Martha Leijonhufvud facts for kids

Martha Eriksdotter Leijonhufvud (born December 24, 1520, in Ödeby Lillkyrka, Närke – died January 15, 1584, in Stegeholm) was a very important Swedish noblewoman. People often called her Kung Märta, which means King Martha. She was the sister of Margaret Leijonhufvud, who became Queen of Sweden. This made Martha the sister-in-law of King Gustav I of Sweden. She was also the aunt of Queen Catherine Stenbock. Martha played a big role in Swedish politics. In 1568, she helped to remove King Eric XIV of Sweden from power. This led to her nephew, John III of Sweden, becoming the new king.

Biography

Martha's Marriage and Family Life

Martha was born into a powerful family. Her father, Erik Abrahamsson Leijonhufvud, died in the Stockholm Bloodbath before she was born. Her mother was Ebba Eriksdotter Vasa. Martha was also related to Gustav Vasa, who became King of Sweden in 1523.

Martha's sister, Margaret, was supposed to marry Svante Stensson Sture. He was the son of Christina Gyllenstierna, a former regent of Sweden. But in 1536, King Gustav decided to marry Margaret himself. So, Svante Sture married Martha instead. There is a famous story about how this happened. Svante Sture was kneeling before Margaret. The king walked in and asked what was going on. Margaret quickly said, "My lord Sture is asking for my sister Martha's hand!" The king then said, "Granted!"

Martha and Svante Stensson Sture were married on March 3, 1538. Their wedding took place at Nyköping Castle. By marrying Svante, Martha became part of the most powerful family in Sweden, after the royal family. Svante Sture was considered the highest-ranking nobleman. As the queen's sister and the wife of a top nobleman, Martha became one of the most important women in Sweden.

The Nickname "King Martha"

Martha had many children, at least fifteen in total. Ten of them lived to become adults. She and Svante lived at Stegeborg Castle. In 1542, during the Dacke War, Nils Dacke and his rebels surrounded Stegeborg. Dacke even offered Martha and Svante the chance to become the king and queen of Sweden. But they said no to his offer.

Svante Sture was often away on important missions. He became a marshal in 1543 and a commander in Finland in 1556. He also governed Livonia and Reval in 1562. While he was gone, Martha took charge of Stegeborg and all his lands. She was so good at managing things that people started calling her King Märta (King Martha). She was known for making decisions about justice and appointing local officials in her areas.

Because she was the queen's sister and married to a very important nobleman, Martha had a high position in society. She took part in many court ceremonies. Martha, her sister Brita, and her mother-in-law often helped care for the royal children. After her sister, Queen Margaret, died in 1551, Martha and her sister Brita looked after the royal children. This was until the king married again, to Martha's niece, Catherine Stenbock. Martha used her connections to both her sister and her niece, who were queens, to talk to the king.

In 1561, King Eric XIV of Sweden created new titles, like "count." Martha's husband became one of Sweden's first counts. This made Martha the first countess in Sweden. However, King Eric worried that the Sture family wanted to take the throne. They also became leaders of the nobles who opposed the king.

The Sture Murders

King Eric XIV was very suspicious of Martha and the Sture family. The Vasa family, which King Eric belonged to, was not seen as having the same strong claim to the throne as the Sture family. Members of the Sture family had been regents of Sweden many times before. Despite this, Martha's husband, Svante, and her sons, Erik and Nils, served in the Northern Seven Years' War (1563–1570).

In 1565, Martha's son Nils was accused of treason. He was forced to make a humiliating entry into the capital city. The court found him innocent, but this event made many nobles angry at the king. Later, the king imprisoned Svante Sture and his sons Nils and Erik, along with other noblemen. In May 1567, King Eric XIV gathered a court at Svartsjö Castle to judge the imprisoned nobles for treason. Martha traveled to Svartsjö with her daughter Anna to try and speak with the king. But they were not allowed into the castle. Instead, they were kept under guard in the nearby village. Martha sent a message to Karin Månsdotter, who was close to the king, asking her to speak up for the prisoners. She also sent a message to the king's daughter, Virginia Eriksdotter.

Later that month, the prisoners were moved by boat from Svartsjö to Uppsala to be judged. Martha was also brought to Uppsala under guard by boat. People reportedly mocked her during the journey. Once they arrived in Uppsala, Martha was taken to her family's home in the city and kept under house arrest. Her sister-in-law, Ebba Månsdotter (Lilliehöök), was also there for the same reason.

In Uppsala, Martha again asked Karin Månsdotter for help. On the morning of May 24, Karin met Martha at Uppsala Castle. Karin told Martha that the king had promised not to harm the prisoners. It is said that the king hesitated because of Karin's efforts. However, later that same day, the king had a mental breakdown. He then stabbed Nils Sture to death. He ordered the other prisoners to be killed, except for "Lord Sten." This led to the deaths of Martha's husband, Svante, and her second son, Erik. Two other noblemen were also killed. However, Sten Eriksson Leijonhufvud and Sten Axelsson Banér were spared. This was because the king's order was to spare "Lord Sten," and it was unclear which Lord Sten he meant.

On the same day, Martha's niece, Queen Dowager Catherine, arrived in Uppsala. She was given the sad task of telling Martha what had happened. The clothes worn by Svante, Nils, and Erik Sture when they died were kept by Martha. Today, you can see them on display in Uppsala Cathedral's northern tower.

Martha's Role in the Duke's Rebellion

After the Sture Murders, the king disappeared for three days. He was found outside the city in a very bad state. Karin Månsdotter calmed him down and brought him back to the capital. He was kept isolated for several weeks. The first person he met was Queen Dowager Catherine. She was asked to help the king make peace with the families of the murder victims, including her aunt Martha Leijonhufvud.

Through Catherine, Martha Leijonhufvud made her demands. She wanted a promise from the king that she would not be harmed. She also wanted an official statement that the murder victims were innocent. Martha demanded money as compensation and the arrest of Jöran Persson, who was seen as responsible for the king's actions. The king agreed to all these demands. He even held a large funeral for the victims on July 4. He paid Martha a large amount of silver as compensation. Martha placed the bloody clothes worn by her husband and sons on their graves in the church.

After the king recovered, he demanded the compensation money back. He wanted to use it to pay for his controversial wedding to Karin Månsdotter, who was not of noble birth. This marriage was seen as a scandal by the nobility. Martha refused to give the money back. Instead, she used the "blood bricks," as she called the silver, to fund a rebellion. This rebellion was led by the king's brothers, the Dukes. It eventually led to King Eric XIV being removed from power in 1568. Martha had the silver melted into coins with the images of the king's brothers, John and Charles. These coins were used to pay the Dukes' soldiers. She also spread stories about the king's terrible actions across Europe. This helped to justify the coup, which successfully replaced Eric XIV with John III of Sweden.

After the coup, King John III gave Martha her husband's former county as her own land in 1570. This land was even bigger now. This made Martha one of the five largest landowners in Sweden, along with her sister Brita and sister-in-law Ebba Månsdotter (Lilliehöök).

Her Daughter's Elopement

Martha's daughter, Malin (Magdalena), born in 1539, was in love with her cousin, Erik Gustavsson Stenbock. She wanted to marry him. But Martha said no because they were cousins. In 1573, after ten years of waiting, Erik convinced Prince Charles to help them. Prince Charles provided 200 men. Erik asked Malin to go for a sleigh ride with him. Once they were seated, the prince's guards appeared, and the couple left the estate.

Martha was very angry. She convinced her nephew, King John III, to arrest Erik and take away his property. Erik was eventually released, and his property was returned to him. This happened after the king's siblings, including his wife Catherine Jagellon of Poland, and his own family, like his aunt (and Martha's niece) Queen Dowager Katarina Stenbock, convinced the king to agree. Malin and Erik married in 1574. A story says it took a year of begging from the couple's relatives to convince Martha to forgive them for going against her wishes. The women of the family supposedly begged her "crying upon their knees" before she agreed to see her daughter. Another legend says her pregnant daughter had to crawl on her knees to her.

Issue

• Sigrid Svantesdotter Sture (1538–1613)
• Magdalena (Malin) Svantesdotter Sture (1539–1610)
• Anna Svantesdotter Sture (1541–1595)
• Sten Svantesson Sture (1542–1542)
• Nils Svantesson Sture (1543–1567)
• Sten Svantesson Sture (1544–1565)
• Erik Svantesson Sture (1546–1567)
• Margareta Svantesdotter Sture (1547–1617)
• Gustaf Svantesson Sture (1548–1548)
• Brita Svantesdotter Sture (1550–1550)
• Mauritz Svantesson Sture (1552–1592)
• Karl Svantesson Sture (1555–1598)
• Iliana Svantesdotter Sture (1556–1556)
• Iliana Svantesdotter Sture (1557–1557)
• Kristina Svantesdotter Sture (1559–1619)