Gustav trolls

Gustav trolls

Gustav Eriksson Trolle (* around 1488 in Bergkvara , Småland , † 1535 on the island of Funen , Denmark) was the son of Erik Arvidsson Trolle and Swedish Archbishop.

Gustav Trolle played a role that should hardly be underestimated in the history of the origins of the Swedish state. His support for the Danish King Christian II led to a conflict with the Swedish ruler Sten Sture the Younger and ultimately to his removal as archbishop . This circumstance was decisive in the Stockholm bloodbath , which was initially a bitter setback for Sweden's separation from the Kalmar Union , but decisively strengthened unity in the country. Gustav Vasa was able to fight back the Danes with the help of the rural population and later laid the foundations for the Swedish state as king.

Trolles ascent to Archbishop

After studying for a few years in Cologne and Rome, the Trolle family was appointed Dean of Linköping in 1513 . In Sweden he was one of the most educated and powerful men of his time. A year later he became archbishop in Uppsala , where he succeeded Jakob Ulvsson .

Background information on the Kalmar Union

Sweden had been part of the Kalmar Union since 1397 , a federation that united the states of Denmark, Sweden and Norway under one king. Each country retained its own advice. Since a large part of Finland was ruled by Sweden, and Iceland was part of the Norwegian crown, the Kalmar Union encompassed almost all of northern Europe. Denmark was the ruling power here, while the union in Sweden was only supported by a few nobles. There were repeated uprisings against the Union, with the Danes always sending troops to restore order.

Conflict with Sten Sture

Just like its predecessors, Trolls began a pro-Union policy. As early as 1515 he came into conflict with the Swedish ruler Sten Sture the Younger, who wanted to pull Sweden out of the Union and tried in vain to get trolls on his side. When it was clear that Trolle would work to the Danish King Christian II to strengthen the Union in Sweden too, Sture Trolles had Almarestäket Castle besieged in autumn 1516. A military conflict with the Danish king Christian II was imminent, so that Sture, or "Mr. Sten", as he is called in the Sture Chronicle , had to overthrow trolls before this supporter could gather among the noble Swedes. When Sture was able to take Trolles castle in 1517, he had trolls arrested. The castle was razed to the ground and trolls were deposed as archbishop by decision of the State Council. This decision, which was affirmed by the council members with a seal , later served as evidence in the Stockholm carnage .

The invasion

The Danish invasion began in the winter of 1519–1520. Christian II took Trolle's disempowerment as an opportunity to restore order in Sweden and marched into Sweden with his army. His army consisted of professional soldiers, mercenaries whom he had recruited from all over Europe and who were ruthless and battle-tested. Stubborn men were mostly peasant soldiers who were promised tax exemption if they defended their land. The battle of Bogesund , today Ulricehamn on Lake Åsundens in today's Västergötland , was a decisive battle for the Danes as well as for the Swedes. In the course of the fight, Reich Administrator Sten Sture the Younger was hit by a cannonball and died a little later of his injuries. Danish king Christian II emerged victorious from the battle and went on to Stockholm . With Sture's death, a strong leader was missing on the Swedish side. His wife Kristina Gyllenstierna took over command of the resistance against the Union, but she did not succeed in uniting a clear unit behind her. Finally, the Danes managed to occupy Sweden in the autumn of 1520, whereby the city of Stockholm, under the direction of Kristina Gyllenstierna, was still able to assert itself. Christian II reinstated trolls as archbishop and issued an amnesty that guaranteed his opponents impunity if he, Christian himself, were recognized as the Union king . Kristina Gyllenstierna and the Swedish aristocrats involved in the resistance accepted the offer of amnesty. On November 4, 1520, Christian II was crowned King of Sweden by Archbishop Gustav Trolle in Stockholm and thus king of the entire Union.

Trolle's role in the Stockholm carnage

There followed festivities that lasted for three days and were also attended by Kristina Gyllenstierna and aristocrats of the resistance. Because of the pronounced amnesty, one felt safe. On the evening of the third day, however, the king had all the Swedish nobles called into a room and gathered around him. The doors were closed and guarded. In a short trial, those present were accused of heresy , with Gustav Trolle playing a decisive role: thanks to the amnesty, nobody could be convicted for resisting the Union. This was guaranteed by the king. But the removal of the archbishop in 1517 was a heresy and a crime against the church against which the king could not grant an amnesty. The resolution at that time with the signatures of the council members was pulled out and 94 people were sentenced to death. With that Christian II had found a way to get rid of his opposition all at once.

The executions were carried out shortly afterwards on the market square ( Stortorget ) in Stockholm and lasted 2 days. The bodies were initially left lying around, then they were taken to a hilltop on the neighboring island of Södermalm , where they were burned in a fire that was visible from afar. Even the bones of the former Reich Administrator Sten Sture the Younger were dug up and burned with the other bodies. This event went down in history as the “ Stockholm Bloodbath ”.

Gustav Vasa

The bloodbath in Stockholm sparked widespread upheaval among the Swedish population. The young nobleman Gustav Vasa managed to unite an army of peasants behind him who were able to drive the Danes out of Sweden in just three years. Vasa was appointed King of Sweden by the Diet in Strängnäs in 1523 and was crowned in Uppsala Cathedral in 1528 .

Due to what happened, Gustav Vasa did not recognize trolls as archbishop. There were disputes with the Pope in Rome , who was supporting trolls. As a result, Vasa turned away from the Catholic Church and initiated the Reformation in Sweden. The church was nationalized, with ownership passed to the state ( Swedish State Church ).

Gustav Trolle's years in Denmark

Trolls fled to Denmark as early as 1521 because of uprisings in Småland and Dalarna . There he continued his fight at Christian's side. In 1534 he became Bishop of Funen in Odense . He was wounded at the Battle of Øksnebjerg on the island of Funen in 1535 and died in captivity after June 11, 1535 in Gottdorf .

Notes and oddities

• At the point where the aristocratic opponents of the Union were burned, the Katharinenkirche ( Katarina kyrka ) stands today . The church has burned down twice since it was built in 1695.
• When Trolle was deposed as archbishop in 1517, council member Bishop Brask hid a note under his seal. This piece of paper read: "I was coerced and forced to seal this". Brask thus escaped execution. The note saved his life.
• Trolles Almarestäket Castle was built on a narrow spot in Lake Mälaren and guarded the entrance to important cities such as Sigtuna and Uppsala . The remains of the bishop's castle can still be seen on the grounds of the Almarestäkets Herrgård farm. The nearby town of Stäket north of Stockholm had exactly 2093 inhabitants in 2005.
• According to a legend , every year on November 7th at midnight the spirits of the 94 executed people meet on the market square in Stockholm and drift down the streets as a white mist.