them with his most-prized effects, and then turned the key on the
followers of his trusting guest, hid their swords, and even cut their
bowstrings, so much was he afraid of the heroic soldier who had been his
best friend.
Then, axe in hand, he entered the room of Sir Tord. The sleeper, awakened
by his entrance, raised himself a little in the bed and asked what he
wanted. For answer the murderous wretch brought down his axe with so
heavy a blow that the head of Sir Tord was cleft in twain to the
shoulders. Then, taking to his boats, the assassin made his escape to the
Danes, by whom his bloody act was probably instigated.
With the death by treason and murder of the brave Sir Tord, the chief
bulkwark of the realm of King Charles, this tale should end, but the
later career of Charles VIII. is so curious a one that it will be of
interest to make some brief mention of it.
Never has king had a more diversified career. With the death of his brave
defender, enemies on all sides rose against him, his great wealth and
proud ostentation having displeased nobles and people alike. Chief among
his enemies was the archbishop of Upsala, who nailed a letter to the door
of the cathedral in which he renounced all loyalty and obedience to King
Charles, took off his episcopal robes before the shrine of St. Erik, and
vowed that he would not wear that dress again until law and right were
brought back to the land. It was a semi-civilized age and land in which
churchmen did not hesitate to appeal to the sword, and the archbishop
clad himself in armor, and with helmet on head and sword by side, set out
on a crusade of his own against the man he deemed an unworthy and
oppressive king.
He found many to sustain him, and Charles, taken utterly by surprise,
barely escaped to Stockholm, wounded, on a miserable old horse, and with
a single servant. Besieged there and unable to defend the town, he hid
part of his treasures, put the rest on board a vessel, and while going on
board himself was accosted by one of the archbishop's friends, who asked
him:
"Have you forgotten anything?"
"Nothing except to hang you and your comrades," was the bitter reply of
the fugitive king.
King Christian of Denmark was called in by the archbishop to take the
vacant throne, Charles was pronounced a traitor by his enemies, and for
some years Christian ruled over Sweden. Then his avarice and the heavy
taxes he laid on the people aroused such dissatisfaction that an
insurrection broke out, Christian's army was thoroughly defeated, and he
was forced to take ship for Denmark, while Charles was recalled to the
throne and landed in Stockholm in 1464, a second time king of Sweden.
This reign was not a long one. Christian, who had imprisoned the
archbishop because he opposed the heavy taxation of the peasants, now
sought his aid again and sent him with an army to Sweden. As a result
Charles found himself once more shut up in Stockholm and was again forced
by his enemies to resign the crown, being given instead of his kingdom
the government of Raseborg Castle in Finland. And instead of having
treasures to take with him, as before, he was now so poor that he could
not pay a debt of fifty marks he owed in Stockholm. He expressed his
state of poverty in the following verse:
"While I was Lord of Fogelwich,
I was a mighty man and rich;
But since I'm King of Swedish ground
A poorer man was never found."
But his career was not yet ended. He was again to sit on the throne.
Friends arose in his favor, the people again grew dissatisfied with
Danish rule, and the archbishop, his greatest enemy, died. Charles was
recalled and returned from Finland, a third time standing on Swedish
ground as king.
He had still a hard fight before him. A Swedish nobleman, Erik Wase,
sought to win the throne for himself, and Christian of Denmark sent a new
army to Sweden; but by the aid of a brave young knight, Sten Sture, Nils
Sture, his cousin, and some other valiant friends, all his enemies were
overcome and thus, after years of struggle and a remarkably diversified
career, he was at length firmly seated on the throne.
But the unfortunate monarch was not long to enjoy the quiet which he had
so hardly won. He fell seriously ill in May, 1470, and feeling that death
was near, he sent for Sten Sture and made him administrator of the
kingdom, with control of the castle of Stockholm. But he earnestly warned
him never to seek for the royal power, saying:
"That ambition has ruined my happiness and cost me my life."
_STEN STURE'S GREAT VICTORY OVER THE DANES._
Historical tales have much to do with war and bloodshed, with rides and
raids, with schemes and stratagems, with plunder and piracy, and with
outrage and oppression. These are the things to which historians give the
most space in their pages and which many readers find fullest of interest
and excitement. In the present tale we have to do wholly with scenes of
war, for we propose to tell the story of one of the most remarkable
battles ever fought on Swedish soil.
This is what led to it. After the death of Charles VIII. and the
appointment of Sten Sture as administrator of the kingdom, Christian I.
of Denmark, whom the brave Sture had driven away with his army, fancied
that the way was open to him again, and that Sweden, without a king, was
a ripe plum ready to drop into his mouth. He was to find it a sour plum,
for in Sten Sture he had to deal with a man of notable ability, just and
upright in his dealings, wise and prudent in government, and brave and
skilful in war. He was a man who did not swear to keep his word, but who
never broke it. "I promise by my three water-lilies" (the arms of the
Stures) was his form of affirmation, but this simple promise was more to
be trusted than the solemn oaths of many kings and potentates. The
people loved and trusted him, and on the 1st of May, 1471, the late
king's appointment was confirmed at a general diet of the people, which
accepted him by acclamation as the administrator and captain-general of
the realm.
He soon had work cut out for him. Christian of Denmark equipped a great
fleet and sailed to Stockholm, where he anchored in the harbor and opened
negotiations with the Swedish senate, then the great source of power in
the land. He promised to govern the kingdom in the way they might decide
upon and be to them a mild and merciful father. While some of them were
seduced by his specious promises, the majority had no fancy to make him
their "father." But they made a truce with him until the matter could be
decided, the Danes being allowed to buy provisions in the town, and on
their side selling salt to the citizens, this being at that time very
scarce in Stockholm.
Thus matters went on for seven weeks, at the end of which time Christian
concluded that the Swedes were playing with him, seeking to spin out the
time until all his provisions would be consumed and winter with its
storms would be at hand to destroy his fleet. As it began to appear that
nothing was to be gained by peace, he resolved to try the effect of war,
and on the 1st of September landed his army and laid his plans to besiege
the city.
His camp was pitched on the hill of Brunkenberg, near the city,
connection being made with the fleet by a strong bridge built from the
shore to an island in the harbor. Bulwarks and ramparts of earth were
thrown up on the side next the town, and were mounted with cannon, with
which he soon opened a bombardment. He enticed some of the Swedish
peasants into his camp by promise of an abundance of salt, but his main
army consisted of the Danish nobles and their troops and of German and
Scottish soldiers of fortune, brave, stout, able warriors who exercised
themselves daily in military sports and led a merry and careless life in
camp, heedless of everything except pay and plunder.
When the proud Danish king was told that Sture was collecting an army of
peasants with which to fight him, he sneeringly said:
"Herr Sten sneaks along ditches and dikes, but I shall punish my little
gentleman with the rod like a child, and teach him to keep himself
quiet."
Threats were also made by the foreign mercenaries against the citizens,
but these only served to rouse their anger and make them more resolute in
the defence of the city.
As for Herr Sten, he went on raising troops and driving out the Danes
whom he found infesting the seaboard lands, not marching towards the city
until he had got rid of all hostility in his rear. On his march he was
met by his brave cousin, Nils Sture, with an army of the bold Dalmen of
the north, and the united armies marched on to Jerfva, in the vicinity of
the beleaguered city.
From this point Sture wrote to King Christian, offering him safe passage
home, if he would leave Sweden without the need of blows; but he only
roused the wrath of the king, who loudly swore:
"By God's five wounds, I have not gone to so much trouble and expense to
go home without finishing what I came for."
All that could be done in the cause of peace had been done without avail,
and events had reached a point in which the affair could be settled only
at sword's point and cannon's mouth.
It was the 10th of October, 1470. Long before the sun rose on that
memorable day the Swedes of Sture's army were awake and busy preparing
their arms for the coming fray, in which the mastery of their kingdom was
to be decided. At an early hour the whole army was called to the solemn
service of the mass, after which holy and impressive ceremony they
refreshed themselves with a hasty meal and returned to their ranks ready
for battle.
Nils Sture was already on the march with a third of the army, secretly
leading them around a clump of woodland with the purpose of attacking the
Danish camp at Brunkenberg from the east. As the ranks of the main army
formed for the attack, their brave leader was gratified to see a body of
gallant horsemen, in shining armor, riding to join him. They were
thirteen hundred in number, and had been sent from the town of Kungsholm.
Advancing before his people, Sture spoke to them with few but telling
words:
"If you ever desire to enjoy peace and security in Sweden stand by me
this day and cling one to another. I shall do my part. I fear not the
king nor his Danes and mercenaries, but gladly venture life and blood and
all that I possess on the event of this battle. If you will do the same,
lift up your hands."
[Illustration: SKURUSUND, STOCKHOLM.]
"That will we do with God's help," came the roar of response, followed by
a great shout and wild clanging of arms. Immediately the advance began,
the men singing the verse of a psalm written for the occasion. It was now
the hour of eleven.
King Christian and his army boldly awaited the assault, looking down from
their commanding position on the Swedes, who came on heedless of the roar
of guns and flight of arrows. Reaching the foot of the hill, they began
its ascent, met as they did so by the Danes, who rushed down upon them
with lance and sword. In a moment more the hostile lines met and the
bloody work of war began.
On the summit of the hill proudly waved the Danneborg, the sacred
standard of Denmark. In the midst of the Swedes fluttered their country's
flag, borne resolutely up the hill. Around these banners gathered the
bravest of the champions, fighting with heroic fury--the Danes, under
their ambitious king, fighting for glory and riches; the Swedes, under
their patriot leader, striking for peace and freedom from foreign rule.
While the battle was thus raging outside the town, Knut Posse, its
governor, a skilful soldier, was not idle. He was not content to rest
within the walls while his countrymen were fighting so vigorously for
his relief. The heat of the fight had left the bridge leading from the
shore to the ships without a guard, and he sent some men in boats to row
towards it and with saws and axes to sever the supports beneath it. This
was successfully done and the men returned unseen.
While this was being accomplished the warlike governor, seeing that the
Swedes had been checked in their ascent of the hill, made a sally from
the town with two thousand of the garrison, taking possession of the
Danish fortifications in that quarter and setting them on fire. His
position, however, could not long be held, for Sten Sture's troops had
been driven down the hill and Christian was free to lead a heavy column
against him, forcing him back with his handful of men. In the struggle,
however, the bold governor advanced so vigorously upon the king, that he
received a wound from Christian's own hand.
While Knut Posse was thus being driven back into the town Sten Sture was
seeking to infuse new spirit into his defeated people, telling them that
"it would be to their eternal shame if they suffered themselves thus to
be repulsed."
Marshalling them into orderly ranks as quickly as possible he led them
again towards the hill, and the battle recommenced with its old fire and
vigor. Sture rode valiantly at their head, encouraging them with a
display of heroic valor. While he fought on horseback, by his side ran a
peasant named Björn the Strong, who kept pace with the horse and at
times ran before it, swinging his broad battle-axe with such strength
that he opened a road for his leader to ride through. Though surrounded
by enemies, the two held their own with the fiery energy of the
berserkers of an earlier day, dispensing death while not receiving a
wound.
King Christian, on the other hand, showed himself not wanting in valor,
keeping well in the front rank of his men. In the midst of the fight a
ball struck him in the mouth, knocking out three of his teeth and so
disabling him that he was carried fainting from the field. In the end the
Swedes, who had borne their banner to the summit of the hill, where they
looked in vain for the expected aid from Nils Sture and his men, were
driven back again and a second time forced down the hill, the victorious
Danes driving them well into the plain at its foot.
Three hours of hard fighting had now passed and both armies were wearied.
Trotte Karlsson, a Swedish renegade who had been fighting against his
country in the ranks of its foes, seated himself on a stone to rest,
taking off his helmet that he might breathe the fresh air. As he did so a
ball from the Swedish ranks struck him between the eyes and he fell
dead--a traitor fighting with strangers against his native land.
Though twice beaten Sten Sture had no thought of giving up the fight. For
some reason Nils Sture, who with the large force under his command had
been depended upon to make a diversion in their favor, had not appeared.
Bad roads had detained him and he was still struggling onward towards
his assigned position.
Looking around him, and satisfied that it was hopeless to dislodge the
enemy from their post of vantage, Sten now attempted a diversion by
sending a force to attack the troops stationed at the convent of St.
Claire. The Danes on the hill, seeing the danger of this detachment, and
thinking that they had thoroughly beaten off the Swedes, rushed down to
the aid of those at the convent, and Sten, with the skill of an able
commander, took advantage of this movement and at once marshalled his men
for a third attack.
They did not need much encouragement. Though twice beaten they were not
dispirited, but rushed forward shouting: "Now the Danes come to us on
equal ground! Let us at them and swing our swords freely!"
Some bright streaks appearing on the sky, the cry ran through the ranks:
"St. Erik is waving his sword over his people to aid them and point the
way to victory."
On the enemy they rushed, with a valor not weakened by their previous
repulses, and Knut Posse, who had been watching the fight with keen eyes,
made a fresh sally from the town. Soon the battle was on again with all
its former fury, the Danes fighting at first for victory, then, as they
were forced to give way, striking resolutely to defend their standard,
the Danneborg. Knut Posse made a fierce onset upon the proud banner, but
was not able to reach it until five hundred noble Danes, who gathered
around it as a guard of honor, had fallen under the swords of the Swedes.
When the Danes saw their great standard fall they gave way, but only with
the intention to regain the height and defend themselves on its summit.
It was at this critical juncture that Nils Sture appeared with his
long-delayed troops and attacked the enemy from a fresh side. Before this
unlooked-for and powerful force the Danes gave way in a panic, their
ranks being broken and the fugitives rushing in wild flight down the hill
to take refuge in their ships.
Now the stratagem of Knut Posse became effective, the weakened bridge
swaying and sinking under the multitude of fugitives who crowded it,
plunging them by hundreds into the water. Others leaped into boats to row
to the vessels, but these were so crowded that many of them sank, their
occupants being drowned. In all, nine hundred men were drowned in the
flight, while as many more who were not able to escape threw down their
arms and surrendered. Christian succeeded in escaping with that portion
of his army which had reached the ships, while Sten Sture marched in
triumph into Stockholm with his victorious troops, there to be received
with shouts of gladness, and with tears of joy by his wife Fra Ingeborg,
who had been in the city and with the noble ladies of the place had
prayed earnestly for victory while their friends and husbands fought.
For four hours the battle had lasted. It was one of vast importance for
Sweden, since it brought to that country many years of peace and repose.
King Christian dared not attack the Swedes again and the country got on
prosperously without a king under the able government of Sten Sture.
_HOW THE DITMARSHERS KEPT THEIR FREEDOM._
The name of Ditmarshers was given to the inhabitants of a broad, marshy
region adjoining the district of Holstein on the Baltic shores of
Germany. They were not pure Germans, however, but descendants of the
ancient Frisian tribes who had long occupied the northwest parts of
Germany and Holland and were known as far back as the times of the Romans
for their courage and love of liberty.
For age after age this people had shown the same bold spirit and made
many a gallant stand against the princes who sought to subdue them. Geert
the Great and other princes of Sleswick and Holstein had suffered defeat
at their hands, and the warlike Valdemar III. of Denmark had been sadly
beaten by them. At a much later date the Emperor Frederick had formally
given the lands of the Ditmarshers to Christian I. of Denmark, to be
joined to Holstein, but the marshmen declared that they were not subjects
of Denmark and would not be given and taken at its king's will.
It was in the year 1500 that the most striking event in the history of
the Ditmarshers took place. King Hans, the son of Christian I., then
ruled over Denmark and Norway and five years before had been crowned king
of Sweden. It was due to his dealings with the bold sons of the marshes
that he lost the latter throne. This is the story of this interesting
event.
When Hans was made king of Denmark his ambitious brother Frederick, who
had sought to obtain the throne, was made duke of Sleswick-Holstein, and
called upon the Ditmarshers to pay him taxes and render homage to him for
their lands. This they declined to do, not recognizing the right of the
Emperor Frederick to hand them over to Denmark and to decide that the
country which had belonged to their fathers for so many centuries was
part of Holstein.
Finding that he had tough metal to deal with in the brave marshmen,
Frederick induced his brother Hans to invade their country and seek to
bring them to terms. King Valdemar had done the same thing three
centuries before, with the result of losing four thousand men and getting
an arrow wound in his eye, but undeterred by this, if they knew anything
about it, the nobles and knights, who were very numerous in the army led
by Frederick and Hans, went to the war as lightly as if it were an
excursion of pleasure.
Disdaining to wear their ordinary armor in dealing with peasant foes,
they sought to show their contempt for such an enemy by going in their
ordinary hunting costume and carrying only light arms. It was a piece of
folly, as they were to learn. The marshmen fought like their fathers of
old for their much-valued liberty, and the knights found they had no
cravens to deal with.
It is true that the royal troops took and sacked Meldorf, the chief town
of the Ditmarshers, cruelly killing its inhabitants, but it was their
only victory. It proved a lighter thing to get to Meldorf than to get
away from it, and of the Danes and Germans who had taken part in the
assault few escaped with their lives.
It was the depth of winter, cold, bitter weather, and as the army was on
its march from Meldorf to Hejde the advance guard suddenly found itself
in face of a line of earthworks which the marshmen had thrown up in front
of a dike. This was defended by five hundred Ditmarshers under their
leader, Wolf Isebrand.
The German guards rushed to the attack, shouting:
"Back, churls, the guards are coming!"
Three times they forced the marshmen to retreat, but as often these bold
fellows rallied and came back to their works. In the midst of the
struggle the wind changed, bringing a thaw with it, and as the troops
struggled on, blinded with the sleet and snow that now fell heavily, and
benumbed with the cold, the men of the marshes opened the sluices in the
dike. Through the openings poured the waters of the rising tide, quickly
flooding the marshes and sweeping everything before them.
The soldiers soon found themselves wading in mud and water, and at this
critical juncture the Ditmarshers, accustomed to make their way through
their watery habitat by the aid of poles and stilts, fell upon the
dismayed invaders, cutting them down in their helpless dilemma or
piercing them through with their long lances.
The victory of the peasants was utter and complete. Six thousand of the
invaders, nobles and men-at-arms alike, perished on that fatal day, and
the victors fell heir to an immense booty, including seven banners. Among
these was the great Danish standard, the famous Danneborg, which was
carried in triumph to Oldenwörden and hung up in the church as the
proudest trophy of the victory.
As for King Hans and his brother Duke Frederick, they barely escaped
falling into the hands of the marshmen, while the estimate of the losses
in money, stores, and ammunition in that dread afternoon's work was
200,000 florins.
King Hans lost more than money by it, for he lost the kingship of Sweden.
The nobles of that country, when the news of the disastrous defeat
reached them, rose in revolt, under the leadership of Sten Sture, drove
the Danes out of Stockholm, and kept his queen, Christina of Saxony,
prisoner for three years. Hans had no more armies to send to Sweden and
he was obliged to renounce its crown.
Norway also rose against him under a brave leader, and his power over
that country was threatened also. It was finally saved for him by his son
Prince Christian, who used his power so cruelly after order was restored
that he nearly routed out all the old Norwegian nobles.
Thus, from his attempt to make the Ditmarshers pay taxes against their
will, King Hans lost one kingdom and came near losing another. The only
successful war of his reign was one against the traders of Lübeck, who
had treated him with great insolence. In a war which followed, the fleet
of the Lübeckers was so thoroughly beaten that the proud merchant princes
were glad to pay 30,000 gulden to obtain peace. Then, having this one
success to offset his defeat by the Ditmarshers, King Hans died.
_THE BLOOD-BATH OF STOCKHOLM._
The most cruel tyrant the northern lands ever knew was Christian II. of
Denmark, grandson of Christian I., whose utter defeat at Stockholm has
been told. For twenty-seven years Sweden remained without a king, under
the wise rule of Sten Sture. Then Hans of Denmark, son of Christian I.,
was chosen as king, in the belief that he would keep his promises of good
government. As he failed to keep them he was driven out after a four
years' rule, as we have told in the last tale, and Sten Sture became
practically king again.