Gustav Vasa fought Denmark to gain Sweden's independence from the Kalmar Union. Explore the early beginnings of the founder of the Vasa Dynasty.
Reign of King Gustav I
Upon
his ascension as King in 1523, he remarked that Sweden was a “devastated and
crippled kingdom.” The country needed to rebuild itself from decades of
conflict draining much of its resources and energy. From a military leader to a
statesman, the responsibility of rebuilding Sweden burdened his shoulders. He
ruled Sweden with an iron will and furious energy.
As a
new ruler, he faced numerous challenges. First and foremost he constantly
needed to defend his position as King of Sweden from contenders and pretenders
both home and abroad. He also needed to confront the agenda of rehabilitating
the country’s finance, military, and government.
He
ruled Sweden with strong will and attitude. History defined him as a hot
tempered and ruthless leader, which later defined many Vasa kings. Many of his
critics then even called him as a tyrant. Nevertheless, his strong leadership
and ruthlessness helped him to keep his position in a time where various
sectors of society commanded great influence and other foreign powers waiting
for an opportunity to cease territory.
Consolidation and Protection of Power
Being
a new monarch who did not succeeded through inheritance and under system where regents
who ruled the country and not kings got elected, Gustav needed to maintain his
position strong. Foreign monarchs continued to aspire for the Swedish throne
while others supported the claim of local pretenders to contest Gustav’s
position. Rebellions also became a considerable challenge to Gustav as
peasants, which helped him during the time of the war, felt disillusioned and
used arms to express it. All of these he needed to meet with strength and
determination to keep his crown.
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| King Frederick I |
The
immediate threat to his position remained Christian II of Denmark who although
overthrown plotted to reclaim his crown and to reestablish the Kalmar Union.
Gustav took the natural course of allying with Christian’s enemies including
King Frederick. Together they ended their conflict in a Hanseatic League
brokered peace agreement that announced Denmark’s renunciation of claim to the
Swedish throne. From then on, Denmark and Sweden maintained peace and
cordiality.
Domestically,
Gustav took the path of creating an absolute monarchy with a centralized
government. He created a centralized government by appointing local bailiffs that
helped to administer cities, towns, and villages. It also helped him to check
the nobles for any signs of disturbances or abuses. Any signs of abuse and
corruption, Gustav crushed brutally. Coincidently, the nobility stood no chance
against Gustav because most of the experienced, politically astute, and powerful
nobles perished during the Stockholm Bloodbath paving a way to an easy
establishment of an absolute monarchy.
In a
manner of creating an absolute monarchy, before, he had to share power with the
Riksdag that stood as the country’s parliament composing of representatives
from powerful sectors of society, namely nobility, clergy, burghers, and
peasantry. Each of these estates exercised great influence even the peasantry
which in 16th century European standards stood weak against the other estates.
Gustav also respected the peasantry for their contribution during the war. As
his reign progressed, Gustav learned to manipulate the Riksdag by threatening
abdication and anarchy that might followed the action that led to the
submission of the Riksdag to his will. Eventually the body only became a rubber
stamp for many of Gustav’s policies, making him and the position of king powerful.
Disorganized Government
While
the centralization and creating of absolute monarchy helped Gustav to maintain
his position, it also served a practical solution in solving the issue of a
disorganized government. Sweden lacked abled and competent officials. One time,
he had difficulty in appointing an ambassador to the Holy Roman Empire because
no Swede knew how to speak German. As a result of the shortage, he hired
foreigners, mostly Germans to serve in the government. In the personal level,
he took the simple clerical task along with his other regal duties working
tirelessly every day.
Reformation in Sweden
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| An image showing Gustav Vasa wearing brown and cap in the right and overseeing the subduing and capturing the Catholic Church symbolized by the women in bright dress |
Another
hallmark of Gustav’s reign was the rise of the Church of Sweden following a
trend occurring in Europe. The rise of the Reformation in Sweden came as a
result of politics rather than religious conviction of Gustav. Later on, it
brought opportunities and challenges that added to the task ahead for King
Gustav.
The
Reformation shook the core of European society. It attacked the powerful
institution that survived many trials including the fall of the Roman Empire
back in the 5th century. But as its power and influence grew, wealth corrupted
many clerics who violated their vows of poverty. A monk from Germany named
Martin Luther protested what he saw as the decadence of the Church and the
papacy. The division within the Church created Protestant sects that deplored
the authority of the Vatican. The Holy Roman Empire, England, and later France
all felt the impact of the Reformation as much as the Renaissance did. Sweden
was not immune.
Gustav
never had Protestant leanings to begin with, rather he was practical and
realistic individual who cared little of religion. His support of the
Reformation movement only came as a result of slight made to him by the
Vatican. In 1523, he asked the Vatican to appoint a new primate for Sweden in
form of the position of Bishop of Uppsala. He had in his mind along with other
clerics Johannes Magni as the candidate for the position rather than the hated
“bloodthirsty” Gustavus Trolle. Many in Sweden loathed Trolle because he
supported the Kalmar Union and Christian II and his responsibility for the
traumatic Stockholm Bloodbath.
Gustav
promised the Vatican his absolute loyalty if the Roman Curia appointed Johannes
Magni. But the King was made disappointed and even insulted. Johannes Magni
returned to Sweden bearing letter reappointing the hated Gustavus Trolle as the
new primate. The decision came as an anticipation of a victory of Christian II
of Denmark against Sweden and Gustav I. The decision along with the reason
angered Gustav so much to the point he broke up relations with the Catholic
Church and began the rise of the Reformation movement in Sweden.
Attacking
the established Roman Catholic Church in Sweden meant enormous benefits for
Gustav. It placed the huge lands under the control of the Church under his
mercy. Moreover, once he removed the authority of the Vatican, his powers
expands covering not only the state but also the church.
Slowly
into his reign, changes in the Sweden’s church began starting with the
translation of the New Testament from Latin to Swedish. Church lands also
started to be taken over by the state with the Gripsholm Monastery as one of
the earliest samples of land confiscation. Then in 1527, a Riksdag convened in
Vasteras where the religious issues took the center stage. Gustav demanded
control over the church of Sweden along with all its lands, but bishops and
peasants opposed the measures. He threatened to abdicate if the body failed to
support his proposal. Fear of chaos and anarchy and weakness among the members
to oppose the King led eventually to the issuance of the Vasteras Recess and
the Vasteras Ordinance.
The
Vasteras Recess placed all Church lands under the control of the state, which
would then return the lands taken from 1454 onwards back to their respective
owners. The Vasteras Ordinance meanwhile severed the connection of the Swedish
church to the Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church and placing much authority
on religious affairs to the King. In effect, the Vasteras Riksdag cemented the
Reformation in Sweden.
The
Church of Sweden with Gustav at its head started to grew within the cities and
nobilities. In 1529 Synod convened in Orebro to discuss “better regulation of
church ceremonies and discipline according to God’s words.” It attacked many
practices and rituals of the Catholic Church including the Latin Mass which
Gustav sought to be made in Swedish. One occurrence even described that peasants
opposed the change in language and so Gustav had an official to speak in front
of the crown in Latin. When none of the peasants understood a word uttered,
Gustav said to have stated that why then do they love their Latin mass so much.
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| Laurentius Petri |
The
governance of the Church also took its shape. Gustav enlisted the help of his
Chancellor Laurentius Andreae and the brothers Laurentius and Olaus Petri.
Olaus Petri himself had been heavily influenced by Luther during his studies in
Germany. By the time he returned to Sweden, he preached Lutheran ideals and
became a well-known cleric in Stockholm. His brother Laurentius meanwhile also
took the same path of becoming a strong pillar of the Church of Sweden. In
1531, Gustav appointed Laurentius Petri as the Archbishop of Uppsala, thus he
became the primate of the Church of Sweden. The brothers eventually made great
contribution to the rise of the Church of Sweden. They strengthen its roots
within cities, especially Stockholm. In 1541, the brothers succeeded in
translating the Bible into Swedish which became known as the Gustav Vasa Bible.
Nonetheless,
the relation between Gustav and the brothers soured in 1530’s and 1540’s.
Gustav wanted to expand his authority in the Church. He took over lands and sold
them to the nobility. He appointed bishops and disregarding the decision of the
college of bishops. Eventually the tension reached its climax in 1540, while
they worked for the translation of the bible, the Petri brothers were arrested
and sentenced to death. With the help of influential friends as well as the
merit of their contribution to the Church as well as Swedish literature with
their translation, the King pardoned them in 1542 and both decided to keep
themselves in the sideline.
Rebellions and Incursions
The
establishment of the Church of Sweden, however, presented Gustav with numerous
challenges. Peasants hated the Reformation of the Church and displayed their
anger in form of armed uprisings. One uprising even received foreign support
that threatened to destroy Gustav.
The
peasants held much influence in the Riksdag as stated before. They also had
high confidence as they knew they helped Gustav to get the throne and they knew
they had the power to undo it. When the religious reforms came into action and
Gustav started to attack the peasants’ beloved Catholic Church, they rose up in
rebellion with some even planning to march into Stockholm which they deemed as
the new Sodom and Gomorah and burn it to ashes.
First
revolts erupted in Dalarna in 1524 when ambitious clerics, Peder Sunnavader and
Knut Mickilsson, who once received favor from Gustav, instigated a revolt. They
enflamed the anger of the peasants on heavy taxation, sacrilege of the King on
the Church, and foreign influence. Eventually, Gustav ended the revolt
peacefully by promising reforms and improvement in standard of living; however,
the 2 instigators, Sunnavader and Mickilsson, escaped to Norway.
Revolts
also erupted in 1526 in upland due to Gustav’s attack on the Catholic Church.
Gustav successfully quelled the revolt through negotiations and explaining the
benefits of the changes in the Church, in particular, the use of Swedish.
In
1527, however, another revolt rose up in Dalarna and this time threatened the
legitimacy of Gustav’s rule. A pretender appeared and revolted. This pretender
claimed he was the son of Christina Gyllenstierna and Sten Sture, Nils Sture.
He gathered support but Gustav acted quickly by publishing a letter written by
Christina stating that his son was dead and the one leading the revolt an
imposter. The imposter tried to save himself by claiming his mother
disregarding him, but the peasants disillusioned and turned against him. The
imposter fled and later captured and executed.
In
1524, another revolt erupted in Vastergothland. This came also in the midst of
the Swedish Reformation and a revolt by peasants and nobles. The rebels even
captured Gustav’s sister Margareta. Gustav, on the other hand, chose to use a
diplomatic approach. He contained the rebellion in the province preventing it
from spreading to other provinces. He also successfully rescued his sister and
negotiated with the rebels. The negotiations ultimately led to a division among
the rebels causing its end. 2 leaders of the rebellions Ture Jonsson and Bishop
Magnus Haraldsson, nonetheless, escaped to Denmark and supported King Christian
II in his goal to reestablish himself and the Union. In 1532, the Jonsson and
Haraldsson failed to escape Gustav and later executed.
Another
rebellion in Dalarna began in 1530. Once again religious sacrilege was the root
cause. Gustav took the measure of melting bells to mint coins to pay debts to
the Hanseatic League, but the people of Dalarna refused and peasants rioted and
attacked government offices to retake their bells. The rebellion lasted for
years because Gustav focused his attention in defeating Christian II who
threatened Sweden once again in 1531 and 1532. When this threat was
neutralized, only then Gustav marched to Dalarna with more than 10,000 troops
and convinced the peasants to lay down their arms.
In
1542 came the greatest rebellion that Gustav faced. The rebellion led by Nils
Dacke began in Smaland in 1542. The rebellion grew due to the support of
Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire to end the Reformation supported by Gustav.
Peasants rose up also against the religious policies of the government. The
combination of discontent and foreign support threatened to topple down Gustav.
Dacke, a peasant by birth, planned to overthrow Gustav and replace him with Svante
Sture. The plan, however, ended when Sture refused to collaborate and even
condemned the rebels by handing over the messenger who delivered the proposal
to Gustav.
Gustav
marched a large host of his force to Smaland and crushed the rebels in 1543. Nils
managed to evade capture but later on arrested and killed.
Foreign and Military Affairs
Gustav
handled his country’s foreign affairs with great sensitivity. He needed peace
with other countries and develop friendships in order to proceed with Sweden’s reconstruction
smoothly. He started also to reorganize his military enabling it to respond
against rebellions as previously stated. Although much of his reign saw peace,
it never prevented him to go to war if the benefits of the conflict benefits
Sweden.
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| Landsknechte |
After
the war in 1523, Sweden’s military was the remnants of Gustav’s peasant army.
Only few thousand stayed to serve as part of a standing army. Gustav followed
the practice of other kingdoms in hiring foreign mercenaries to augment their
military force. In case of Gustav, he hired German mercenaries like the
Landsknecht. This army helped to keep order within the country quelling
rebellions in different provinces.
Although
Gustav’s army internally secured Sweden, he knew Sweden’s weakness when it came
to foreign wars. As a result, he developed cordial relations with many
countries and avoided military conflicts as much as possible. But when the
situation called for war that secured Sweden’s interest, he never hesitated to
declare war. For instance, in 1532, he fought a war against the dethrone
Christian II in his attempts to retake the Danish and Swedish throne and
reestablish the Kalmar Union.
Another
war freed Sweden from the clutches of the Hanseatic League. Before that point,
the relation between the League and Sweden were warm yet subservient. Sweden
and Gustav had to bow to the Hanseatic League as a gratitude for its support
during the war against Denmark. Gustav borrowed heavily from the League which
demanded control over Sweden’s foreign trade. As a result, Sweden’s domestic
traders had no chance of success due to the League’s influence and wealth. In
1530, when the League demanded Sweden payments for its debt, Gustav resorted to
melting bells from churches that later resulted to rebellion within the country.
When
the Hanseatic League suddenly supported Christian II’s restoration to the
throne of Denmark, Gustav and King Christian III together declared war against
the Hanseatic League in a conflict that became known as the Count’s Feud. Here,
Gustav developed a strong navy and together with the Danes crushed the
influenced and power of the Hanseatic League forever in 1537. At the time of
the war’s end, Gustav gained a free hand to develop his country’s economy.
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| Charles V |
Meanwhile,
the Reformation and his break with the Roman Catholic Church altered the
dynamics of Swedish policy. He had tenuous with the Vatican as well as the Holy
Roman Empire that championed the Catholic cause. Holy Roman Emperor Charles V
even supported the rebellion of Nils Dacke to topple Gustav’s rule.
This
position, however, allowed Gustav to sought new partners in Europe to fight the
influence of the Holy Roman Empire. For instance, he started to establish
relations with King Henry VIII who like him severed relations with the Catholic
Church. He also sought friendship with the French who stood as Charles V’s
rival in the continent.
On
the other hand, Gustav kept cordial relations with Denmark. Both countries and
their Kings sought to prevent Christian II from retaking power. In addition,
both Gustav and Christian III promoted the Protestant Reformation. So peace but
uneasy relations between the 2 countries prevailed during Gustav’s reign.
Tensions continued to exist nonetheless such as in 1548 when Christian III gave
a coat of arms Christian III to his daughter for her wedding to the Duke of
Saxony. The coat of arms depicted symbols of Sweden which implored Denmark’s
claim of dominion over Sweden. This issue did not proceed to war but it once
again riffed the relation between the 2 Scandinavian countries.
Economic Policies
After
the war for the liberation of Sweden, the country faced a dire financial
situation. Much of the country’s industries laid in ruins. The tax base of the
country, the peasants, were just beginning to restart their lives. The
government’s tax revenues were always in deficit and debts burdened the country
further.
Although
difficult, Gustav took the measure of increasing taxes on peasants. This he did
with great caution as he knew that revolts would be rising up. Indeed, many of
the revolts that occurred during Gustav’s rule arose due also to heavy taxation
of the government.
Besides
taxes, Gustav also used the Reformation as a means to take over the vast lands
controlled by the Church. With the Vasteras Ordinance, Gustav acquired huge
track of lands that he then returned or sold to the nobility for revenues.
On
the other hand, the economy of Sweden was in a bad shape in the early years of
his reign. Much of the stagnation especially in trade came as a result of
Gustav’s concession to Hanseatic League which gave the organization a monopoly
on the international trade of Sweden. As a result few to none Swedish merchants
flourished that could have been another source of revenue for the government.
Only with the Count’s Feud did the country finally broke free from the clutches
of the league and started to trade actively on their own.
Later
on, Gustav promoted the development of trade and new industries. Trade with the
Dutch and French rose. He encouraged mining such as silver in Sala and copper
in Falan. He also supported the development of agriculture hiring foreign
experts to share new techniques to partners. He also gave patronage to the
development of dairy industry which he handed over control to his wife.
End of Reign
Swedes
remembered Gustav as a hot headed and ruthless leaders while other labelled him
as a tyrant; nevertheless, the Swedish people respected him for freeing and
rebuilding their country from the war of independence.
Gustav
made strives to preserve his legacy by making the position of king hereditary. In
June 1560, another diet of all the estates met in Stockholm. There Gustav
revealed his desire for the country to be united and giving hints of his health
decline. After Gustav’s speech, the Riksdag conferred to Gustav the honor of
making his position hereditary, thus his Erik would be his heir.
Few
months after the Riksdag in Stockholm, on September 29, 1560, Gustav Ericksson
Vasa passed away, leaving behind a kingdom independent.
See also:
Bibliography:
Nilsson, Victor. History of Sweden. New York: The Co-operative Publication Society, 1899.
Stefansson, Jon. The Story of the Nations: Denmark and Sweden with Iceland and Finland. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1917.
Svanstrom, Ragnar & Carl Fredrik Palmstierna. Short History of Sweden. New York: Oxford University Press, 1934.
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