Winning a War with Words: oaths as means in military conflict in early modern Scandinavia

Abstract

From a distance, the many wars that took place during the early modern period were fought by kings and armies, conquering territories and losing them, signing peace treaties and breaking them. Wars fought with armies were, however, costly and, if possible, the rulers did what they could to avoid them while still trying to acquire and protect territories. One strategy employed was to persuade the people of a disputed territory to surrender to the conquering state by swearing an oath of allegiance to its king. Seen in this perspective, territories could be acquired and lost by using the oaths as means in military conflict. The following article discusses the role of oaths in keeping and conquering territories in the early modern Scandinavian countries, with a special focus on Sweden and to some degree Sweden’s constant enemy during this period, Denmark-Norway. It also studies the same oaths from the people’s point of view, and what happened after an oath was sworn and the war ended. By taking examples from areas under dispute, the article investigates how oaths could be used by both authorities and subjects in warfare and after in the early modern context.

Keywords:

• oath
• military history
• Scandinavia

Notes

1 This act formed part of the Kalmar War being fought at the time between Sweden and Denmark-Norway, a war that primarily took place in the south of Sweden.

2 Letter to Baltzar Bäck, the Royal Registry (RR) 1611-06-09, the National Archives of Sweden (NAS).

3 ‘[A]lle de juthar [som de möter], dem skola de alla slå ihiäl och röfwa sköfla och bränna deras huus och gårdar, men iämptarna skola de skohna lifwet och lathe dem swärija under oss och Sweriges Crono (överstruket: och derföre skola de skona dem) dy de äre af swänske blodh och hafwa tilförende warit under Sweriges Crono och derföre skola de skona dem’. NAS. RR. 1611-05-08. Licence for Jacob Tommesson. All translations are mine unless otherwise noted.

4 ‘[M]en wele i och icke då måge i stå idher egen fara’. NAS. RR. 1611-05-09. Letter to the people of Jämtland.

5 Bromé, Jämtlands och Härjedalens historia, 228–9.

6 See, for example, Collstedt, Våldets väsen, 46–9; Lindström, ‘Några kommentarer’; and Sjöberg, ‘Inledning’, 5–7.

7 See, for example, Klingenberg, Repression och legitimering, 42–3; Lerbom, Mellan två riken, 93; and Nordin, Ett fattigt men fritt folk, 119–22.

8 Magnus Eriksson’s law of the realm, the code of the king ch. 4, see Holmbäck and Wessén, Magnus Erikssons landslag, 4–6. The oath was also present in some of the previous district laws, as well as Kristoffer’s law of the realm, valid 1442–1734, see footnotes 31–66 on given pages.

9 ‘[U]ng och gammal, ofödd och född, okär som kär, frånvarande såväl som de som där voro’, Kristoffers landslag, the code of the king ch. 5, see Holmbäck and Wessén, Magnus Erikssons landslag, 6–7. The people of the various provinces of the realm sent lawmen and appointed representatives to swear the oath on their behalf. Also in Norway the relationship between king and subjects was said to be governed by the exchange of oaths. See Njåstad, ‘Formell og uformell makt’, 626.

10 For Jämtland, see Bromé, Jämtlands och Härjedalens historia, 357–62. The oaths are published in Anonymous, Freden i Brömsebro 1645. For Gotland, see Lerbom, Mellan två riken, 93. For Skåne, see Fabricius, Skaanes overgang fra Danmark til Sverige, 51–68; Gustafsson, ‘Att göra svenskar av danskar?’, 43–50; and Rosén, Hur Skåne blev svenskt, 14–15. For France, see Sahlins, Boundaries, 55. For Denmark, see Henningsen, ‘Hertugerne af Gottorp’, 148–50; and Porskrog Rasmussen, ‘Ét hertugdømme - mange herrer’, 335–7. For Russia, see Klingenberg, 42–3; and Villstrand, Riksdelen, 282–6. Klingenberg and Villstrand both acknowledge the complex nature of the oath, and emphasize its importance in gaining control over a territory.

11 Forssberg, Att hålla folket på gott humör, 260–8; and Gustafsson, ‘Att göra svenskar av danskar?’, 50.

12 Forssberg, Att hålla folket på gott humör, 289–90; and Nordin, Ett fattigt men fritt folk, 115–25.

13 NAS. RR. 1612-06-07. Open letter to the inhabitants of Öland; RR. 1612-06-08. Letter to the subjects in Ambörds and Stranda härader (i.e. a smaller judicial district); RR. 1612-09-29. Letter to priests and farmers of Dal.

14 Protocol of a meeting with the priests of Jämtland, 1677-01-05, in The Regional Archive in Härnösand (RAH), Gävleborgs läns landskanslis arkiv 1400 – 1959, A I Protokoll, 1. 1641-1696. A similar trail took place in 1658, see Protocol of the district court, 1658-05-18, in RAH. Gävleborgs läns landskanslis arkiv 1400 – 1959, A I Protokoll, 2. 1658-1667.

15 NAS. Protocols of the council 1719-08-05.

16 Harnesk, ‘Konsten att klaga’, 62–5. A similar observation is made by Hallenberg, Holm, and Johansson, ‘Organization, Legitimation, Participation’, 252.

17 For Öland, Småland, Västergötland and Dalsland in 1611 and 1612, see Letter to the peasants and common men of Öland and Småland, 1611-08-04; Concept for manifesto, 1611-04-24; Letter to the peasants around Elfsborg, 1612-06-04; all in The National Archives of Denmark (NAD). Tyske kancelli, Udenrigske afdeling, Sverige 1400-1769, Akter og dokumenter vedrørande det politiske forhold til Sverige 1603-1612, Belegringen og erobringen af Kalmar og Borgholm. See also NAS. RR. 1611-08-11. Open letter to riders, soldiers and the common men of Öland; RR. 1611-08-12. Letter to all fortifications and governors. The farmers of Västergötland and Dalsland were also convinced to swear oaths to the king of Denmark; see NAS. RR. 1612-08-15. Letter to Nils Knutsson; RR. 1612-09-02. Warrant for Erich Ribbing, Anders Olufsson and Claus Knutsson; RR. 1612-10-11. Answer to the letter from Jesper Matsson.

18 On Jämtland, see Bromé, Jämtlands och Härjedalens historia, 95, 357–8. On Skåne, see Forssberg, Att hålla folket på gott humör, 260–70. Russia’s attempt in 1719 is discussed in NAS. Protocols of the council 1719-08-0.

19 See, for example, Collstedt, ‘Generalauditör Croneborg och våldets historia’, 39; Hall, The Social Construction of Nationalism, 254; Lerbom, Mellan två riken, 160–85; Reinholdsson, Uppror eller resningar?, 260–1; and Sanders, Efter Roskildefreden 1658, 52–55.

20 Gustafsson, ‘The Conglomerate State’, 194. Compare with Östlund, Lyckolandet, 20–6.

21 For new acquisitions, the regent’s oath at the coronation could instead be extended to incorporate the territory in question.

22 This event had the effect that the regent’s oath became more important than ever after the rule of Karl XII; when Ulrika Eleonora and Fredrik I acceded the throne in 1719 and 1720, respectively, they both had to swear not to reinstate absolute rule. See Nauman, ‘Att göra en kung’, 165–6. For Sigismund, see Holm, Konstruktionen av en stormakt, 69.

23 For example, in a letter of accusation during a rebellion against King Gustav Vasa in 1529, it was argued that the king had consciously omitted certain articles in his oath. These articles would have obliged him to hold his noblemen by their former privileges, and by omitting the articles the king had opened up for revocations. The omission was one direct cause of the rebellion. See Carlsson, ‘Gustav Vasas kröningsed’, 328–9. Another example of using the oath as an argument comes from the rebellion against King Erik XIV in 1568, see Hallenberg, Kungen, fogdarna och riket, 100.

24 The oaths of 1645 are transcribed and published in Anonymous, Freden i Brömsebro 1645. See, for example, the oaths of the subjects and länsmän (i.e. lower state officers) of Jämtland, pp. 11–13.

25 On performative actions and oaths as one example of these, see Austin, How to Do Things with Words.

26 The records of this trial are printed in Secher, Samling af Kongens Rettertings Domme, 480–7. Quotes from p. 480: ‘forglæmt deres ed og troskab og givet dem under kongen udi Sverig’, and p. 481: ‘erløse, menedige landsforreddere och skelme’.

27 Secher, Samling af Kongens Rettertings Domme, 481–2.

28 Evidently, ‘Norwegians’ in this occasion did not include the people of Jämtland.

29 Secher, Samling af Kongens Rettertings Domme, 480–7. The protocols of the inquiry are published in Petrini, Räfsten med jämtarna. The reasons for these punishments are explained in: Motiven till domarna 1613-10-16. The National Achives of Norway (NAN). Danske kanselli 1572–1799, Fcca: Norske innlegg 1572–1799 30.01.1613 - 25.10.1622, Innlegg til missiv 1613-06-19. The letter is also printed in Petrini, Räfsten med jämtarna, 255–60. The results of the inquiry are further studied in Nauman, ‘Gender, Power and the Oath’.

30 Secher, Samling af Kongens Rettertings Domme, 478.

31 On Öland, see Hammarskjöld, Ätten Hammarskjöld, 16. On Jämtland, see: RAH. Common trial against the farmers of Jämtland, 1658-05-18. Gävleborgs läns landskanslis arkiv 1400 – 1959, A I Protokoll: 2 1658-1667; Protocol from a trial in Gävle, 1677-01-05, Gävleborgs läns landskanslis arkiv 1400 – 1959, A I Protokoll: 1. 1641-1696. On Östergötland, see NAS. Restitution and sentence over the farmers of Östergötland, 1720-01-18, Justitierevisionens besvärs- och ansökningsmål.

32 ‘[Dhe swarade och föregoffwe, att dhe medh högsta nijt och swar haffwa betrachtadt dheras trohetsplicht emot hans Kongl. May:t och Swerigis Crono, och således gierna skola funnidt sigh såsom trogne och uprichtige undersåtare, så frampt hans K. M:t Swerige allernådigast hade behagadt medh någon anseenlig krigsmacht dhem förfächta och förswara emoth dherass och fäderneslandsens fijender […]’. Common trial against the farmers of Jämtland, 1658-05-18, RAH. Gävleborgs läns landskanslis arkiv 1400 – 1959, A I Protokoll: 2 1658-1667.

33 Common trial against the farmers of Jämtland, 1658-05-18, RAH. Gävleborgs läns landskanslis arkiv 1400 – 1959, A I Protokoll: 2 1658-1667. The prospects for arguing in this way had diminished drastically when the trial in Östergötland took place in 1719. Even though the area had been burned and pillaged, the farmers were considered in breach of their oath, see Restitution and sentence over the farmers of Östergötland, 1720-01-18, NAS. Justitierevisionens besvärs- och ansökningsmål. This change in attitude would be interesting to subject to further study.

34 ‘Överhetens och undersåtarnas försäkringsed och jurament emot varandra är det förnämsta som ett välbeställt regemente och gubernation sig funderar uppå, och bör alldeles och obrottsligen hållas vid makt, så framt regementet haver en god framgång och varaktigt bliver’. Quote from Harnesk, ‘Konsten att klaga’, 63. Gustav II Adolf reigned from 1611 to 1632.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sari Nauman

Sari Nauman, born 1981, is a PhD student in history at the University of Gothenburg. Her published works include ‘Från ära till skuld: Bönder och överhet i edgärden’, Scandia 77 (2011) and ‘Att göra en kung: Kvinnligt och manligt i den tidiga frihetstidens kröningsmålningar’, in Bildligt talat: Kvinnligt, manligt i 3,2 miljoner år, edited by Maria Sjöberg (Gothenburg/Stockholm: Makadam förlag, 2012). She is currently working on her PhD thesis, studying the use of state oaths in early modern Sweden.