Erik Gustafsson (1533 - 1577)

Born 13 Dec 1533 in Stockholms Slott, Stockholm, Sverige

Ancestors

Husband of Karin Månsdotter — married 4 Jul 1568 in Stockholm Sweden

Descendants

Died 26 Feb 1577 at age 43 in Örbyhus slott, Örbyhus, Uppland, Sverige

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Biografi (sv)

Erik XIV Gustafsson is a member of the House of Vasa.

Erik XIV, född 13 december 1533 på Tre Kronor, död 26 februari 1577 på Örbyhus slott, var Sveriges kung mellan 1560 och 1568. Som kung tog han norra Estland under sitt beskydd och inledde det förödande nordiska sjuårskriget med Danmark. En period av galenskap inleddes med Sturemorden, och även om han senare tillfrisknade bidrog detta till att han avsattes och efterträddes av sin bror Johan III, som först höll honom fången men till slut troligen beordrade att han skulle dödas genom förgiftning.

Erik XIV var son till Gustav Vasa och Katarina av Sachsen-Lauenburg. Han härstammade genom sin mor från såväl Erikska ätten som folkungaätten. Katarina av Sachsen-Lauenburg härstammade från Ingeborg Birgersdotter, dotter till Birger jarl och prinsessan Ingeborg Eriksdotter av Sverige, som år 1270 gift sig med hertig Johan I av Sachsen-Lauenburg.

Erik var vidare halvbror till Johan III och Karl IX samt farbror till Sigismund och Gustav II Adolf. Han gifte sig i juli 1567 med Karin Månsdotter (1550–1612). Erik XIV var inspirerad av Johannes Magnus verk om Sveriges historia som innehöll en lång rad påhittade kungar med namnen Erik och Karl. Erik XIV accepterade detta som historisk sanning och antog det höga talet XIV som sitt regentnummer för att visa vilken lång och ärorik historia Sverige hade. Hans bror Karl IX gjorde det samma när han blev kung.

Barn till Erik XIV, omnämnda i boken "Sverige och dess regenter under 1000 år"^[1]

Med hustrun Karin Månsdotter;

• Sigrid (1566-1633), gift m Henrik Classon Tott och Nils Nilsson Natt och Dag.
• Gustaf (1568-1607)
• Henrik (1570-1574)
• Arnold (1572-1572)

Han hade även frillobarn;

• Virginia (1559-1633), gift m Håkan Knutsson Hand
• Constantia (1560-1649), gift m Henrik Frankelin

Biography (en)

Birth

Erik was born December 13, 1533 at Stockholm Castle. His parents were the king of Sweden, Gustav Eriksson Vasa, and Katarina of Sachsen-Lauenburg, the daughter of the Duke Magnus of Sachsen-Lauenburg and his wife Katarina of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel. As the oldest son of the king of Sweden, he was first in line for the throne.

Mistresses, Proposals, Engagements, Wife and Children

• Six of Erik's mistresses are known by name; Agda Persdotter, Anna Larsdotter, Karin Jakobsdotter, Karin Pedersdotter, Ingrid and Britta.^[2] He had children with several of them. These so-called "frillobarn" were recognised as Erik's children and were sent to his sister Elisabeth where they were raised, along with the "frillobarn" of Erik's brothers.

• Proposes to Queen Elisabeth of England in 1561 but is turned down.
• Proposes to Princess Mary of Scotland in 1561.
• Proposes to Renata of Lothringen, grand daughter of Christian II around 1561.
• Proposes to Christine of Hessen and is engaged to her in 1563. They are never married.
• July 13, 1567, marries Karin Månsdotter, the daughter of a common soldier and the nanny of Erik's children. Officially married July 4, 1568.^[3]

Children with Agda Persdotter:

1. Virginia
2. Constantia

Children with Karin Jakobsdotter:

1. unknown gender, died young
2. Lucretia

Children with Karin Månsdotter:

1. Sigrid (1566-1633)
2. Gustav (1568-1607
3. Henrik (1570-1574)
4. Arnold (1572-1573)^[4]

King of Sweden

Erik is crowned king of Sweden 29 June 1561 in Uppsala Cathedral, but had ruled as king since his father died on 29 Sep 1560. At his coronation, he enstated the titles of Count and Baron to give his court more flare. He also had the royal regalia of Sweden created and it is still used today.

One of his first actions as king is to restrain his brothers' power in their duchies at the parliament at Arboga in 1561. This started a conflict between the brothers that would end in the deposing of Erik XIV.

Erik wanted to make Sweden more powerful in the Baltic region and to take control of the trade routes between the Baltic Sea and Western Europe. To do this he had to weaken the Hansa and Lübeck and he tried to gain support from England, which was his main purpose when he proposed to Queen Elisabeth of England.

Erik's brother Johan has his own agenda and supported the polish king Sigismund II August and in that way worked against his own brother. Johan was sentenced to death for treason and spent four years in jail but was never executed.

War against Denmark broke out in 1563, a war that came to be known as Northern Seven Years' War. Denmark also wanted to expand its territory around the Baltic Sea.

Erik mistrusted the Swedish nobility and surrounded himself with men of foreign and common background as advisors, especially a man called Jöran Persson. His mistrust turned into outright paranoia and during a period of insanity, he ordered the execution of Svante Sture, Nils Sture, Erik Sture, Abraham Stenbock and Ivar Ivarsson Lillieörn who all were imprisoned for high treason at Uppsala Castle. The killing of these noblemen came to be known as the Sture Murders and for six months afterward the country was ruled by the cabinet ministers.

When Erik became well again he married his mistress Karin Månsdotter, the daughter of a common soldier. This led to Erik being deposed and put in prison in 1568 by his brothers Johan and Karl together with the relatives of the murdered men. Johan was crowned king of Sweden in September 1568.

Imprisonment

Erik was held prisoner in the castles of Stockholm, Åbo, Kastelholm, Gripsholm, Västerås, and Örbyhus. He was moved often in order to make it more difficult to rescue and free him.

Death and Burial

Erik died on 26 Feb 1577 at Örbyhus Castle and was buried in Västerås Cathedral. The stories say that he was poisoned, on the order of his brother Johan, through the pea soup he ate. There is no proof of this but modern examinations of the skeleton show high levels of arsenic. He is buried in Västerås domkyrka.

Wars

• Northern Seven Years' War

Titles

• Hereditary Prince of Sweden January 13, 1534
• Successor to the throne January 13, 1534
• Duke of Kalmar County 1544-1560
• Duke of Kronoberg 1544-1560
• Duke of Öland 1544-1560
• King of Sweden 1560-1568

Motto

• God gives to whom He may

Sources

1. ↑ Book: Sverige och dess regenter under 1000 år, Author; Lars O. Lagerqvist, ISBN: 91-0-075007-7 (1982).
2. ↑ Article on Karin Månsdotter
3. ↑ The Royal Court on the Wedding of Erik and Karin
4. ↑ Not mentioned in any of the books but in several places on the Internet

See also:

• Historiesajten on Erik XIV with list of all his children.
• Svensson, Alex. Sveriges regenter under 1000 år. Svenskt Militärhistoriskt Biblioteks Förlag, 2010. [ ]
• Larsson, Lars-Ove. Vem är vem i svensk historia - Från forntid till år 1900. Rabeén & Sjögren, 1993. [ ]
• Lindqvist, Herman. Historien om Sverige - Gustav Vasa och hans söner och döttrar. Stockholm: Norstedts Förlag AB, 1993. [ ]
• Wikipedia Eric XIV of Sweden
• This WikiTree profile is referenced from Wikidata: Item Q52945, en:Wikipedia
• Svenskt Biografiskt Lexikon #15412 Retrieved 20 sep 2016
• Eric XIV on Find A Grave: Memorial #12619748 Retrieved Sälgö-1 22:04, 30 September 2016 (EDT).
• familysearch.org/tree/person/details/LZTD-2BG
• Historiesajten on Erik XIV with list of all his children.
• Wikipedia Eric XIV of Sweden
• This WikiTree profile is referenced from Wikidata: Item Q52945, en:Wikipedia
• Svenskt Biografiskt Lexikon #15412 Retrieved 20 sep 2016
• Eric XIV on Find A Grave: Memorial #12619748 Retrieved Sälgö-1 22:04, 30 September 2016 (EDT).