Margareta Eriksdotter (Vasa)
Encyclopedia
Margareta Eriksdotter Vasa (1497 – 31 December 1536), also called Margareta Vasa and Margareta of Hoya, was a Swedish noble, sister of king Gustav I of Sweden
.
Margareta was born to Erik Johansson and Cecilia Månsdotter
. She was married to Joakim Brahe 30 March 1516. In 1520, her husband and father were executed at the Stockholm bloodbath
. Margareta, as well as her mother, her sisters and her grandmother, belonged to the women taken prisoner to Denmark with the former regent, her aunt Christina Gyllenstierna
, and was impriosoned in the feared Blue Tower
in Copenhagen
. There, several of them, among them Margaretas mother and sisters, died of the plague.
In 1524, Margareta was released and returned to Sweden, were her brother was now king. On 15 January 1525, she married the German count Johan of Hoya and Brockenhusen. She had also inherited the estate Rydboholm Castle after her father. In 1528-29, she visited Germany and Lübeck
. At her return, she and Wulf Gyl were held captive by mayor Nils Arvidsson in Jönköping
, during a rebellion which broke out at this point. Margareta and her husband eventually came at odds with the king. The queen, Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg
, is said to have slandered the king before them. In 1534, they broke with the king and left for Germany.
Margareta became a widow in 1535, when Hoya died after having participated in the so called Count's Feud
in Denmark. She did not return to Sweden, as she feared that her brother would hurt her children. The king wrote several letters and asked her to return. She died in Tallinn
in Estonia
.
Gustav I of Sweden
Gustav I of Sweden, born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family and later known simply as Gustav Vasa , was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death....
.
Margareta was born to Erik Johansson and Cecilia Månsdotter
Cecilia Månsdotter
Cecilia Månsdotter Eka , also called Cecilia of Eka, was a Swedish noblewoman. She was the spouse of Erik Johansson Vasa and mother of King Gustav I of Sweden.- Biography :...
. She was married to Joakim Brahe 30 March 1516. In 1520, her husband and father were executed at the Stockholm bloodbath
Stockholm Bloodbath
The Stockholm Bloodbath, or the Stockholm Massacre , took place as the result of a successful invasion of Sweden by Danish forces under the command of King Christian II...
. Margareta, as well as her mother, her sisters and her grandmother, belonged to the women taken prisoner to Denmark with the former regent, her aunt Christina Gyllenstierna
Christina Gyllenstierna
Christina Nilsdotter of Fogelvik, Heiress of Tullgarn , was the wife of the Swedish regent Sten Sture the Younger, and after his death, leader of resistance to Christian II of Denmark...
, and was impriosoned in the feared Blue Tower
Blåtårn
Blåtårn was a tower at the royal Danish palace of Copenhagen Castle in Copenhagen, Denmark. The tower was used as a prison and has been known as such in history...
in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
. There, several of them, among them Margaretas mother and sisters, died of the plague.
In 1524, Margareta was released and returned to Sweden, were her brother was now king. On 15 January 1525, she married the German count Johan of Hoya and Brockenhusen. She had also inherited the estate Rydboholm Castle after her father. In 1528-29, she visited Germany and Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
. At her return, she and Wulf Gyl were held captive by mayor Nils Arvidsson in Jönköping
Jönköping
-Notable people:*Lillian Asplund, RMS Titanic survivor*John Bauer, illustrator, painter*Amy Diamond, singer*Agnetha Fältskog, ABBA*Carl Henrik Fredriksson, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Eurozine*Anders Gustafsson, kayaker, Olympian...
, during a rebellion which broke out at this point. Margareta and her husband eventually came at odds with the king. The queen, Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg
Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg
Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg was the first consort of Gustav I of Sweden and Queen of Sweden from 1531 until her death in 1535. She was born in Ratzeburg to Magnus I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg and Catherine, daughter of Henry IV, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg.-Biography:King Gustav married Catherine for...
, is said to have slandered the king before them. In 1534, they broke with the king and left for Germany.
Margareta became a widow in 1535, when Hoya died after having participated in the so called Count's Feud
Count's Feud
The Count's Feud , also called the Count's War, was a civil war that raged in Denmark in 1534–36 and brought about the Reformation in Denmark...
in Denmark. She did not return to Sweden, as she feared that her brother would hurt her children. The king wrote several letters and asked her to return. She died in Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
in Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
.
Litterature
- Wilhelmina Stålberg (in Swedish) : Anteckningar om svenska qvinnor (Notes on Swedish women)