War against Sigismund
Encyclopedia
The war against Sigismund (Kriget mot Sigismund) was a war between Duke Charles, later King Charles IX
and Sigismund, King of Sweden and Poland
. Lasting from 1598 to 1599, it is also called War of Deposition against Sigismund, since the focus of the conflicts was the attempt to depose the latter from the throne of Sweden. The war eventually resulted in the deposition of Sigismund, with Duke Charles taking over the government and later also acceding to the throne.
died in 1592 his son Sigismund, King of Poland
since 1587, acceded to the Swedish throne. Then conflicts arose. Duke Charles, the oldest living son of Gustav Vasa, did not approve the accession of Sigismund, his nephew and a Catholic, to the government of a realm that could just as well be his.
After Sigismund had been crowned King of Sweden February 19, 1594, he decided that no Parliaments
(riksdagar) could be summoned without the King’s consent. Despite this, Charles summoned a Parliament at Söderköping
in autumn 1595, at which he managed to get his will through. The Duke was appointed Regent
with “the advice of the Council”, meaning that he was to govern Sweden together with the Privy Council
during the King’s absence from the Realm. Soon afterwards, the nobility of Finland, led by the Sigismund-appointed Governor, Klaus Fleming
, rejected these decisions. They sympathised with the King and considered Charles a rebel. As a counterattack, Charles instigated a rebellion against Fleming, the Cudgel War
, among the farmers in Ostrobothnia
.
Fleming managed to quell the revolt but died in April 1597. Roughly at the same time, a letter arrived from Sigismund’s headquarters in Poland stating that he would not accept Charles as regent. The Duke then used a tactic which his father had employed, namely to resign from office. However, the response was not what Charles had been hoping for: the King accepted Charles’s resignation and invested complete power in the Privy Council.
Despite the difficult situation, Charles summoned another illegal Parliament the same year, this time in Arboga
. Only one of the Privy Councillors showed up. The reason was that Charles’s goal of deposing Sigismund had now been revealed, and the men understood that a serious revolt was brewing. When Duke Charles threatened the absent men with severe punishment some of them lost courage. Erik Gustavsson Stenbock, Arvid Gustavsson Stenbock, Erik Larsson Sparre, Erik Brahe and Sten Banér fled immediately to Sigismund.
Thus, Duke Charles was able to assume control over a large share of the powerful castles in the country, and in this manner achieved control over almost all the Realm. The problem was Finland, where Klaus Fleming’s widow guarded Åbo castle
. But after psychological warfare
, Charles and his followers managed to take the castle in Turku . It is said that when the Duke entered the castle chapel he saw Klaus Fleming’s body lying in a coffin. He is said to have said: “Hadst thou now been alive, thy head would not have been in great safety.” Then Fleming’s widow Ebba Stenbock
is said to have approached the Duke and responded: “If my late husband had been alive, Your Grace would never have entered herein.”
When Sigismund found out about what had happened in Finland he lost his patience. The King could not accept Duke Charles’s unrespectful actions. He decided to use force.
The advisers and the King expected military support from Finland and Estonia
(homes of the Swedish gentry formerly commanded by baron Klaus Fleming
). They also wanted help from Denmark–Norway
and pro-Sigismund parts of Sweden. The diplomat Laski was dispatched, but Denmark did not show any interest.
In May, Sigismund’s men started to advance northwards. The army gathered in Marienburg
, where the Livonian
Jürgen Farensbach was appointed commander. The army was to be transported from Danzig to Sweden on Swedish ships, but the Swedish Estates declined. They refused to lend him ships as long as he stayed with a foreign army. There was widespread suspicion against Sigismund and his Catholic warriors. Thus the Estates promised to protect Duke Charles and the others who rebelled against the King.
Since the Swedes refused to help with the transport, Sigismund had to buy and capture ships. When he had got hold of a hundred ships, the army was able to begin its journey to Sweden. Due to bad winds, the journey across the sea took a long time. Hence, a coordinated attack by the Finns and Sigismund’s Polish soldiers could not be undertaken. The Finnish soldiers, commanded by Governor Arvid Eriksson (Stålarm), landed in Uppland
one week ahead of Sigismund’s landing. Duke Charles was on his way to Kalmar
when the Finns invaded Uppland. He immediately rode towards Stockholm
to defend the city.
Meanwhile, three Protestant leaders, Nicolaus Olai Bothniensis
, Laurentius Paulinius and Ericus Jacobi Skinnerus, attempted to stop the Finnish Sigismund loyalists. They were able to get the support of the farmers of Uppland, and after some minor fighting, Stålarm’s men withdrew. They felt threatened by Duke Charles’s navy, and were ordered not to get involved in any major battles. This event has been somewhat peculiarly named “The Sausage Campaign”, because the farmers captured the Finns’ bags, containing sausages. The Sausage Campaign was a minor victory for Duke Charles. The greatest threat was coming from the south.
At the end of May 1598 Sigismund landed on Swedish soil at Avaskär
. The King opened peacefully by sending the diplomat Laski
to Kalmar
for negotiations. His task was to convince the city’s commanders to open the gates. However, the negotiations led nowhere. Instead, the King took his soldiers and marched on Kalmar. The army halted just outside of the city. The plan was to frighten the commanders into opening the gates. To make his message even more terrifying, Sigismund threatened the city with severe punishments and to withdraw the nobility of all children in the city. The propaganda worked well and Sigismund was able to make his long-desired entry on August 1.
. After this event, the cavalry of Uppland
joined up, and new forces were mobilised in Finland
and Estonia
.
A group of envoys from Brandenburg
, Prussia and Mecklenburg
shuttled back and forth between Duke Charles’s and Sigismund’s camps for three weeks, trying to rescue the peace. Despite their great efforts, they failed. Sigismund sailed with his infantry to Stegeborg Castle
on August 11. The cavalry went to the same place by land. Charles’s situation was hardly optimal. The only bright spots were the escapement of Göran Nilsson Gyllenstierna, the ex-commander of Stockholm, from the city, and the Swedish navy's refusal to join forces with the Poles.
Sigismund now had control over Stockholm, the key to Sweden. However, Sigismund and his fleet sailed into a violent storm: hundreds of men were thrown overboard and perished. This incident dramatically changed the situation. Suddenly, the King was in an exposed position. On August 22 he landed at Stegeborg with merely 100 men, a position worsened by the presence of Charles’s rested army nearby. Sigismund's men had anyway taken the fortresses of Älvsborg
and Gullberg in other parts of the country. In the area around Stegeborg, Duke Charles had withdrawn to Linköping
, from where he could block the troop supply to Sigismund. The King was surrounded by in all 5,000 men.
On August 28, Duke Charles and his men set out from Linköping. They camped at Mem, a few kilometres northwest of Stegeborg. At the same time, negotiations between the parties were ongoing. The Duke requested clear-cut answers from Sigismund, which the King interpreted as indicating that an assault was impending. His own army was in a trap, but he counted on help from other forces elsewhere. Hans Vejer was ordered to attack the Swedes in the back, from the west; another commander, Farensbach, drew up his forces in order of battle in front of the enemy. Charles immediately responded.
At the morning of September 8, the Swedes attacked Sigismund in the Battle of Stegeborg
. The Swedes got off to a real nightmare start, and after a few hours, Sigismund’s victory was clear. Being magnanimous, the King ordered the killing to stop.
The losing Swedes quickly withdrew to their camp at Mem. The losses amounted to 300 men, but the loss of prestige hurt Charles the most. He felt himself extra humiliated by Sigismund’s magnanimous behaviour. The strain grew so big that the normally stubborn Charles wanted to abdicate and escape the country with his family. A few senior officers managed to persuade Charles to stay, however.
The negotiations were resumed and they led to a two day ceasefire. During these days, there was plenty of maneuvering among the forces. Sigismund summoned more soldiers from Poland, at the same time as the Swedish navy sailed towards the coast. The King was in charge of the situation until the Swedish navy, commanded by Joachim Scheel, anchored outside Stegeborg. Because of unfavourable winds, they had not been able to do this before. But once they had got there, the tables turned again. Since Scheel brought with him new forces, Charles could raise the stakes in the negotiations. The navy also blocked any reinforcements to Sigismund from Poland.
Sigismund immediately felt threatened and treated the blockade as a declaration of war. For this reason, he and the Poles left Stegeborg on September 20 to march on Linköping. Duke Charles’s army immediately followed. The night to September 25 minor detachments skirmished with each other.
The morning of September 25, 1598 the armies clashed in a major engagement at the Battle of Stångebro
. Duke Charles won a decisive victory which forced Sigismund to agree to harsh terms. Charles demanded that the King send home his entire army, but that he himself was to stay and await a Parliament. Also, a number of Swedes who had sided with Sigismund were captured. These were later executed in the Linköping Bloodbath
of 1600.
The agreement was sealed with a dinner between Charles and Sigismund on Linköping Castle
. The King, who was under pressure, fearing for his life without his army and having realised that he had lost the political battle, fled during the coming days to Poland. At the same time as the peace treaty was being signed in Linköping, conflicts were taking place in Dalarna
. There, a pro-Sigismund bailiff, Jacob Näf, had tried to raise up the Dalecarlian
s against Duke Charles. Chaos ensued. Näf was executed, and the Dalecarlians set out on the so-called Neaf Campaign (1598), burning and killing down to Brunnbäck ferry. In Västergötland
, Carl Carlsson Gyllenhielm
, illegitimate son of Duke Charles, defeated the rebellion.
He started by appointing a new city government in Stockholm. Then he scolded the burghers, who he claimed hadn’t defended the city enough. It all finished with a lot of people being jailed, among them Archbishop Abraham Angermannus
, who had supported Sigismund.
Then Swedish forces, led by Carl Carlsson Gyllenhielm, marched towards Kalmar to lay siege to the city. Johan Larsson Sparre defended the walls and the castle in the hope that the King would return to Sweden. But he never got any assistance and the night between March 1 and March 2 the city was assaulted. Gyllenhielm and Samuel Nilsson were ordered to attack the north gate. Duke Charles himself led the attack on the western gate. After a short and sharp fight, Charles’s men managed to scale the walls. Since the soldiers began looting the city, however, the opportunity to capture Kalmar Castle
in the same stroke was lost.
The coming days, the castle proved more tenacious than expected. Johan Larsson Sparre kept the Swedes away, and finally six Polish ships arrived. These, however, were driven back by four smaller Swedish ships and Swedish artillery fire from within the city. When the Polish ships were unable to do anything, hope disappeared for the defenders inside the castle. On May 12, they surrendered. After that, Johan Larsson Sparre and his closest men, including Christoffer Andersson Stråle and Lars Andersson Rålamb, were captured.
After the assault and capture of Kalmar, the focus of the war moved to Finland. Stronghold after stronghold began to be captured in July. At first, Hans Klasson Bielkenstierna and Peder Stolpe commanded the battle against Sigismund’s followers, but on August 19, Duke Charles personally assumed command. With the help of the navy, he crushed the last remnants, and by September all of Sigismund’s followers were gone, detained or executed, e.g. in the Åbo bloodbath
.
to Sweden as his successor, under the condition that the boy would be brought up in the Evangelical faith. Otherwise the Estates would look for a new king.
In February 1600, Duke Charles summoned the Estates of the Realm to Linköping. Since Sigismund had not provided a reply, the Estates elected Duke Charles as King Charles IX of Sweden
. The consequences for those who had supported Sigismund were devastating. The most prominent among them were killed by the new King, in what was called the "Linköping Bloodbath
".
During the winter and spring of 1600, Charles also occupied the Swedish part of Estonia, as the castle commanders had shown sympathies towards Sigismund. This occupation led to the Second Polish-Swedish War
.
This article is a translation of the equivalent article at Swedish Wikipedia.
Charles IX of Sweden
Charles IX of Sweden also Carl, was King of Sweden from 1604 until his death. He was the youngest son of King Gustav I of Sweden and his second wife, Margaret Leijonhufvud, brother of Eric XIV and John III of Sweden, and uncle of Sigismund III Vasa king of both Sweden and Poland...
and Sigismund, King of Sweden and Poland
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
. Lasting from 1598 to 1599, it is also called War of Deposition against Sigismund, since the focus of the conflicts was the attempt to depose the latter from the throne of Sweden. The war eventually resulted in the deposition of Sigismund, with Duke Charles taking over the government and later also acceding to the throne.
Background
When King John IIIJohn III of Sweden
-Family:John married his first wife, Catherine Jagellonica of Poland , house of Jagiello, in Vilnius on 4 October 1562. In Sweden, she is known as Katarina Jagellonica. She was the sister of king Sigismund II Augustus of Poland...
died in 1592 his son Sigismund, King of Poland
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
since 1587, acceded to the Swedish throne. Then conflicts arose. Duke Charles, the oldest living son of Gustav Vasa, did not approve the accession of Sigismund, his nephew and a Catholic, to the government of a realm that could just as well be his.
After Sigismund had been crowned King of Sweden February 19, 1594, he decided that no Parliaments
Riksdag of the Estates
The Riksdag of the Estates , was the name used for the Estates of the Swedish realm when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866, the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the King...
(riksdagar) could be summoned without the King’s consent. Despite this, Charles summoned a Parliament at Söderköping
Söderköping
Söderköping is a locality and the seat of Söderköping Municipality, Östergötland County, Sweden with 6,951 inhabitants in 2005. Söderköping is, despite its small population, for historical reasons normally still referred to as a city...
in autumn 1595, at which he managed to get his will through. The Duke was appointed Regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
with “the advice of the Council”, meaning that he was to govern Sweden together with the Privy Council
Privy Council of Sweden
The High Council of Sweden or Council of the Realm consisted originally of those men of noble, common and clergical background, that the king saw fit for advisory service...
during the King’s absence from the Realm. Soon afterwards, the nobility of Finland, led by the Sigismund-appointed Governor, Klaus Fleming
Klaus Fleming
Baron Clas Eriksson Fleming was a Finnish-born member of the Swedish nobility and admiral, who played an important role in Finnish and Swedish history during the rise of Sweden as a Great Power...
, rejected these decisions. They sympathised with the King and considered Charles a rebel. As a counterattack, Charles instigated a rebellion against Fleming, the Cudgel War
Cudgel War
The Club War was a 1596/97 peasant uprising in the kingdom of Sweden against exploitation by nobility and military in what is today Finland...
, among the farmers in Ostrobothnia
Ostrobothnia (historical province)
Ostrobothnia, and , is a historical province of Finland to the west and north in Finland. It borders on Karelia, Savonia, Tavastia and Satakunda in the south, and on Västerbotten in Sweden, and Laponia in the north...
.
Fleming managed to quell the revolt but died in April 1597. Roughly at the same time, a letter arrived from Sigismund’s headquarters in Poland stating that he would not accept Charles as regent. The Duke then used a tactic which his father had employed, namely to resign from office. However, the response was not what Charles had been hoping for: the King accepted Charles’s resignation and invested complete power in the Privy Council.
Despite the difficult situation, Charles summoned another illegal Parliament the same year, this time in Arboga
Arboga
Arboga is a locality and the seat of Arboga Municipality in Västmanland County, Sweden with 10,369 inhabitants in 2005.-Overview:The city of Arboga is known to have existed as a town since the 13th century but the area has been inhabited since around 900 AD...
. Only one of the Privy Councillors showed up. The reason was that Charles’s goal of deposing Sigismund had now been revealed, and the men understood that a serious revolt was brewing. When Duke Charles threatened the absent men with severe punishment some of them lost courage. Erik Gustavsson Stenbock, Arvid Gustavsson Stenbock, Erik Larsson Sparre, Erik Brahe and Sten Banér fled immediately to Sigismund.
Thus, Duke Charles was able to assume control over a large share of the powerful castles in the country, and in this manner achieved control over almost all the Realm. The problem was Finland, where Klaus Fleming’s widow guarded Åbo castle
Turku Castle
Turku Castle is a monument of Finnish history situated in the city of Turku in Finland. Together with Turku Cathedral, the castle is one of the oldest buildings still in use in Finland. Turku Castle is the largest surviving medieval building in Finland and one of the largest surviving medieval...
. But after psychological warfare
Psychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
, Charles and his followers managed to take the castle in Turku . It is said that when the Duke entered the castle chapel he saw Klaus Fleming’s body lying in a coffin. He is said to have said: “Hadst thou now been alive, thy head would not have been in great safety.” Then Fleming’s widow Ebba Stenbock
Ebba Stenbock
Ebba Gustavsdotter Stenbock was a Swedish noble. She was the acting governor in Turku in 1597, in the period between the death of the former governor, her spouse, and before the installement of the successor. She was imprisoned for political reasons...
is said to have approached the Duke and responded: “If my late husband had been alive, Your Grace would never have entered herein.”
When Sigismund found out about what had happened in Finland he lost his patience. The King could not accept Duke Charles’s unrespectful actions. He decided to use force.
The Sausage Campaign and the Fall of Kalmar
In February 1598 Sigismund assembled an army consisting of merely 5,000 men. A larger army had been proposed, but had been dismissed since Sigismund expected Swedish forces to join him, and also did not want to come into conflict with them.The advisers and the King expected military support from Finland and Estonia
Swedish Estonia
The Duchy of Estonia , also known as Swedish Estonia, was a dominion of the Swedish Empire from 1561 until 1721, when it was ceded to Russia in the Treaty of Nystad, following its capitulation in the Great Northern War. The dominion arose when the northern parts of present-day Estonia were united...
(homes of the Swedish gentry formerly commanded by baron Klaus Fleming
Klaus Fleming
Baron Clas Eriksson Fleming was a Finnish-born member of the Swedish nobility and admiral, who played an important role in Finnish and Swedish history during the rise of Sweden as a Great Power...
). They also wanted help from Denmark–Norway
Denmark–Norway
Denmark–Norway is the historiographical name for a former political entity consisting of the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway, including the originally Norwegian dependencies of Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands...
and pro-Sigismund parts of Sweden. The diplomat Laski was dispatched, but Denmark did not show any interest.
In May, Sigismund’s men started to advance northwards. The army gathered in Marienburg
Marienburg
-The historical German names of these places:*Ordensburg Marienburg , the large brick castle built by the Teutonic Knights**Malbork, Poland, site of the Ordensburg Marienburg, formerly Marienburg in Westpreußen and during World War II, Nazi Stalag XX-B for enlisted men*Alūksne, Latvia*Feldioara,...
, where the Livonian
Livonian
Livonian can refer to one of the following.*Livonian people*Livonian language*Anything else pertaining to Livonia...
Jürgen Farensbach was appointed commander. The army was to be transported from Danzig to Sweden on Swedish ships, but the Swedish Estates declined. They refused to lend him ships as long as he stayed with a foreign army. There was widespread suspicion against Sigismund and his Catholic warriors. Thus the Estates promised to protect Duke Charles and the others who rebelled against the King.
Since the Swedes refused to help with the transport, Sigismund had to buy and capture ships. When he had got hold of a hundred ships, the army was able to begin its journey to Sweden. Due to bad winds, the journey across the sea took a long time. Hence, a coordinated attack by the Finns and Sigismund’s Polish soldiers could not be undertaken. The Finnish soldiers, commanded by Governor Arvid Eriksson (Stålarm), landed in Uppland
Uppland
Uppland is a historical province or landskap on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea...
one week ahead of Sigismund’s landing. Duke Charles was on his way to Kalmar
Kalmar
Kalmar is a city in Småland in the south-east of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 62,767 inhabitants in 2010 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of 233,776 inhabitants .From the thirteenth to the...
when the Finns invaded Uppland. He immediately rode towards Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
to defend the city.
Meanwhile, three Protestant leaders, Nicolaus Olai Bothniensis
Nicolaus Olai Bothniensis
Nicolaus Olai Bothniensis was Archbishop of Uppsala in the Church of Sweden 1599–1600. He was appointed in place of Abraham Angermannus who had been put in prison, but before getting inducted he died of a sickness, about 50 years old.In his younger days he had been a student at the University of...
, Laurentius Paulinius and Ericus Jacobi Skinnerus, attempted to stop the Finnish Sigismund loyalists. They were able to get the support of the farmers of Uppland, and after some minor fighting, Stålarm’s men withdrew. They felt threatened by Duke Charles’s navy, and were ordered not to get involved in any major battles. This event has been somewhat peculiarly named “The Sausage Campaign”, because the farmers captured the Finns’ bags, containing sausages. The Sausage Campaign was a minor victory for Duke Charles. The greatest threat was coming from the south.
At the end of May 1598 Sigismund landed on Swedish soil at Avaskär
Avaskär
Avaskär is a village, with chapel and cemetery, in Kristianopel parish in eastern Blekinge in Sweden.The city is mentioned first in 1350 and existed until 1600, when the city together with Lyckå lost its city charter in favor of the newly fortress city Kristianopel. During the 1300s, the Danes...
. The King opened peacefully by sending the diplomat Laski
Laski
Laski is a village in Poland, in Masovian Voivodship, to the west of Warsaw, in the commune of Izabelin. It is located at the southern border of the Kampinos Forest and is a notable resort, with 1,600 permanent inhabitants ....
to Kalmar
Kalmar
Kalmar is a city in Småland in the south-east of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 62,767 inhabitants in 2010 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of 233,776 inhabitants .From the thirteenth to the...
for negotiations. His task was to convince the city’s commanders to open the gates. However, the negotiations led nowhere. Instead, the King took his soldiers and marched on Kalmar. The army halted just outside of the city. The plan was to frighten the commanders into opening the gates. To make his message even more terrifying, Sigismund threatened the city with severe punishments and to withdraw the nobility of all children in the city. The propaganda worked well and Sigismund was able to make his long-desired entry on August 1.
Decisive events
After the fall of Kalmar, Duke Charles found himself with major trouble on his hands. The Polish army attracted Swedish followers and Stockholm, lacking military defence, was easily taken with the help of the nobility and officers of GötalandGötaland
Götaland , Gothia, Gothland, Gothenland, Gautland or Geatland is one of three lands of Sweden and comprises provinces...
. After this event, the cavalry of Uppland
Uppland
Uppland is a historical province or landskap on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea...
joined up, and new forces were mobilised in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and Estonia
Swedish Estonia
The Duchy of Estonia , also known as Swedish Estonia, was a dominion of the Swedish Empire from 1561 until 1721, when it was ceded to Russia in the Treaty of Nystad, following its capitulation in the Great Northern War. The dominion arose when the northern parts of present-day Estonia were united...
.
A group of envoys from Brandenburg
Margraviate of Brandenburg
The Margraviate of Brandenburg was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806. Also known as the March of Brandenburg , it played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe....
, Prussia and Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1348, when Albert II of Mecklenburg and his younger brother John were raised to Dukes of Mecklenburg by King Charles IV...
shuttled back and forth between Duke Charles’s and Sigismund’s camps for three weeks, trying to rescue the peace. Despite their great efforts, they failed. Sigismund sailed with his infantry to Stegeborg Castle
Stegeborg Castle
Stegeborg Castle is a ruined castle in St Anna parish, Söderköping, Östergötland, located on an island in a narrow sound at the bay of Slätbaken.- Brief history :...
on August 11. The cavalry went to the same place by land. Charles’s situation was hardly optimal. The only bright spots were the escapement of Göran Nilsson Gyllenstierna, the ex-commander of Stockholm, from the city, and the Swedish navy's refusal to join forces with the Poles.
Sigismund now had control over Stockholm, the key to Sweden. However, Sigismund and his fleet sailed into a violent storm: hundreds of men were thrown overboard and perished. This incident dramatically changed the situation. Suddenly, the King was in an exposed position. On August 22 he landed at Stegeborg with merely 100 men, a position worsened by the presence of Charles’s rested army nearby. Sigismund's men had anyway taken the fortresses of Älvsborg
Älvsborg
Älvsborg is the name of a geographical region in Sweden, which can refer to:*Älvsborg, Gothenburg, one of 21 boroughs of Gothenburg, Sweden.*Älvsborg County, a former county of Sweden*Älvsborg Fortress, a sea fortress at Gothenburg...
and Gullberg in other parts of the country. In the area around Stegeborg, Duke Charles had withdrawn to Linköping
Linköping
Linköping is a city in southern middle Sweden, with 104 232 inhabitants in 2010. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality with 146 736 inhabitants and the capital of Östergötland County...
, from where he could block the troop supply to Sigismund. The King was surrounded by in all 5,000 men.
On August 28, Duke Charles and his men set out from Linköping. They camped at Mem, a few kilometres northwest of Stegeborg. At the same time, negotiations between the parties were ongoing. The Duke requested clear-cut answers from Sigismund, which the King interpreted as indicating that an assault was impending. His own army was in a trap, but he counted on help from other forces elsewhere. Hans Vejer was ordered to attack the Swedes in the back, from the west; another commander, Farensbach, drew up his forces in order of battle in front of the enemy. Charles immediately responded.
At the morning of September 8, the Swedes attacked Sigismund in the Battle of Stegeborg
Battle of Stegeborg
The Battle of Stegeborg took place on a meadow near Stegeborg Castle, Sweden on September 8, 1598. It is part of the so-called War against Sigismund, in turn part of the Polish-Swedish Wars....
. The Swedes got off to a real nightmare start, and after a few hours, Sigismund’s victory was clear. Being magnanimous, the King ordered the killing to stop.
The losing Swedes quickly withdrew to their camp at Mem. The losses amounted to 300 men, but the loss of prestige hurt Charles the most. He felt himself extra humiliated by Sigismund’s magnanimous behaviour. The strain grew so big that the normally stubborn Charles wanted to abdicate and escape the country with his family. A few senior officers managed to persuade Charles to stay, however.
The negotiations were resumed and they led to a two day ceasefire. During these days, there was plenty of maneuvering among the forces. Sigismund summoned more soldiers from Poland, at the same time as the Swedish navy sailed towards the coast. The King was in charge of the situation until the Swedish navy, commanded by Joachim Scheel, anchored outside Stegeborg. Because of unfavourable winds, they had not been able to do this before. But once they had got there, the tables turned again. Since Scheel brought with him new forces, Charles could raise the stakes in the negotiations. The navy also blocked any reinforcements to Sigismund from Poland.
Sigismund immediately felt threatened and treated the blockade as a declaration of war. For this reason, he and the Poles left Stegeborg on September 20 to march on Linköping. Duke Charles’s army immediately followed. The night to September 25 minor detachments skirmished with each other.
The morning of September 25, 1598 the armies clashed in a major engagement at the Battle of Stångebro
Battle of Stångebro
The Battle of Stångebro or Battle of Linköping took place at Linköping, Sweden on September 25, 1598, and effectively ended the personal union between Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, that had only existed since 1592...
. Duke Charles won a decisive victory which forced Sigismund to agree to harsh terms. Charles demanded that the King send home his entire army, but that he himself was to stay and await a Parliament. Also, a number of Swedes who had sided with Sigismund were captured. These were later executed in the Linköping Bloodbath
Linköping Bloodbath
The Linköping Bloodbath on Maundy Thursday 20 March 1600 was the public execution by beheading of five Swedish nobles in the aftermath of the Battle of Stångebro and the de facto deposition of the Polish and Swedish king Sigismund III Vasa as king of Sweden...
of 1600.
The agreement was sealed with a dinner between Charles and Sigismund on Linköping Castle
Linköping Castle
Linköping Castle is situated in Linköping, the province of Östergötland, Sweden. It stands opposite to the cathedral....
. The King, who was under pressure, fearing for his life without his army and having realised that he had lost the political battle, fled during the coming days to Poland. At the same time as the peace treaty was being signed in Linköping, conflicts were taking place in Dalarna
Dalarna
', English exonym: Dalecarlia, is a historical province or landskap in central Sweden. Another English language form established in literature is the Dales. Places involving the element Dalecarlia exist in the United States....
. There, a pro-Sigismund bailiff, Jacob Näf, had tried to raise up the Dalecarlian
Dalecarlian
Dalecarlian is a group of dialects or unofficial languages spoken in Dalecarlia, Sweden. The most prominent is Elfdalian.The group is as follows:*Old Swedish**Dalecarlian***Dalecarlian Dalecarlian (Dalmål in vernacular and Swedish) is a group of dialects or unofficial languages spoken in...
s against Duke Charles. Chaos ensued. Näf was executed, and the Dalecarlians set out on the so-called Neaf Campaign (1598), burning and killing down to Brunnbäck ferry. In Västergötland
Västergötland
', English exonym: West Gothland, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden , situated in the southwest of Sweden. In older English literature one may also encounter the Latinized version Westrogothia....
, Carl Carlsson Gyllenhielm
Carl Carlsson Gyllenhielm
Baron Carl Carlsson Gyllenhielm was a Swedish soldier and politician. He was appointed Field Marshal in 1616, Privy Councilor in 1617, Governor General of Ingria in 1617 and Lord High Admiral in 1620. He was an illegitimate son of Duke Carl, later King Charles IX of Sweden, and Karin Nilsdotter,...
, illegitimate son of Duke Charles, defeated the rebellion.
Year 1599
The King had planned to return to Sweden, which raised morale among his followers. However, these plans were never put into action. But the war had not ended. It continued for a few months, as Charles tried to reclaim the cities that were still in Sigismund’s hands.He started by appointing a new city government in Stockholm. Then he scolded the burghers, who he claimed hadn’t defended the city enough. It all finished with a lot of people being jailed, among them Archbishop Abraham Angermannus
Abraham Angermannus
Abraham Andersson, usually known under the Latin form of his name, Abrahamus Andreæ Angermannus or just Abraham Angermannus was the fourth Lutheran Archbishop of Uppsala in the Church of Sweden from 1593 to 1599...
, who had supported Sigismund.
Then Swedish forces, led by Carl Carlsson Gyllenhielm, marched towards Kalmar to lay siege to the city. Johan Larsson Sparre defended the walls and the castle in the hope that the King would return to Sweden. But he never got any assistance and the night between March 1 and March 2 the city was assaulted. Gyllenhielm and Samuel Nilsson were ordered to attack the north gate. Duke Charles himself led the attack on the western gate. After a short and sharp fight, Charles’s men managed to scale the walls. Since the soldiers began looting the city, however, the opportunity to capture Kalmar Castle
Kalmar Castle
Kalmar Castle is a castle in Kalmar, the province of Småland in Sweden. - History :During the twelfth century a round defensive tower was built on Kalmarsund and a harbour constructed. At the end of the thirteenth century King Magnus Ladulås had a new fortress built with a curtain wall, round...
in the same stroke was lost.
The coming days, the castle proved more tenacious than expected. Johan Larsson Sparre kept the Swedes away, and finally six Polish ships arrived. These, however, were driven back by four smaller Swedish ships and Swedish artillery fire from within the city. When the Polish ships were unable to do anything, hope disappeared for the defenders inside the castle. On May 12, they surrendered. After that, Johan Larsson Sparre and his closest men, including Christoffer Andersson Stråle and Lars Andersson Rålamb, were captured.
After the assault and capture of Kalmar, the focus of the war moved to Finland. Stronghold after stronghold began to be captured in July. At first, Hans Klasson Bielkenstierna and Peder Stolpe commanded the battle against Sigismund’s followers, but on August 19, Duke Charles personally assumed command. With the help of the navy, he crushed the last remnants, and by September all of Sigismund’s followers were gone, detained or executed, e.g. in the Åbo bloodbath
Åbo bloodbath
The Åbo Bloodbath of 10 November 1599 was a public execution in the Finnish town of Åbo , then part of the Kingdom of Sweden, in the context of the War against Sigismund and the Club War...
.
Aftermath and consequences
Sigismund was officially deposed from the throne of Sweden by a Parliament held in Stockholm on July 24, 1599. He was given six months to say whether he wanted to send his son VladislavWładysław IV Vasa
Władysław IV Vasa was a Polish and Swedish prince from the House of Vasa. He reigned as King of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from 8 November 1632 to his death in 1648....
to Sweden as his successor, under the condition that the boy would be brought up in the Evangelical faith. Otherwise the Estates would look for a new king.
In February 1600, Duke Charles summoned the Estates of the Realm to Linköping. Since Sigismund had not provided a reply, the Estates elected Duke Charles as King Charles IX of Sweden
Charles IX of Sweden
Charles IX of Sweden also Carl, was King of Sweden from 1604 until his death. He was the youngest son of King Gustav I of Sweden and his second wife, Margaret Leijonhufvud, brother of Eric XIV and John III of Sweden, and uncle of Sigismund III Vasa king of both Sweden and Poland...
. The consequences for those who had supported Sigismund were devastating. The most prominent among them were killed by the new King, in what was called the "Linköping Bloodbath
Linköping Bloodbath
The Linköping Bloodbath on Maundy Thursday 20 March 1600 was the public execution by beheading of five Swedish nobles in the aftermath of the Battle of Stångebro and the de facto deposition of the Polish and Swedish king Sigismund III Vasa as king of Sweden...
".
During the winter and spring of 1600, Charles also occupied the Swedish part of Estonia, as the castle commanders had shown sympathies towards Sigismund. This occupation led to the Second Polish-Swedish War
Polish–Swedish War (1600–1629)
The Polish–Swedish War was twice interrupted by periods of truce and thus can be divided into:* Polish–Swedish War * Polish–Swedish War...
.
See also
- Cudgel WarCudgel WarThe Club War was a 1596/97 peasant uprising in the kingdom of Sweden against exploitation by nobility and military in what is today Finland...
- Polish-Swedish unionPolish-Swedish unionPolish–Swedish union was a short-lived personal union between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Kingdom of Sweden, when Sigismund III Vasa, King of Poland, was crowned King of Sweden in 1592. In 1599, after a civil war, he lost this crown and returned to Warsaw.-Prelude:After the death of...
- Polish–Swedish wars
- Polish-Swedish War of 1600–1611
- Polish–Swedish War (1617–1618)Polish–Swedish War (1617–1618)The Polish–Swedish War was a phase of the longer Polish–Swedish War of 1600 to 1629. It continued the war of 1600–1611 and was an attempt by Sweden to take Polish pressure off Russia. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was then also fighting Tartars and the Ottoman Empire...
- Polish–Swedish War (1621–1625)
- Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629)Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629)The Polish–Swedish War of 1626–1629 was the fourth stage in a series of conflicts between Sweden and Poland fought in the 17th century...
This article is a translation of the equivalent article at Swedish Wikipedia.