will hold up better with agreement and good order when such friends of God join us in counsel. We also wish to let all know that we have taken the archiepiscopal see a
Original text (excerpt)
Hakon konongr son Hakonar konongs sendir quediu Gutthormi ærkibiskupi oc ollum adrum guds uinum. lendom oc lerdom verandom oc vidr komandom. eilifliga guds ok sina. Ver uilium ollum monnum kunnikt gera at sialfum oss till salobotar ok riki varo oc þegnum til gagns oc till gifto þessa heims oc annars. hofuum ver iattat af vare hende oc þeira er loglega uerda till lanzenz kosnir æftir oss. stad hins helga Olafs konongs oc Gutthormi ærkibiskupi oc ollum er gudlega verda kosnir æftir han till ærkibi
Background
This is the oldest letter in the archive. Håkon Håkonsson was chosen king as a child in 1217, and in the first years the realm was governed by Jarl Skule Bårdsson and advisers, so the letter is probably the result of negotiations between the king's men and the church. The archiepiscopal see in Nidaros had been established in 1152 or 1153, and the right to mint coins was both a source of income and a sign of power. That the church was allowed to mint, but to the king's standard, shows how royal power and the church shared power after the civil wars. Pål of Giske stands first among the witnesses, which suggests he was one of the highest ranking magnates present, probably a lendmann (the king's landed vassal). He probably belonged to the family that held Giske, and who he was in the genealogy of this period is uncertain and disputed in the sources.
People: Pål Flida