Le spedizioni militari di Sigurðr Jórsalafari. Crociata e leiðangr a confronto

During his reign, Sigurðr Magnússon Jórsalafari (King of Norway 1103-1130) embarked on two expeditions abroad: the first and most famous was the crusade in the Holy Land of 1107-1111, while the second was the so-called Kalmar-expedition of 1123 against the pagans in the Swedish region of Småland. Being aimed at the advancement of Christianity, also the Kalmar-expedition seems to have the characteristics of a crusade, and so it was interpreted by some contemporary observers. The Norse sagas, however, describe the two expeditions with different terminologies: the second, in particular, is defined as leiðangr, a term that specifically indicates the popular conscription, scrupulously regulated in 12th century Norwegian laws. In the article, the crusade and the leiðangr of King Sigurðr are therefore compared in order to highlight similarities and differences: from the recruitment to the terminology, from the legal to the logistical aspects.