Race of the Birkebeiners

1. Understanding the book Race of the Birkebeiners by Lise Lunge-Larsen, Mary Azarian (Illustrator)

2. Birkebeinerne Torstein Skevla og Skjervald Skrukka frakter med seg lille Håkon Håkonsson, kongssønnen, i 1206. Maleriet Birkebeinerne av Knud Bergslien fra 1869

3. Birkebeinerne Torstein Skevla og Skjervald Skrukka frakter med seg lille Håkon Håkonsson, kongssønnen, i 1206. Maleriet Birkebeinerne av Knud Bergslien fra 1869. What language is this?

4. Where is Norway?

5. Where is Norway?

6. Birkebeiners Torstein Skevla and Skjervald Skrukka carry little Håkon Håkonsson, the king’s son, in 1206. This painting is called Birkebeinerne by Knud Bergslien and was painted approximately 1869.

7. Birkebeiners against the Baglers The Birkebeiners were poor farmers. They were so poor that they used bark from the birch trees to protect their legs instead of armor. They traveled on skis. The Baglers were rich land owners. They had armor and horses.

8. In 1206, the Birkebeiners set off on a dangerous voyage through dangerous mountains and forests, taking the 2 year old Haakon Haakonsson to safety in Trondheim where he would be safe. They saved life of the boy who later became King Haakon Haakonsson IV.

9. Every March in Norway, they run a ski marathon in honor of the birkebeiners who saved the king. http://www.birkebeiner.no/renn_eng/

10. The race is 54 kilometers or 33.5 miles from Lillehamer to Rena, Norway.

11. There are other Birkebeiner ski races in the United States and in Canada.