Åbo bloodbath
Encyclopedia
The Åbo Bloodbath of 10 November 1599 was a public execution in the Finnish
town of Åbo
(Turku), then part of the Kingdom of Sweden, in the context of the War against Sigismund
and the Club War. Sweden was by then in the final phase of a civil war, with one faction supporting king Sigismund III Vasa
, who also was king and Grand Duke
of Poland-Lithuania
, and another faction supporting duke Charles of Södermanland
, the later Charles IX, Sigismund's paternal uncle. After winning the upper hand
in the dispute, Charles crushed the last resistance to his rule, particularly in Finland, while Sigismund had already retreated to Poland.
The forces opposing Charles in Finland were led by Arvid Stålarm and Axel Kurck (Kurk), who both became Charles' prisoners after the surrender of Åbo castle
and further strongholds. Together with other prisoners, including two sons of Finland's previous commander Clas (Klaus) Fleming
, they were tried by a jury speedily assembled from Charles' followers, and sentenced to death. Fleming's sons and twelve others were then beheaded in Åbo's Town Hall square, while Stålarm and Kurck were sent to Linköping
where they were tried and condemned again along with other captured opposition leaders. Yet, Stålarm and Kurck also survived the subsequent Linköping bloodbath
.
had decided the war
between duke Charles
, regent of Sweden, and the Swedish king Sigismund III Vasa
in Charles' favor, several fortresses in the east of the Swedish kingdom were still held by members of the noble opposition to duke Charles, who were loyal to the deposed king and/or had pursued anti-peasant actions in the Club War, where Charles had sympathized with the peasants. These last strongholds of the opposition, commanded by Arvid Stålarm and Axel Kurck (also Kurk), included Åbo
, Helsingfors (Helsinki) and Viborg
(Vyborg, Viipuri, Вы́борг), all of which were subsequently taken in the course of Charles' Finnish campaign in the second half of 1599. When Charles' forces besieged Åbo, the defendants surrendered when assured by Charles that in the inevitable trial after the siege, they were to be tried by a diet of the estates.
Charles however quickly assembled a court of thirty-seven jurors loyal to him, and an indictment was ready by 7 November. Among the judges were the nobles Count Mauritz Leijonhufvud, Count Magnus Brahe, Svante and Nils Turesson Bielke
of Salstad, and admiral Joakim Scheel; also the burghers Mickel Krank, Nils Torkelsson, Rantala Hans and Klas Thomasson. The tribunal sentenced to death a number of the indicted on 9 November.
Fourteen of those were executed on 10 November in Åbo's Town Hall Square, where they were led in a procession from their prison in Åbo castle
. The first to be beheaded was Johan Fleming
, son of Clas (Klaus) Fleming
, whose last words according to Yrjö Koskinen were a farewell to his friends and a statement about his innocence and the bloodthirst of duke Charles. Michael Roberts
says that Charles "permitted himself the private luxury" of executing Johan in person. While this is not mentioned by Koskinen, he nevertheless reports a dispute between Johan and Charles before the executions took place, where Johan had upset Charles by remaining loyal to "his god and his king." Koskinen also says that Johan's half-brother Olof Klasson wanted to follow Johan immediately to have their blood mixed, but that he was not permitted to do so as his execution was scheduled to be the fifth.
In addition to Johan Fleming and Olof Klasson, the following persons were executed: the nobles Sten Fincke of Peipot, Hartvig Henriksson of Wuoltis, Krister Mattsson Björnram, Mikael Påvelsson Munck of Nuhiala and Nils Ivarsson; furthermore the knektehöfvitsmannen Sigfrid Sigfridsson, Jakob Möl, Hans Jänis, Eskil Jakobsson, Herman Hansson and others.
Arvid Stålarm and Axel Kurck, who had likewise received death sentences, were instead carried to Linköping
only to be tried again in what led to the Linköping bloodbath
, where they were again condemned to death but reprieved.
According to legend, Charles found the body of his old adversary Clas Fleming (commander in Finland before Stålarm and Kurck, died 1597) in a coffin in Åbo castle's chapel, where Charles pulled his beard saying "If you were alive now, your head would not be very secure." The legend inspired a painting by Albert Edelfelt
in 1878, which is currently exhibited in the Ateneum
museum, Helsinki.
In 1862, Josef Julius Wecksell
used the events in Åbo as a basis for his fictional play Daniel Hjort. Hjort, among the defendants of the castle and a close friend of Fleming, defects to Charles for ideological reasons, opens the gates and takes part in the bloodbath. Hjort is then killed by Fleming's son, Olof. The play is the only one ever written by Wecksell, whose writing career was put to an end by a mental disease when he was twenty-five years old. Nevertheless, according to Schoolfield, the play "has been called the best play to be written in the Swedish language before Strindberg
's Master Olof
" and "still has a place in the repertoire."
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...
town of Åbo
Abo
Abo may refer to:* ABO blood group system, a human blood type and blood group system** ABO , enzyme encoded by the ABO gene that determines the ABO blood group of an individual* Abo of Tiflis , an Arab East Orthodox Catholic saint...
(Turku), then part of the Kingdom of Sweden, in the context of the War against Sigismund
War against Sigismund
The war against 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...
and the Club War. Sweden was by then in the final phase of a civil war, with one faction supporting king Sigismund III Vasa
Sigismund III Vasa
Sigismund III Vasa was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, a monarch of the united Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1587 to 1632, and King of Sweden from 1592 until he was deposed in 1599...
, who also was king and Grand Duke
Union of Lublin
The Union of Lublin replaced the personal union of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with a real union and an elective monarchy, since Sigismund II Augustus, the last of the Jagiellons, remained childless after three marriages. In addition, the autonomy of Royal Prussia was...
of Poland-Lithuania
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...
, and another faction supporting duke Charles of Södermanland
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 later Charles IX, Sigismund's paternal uncle. After winning the upper hand
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...
in the dispute, Charles crushed the last resistance to his rule, particularly in Finland, while Sigismund had already retreated to Poland.
The forces opposing Charles in Finland were led by Arvid Stålarm and Axel Kurck (Kurk), who both became Charles' prisoners after the surrender of 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...
and further strongholds. Together with other prisoners, including two sons of Finland's previous commander Clas (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 were tried by a jury speedily assembled from Charles' followers, and sentenced to death. Fleming's sons and twelve others were then beheaded in Åbo's Town Hall square, while Stålarm and Kurck were sent 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...
where they were tried and condemned again along with other captured opposition leaders. Yet, Stålarm and Kurck also survived the subsequent 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...
.
Trial and executions
After the Battle of StångebroBattle 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...
had decided the war
War against Sigismund
The war against 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...
between duke Charles
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...
, regent of Sweden, and the Swedish king Sigismund III Vasa
Sigismund III Vasa
Sigismund III Vasa was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, a monarch of the united Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1587 to 1632, and King of Sweden from 1592 until he was deposed in 1599...
in Charles' favor, several fortresses in the east of the Swedish kingdom were still held by members of the noble opposition to duke Charles, who were loyal to the deposed king and/or had pursued anti-peasant actions in the Club War, where Charles had sympathized with the peasants. These last strongholds of the opposition, commanded by Arvid Stålarm and Axel Kurck (also Kurk), included Åbo
Abo
Abo may refer to:* ABO blood group system, a human blood type and blood group system** ABO , enzyme encoded by the ABO gene that determines the ABO blood group of an individual* Abo of Tiflis , an Arab East Orthodox Catholic saint...
, Helsingfors (Helsinki) and Viborg
Vyborg
Vyborg is a town in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, situated on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of the Bay of Vyborg, to the northwest of St. Petersburg and south from Russia's border with Finland, where the Saimaa Canal enters the Gulf of Finland...
(Vyborg, Viipuri, Вы́борг), all of which were subsequently taken in the course of Charles' Finnish campaign in the second half of 1599. When Charles' forces besieged Åbo, the defendants surrendered when assured by Charles that in the inevitable trial after the siege, they were to be tried by a diet of the estates.
Charles however quickly assembled a court of thirty-seven jurors loyal to him, and an indictment was ready by 7 November. Among the judges were the nobles Count Mauritz Leijonhufvud, Count Magnus Brahe, Svante and Nils Turesson Bielke
Nils Turesson Bielke
Nils Turesson Bielke was a swedish statesman, member of the privy council, son of Ture Pedersson Bielke.- Career :Nils Turesson Bielke was an ardent supporter of Duke Carl which rewarded his fidelity in 1602 when he became Kansliråd, deputy director of the kingdom; in 1605 he became governor of...
of Salstad, and admiral Joakim Scheel; also the burghers Mickel Krank, Nils Torkelsson, Rantala Hans and Klas Thomasson. The tribunal sentenced to death a number of the indicted on 9 November.
Fourteen of those were executed on 10 November in Åbo's Town Hall Square, where they were led in a procession from their prison in 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...
. The first to be beheaded was Johan Fleming
Fleming of Louhisaari
The Louhisaari noble family, otherwise known as Fleming, is a Finnish family of medieval frälse.Its first certainly known male-line ancestor, knight Peder Klasson , is documented living yet in 1406. He came from Denmark to Sweden during the early reign of king Eric XIII of Sweden and is buried in...
, son of Clas (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...
, whose last words according to Yrjö Koskinen were a farewell to his friends and a statement about his innocence and the bloodthirst of duke Charles. Michael Roberts
Michael Roberts (historian)
Michael Roberts was an English historian specializing in the early modern period and particularly known for his studies of Swedish history.Roberts was born in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire and educated at Brighton College...
says that Charles "permitted himself the private luxury" of executing Johan in person. While this is not mentioned by Koskinen, he nevertheless reports a dispute between Johan and Charles before the executions took place, where Johan had upset Charles by remaining loyal to "his god and his king." Koskinen also says that Johan's half-brother Olof Klasson wanted to follow Johan immediately to have their blood mixed, but that he was not permitted to do so as his execution was scheduled to be the fifth.
In addition to Johan Fleming and Olof Klasson, the following persons were executed: the nobles Sten Fincke of Peipot, Hartvig Henriksson of Wuoltis, Krister Mattsson Björnram, Mikael Påvelsson Munck of Nuhiala and Nils Ivarsson; furthermore the knektehöfvitsmannen Sigfrid Sigfridsson, Jakob Möl, Hans Jänis, Eskil Jakobsson, Herman Hansson and others.
Arvid Stålarm and Axel Kurck, who had likewise received death sentences, were instead carried 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...
only to be tried again in what led to 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...
, where they were again condemned to death but reprieved.
In legend and fiction
Albert Edelfelt
Albert Gustaf Aristides Edelfelt was a Swedish-speaking Finnish painter.Albert Edelfelt was born in Porvoo, Finland. His father Carl Albert was an architect. Edelfelt admired the poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg, who was a friend of the family...
in 1878, which is currently exhibited in the Ateneum
Ateneum
The Ateneum is a major museum in Finland. It is located in the centre of Helsinki at the Rautatientori square opposite Helsinki Central Railway Station. It has the biggest collections of classical art in Finland. Previously the Ateneum building also housed the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts and...
museum, Helsinki.
In 1862, Josef Julius Wecksell
Josef Julius Wecksell
Josef Julius Wecksell was a Finnish poet and playwright. He studied at the University of Helsinki.He was committed to the Endenich asylum, and then Lappvik asylum, from 1865 until his death....
used the events in Åbo as a basis for his fictional play Daniel Hjort. Hjort, among the defendants of the castle and a close friend of Fleming, defects to Charles for ideological reasons, opens the gates and takes part in the bloodbath. Hjort is then killed by Fleming's son, Olof. The play is the only one ever written by Wecksell, whose writing career was put to an end by a mental disease when he was twenty-five years old. Nevertheless, according to Schoolfield, the play "has been called the best play to be written in the Swedish language before Strindberg
August Strindberg
Johan August Strindberg was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg's career spanned four decades, during which time he wrote over 60 plays and more than 30 works of fiction, autobiography,...
's Master Olof
Master Olof
Master Olof is a historical drama in five acts by the Swedish playwright August Strindberg. The story is about the reformer Olaus Petri's struggle against the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th century...
" and "still has a place in the repertoire."