Sten Sture "The Elder", Regent of Sweden

Sten Sture the Elder was a Swedish statesman and regent of Sweden 1470–1497 and 1501–1503. As the leader of the victorious Swedish separatist forces against the royal unionist forces during the Battle of Brunkeberg in 1471, he weakened the Kalmar Union considerably and became the effective ruler of Sweden as Lord Regent for most of his remaining life.

Background

In contemporary sources he is alternatively referred to as Sten Gustavsson or Herr Sten (Lord Sten); the practice of using noble family names as part of a personal name was not yet in widespread use in Sweden at the time.

He was born around 1440, the son of Gustav Anundsson of the Sture family and Birgitta Stensdotter Bielke, half-sister of the future Charles VIII. The Sture family was one of the high-ranking noble families of the time, though only distantly related to the royal house; his closest royal ancestor was King Sverker II of Sweden (both through family of Vinga and through family of Aspenäs). Sture's father, Gustav Anundsson, was Castellan of Kalmar Castle and a Privy Councillor, but died when the son was four. Birgitta Stensdotter remarried Gustav Karlsson of the Gumsehuvud family, and the son was most likely raised in their home, first at Kalmar Castle and later at Ekholmen Castle.

The 15th century in Sweden was largely defined by the political struggles and civil wars between the unionists of the Kalmar Union, seeking to unite Sweden with Denmark and Norway under the rule of the Danish monarchs, with Danish support, and the separatists seeking to re-establish Sweden as an independent kingdom under a rival Swedish monarch. Due to his close family ties to the Swedish King Charles, the young Sten Sture became part of the Swedish separatist political movement from an early age, and visited Charles during his exile in Danzig. He is mentioned as a knight in 1462 and as a privy councillor in 1466, and took up residence on the family estate at Räfsnäs north of Mariefred. Sture fought with Bishop and Regent Kettil Karlsson Vasa during the uprising against the Danish King Christian I in 1464, taking part in the decisive victory at Haraker. He served as a military commander under King Charles VIII, defeating Erik Karlsson Vasa's uprising at Uppbo in 1470 and later in the same year successfully beating back Christian I's forces at Öresten.

He married Ingeborg Tott, niece by marriage of Magdalena of Sweden, in 1467; she was a renaissance personality interested in theology and science and seems to have had some importance in the intellectual development during his reign. The marriage was childless.

First regency

Sture's uncle, King Charles VIII named Sture heir to Charles' personal domains before his death in 1470, and left Sture in charge of the crown lands, including the city of Stockholm and Stockholm Castle. On the death of King Charles on 15 May 1470, Sture immediately became the most powerful noble and political force in the country and was elected Lord Protector and Regent of Sweden (riksföreståndare) by the Riksmöte in Arboga on 1 May 1471. Sture consolidated his position through the victory of Brunkeberg.

At the Battle of Brunkeberg on 10 October 1471, which was fought around Brunkebergsåsen outside the northern gates of Stockholm, his Swedish separatist army triumphed against Danish King Christian I's Swedish unionist and Danish forces, injuring Christian and routing the unionist army. This victory elevated Sture to the position of a national savior. The sculpture Saint George and the Dragon in Storkyrkan in Stockholm, commonly attributed to the German sculptor Bernt Notke, was raised to commemorate the battle.

For a quarter of a century he ruled Sweden making the regency almost an office in its own right. He was supported by the peasantry, the commercial interests of the mining district of Bergslagen and the lower nobility, playing them out against the unionist high-ranked nobility and clergy and managing a difficult act of balance towards the Danish demands of reunion. In a meeting in Kalmar in 1483, the high nobility confirmed the new Danish king Hans as the true king of Sweden on condition of extensive privileges and guarantees granted to the high nobility, clergy and Privy Council, but Sture nevertheless managed to hold on to the political power for the time being, refusing to give up his office as Regent.

Sture's reign saw the foundation of the first Swedish university, Uppsala University, founded by Archbishop Jakob Ulvsson in 1477 with support from Sture.

In 1493, the Danish and Norwegian king, Hans (also called John I), formed an alliance with Ivan III of Russia against Sten Sture. From 1495 to 1497, Sten successfully repelled a Russian invasion of Finland. However, he subsequently fell out with the majority of the Swedish nobility, most prominently Svante Nilsson, and the Swedish Privy Council declared him to be deposed as regent on 8 March 1497.

Second regency

In the ensuing war, Sten was supported by peasant forces, but they were defeated at the Battle of Rotebro by Hans of Denmark (also known as King John I of Denmark and Norway), who invaded Sweden in July the same year. On 6 October, Sten surrendered to King Hans in Stockholm and was reconciled with him. Hans was crowned King of Sweden, and Sten was given the highest position of authority in Sweden below the King. However, during the next rebellion against the Danes in 1501, he again took office as regent, leading the Swedish struggle for independence until his death. In May 1502, the unionist garrison in Stockholm, led by Queen Christina, capitulated due to severe starvation after a drawn-out siege. In early 1503 his forces were in control of Sweden apart from Kalmar and the island of Öland.

Sture used the capture of the Queen for propaganda purposes, personally accompanying the Queen to Halmstad in Denmark after a cease-fire had been negotiated by the Hanseatic League, in October 1503.

Death and aftermath

On his way back from Denmark, Sture fell ill and died on 14 December 1503. Bishop Hemming Gadh, who accompanied Sture on the journey, alerted Svante Nilsson at Stegeborg Castle. Sture's widow, Ingeborg Tott, who at the time was in control of the Stockholm garrison, was only presented with the news of her husband's death once Svante Nilsson had reached Stockholm. She was persuaded to turn over Stockholm Castle and received Häme Castle in Finland as compensation.

Sture had no legitimate children from his marriage with Ingeborg Tott, only a daughter born out of wedlock, Birgitta, who became a nun in Vadstena Abbey. The male line of the old Sture family, the Tre Sjöblad family, died out with Sten Sture. His closest relatives and heirs were his deceased sister's, the house of Vasa, and his nephew Erik Johansson Vasa, a knight and member of the Privy Council, inherited Sture's extensive personal domains in Södermanland and Uppland. Erik Johansson's son, the future King Gustav I of Sweden had been born a few years before Sten's death. However, Erik Johansson was described by his contemporaries as a simpleminded and brutal man, prone to violent outbursts and on more than one occasion charged with manslaughter, and lacked the political skill of his uncle Sten Sture.

Regent Sten was succeeded by his colleague from the Privy Council and former enemy Svante Nilsson, of the Natt och Dag family, as regent. Svante Nilsson's son and successor, Sten Sture the Younger, later chose to adapt the Sture name for political purposes, despite only being distantly related.

Burial and monuments

To commemorate the victory at Brunkeberg, Sten Sture ordered a wooden monument for Storkyrkan in Stockholm, Saint George and the Dragon, built in the late 1480s. Saint George's horse carries the coat of arms of the Tre Sjöblad family, Sten Sture's coat of arms, and the monument is therefore interpreted as a symbol of his victory over Denmark, the dragon. A bronze copy of the monument was placed on Köpmantorget in Stockholm in 1912.

Sten Sture was buried in the church of Mariefred Charterhouse, which he had helped establish and made significant contributions to during his reign. His remains were moved to Strängnäs Cathedral during the reign of Gustav I, after the short-lived monastery was closed in 1526, during the protestant reformation. A memorial outside the town church of Mariefred marks the former site of the monastery. The present burial monument in the choir of Strängnäs Cathedral was ordered in 1774 by King Gustav III.

Sture became a prominent symbolic figure in the 19th century nationalist movement in Sweden, together with the early 15th century rebel leader Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson and King Gustav I who ended the Kalmar Union. A large stone monument to Sten Sture, by the sculptor Carl Milles (1875–1955), was inaugurated in Uppsala in 1925. There are several places and buildings named after Sten Sture in the town of Arboga in central Sweden, where Sten Sture was elected in 1471, due to the efforts of the local Sture society in the late 19th century. Stureparken was created for the 400th anniversary in 1871, and an obelisk dedicated to the memory of the election of Sten Sture was erected in the park in 1890.

Trivia

An underground restaurant in Stockholm, close to the Royal Palace is named after Sten Sture. In 1792 it was a prison, where the murderer of King Gustav III of Sweden was jailed before his execution.

Sten Sture I. der Ältere, Sten Gustavsson (Sture), Herr Sten (* um 1440; † 14. Dezember 1503 in Jönköping) war Reichsverweser (schwedisch riksföreståndare) von Schweden. Er wurde um 1440 als Sohn von Gustav Anundsson Sture und Brigitte Bielke, Tochter von Sten und Halbschwester von König Karl VIII. Knutsson Bonde geboren. Sten war ab 1501 Stadtoberhaupt von Stockholm.

Sein Vater starb schon 1444. Die Verwandtschaft mit König Karl bestimmte schon frühzeitig seine Verantwortung für innerschwedische Kämpfe und während Karls siebenjähriger Landesflucht besuchte er diesen in Danzig. 1464 nahm er zusammen mit dem Bischof Kettil Karlsson (Vasa) an einem Aufstand gegen den König Christian I. teil, der zu einem Sieg gegen diesen bei Harakar führte.

Mit seinem hervorstechenden Auftreten bei den inneren Unruhen der Jahre 1466/67 leistete er einen entscheidenden Beitrag zur Thronbesteigung von Karl Knutsson im letzten Jahr des Aufstandes. Durch den folgenden Aufruhr Erik Karlssons (Vasa) gegen Knudsson war Sten Sture erneut gezwungen zu den Waffen zu greifen. Bei Uppbo färja in der Region Dalarna gelang ihm zusammen mit Nils Sture der entscheidende Sieg gegen die Aufständischen. Kurz darauf fiel Christian I. in Västergötland ein, doch Sture konnte ihn noch im selben Jahr bei Öresten besiegen.

Sten Sture übernahm 1470 nach dem Tode seines Onkels, König Karl VIII. Knutsson, das Amt des Reichsverwesers (Reichsvorsteher). Christians erneute Thronansprüche führten jedoch zu einem erneuten Dänisch-Schwedischen Krieg. Schwedens Selbstständigkeit und Stens eigene Stellung wurde durch den Sieg in der Schlacht am Brunkeberg (10. Oktober 1471) für 25 Jahre gefestigt. Dies spiegelte sich z. B. 1477 in der Gründung der Universität Uppsala wider. Seine Staatsführung stützte sich vor allem auf die unteren Volksschichten, was ihm einige Gegner in der schwedischen Aristokratie einbrachte.

Diese erreichten 1497, dass Sten die Macht an den dänischen König Johann I. (in Schweden Johann II.) verlor. Er konnte das Amt als Reichsverweser aber 1501 zurückgewinnen und hatte es bis zu seinem Tod 1503 inne.

Am 14. Dezember 1503 starb Sten Sture, möglicherweise durch Mord. Er wurde zuerst im Kartäuserkloster von Mariefred begraben, doch später überführte man seine Gebeine in die Domkirche von Strängnäs. Aus seiner Ehe mit Ingeborg Åkesdotter entsprangen keine Kinder, aber er hatte eine uneheliche Tochter, Birgitta, die später Nonne wurde.

Sten Sture el Viejo, nacido en 1440 y fallecido en 1503, fue un regente de Suecia durante la Unión de Kalmar. Fue gobernante de Suecia en dos períodos: el primero de 1470 a 1497 y el segundo de 1501 a 1503.

Sten Sture vanhempi (1440–1503) toimi Ruotsin valtionhoitajana vuosina 1470–1497 ja 1501–1503. Sten Sture oli kuningas Kaarle Knuutinpoika Bonden sisarenpoika.

Kuningas oli ennen vuonna 1470 tapahtunutta kuolemaansa nimittänyt Sturen valtakunnan tulevaksi päämieheksi ja poikansa holhoajaksi. Valtaneuvosto nimitti Sturen valtionhoitajaksi samana vuonna. Sture voitti Tanskan Kristianin vuonna 1471 Tukholman edustajalla, mistä syystä häntä on jälkikäteen pidetty Ruotsin vapaustaistelijana ja hankki itselleen voimakkaan, keskitetyn vallan Ruotsissa.

Tanskan kanssa Kalmarin unionin jatkosta ei saatu sovittua, kun Tanskan kuningas Hannu ei saapunutkaan allekirjoittamaan jo neuvoteltua Kalmarin resessiä. Vuonna 1493 Tanska solmi yllättävän liittosopimuksen pitkään Ruotsin kanssa vihollisuuksissa olleen Venäjän kanssa. Vuonna 1495 alkoi niin sanottu vanha viha eli sota Ruotsin ja Venäjän välillä. Siihen johon liittyi Viipurin piiritys ja merkillinen Viipurin pamaus. Rauha solmittiin 1497, mutta se oli hatara.

Tanskan kuningas Hannu julisti Ruotsille sodan lähes heti Venäjän kanssa solmitun rauhanteon jälkeen. Hannu pääsi sodassa niskanpäälle ja Sture tunnusti hänen asemansa Ruotsin hallitsijana, ja sai puolestaan itse kuninkaan hovimestarin aseman ja Suomen läänityksekseen. Hannun suosio Ruotsissa laski, kun tiedot tämän tekemistä sopimuksista Venäjän kanssa tulivat ilmi, ja loppuvuodesta 1501 Hannu syrjäytettiin ja Sture palasi valtionhoitajaksi elämänsä jäljellä oleviksi vuosiksi.

Sten Sture le Vieil, (né en 1440 et mort à Jönköping le 14 décembre 1503), fut un homme d'État suédois, et vice-roi de la Suède à l'époque de l'Union de Kalmar de 1470 à 1497 et de 1501 à sa mort le 14 décembre 1503.

Fils de Gustave Anundsson Sture (mort en 1444) et de Birgitta Bjeke, demi-sœur par sa mère du roi Charles VIII de Suède. Il appartenait à une importante famille de nobles suédois.

Il prit le pouvoir à la mort de Charles VIII de Suède. Il était soutenu par la paysannerie et une partie de la noblesse hostile au Danemark. En 1471, il vainquit lors de la bataille de Brunkeberg les armées suédoises et danoises de Christian Ier de Danemark. Il fut alors élevé au rang de sauveur de la nation. La sculpture de Saint Georges terrassant le Dragon due à l'allemand Bernt Notke et située à Storkyrkan à Stockholm est dédiée à la célébration de cette bataille.

Il est destitué pendant une brève période lorsque Jean Ier de Danemark réussit à s'imposer provisoirement en Suède en 1497. Mais il reprend le pouvoir à la suite d'une nouvelle révolte contre les Danois en 1501. Il lutte pour l'indépendance de la Suède jusqu'à sa mort, deux ans plus tard. Il est inhumé dans la cathédrale de Strängnäs.

Sten Sture avait épousé en 1467 Ingeburge Tott, fille d'Äke Axelsson Tott de Hjuleberg, qui mourut en 1503 sans lui avoir donné d'enfant. Sten Sture avait par ailleurs une fille illégitime, Birgitta, religieuse à Wadstena en 1485, morte en 1536.

Стен Стуре Старший, регент Швеции с 16 мая 1470 по 18 октября 1497 года (1-й раз), и с ноября 1501 года (2-й раз), который своей деятельностью подготовил окончательное расторжение Кальмарской унии и восстановление шведской государственности.

Происходил из феодальной верхушки шведского общества. После смерти Карла Кнутсона (1470 год) был избран регентом Швеции. Опираясь на крестьян и бюргеров, он сохранял своё положение в течение 26 лет вопреки сильной оппозиции государственного совета, тяготевшего к унии. В 1471 году в битве при Брункеберге армия под его командованием разбила армию датского короля Кристиана I.

Много сделал для поднятия благосостояния страны и для просвещения, а также для централизации и укрепления аппарата управления. В 1477 году им был основан университет в Упсале и почти одновременно было введено в стране книгопечатание.

Не будучи в состоянии помешать провозглашению Кальмарской унии в 1483 году, он, однако, оттянул фактическое её возобновление до 1497 года, когда король датский Ганс, призванный шведским государственным советом, разбил под Ротебро шведскую армию и запер самого Стуре в Стокгольме.

Он продолжал, однако, и после того занимать первое место в государстве, примирился с государственным советом, который скоро разочаровался в унии и, когда в 1501 году в стране вспыхнул общий мятеж, был вторично избран регентом.

После смерти был захоронен в кафедральном соборе Стренгнеса.

Riksföreståndare i Sverige 1470-97, 1501-03 Sture d.ä., Sten, c:a 1440-1503, systerson till Karl Knutsson Bonde. Sten Sture var endast 4 år gammal, när hans far, Gustaf Sture dog. Förmodligen dubbades unge Sten till riddare i samband med Kristian I:s kröning år 1457 och fick därefter lov att tituleras "herr Sten". Sten Sture kom under Karl Knutssons tredje regering snart i förgrunden. Vid Karls död 1470 övertog han rikets styrelse som riksföreståndare och hans makt befästes genom segern över Kristian I vid Bunkeberg 1471. Sten Stures hänsyslösa kamp för att vinna gods och län ledde till motsättningar till Kristians efterträdare Hans i Danmark, som Sten Sture ville hindra från att bli svensk kung. Sten Sture förde en energisk utrikespolitik med bl. a. interventioner i Livland. Ett rysk - dansk förbund 1493 riktat mot Sverige sökte han motverka genom en allians med Hansan, vars direkta politiska inflytande i Sverige minskat genom förbudet 1471 mot tyska ledamöter i de svenska städernas magistrater. Sten Stures föga framgångsrika krig mot Ryssland 1495-97 gav råds oppositionen, ledd av Jakob Ulvsson och Svante Nilsson (Sture), vind i seglen, och 1497 måste herr Sten erkänna Hans som svensk kung. Han tröstades med betydande förläningar och blev rikshovmästare. Han anslöt sig 1500 ändå till det av Hemming Gadh organiserade upproret mot Hans och blev åter riksföreståndare. Sten Sture utmålade sig själv som en oegennyttig riddersman och frihetskämpe. Han han till minne av segern vid Brunkeberg lät ställa upp Notkes magnifika skulptur av Sankt Göran i Storkyrkan i Stockholm, var det föga tvivel om vad och vem som symboliserades. Numera ser man honom med bättre skäl som en hänsynlös, opportunisk och girig realpolitiker. Strax före jul 1503 avled Sten Sture plötsligt i Jönköping. Någon manlig arvinge som kunde ta vid efter honom hade han inte. Enda barnet var den utom äktenskapet födde dottern Birgitta och hon satt som nunna innaför klostermurarna i Vadstena. Sten Sture begravdes i klostret i Mariefred; graven flyttades senare till Strängnäs domkyrka. Ett monument över honom av Milles, i den traditionella bildens anda, restes 1925 på Kronåsen i Uppsala

Källor: Den svenska historien, del 3 Lars-Olof Larsson - Gustav Vasa - landsfader eller tyrann?

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Sten Sture the Elder

Statue of Sten Sture

Reign 1470-1497, 1501-December 14, 1503

Born 1440

Died December 14, 1503

Buried Katarina Church, Stockholm

Predecessor Charles VIII

Successor Svante Nilsson

Consort Ingeborg Tott

Offspring None

Royal House Sture

Father Gunnar Anundsson

Mother Birgitta Stensdotter Bielke

Sten Sture the Elder (Sten Sture den äldre; 1440–December 14, 1503) was a Swedish statesman and regent of Sweden during the Union of Kalmar (1470–1497 and 1501–1503).

[edit] Biography

He was born around 1440, the son of Gustav Anundsson of the Sture family and Birgitta Stensdotter Bielke, half-sister of the future Charles VIII. He was married to Ingeborg Tott in 1467; she was a renaissance personality interested in theology and science and seemed to have had some importance in the intellectual development during his reign, but the marriage remained childless. According to genealogical research, Sten Sture's father descended from King Sverker II of Sweden (both through family of Vinga and through family of Aspenäs).

Sten Sture the Elder enters Stockholm. Painting by Georg von Rosen in 1864.

Sten Sture the Elder enters Stockholm. Painting by Georg von Rosen in 1864.

At the Battle of Brunkeberg in 1471, he triumphed against Swedish and Danish forces in the support of Christian I. This victory elevated Sture to the position of a national savior. The sculpture St. George and the Dragon created by the German sculptor Bernt Notke in Storkyrkan in Stockholm was raised to commemorate the battle.

He came to power after the death of Charles VIII and consolidated his position through the victory of Brunkeberg. For a quarter of a century he ruled Sweden making the regency almost an office in its own right. He was supported by the peasantry and the lower nobility, wisely playing them out against the high-ranked nobility and managing a clever act of balance towards the Danish demands of reunion. He was forced to resign upon King John’s rapid conquest of Sweden in 1497 and was pardoned. However, during the next rebellion against the Danes in 1501, he again took office, leading the Swedish struggle for independence until his death.

His closest relatives and heirs were his deceased sister's, the House of Vasa. His great-nephew the future King Gustav I of Sweden had been born a few years before Sten's death. At the time, however, none of them were members of the experienced political elite of Sweden. Regent Sten was succeeded by his colleague from the Privy Council of Sweden and former enemy Svante Nilsson as regent.

[edit] Trivia

An underground restaurant in Stockholm, close to the Royal Palace is named after Sten Sture. In 1792 it was a prison, where the murderer of King Gustav III of Sweden was jailed before his execution.