Pillage of Sigtuna
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The Pillage of Sigtuna was the raid of
Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
town
Sigtuna Sigtuna () is a locality situated in Sigtuna Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 8,444 inhabitants in 2010. It is the namesake of the municipality even though the seat is in Märsta. Sigtuna is for historical reasons often still referre ...
by
pagans Pagans may refer to: * Paganism, a group of pre-Christian religions practiced in the Roman Empire * Modern Paganism, a group of contemporary religious practices * Order of the Vine, a druidic faction in the ''Thief'' video game series * Pagan's ...
from
Eastern Baltic The Eastern Baltic languages are a group of languages that along with the extinct Western Baltic languages belong to the branch of the Baltic language family. The Eastern Baltic branch has only two living languages— Latvian and Lithuanian. In s ...
in 1187. The pillage is most commonly attributed to
Estonians Estonians or Estonian people ( et, eestlased) are a Finnic ethnic group native to Estonia who speak the Estonian language. The Estonian language is spoken as the first language by the vast majority of Estonians; it is closely related to other ...
or
Karelians Karelians ( krl, karjalaižet, karjalazet, karjalaiset, Finnish: , sv, kareler, karelare, russian: Карелы) are a Finnic ethnic group who are indigenous to the historical region of Karelia, which is today split between Finland and Russi ...
.


Pillage

According to chronicles the town of
Sigtuna Sigtuna () is a locality situated in Sigtuna Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 8,444 inhabitants in 2010. It is the namesake of the municipality even though the seat is in Märsta. Sigtuna is for historical reasons often still referre ...
was burned down on 12 August 1187, and Archbishop Johannes of
Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inha ...
was killed at
Almarestäket Almarestäket, or ''Stäket'', is a strait at the inlet of Lake Mälaren in mid-east Sweden. A fortress existed there between about 1370 and 1517, also named Almarestäket. A place mentioned as Stocksund by Old Norse author Snorre Sturlasson wa ...
. Killing of
Jon Jarl {{Infobox noble , name = Jon Jarl , title = Earl , image = , caption = , alt = , CoA = , more = no , succession = {{ill, Earl of Sweden, ...
in Asknäs has also been sometimes connected to the attack. Historians generally agree that the raid took place, but question extent of damage and identity of the attackers. Archeological record from Sigtuna provides no clear evidence of a major attack, no layer of burnt buildings or other evidence has been found.


Identity of the raiders

The oldest sources mentioning the raid are the ''Annals of Visby'', which describe the attackers simply as heathens. The first source to identify the raiders are the ''
Eric Chronicles The ''Eric Chronicle'' (Swedish: ''Erikskrönikan'') is the oldest surviving Swedish chronicle. It was written by an unknown author (or, less probably, several authors) between about 1320 and 1335. It is the oldest in a group of medieval rhymed ch ...
'' from 1320s, which describe them as
Karelians Karelians ( krl, karjalaižet, karjalazet, karjalaiset, Finnish: , sv, kareler, karelare, russian: Карелы) are a Finnic ethnic group who are indigenous to the historical region of Karelia, which is today split between Finland and Russi ...
, but its reliability is not considered very high. ''Eric Chronicles'' were written at the period of Swedish conflict with
Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( rus, links=no, Великий Новгород, t=Great Newtown, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as just Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the ol ...
, which at the time included
Karelia Karelia ( Karelian and fi, Karjala, ; rus, Каре́лия, links=y, r=Karélija, p=kɐˈrʲelʲɪjə, historically ''Korjela''; sv, Karelen), the land of the Karelian people, is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for ...
, so blaming the raid on them may have been a way to justify attacks in the 14th century. Karelians were not normally described as pirates in written sources, and historian Hain Rebas has questioned whether the ships they commonly used on the
Lake Ladoga Lake Ladoga (; rus, Ла́дожское о́зеро, r=Ladozhskoye ozero, p=ˈladəʂskəjə ˈozʲɪrə or rus, Ла́дога, r=Ladoga, p=ˈladəɡə, fi, Laatokka arlier in Finnish ''Nevajärvi'' ; vep, Ladog, Ladoganjärv) is a fresh ...
were even suited for sailing to Sigtuna. Additionally, there is no mention of the raid in Russian chronicles describing 1187, even though at other times they do sometimes write about Karelians who were dependent of Novgorod. In 1540s,
Olaus Petri Olof Persson, sometimes Petersson (6 January 1493 – 19 April 1552), better known under the Latin form of his name, Olaus Petri (or less commonly, Olavus Petri), was a clergyman, writer, judge, and major contributor to the Protestant Reformatio ...
wrote his ''Swedish Chronicles'', making use of the ''Eric Chronicles'' but also some other sources which do not exist anymore, and he stated that
Estonians Estonians or Estonian people ( et, eestlased) are a Finnic ethnic group native to Estonia who speak the Estonian language. The Estonian language is spoken as the first language by the vast majority of Estonians; it is closely related to other ...
burned down Sigtuna. Other 16th century historians
Laurentius Petri Laurentius Petri Nericius (1499 – 27 October 1573) was a Swedish clergyman and the first Evangelical Lutheran Archbishop of Sweden. He and his brother Olaus Petri are, together with the King Gustav Vasa, regarded as the main Lutheran reformers ...
and
Johannes Magnus Johannes Magnus (a modified form of Ioannes Magnus, a Latin translation of his birth name Johan Månsson; 19 March 1488 – 22 March 1544) was the last functioning Catholic Archbishop in Sweden, and also a theologian, genealogist, and histori ...
also attributed the attack to Estonians. Several researches regard this version more reliable, especially as Estonians definitely had ships and ability to sail to Sigtuna. For example, ''
Livonian Chronicle of Henry The ''Livonian Chronicle of Henry'' ( la, Heinrici Cronicon Lyvoniae) offers a Latin narrative of events in Livonia (roughly corresponding to today's inland Estonia and the northern part of Latvia) and surrounding areas from 1180 to 1227. It was ...
'' mentions Estonian raid to Sweden in 1203, and states that such attacks were a common occurrence. 17th century historian
Johannes Messenius Johannes Messenius (1579–1636) was a Swedish historian, dramatist and university professor. He was born in the village of Freberga, in Stenby parish in Östergötland, and died in Oulu, in modern-day Finland. Childhood He was the son of a mill ...
mentions the raid in his ''Scondia illustrata'', blaming it in different parts of text once on
Curonians :''The Kursenieki are also sometimes known as Curonians.'' The Curonians or Kurs ( lv, kurši; lt, kuršiai; german: Kuren; non, Kúrir; orv, кърсь) were a Baltic tribe living on the shores of the Baltic Sea in what are now the western p ...
and once on Estonians. Some researchers consider Curonian participation possible, as they actively engaged in piracy, and were known to cooperate with Estonians.


''Eric Chronicles''

''Sweden then suffered serious harm,
From the Karelians, causing great alarm.
They sailed into Lake Mälar from the sea,
Whether calm or stormy it might be,
Secretly within the Svealand isles
In stealthily advancing files.
Once their minds to the idea did turn,
That they the town of Sigtuna should burn,
And so thoroughly they put it to the flame,
That it since then has never been the same.
There Archbishop Jon was killed,
A deed that many a heathen thrilled.''


References


Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sigtuna, Pillage Of 1187 in Europe Conflicts in 1187 12th century in Sweden Looting Battles of the Middle Ages Battles involving Sweden