Stefan from Uppsala

Stefan's seal

Stefan von Uppsala (* in the 12th century ; † July 18, 1185 ) was a Swedish clergyman and first archbishop of Old Uppsala .

Life

When the papal legate Nikolaus Breakspear visited Sweden in 1152 , he intended to help establish an independent Swedish archbishopric. This had happened shortly before in neighboring Norway . However, the political situation made the realization of these plans impossible. King Sverker had to fight for power with a competitor, so that only church dignitaries from those parts of the country where Sverker's competitors did not rule came to the meeting in Linköping . The legate then passed the order to the Danish Archbishop Eskil von Lund , which was later of importance.

From the disputes after the death of Erik the Saint , Karl , Sverker's son, emerged as king. Following the tradition of his house, he supported those parts of the church that stood up for the Gregorian ideals, especially the Cistercian order . 1164 became Pope Alexander III. , who was then in Sens in France , sent an embassy to bring support for the establishment of a Swedish archbishopric. A member of this delegation was Stefan, a Cistercian monk from Alvastra , who at that time was already elected Bishop of Uppsala. His nationality is unknown, but he was probably not a Swede.

The situation was favorable for the approval of the Swedish request. When the Pope was elected in 1159, the imperial minded set up an antipope . Alexander had fled to France and the Catholic world was divided. Alexander must have seen the Swedish embassy with pleasure, because it signified Sweden's bond with him. At that time, the already appointed Archbishop Eskil was in Sens. He was also on the run because of his bond with Alexander. The Pope gave him the order to consecrate Stefan Archbishop of Old Uppsala, which was the old Swedish political and religious center at that time. In addition, the Danish church would continue to stand above the Swedish. The consecration ceremony in Sens took place on a Sunday in August 1164. The new archbishop could not act long undisturbed. The Sverker rule ended abruptly in 1167.

In the following years, which were marked by controversy, Stefan was on a political mission for the church ideals and the interests of Sverker's followers in Denmark and Norway. In 1173, Knut Eriksson was finally established as the new ruler. Stefan was forced to work with him. The result of his quest to bring Gregorian church ideas to life in Sweden was not what his early years in office had promised when he died.

Not much is known about his work outside the Church. Stefan was buried under his monastery brothers in Alvastra.

literature

• Gustav Åsbrink, Knut B. Westman: Svea rikes ärkebiskopar från 1164 till nuvarande tid . Stockholm 1935. pp. 43-49.
• Stefan from Uppsala . In: Theodor Westrin, Ruben Gustafsson Berg, Eugen Fahlstedt (eds.): Nordisk familjebok konversationslexikon och realencyklopedi . 2nd Edition. tape 26 : Slöke – Stockholm . Nordisk familjeboks förlag, Stockholm 1917, Sp. 1156 (Swedish, runeberg.org ).

predecessor	Office	successor
-	Archbishop of Uppsala 1164–1185	John