Dacke uprising
The Dacke uprising (Swedish Dackefejden ) was a peasant uprising in the historical Swedish province of Småland in 1542 and 1543. It was the largest genuine peasant uprising in Scandinavia and threatened at its height to overthrow the ruling King Gustav Wasa .
The causes of the uprising were the harsh centralization policy of King Gustav Wasa, which not only threatened the relative independence of the Småland farming communities, but had also led to a multiplication of taxes , and the introduction of Protestantism . In addition, the crown banned the hunting of large game, the logging of beech and oak and hindered border traffic with Denmark .
The uprising broke out under the leadership of the farmer Nils Dacke around midsummer time in 1542 south of Kalmar and was directed against the royal bailiffs and the nobility. It spread quickly in the southern part of the country and when a larger unit of troops from Västergötland was sent to Småland to suppress the uprising, other areas joined the uprising. Several attempts by royal troops to quell the uprising were repulsed and in November 1542 the rebels ruled Småland, Öland and southern Östergötland . The insurgents and the king agreed to enter into a one-year truce, during which negotiations should be conducted to settle the conflict peacefully.
Nils Dacke seems to have striven for a peaceful solution to the conflict, but Gustav Wasa was not interested in it, but used the time to recruit new troops. When the preparations were completed, Gustav Wasa broke the armistice in January 1543 and ordered the newly formed army, which consisted of 5,000 mostly German mercenaries , to advance to Kalmar and put down the uprising.
The fighting that followed was fierce and the royal troops were stopped at Målilla . But Nils Dacke was badly wounded in a skirmish on March 25th, and the uprising collapsed afterwards. At the end of April, the rebellious areas were again under royal control. Nils Dacke attempted another uprising on midsummer 1543, but it was quickly stifled and the leading rebels were executed.
literature
- Bo Alvemo: Dackefejden. Det stora upproret 1542-1543 . Svenskt militaryhistoriskt bibliotek, Hallstavik 2006, ISBN 91-975315-9-6 .