Eric I, Duke of Mecklenburg
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Eric I, Duke of Mecklenburg (after 1359, probably in 136526 July 1397) was a
Duke of Mecklenburg This list of dukes and grand dukes of Mecklenburg dates from the origins of the German princely state of Mecklenburg's royal house in the High Middle Ages to the monarchy's abolition at the end of World War I. Strictly speaking, Mecklenburg's p ...
and heir to the throne of Sweden.


Life

Eric was the eldest son of
Albert, King of Sweden Albert (german: Albrecht, sv, Albrekt av Mecklenburg; c. 1338 – 1 April 1412) was King of Sweden from 1364 to 1389 and Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from 1384 to 1412. Background He was the second son of Duke Albert II of Mecklenburg and ...
, and Queen Richardis, a daughter of Count
Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of He ...
of Schwerin. He was married on 12 or 13 February 1396 to Sophie, the daughter of Duke Bogislaw VI of Pomerania-Wolgast. They had no children. Eric's father attempted to consolidate his position as King of Sweden in 1364 and again in 1386. Queen Margaret I of Denmark intervened and defeated Albert in the battle of Åsle, in the vicinity of
Falköping Falköping is a locality and the seat of Falköping Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 16,350 inhabitants in 2010. History The town of Falköping was first spoken of in the Icelandic ''Rimbegla'' (around 1100 A.D.), and ...
, in 1389. Albert and Eric were captured during this battle. They were released in 1395 after three years of negotiations involving Hinrich Westhof and Johann Niebur, the mayors of
Lübeck Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the state ...
. Later that year, Albert tasked Eric with the reconquest of Gotland. In the summer of 1396, Eric landed on the island with an army and in the spring of 1397, he defeated Sven Sture, who then had to swear allegiance to Albert III. Also in 1397, the kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden were united into the Kalmar Union, which cemented the position of Queen Margaret I. Duke Eric (as he was called) died of the plague in 1397 on his estate called Landeskrone or Kronvall in Klintehamn south of
Visby Visby () is an urban area in Sweden and the seat of Gotland Municipality in Gotland County on the island of Gotland with 24,330 inhabitants . Visby is also the episcopal see for the Diocese of Visby. The Hanseatic city of Visby is arguably th ...
(in Gotland). He was buried in St. Mary's Church, also known as
Visby Cathedral Visby Cathedral ( sv, Visby domkyrka), formally Visby Saint Mary's Cathedral (''Visby S:ta Maria domkyrka'') is a cathedral within the Church of Sweden, seat of the Bishop of Visby. It lies in the centre of Visby, the main town on the Swedish ...
, where part of his original gravestone is on display.Article
(in Swedish) at guteinfo.com


References and sources

* Jörgen Bracker: ''Klaus Störtebeker – Nur einer von ihnen. Die Geschichte der Vitalienbrüder'', in: Ralf Wiechmann: ''Klaus Störtebecker: ein Mythos wird entschlüsselt'', Fink, Paderborn/München, 2003, , pp. 9–59 * Matthias Puhle: ''Die Vitalienbrüder: Klaus Stortebeker und die Seeräuber der Hansezeit'', 2d ed., Campus Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 1994,


External links






Sources

Dukes of Mecklenburg 1360s births Year of birth uncertain 1397 deaths 14th-century German nobility 14th-century deaths from plague (disease) Swedish princes People from Gotland Sons of kings {{Germany-duke-stub