John III of Sweden
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John III (Johan III) (December 20, 1537 – November 17, 1592) was King of Sweden from 1568 until his death. He was also quite autonomously the ruler of Finland as Duke John or Hertig Johan (1556–1563). In 1581 he assumed also the title Grand Prince of Finland.
He was the second son of Gustav Vasa (1523–1560). As a Duke of Finland he opposed his half-brother Eric XIV of Sweden (1560–1568) who crushed his rebellion in Finland in 1563 and imprisoned him. After his release from prison, probably because of his brother's insanity, John again joined the opposition, deposed Eric and made himself the king. His important ally was his maternal uncle Sten Leijonhufvud, who at deathbed was made Count of Raseborg. Shortly after this John executed his brother's most trusted counsellor, Jöran Persson, whom he held largely responsible for his harsh treatment while in prison.
John finished the Scandinavian Seven Years' War in 1570 without many Swedish concessions and during the following years he successfully fought Russia until 1582, a war that meant a Swedish-Finnish reconquest of Narva. As a whole his foreign policy was affected by his connection to Poland of which country his son Sigismund III Vasa (1587–1632) was made king in 1587.
In domestic politics John showed clear Catholic sympathies, inspired by his Polish queen, a fact that created frictions to the Swedish clergy and nobility. From time to time he was also at odds with his younger brother Duke Charles of Sudermannia (afterwards Charles IX of Sweden). John III was an eager patron of art and architecture.
John married his first wife, Catherine Jagellonica of Poland (1526–1583), house of Jagiello, in Vilnius on October 4, 1562. In Sweden she is known as Katarina Jagellonica and she was the sister of king Sigismund II Augustus of Poland. Their children were:
- Isabella (1564–1566)
- Sigismund King of Sweden (1592–1599), and King of Poland (1566–1632), Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania
- Anna of Finland (1568–1625)
He married his second wife Gunilla Bielke (1568–c. 1592) on February 21, 1584 and together they had the son:
- John (Johan) (1589–1618), firstly Duke of Finland, then from 1608 Duke of Ostrogothia. The young duke married his first cousin Maria Elisabeth (1596-1618), daughter of Charles IX of Sweden (reigned 1599–1611)
Together with his mistress Karin Hansdotter (1532-1596) he had at least four illegitimate children:
- Julius Gyllenhielm (1559–1581)
- Augustus (1557-1560)
- Sofia ( 1556–1583) who married Pontus De la Gardie
- Lucretia (1560-1585)
John cared for Karin and his children with her after he married with Catherine Jagellonica of Poland in 1562. He took care that Karin got a husband that should take care of her and his children. In 1561 Karin was married to Klas Andersson, a friend and servant of John. Together they had a daughter named Brita. When John became King in 1568 he continued to support Karin and his illegitimate children. In 1572 Karin was married again, her earlier husband was murdered by Erik XIV in 1563, to a Lars Henrikson. In 1576 he was nobled by John if he took care about his issue with Karin. The same year he sent for his daughter Sofia to be a lady in the castle as a servant to his sister Princess Elisabet. 1580 he married her off to Pontus de la Gardie. She later died giving birth to Jacob De la Gardie.
See also: History of Sweden – Foundation of Modern Sweden
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| Preceded by Gustav Vasa |
Duke of Finland 1556–1563 |
Succeeded by Eric XIV |
| Preceded by Eric XIV |
King of Sweden 1568–1592 |
Succeeded by Sigismund |
