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Part 19: The Last Viking and his Three Crowns
Castle of Tre Kronor, Stockholm
November 7, 1520
Stockholm in the mid 16th century.
For the third consecutive day, the people of the Swedish capital greeted the morning sun with various banquets and other celebrations, and the atmosphere in Stockholm's main castle and royal residence was no different. An assortment of Danish, Norwegian and Swedish nobles and courtiers swarmed its myriad hallways and rooms like ants in an anthill, their robes and extravagant garments creating a rainbow of colors and shiny ornaments. Any outside observer lucky enough to see them partying, drinking and discussing matters of state before partying again could hardly imagine that they were all trying to kill each other as recently as two months ago, when the Swedish capital was besieged by troops loyal to king Christian II, whose coronation had sparked the euphoria that now engulfed it.
And it was because of this very recent past that, despite all the jokes, music and unfathomably expensive foods and beverages, an oppressive, heavy feeling of unease reigned in the air, simmering beneath the smiles of the noblemen. None felt this the weight of this atmosphere more than Gustav Eriksson Vasa, who, like his father and many other Swedes, prominent or not (1), had been a stalwart opponent of the new king, who already held the crowns of Denmark and Norway, until their final defeat in September 1520. Those who, like Gustav, were still alive at the end of hostilities were amnestied and invited to witness Christian's coronation as both a gesture of goodwill and part of a general agreement to ensure Sweden's cooperation in the reborn Kalmar Union. Even so he couldn't help but pay more attention to his monarch - who more than once looked way too pensive to not be plotting something - than to the various plates in front of him. That he kept talking (whispering, really) about... something with archbishop Gustav Trolle didn't help either.
By the time Gustav, his father and other former Sture Party members were finally allowed to leave Tre Kronor, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief (2).
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For more than a century and a half, one of the main driving forces of politics in Scandinavia was the debate on whether the kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden should all be led by a single monarch or go on their separate ways. The Kalmar Union, as their (personal) unification became known, first came into shape in 1387-88, thanks to the skilled leadership of queen Margaret I of Denmark, and was stable until her death in 1412, after which she was succeeded by her grandnephew Eric of Pomerania. Eric's ambition was too great for his own good, however, and he led the union into a long, fruitless war with Holstein and the Hanseatic League (whose supremacy over trade in the Baltic Sea he hoped to break) that left its constituent kingdoms bankrupt and led to his deposition from his three thrones in 1439. The man the nobles elected as his successor, Christopher of Bavaria, died childless in 1448.
It was after Christopher's death that the cracks between the Scandinavian states - or, to be more specific, Denmark and Sweden, since Norway was firmly in Copenhagen's grasp - came to the surface, since while the former elected Christian of Oldenburg as its king, the latter elected Karl Knutsson in a bid to bring the Kalmar Union under Swedish dominance. Though Christian seized the Swedish throne from Karl in 1457, he lost it to a revolt seven years later, and his attempt to reconquer it in 1471 ended with a spectacular defeat at the hands of Sten Sture the Elder in the Battle of Brunkeberg. It wasn't until 1497 that Christian's son and successor, Hans I, brought Sweden back to the fold, and even then he lost control of it to yet another revolt in 1501.
With Hans' death in 1513, the task of rebuilding the Kalmar Union fell to his son Christian II, a man whose personality was every bit as fierce as his bifurcated red beard. His reign was marked by controversy from the get go thanks to his relationship with Dyveke Sigbritsdatter, which continued after his marriage to Isabella of Austria, much to the ire of his Habsburg in-laws. Dyveke's mother, a Dutch merchant named Sigbrit Willoms, was put in charge of the treasury, a move which made Christian's ultimate goal, to transform Denmark from an agrarian state saddled with a powerful nobility into a centralized and urban one which derived its wealth from commerce, all too clear. Many nobles resented him for it, particularly after the execution of Torben Oxe (one of their own) under the accusation that he was responsible for Dyveke's early death in 1517. Despite this the king still had some reliable allies among them, such as Mogens Gøye, who just so happened to be Denmark's richest aristocrat.
Christian II of Denmark, Norway and Sweden: friend of the commoners, enemy of the nobles.
It was because of allies like him, chancellor Ove Bille and admiral Søren Norby that Christian, despite the not so subtle opposition to his policies at home, nurtured hopes of reuniting Scandinavia under Danish rule. Sweden also had a sizable unionist faction despite its many decades of de facto independence, one led by nobles and clergymen who were tired of the nonstop wars between their country and the Danes. They scored an important victory in 1512, just before Hans' death, by securing the election of Eric Trolle as regent, only for their hopes to be dashed by a coup led by Sten Sture the Younger. The unionist party was, from that moment onward, led by Eric's son, Gustav Trolle, who was archbishop of Uppsala and controlled the mighty fortress of Almarestäket, just west of Stockholm. Sture's men promptly besieged it, and Copenhagen mobilized all it could to its aid.
Twice Christian tried to bring Sweden back under his dynasty's control, and twice he failed. It wasn't until January 1520, during his third and final attempt, that his mercenary army imposed a decisive defeat over the Sture Party at the Battle of Bogesund, in which Sten was mortally wounded and later died on the frozen waters of Lake Mälaren. Even then Stockholm resisted until September, and it only surrendered after a deal whose terms determined that the king would amnesty those who fought against him and give Sweden ample autonomy over its internal affairs. After his coronation two months later, Christian returned to Denmark and left Sweden under the rule of a council whose most prominent members were Gustav Trolle and former Sture ally Gustav Vasa, though most real power was held by the former (3). He had finally reunited Scandinavia, but drove his country to the brink of bankruptcy in the process.
The next few years were, as a result, no less agitated for the king, though they were thankfully peaceful as far as military matters were concerned - Denmark's finances were so fragile that a war may well have brought about his downfall. It was during this period that the Danish Royal Trading Company, the East India Company's direct ancestor, was created, with the purpose to break the Hansa's economic power once and for all and maximize the revenues Copenhagen acquired from the trade of goods such as furs, copper, iron, amber, timber along with countless others, all of which were either produced in areas now controlled by the Kalmar Union or passed through its ports (4). This ruffled a great many feathers in Lübeck and other important Hanseatic cities, and it didn't take long for them to get in contact with those who were fed up with Christian's ever more audacious policies.
Gustav Vasa, Christian II's unexpected Swedish ally.
Despite these developments near his seat of power, the first major crisis Christian faced after the conquest of Sweden took place in that very country, in February 1524. Gustav Trolle proved himself to be more interested in settling old scores than managing affairs of state, and his capricious attitude ignited an uprising by the peasants of Dalarna, a hotbed of anti-Danish sentiment since the Engelbrekt rebellion ninety years before (5). They overran most of the province with ease, and would've likely spread further were it not for the quick and decisive action of Gustav Vasa, who, seeking to ingratiate himself in the eyes of the king, departed Stockholm without orders and repressed it with ruthless efficiency (6). One story even says the rebels received him as a liberator (thanks to his pro-Sture past) before being cut down by his men, though its accuracy is debatable.
Gustav's gambit reaped him enormous benefits, since he was showered with land grants and titles within a few months of the uprising's quelling, despite the skepticism in much of Christian's upper circle at how he dealt with it all by himself. This extra wealth and prestige allowed him to eclipse Trolle as Sweden's dominant political figure, and, though most didn't know it yet, ensured his turn from Sture loyalist to devout unionist. With Trolle cast aside, Swedish politics became slightly more functional, enough to nip any spontaneous revolts in the bud. A larger conspiracy simmered beneath the surface, however, bolstered by promises of Hanseatic money and military aid. Its leader was Christina Gyllenstierna, wife of the late Sten Sture the Younger who, thanks to Christian's amnesty, was allowed to keep vast estates and castles in Finland, Södermanland and Småland.
The spark that set everything off was Christian's decision to convert to Lutheranism in April 1526, an act followed by the nationalization of all lands belonging to the Catholic Church (especially its monastic orders, which were widely hated due to their wealth) and their subsequent distribution to his allies. The king's Danish enemies, rallying behind his uncle Frederick, duke of Holstein, finally had the excuse they needed to take up arms, which they did the following month. An army of nobles and mercenaries marched into Jutland, and soon most of the peninsula fell under their control, save for strongpoints like Flensborg, Kolding, Aarhus and Aalborg. The rebels wasted precious time laying siege to these places, and any hope they had of advancing into the main Danish islands slipped away when their fleet, made up of vessels from the Hanseatic cities such as Lübeck, Rostock and Wismar, was defeated south of Funen, in May 20 1526.
The rebels' fate was sealed by a massive peasant uprising in support of the king, led by Klement Andersen, in northern Jutland. Trapped bewteen the peasants and the royal army, which landed in bulk in early July, the rebels deserted or surrendered en masse, while the few who stayed loyal to Frederick retreated to Holstein and made a final stand at Rendsborg in August 9. Both Frederick and his son (who was also named Christian) were killed in action, and the overwhelming majority of the rebel leadership that wasn't already dead or in exile was executed or spent the rest of their lives imprisoned in various castles. The Duke's Feud, as the brief civil war became known, had come to an end, and Christian II's authority over Denmark was stronger than ever (7).
The situation in Sweden couldn't be more different.
Christina Gyllenstierna took advantage of the chaos in Denmark to launch her own rebellion, which began almost as soon as she and her allies heard the news of Frederick's advance into Jutland. With nearly all of the Danish military stuck there for months on end, her allies staged near simultaneous uprisings in the areas already under her power (Finland, Södermanland and Småland) and were promptly joined by the Dalecarlian peasants, who did not waste the opportunity to fight the Danes yet again. United under the symbolic leadership of her eldest son, Nils Stensson Sture, and with almost no opposition before them, Christina's forces overran the country so quickly and decisively that only Kalmar, Västerås and Stockholm itself were under Danish control by the end of the Duke's Feud. Gustav Vasa was holed up in the Swedish capital, having refused to join the rebel ranks out of fear he'd lose the wealth and status granted to him by Christian (8).
Thus, the Danish king and his army had little time to rest before they boarded their ships and made a beeline for Stockholm, their arrival there in mid September giving a major morale boost to the few remaining unionist garrisons. From there the royal army marched to Västerås, which was on the verge of capitulating, and Christina gathered as many of her troops as she could for the clash that would decide the fate of the Kalmar Union. The battle of Västerås was fought in September 28 1526, and it pitted 8.000 Danes and Swedish unionists against 12.000 rebels. Though the latter army was disciplined, had good morale and was one third larger than its opposition, it was almost totally made up of infantry, giving Christian's forces a critical advantage in cavalry and artillery. The Danes scored a decisive victory as a result, forcing Christina to abandon the siege of Västerås and retreat to Uppsala, where her now demoralized troops suffered another defeat in October 15.
A painting celebrating Christian II's victory at Västerås.
With western Sweden secured, it was time to advance into Finland. With Copenhagen's victory assured thanks to the victories at Västerås and Uppsala, the city of Åbo surrendered without a fight, and Christina and the rest of the Sture family fled to Danzig, the protection they received there becoming a major thorn in the side of in relations between Denmark and Poland for decades to come. With the amnesty deal between Christian II and the Sture Party broken by the latter, the king was now free to distribute their lands to whoever he saw fit, which was exactly what he spent the immediate months after the rebellion's defeat doing. With his authority over all of Scandinavia now unchallenged, Christian could embark on another ambitious project of his: reassert Danish control over Greenland, and from there get a foothold in the Americas.
The man he chose to lead his task was Søren Norby, who was quite possibly its greatest enthusiast (9). Norby left the port of Bergen, in Norway, with a fleet of four vessels in April 29 1529, after years of planning and gathering the necessary resources. He made two stops, first in the Faroe Islands and then Iceland, before reaching the site of what was once the settlement of Herjolfsnes, in Greenland's southwestern coast, in July 3. The aging admiral spent the next few months exploring the various fjords and mingling with the Inuit before turning southwest and attempting to approach Terra Nova, only to find himself harrassed by Portuguese ships from Porto Seguro and sail further south than planned in an attempt to escape them.
This detour led them all the way down the east coast of continental North America, and after finally shaking off its pursuers the expedition made landfall near Manhattan Island in October 16. Winter was coming, so the Danes hunkered down and prepared to wait it out rather than risk getting sunk in a storm, building a small fort in the island and establishing relations with the native Lenape people. The fort became the embryo of the settlement that would later be named Christiania, in honor of the king who made it possible for Denmark to found it. The colony it would become the capital of was eventually named New Scania, since most of its original settlers came from that region, ravaged by the nonstop wars fought between the Danes and the Swedes before the Kalmar Union was reestablished for good.
The expedition departed Manhattan in April 9 1530, leaving a small garrison to take care of the fort, and after another entanglement with the Portuguese that cost them one of their ships, returned to Bergen to massive acclaim in July 27. An ecstatic Christian II began to plan another expedition almost immediately after, one with the purpose of establishing a genuine foothold in North America, but Norby wouldn't be granted the honor of leading it due to his death in August.
Still, Scandinavia had officially entered the Age of Discovery, and it was because of this, his signature red beard and ruthless approach to matters of state that Christian II became known as "The Last Viking" in the years after his passing in January 1559.
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Notes:
(1) Believe it or not, the Swedish peasantry was a powerful political force. They were armed, free and deathly afraid of becoming serfs like their Danish counterparts, and thus formed the backbone of the separatist armies.
(2) There are two PODs here; the first is that Gustav Vasa accepts Christian's invitation to attend his coronation (he refused IOTL, a decision that saved his life given said coronation ended with the Stockholm Bloodbath), and the second is that Christian doesn't break his promise to the people he amnestied just months before.
(3) Think of it as another gesture of reconciliation.
(4) Christian had plans to create such a company IOTL (not the East India one, that will come much later 
), but they were dashed by his downfall.
(5) The Dalecarlians rebelled as soon as January 1521 IOTL, no doubt because of immediate outrage caused by the Stockholm Bloodbath. They staged several revolts against whoever ruled them in the 16th century, however, so it's inevitable for something to happen. Also, Trolle was one of the Bloodbath's main instigators, so I figured it'd be plausible to characterize him as a vengeful dick.
(6) Gustav Vasa faced several rebellions during his reign as king of Sweden, and he was no less brutal dealing with them than Christian was. His big difference is that he executed peasants rather than nobles (AFAIK), so he was remembered as a "strong leader" rather than a tyrant.
(7) Yes, I copied the name from OTL's
Count's Feud.
(8) Gustav and Christina butted heads often during the former's reign IOTL.
(9) Christian was apparently on the verge of giving the green light to such an expedition IOTL, but then his mistakes caught up with him and he was deposed.
