Battle of Brunkeberg

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Battle of Brunkeberg
Date October 10, 1471 Location Stockholm, Sweden Result Sture victory
Combatants
Swedish supporters of the Sture party	Danish and Swedish unionist troops
Commanders
Sten Sture the Elder	Christian I of Denmark

The Battle of Brunkeberg was fought on October 10, 1471 between the Swedish regent Sten Sture the Elder and forces led by Danish king Christian I.

[edit] Background

In May of 1471, Sten Sture the Elder had been elected as viceroy of Sweden by the Privy Council. Advocating Swedish secession from the Kalmar Union, Herr Sten as he was known, had garnered large support. In particular his followers were to be found among the peasantry, in Stockholm and in the Bergslagen mining region. The latter region's trading with German cities such as Lübeck often found themselves in conflict with Union's Danish foreign policy. In later times the battle was often recast for propaganda reasons as a national war of liberation against Danish oppressors. In reality, most combatants on both sides were Swedish and the roots of the conflict were primarily economic and political interests.

In response to the election of Sture, Christian I sailed to Sweden with a military force, intending to unseat him as viceroy (riksföreståndare) of Sweden. Mooring his ships off Skeppsholmen in Stockholm, he set up camp on Brunkebergsåsen, a ridge a short distance north of Stockholm (at the time Stockholm was restricted to the island containing the Old Town).

[edit] The battle

On Thursday, October 10, Sten Sture and Nils Bosson Sture lead their troops north to the area which is Hötorget in Stockholm today. Sten Sture's battle plan was to catch the Christian's troops in a vice; Sten would attack from the west, Nils from the east, and Knut Posse would strike out from the city itself.

In the ensuing battle, Christian was hit in the face by musket fire. Losing several teeth, he was forced to retire from battle. The decisive turn of battle in favor of Sture's side occurred when Nils' troops broke out of the forest north of the ridge, as Posse's troops attacked from the city. This cut off a contingent of Danish troops at the Klara monastery north of the town. Christian retired with his troops towards the island of Käpplingen (today the Blasieholmen peninsula). However, Sten's troops destroyed the makeshift bridge Christian's troops had built, causing many to drown. The battle ended a victory for Sten Sture.

[edit] Aftermath

Sture's victory over Christian meant his power as viceroy of Sweden was secure and would remain so for the rest of his life. According to legend, Sture had prayed to Saint George before the battle. He later tributed George by commissoning a statue of George and the Dragon carved by the Lübeck sculptor Bernt Notke for the Storkyrkan church in Stockholm, as an obvious allegory of Sture's battle against Christian. An altar dedicated to George was also built in the church.