previous king. Sverre Sigurdsson, who was Magnus's challenger, was also able to trace his lineage back to a previous king known as Sigurd II. Sverre had spent most of his young adult life being educated and trained to be a priest by his uncle until his mother returned from a religious pilgrimage in 1175. Upon returning, she explained that on the pilgrimage she had confessed to the pope who Sverre's true father was and began claiming that Sverre was an illegitimate son of Sigurd II. Consequently, Sverre changed his course of action and spent his next few months in Norway learning about the kingdom he believed he was destined to rule until the events of The Battle of Fimreite took place. Events leading up to the battle With Sverre having a legitimate claim to the throne he worked to find a way to achieve his goal of becoming king of Norway. His quest for kingship would take a positive turn when the rebellious force known as the Birkebeiner were defeated by Magnus at the Battle of Re. With Sverre having the means to start a legitimate rebellion and the Birkebeiner now without a leader, Sverre was able to take command of the force and truly began his quest for kingship. Sverre's leadership coupled with his natural strategic talent allowed him and the Birkebeiner to gain support from Viken and Nidaros (now Trøndelag). With Support and a considerable force, Sverre and the Birkebeiners rebellion was in full swing. He began to try to establish his legitimacy by laying claim to towns and farmers lands which resulted in several minor skirmishes until 1179 when he attacked Nidaros and successfully defeated a royal force. From 1179 to 1183 Sverre spent his time working to gain more support until he successfully attacked the town of Bergen and was able to catch Magnus and his men unprepared. Sverre's successful attack at bergen forced king Magnus to take flight and allowed him to assert his claim to the throne. The battle Sverre's rebellion culminated in the Battle of Fimreite which allowed him to usurp the Norwegian throne and become the sole ruler of Norway.The forces of Sverre attacked the fleet of King Magnus. The battle took place off the coast, near the hamlet of Fimreite in the long and narrow Sognefjord in today's Sogndal municipality, Sogn og Fjordane county. Magnus had several large ships, and his