Sådan är reformismen

 

Credit: Angelica Brockne

Hade jag väl skrivit om jag varit stenhård trotskist, anarkist eller något sådant. Eftersom (s)-märkta Aftonbladet här "stödjer" Fröken Snusks yttrandefrihet. Det rör sig alltså om den nya Fröken Snusk (inte Felicia). 

Låt Fröken Snusk sjunga om luder ihop med Jimmie

Nyktra autisters förbund

 

En intressant artikel från GP om "nykterhetsrörelsens fader" Peter (Pehr) Wieselgren. Som verkar ha varit en riktig tokstolle! Var han ens helnykterist? Läsen ock begrunden!

Stollerier från virdiskt håll har vi ju behandlat tidigare på denna blogg... 

Hur nykter var egentligen nykterhetsrörelsen fader?

Debunked by ChatGPT

 

Wtf, ChatGPT debunks some of my favorite speculations about ancient Scandinavia, damn you, Sam Altman, damn you! 

Is there any evidence that Uppland was ruled by queens from Scythia during the so-called Vendel period?

There’s no credible archaeological or historical evidence that Uppland — or any other part of Sweden — was ruled by “queens from Scythia” during the Vendel Period (c. 550–790 CE). That idea belongs more to the realm of myth, speculative ethnography, and 19th–early 20th century romantic nationalism than to modern historical research.

Here’s why:

---

1. Where the “Scythian queens” idea comes from

• Classical sources like Herodotus describe the Scythians (nomadic Iranian-speaking peoples in the Pontic steppe) and occasionally mention prominent women among related groups (e.g., Sarmatians, Amazons).

• In the early modern period, antiquarians tried to link Scandinavian legends to ancient world peoples. Olaus Rudbeck (17th century) famously identified Swedes as descendants of Atlanteans and Scythians.

• Some 19th-century historians interpreted saga references to powerful women — especially in Hervarar saga and Ynglingatal — as dim memories of steppe-born “Amazon” rulers.

• The Hervarar saga itself places part of its action in a semi-mythical “Reiðgotaland” and has connections between eastern warriors and the Svear, but this is saga-literary geography, not a reliable historical record.

---

2. What archaeology says about the Vendel period

• Uppland in the Vendel Period is known for rich boat graves, weapon burials, and elite male warrior culture. The style of helmets, shields, and harness mounts shows contact with both the Byzantine world and the steppe (through trade routes along the Volga and Dnieper).

• Some burial finds — horse gear, decorated mounts, and certain weapon types — have stylistic parallels with steppe nomad art. This shows trade and cultural contact, not political rule by foreign queens.

• Women’s graves from the period are sometimes richly furnished, indicating high status, but there’s no evidence these women were foreign-born Scythians or held sole political power.

---

3. Why the “queens” part is unlikely

• The political structures in Vendel-era Svealand appear to have been dominated by male war-leaders and kin-groups, with ceremonial kingship linked to cult sites like Old Uppsala.

• Elite women could have strong influence (as landholders, marriage alliance brokers, priestesses), but no contemporary or near-contemporary evidence points to a dynastic line of foreign female rulers.

• Even the most prominent saga queens — like Yrsa or Auðr the Deep-Minded — are embedded in a legendary chronology that mixes myth and historical kernels from many centuries apart.

---

4. The kernel of truth

• Uppland elites did have contacts with eastern Europe and the steppe world during the Vendel period via trade routes (the “Eastern Way”).

• Exotic goods — silks, glassware, silver, horse equipment — sometimes came via steppe intermediaries.

• A few decorative motifs on weaponry and gear have clear Sassanian or steppe-nomad origins, probably copied locally after goods reached Scandinavia.

• It’s conceivable that some high-status women in Svealand had eastern ancestry through marriage alliances with merchant-warrior groups from the Baltic’s eastern shore, but that’s not the same as rule by “Scythian queens.”

---

If you like, I can outline how certain burial finds in Vendel and Valsgärde have been misread as “Amazon” graves and why modern archaeologists interpret them differently. That’s where most of this legend picked up its pseudo-historical momentum.

Yes, please.

Alright — here’s where the “Amazon graves” idea in Vendel-period Uppland came from, and why modern archaeology doesn’t buy it.

---

1. The burials that fed the legend

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Swedish archaeologists excavating Valsgärde, Vendel, and other sites in Uppland found:

• Boat graves with richly furnished male warrior burials.

• A smaller number of richly equipped female burials — sometimes with jewelry, imported glassware, high-quality horse gear, and occasionally a weapon.

• Some women were buried with horses or elaborate horse equipment, which is unusual for most of Scandinavia but does have parallels in Eurasian steppe cultures (where mounted female warriors appear in both archaeology and myth).

Early scholars (working under the influence of Herodotus and the Amazon legends) leapt to the idea:

“These must be Scythian or Sarmatian ‘Amazon queens’ who came to rule the Svear!”

---

2. Why this was plausible to them at the time

• Steppe parallels: In the 19th century, a few female burials from the Pontic steppe were found with weapons, leading to the “real Amazons” hypothesis. When similar patterns (women + horses) were seen in Sweden, the connection was tempting.

• Saga echoes: Old Norse literature (e.g., Hervarar saga) speaks of warrior women (skjaldmær), sometimes tied to eastern lands. Linking them to archaeology felt natural to romantic nationalist historians.

• Diffusionism: The prevailing model assumed major cultural innovations came from outside — so rich or unusual graves were interpreted as proof of foreign elites.

---

3. Modern reinterpretation of these graves

Contemporary archaeology looks at these finds differently:

a) Local elite women, not steppe rulers

• The rich female graves match local Scandinavian elite burial customs — the goods, although sometimes imported, are arranged in Scandinavian styles and are part of known local assemblages.

• Horse burials for women may signal status within an elite household tied to horse-breeding or ceremonial functions, not necessarily martial roles.

b) Trade, not conquest

• The steppe-style horse gear and decorative metalwork probably arrived via Baltic trade routes linking Uppland with Gotland, the eastern Baltic, and through the Rus’ river systems to the steppe.

• Imported objects do not automatically mean imported rulers — the elite were avid consumers of exotic prestige goods.

c) The “weapons = warrior” assumption is shaky

• In many cases where weapons are found in women’s graves, they may be symbolic or related to status rather than evidence of active combat.

• Burial practice is a cultural performance, not a literal record of a person’s life role.

---

4. Why the “Amazon queen” idea persists in popular culture

• It’s a romantic, cinematic image: exotic warrior women riding into Uppland from the steppe.

• It neatly connects Scandinavian prehistory to the wider Eurasian drama.

• It blends saga heroines, Greek legends, and striking archaeology — irresistible for TV and novels.

---

Bottom line:
Those “Amazon” burials from Vendel-period Uppland are almost certainly local high-status women buried according to Scandinavian traditions, with some imported goods from the east. The “queens from Scythia” hypothesis is a romantic 19th-century overlay, not supported by current archaeological interpretation.

---

Could Odin be a euhemerized version of Attila the Hun?

That theory has actually been floated — especially in the 19th and early 20th centuries — but it’s on very shaky ground. Let’s break it down.

---

1. Where the idea comes from

• Medieval sources: Snorri Sturluson (Prose Edda, Ynglinga saga) and the Old English poem Widsith present Odin not purely as a god, but also as a legendary ancestor-king who led the Æsir from somewhere in the east into Scandinavia. Snorri even suggests he came from “Asaland” or “Asia,” specifically around the Don River or Black Sea region.

• Medieval chroniclers (like Saxo Grammaticus) sometimes rationalized pagan gods as deified human leaders — this is the euhemerist approach.

• Since Attila the Hun († 453 CE) came from the Eurasian steppe, and Odin was imagined as an eastern conqueror, some antiquarians guessed they were the same person.

---

2. Why people thought it might fit

• Chronology guesswork: If Odin had been a real steppe chieftain, his supposed migration to Scandinavia could (in imagination) align with the 5th century — right after Attila’s death.

• Steppe imagery in Norse myth: Odin’s horse (Sleipnir), his role as a war god, and some of his shamanic traits have vague parallels with Central Asian warrior and shaman traditions.

• Name parallels in migration myths: Medieval historians sometimes mapped known “barbarian kings” onto older mythic figures to make sense of them.

---

3. Why modern historians reject it

• Time depth: Odin worship is attested in Scandinavia well before Attila — Roman sources from the 1st–2nd century (like Tacitus) already mention a god similar to Odin (Mercury in the interpretatio romana).

• Mythic complexity: Odin’s role as death-god, magic-worker, and culture-bringer is far too mythologically layered to originate from a single historical chieftain.

• Geographic mismatch: The “Asaland” of Snorri is mythic geography, not a literal memory of Hunnic Hungary.

• Linguistics: The name Óðinn (from Proto-Germanic Wōðanaz) has Indo-European etymology meaning “fury” or “inspiration,” unrelated to Attila’s name or title.

• Lack of cultural continuity: Huns left little trace in Scandinavia compared to the massive influence of earlier and later trade/migration waves.

---

4. What’s more likely

• Snorri and others were using euhemerism to integrate pagan gods into Christian historiography. They chose “Asia” origins for Odin to make him fit biblical migration stories (everyone ultimately coming from the east after the Flood).

• The “Odin as eastern king” motif might preserve dim memories of some migration of elite warrior bands from the south or east — possibly Goths, Lombards, or other Germanic groups returning north — but not of Attila specifically.

---

In short:
The “Odin = Attila the Hun” theory is more of a romantic antiquarian speculation than a serious historical proposition. Odin’s cult is far older, and his mythic profile doesn’t match Attila’s biography. The resemblance is a product of medieval euhemerism plus 19th-century fascination with linking all dramatic history to famous named figures.

---

If you want, I can also walk you through the other “historical Odin” theories, including the one that ties him to a real migration leader in southern Denmark around the 4th century. Those have a bit more plausibility than the Attila idea.

Is there any evidence that Värend was the home of the Heruli?

There’s no hard archaeological proof that Värend (the southeastern inland part of modern Småland) was the home of the Heruli, but there is a longstanding historical speculation tying the two together — and it’s based almost entirely on medieval chroniclers and some suggestive (but not conclusive) patterns in place names and burial finds.

---

1. The historical Heruli

• The Heruli (Heruli in Latin, Eruli in Greek) were a Germanic-speaking warrior people who appear in late Roman sources from the 3rd to 6th centuries CE.

• They roamed widely — fighting in the Balkans, raiding the Aegean, serving in Roman armies — and were sometimes based near the lower Danube.

• In the mid-6th century, Procopius (Wars, VI.15) famously reports that a remnant of the Heruli, after losing to the Lombards, “returned to the island of Thule” — meaning Scandinavia — to live among “their kinsmen.”

---

2. Why Värend comes into the picture

• Olaus Rudbeck (17th century) and later Swedish antiquarians suggested that Procopius’s “Thule” meant southern Sweden, and that Värend (and perhaps Blekinge) was their ancestral homeland.

• Part of this comes from the phonetic similarity between Heruli and certain old place names in Småland (e.g., Härlöv, Härlunda, Häradsbäck). “Här” could be linked to Herul-, though it’s just as likely from Old Norse herr (“army”).

• The region has a concentration of large Iron Age burial mounds and weapon-rich graves, consistent with a militarized elite — but this is true of several parts of southern Sweden.

---

3. The evidentiary problems

• There’s no direct inscription, runestone, or artifact in Värend that explicitly names the Heruli.

• Procopius is vague — “Thule” could mean anywhere in Scandinavia. Many have argued for Gotland, Öland, or southern Norway instead.

• Archaeology can’t distinguish “Heruli” graves from those of other Scandinavian elites of the period.

• The idea that the Heruli originated in Värend is mainly a 17th–19th century romantic-nationalist hypothesis; most modern historians treat it cautiously.

---

4. Where scholarship stands now

• Mainstream view: The Heruli were a mobile warrior group whose exact homeland in Scandinavia is unknown.

• Värend is a possible return point after 550 CE, but not proven.

• The only solid link is the possibility of onomastic echoes and the general martial character of the archaeological finds in the region.

• Many experts lean toward the idea that the “return” was small in scale — perhaps a noble band rejoining related clans — rather than a large tribal migration.

---

If you’d like, I can walk you through the step-by-step reasoning Procopius gives and compare each detail to archaeological finds in Värend, Gotland, and Öland to see which location best fits his account. That’s the method historians use to test the Värend-Heruli theory.

Is there any evidence that the Phoenicians visited Scandinavia during the Bronze Age?

There’s no direct, indisputable evidence that Phoenicians ever reached Scandinavia during the Bronze Age — but there is a mix of suggestive clues, speculative theories, and a few genuine archaeological puzzles that have kept the idea alive in fringe and semi-academic circles.

Here’s how the case is usually presented and why mainstream archaeology remains skeptical:

---

1. Chronology problem

• The Phoenicians (centered in what’s now Lebanon) became a major seafaring and trading power around 1200 BCE and thrived until the 6th century BCE.

• The Nordic Bronze Age was roughly 1700–500 BCE, overlapping with the Phoenician period in its later centuries.

• So in theory, long-distance contact was possible in the later Bronze Age.

---

2. The trade motive theory

• Bronze Age Scandinavia had no native copper or tin — both had to be imported.

• Phoenicians were expert long-range traders, sourcing tin from as far away as Cornwall.

• Some have speculated they could have extended their tin-seeking voyages farther north, perhaps reaching the amber-rich Baltic.

• Amber from the Baltic is found in Mediterranean Bronze Age contexts — but this doesn’t prove direct Phoenician voyages; amber could have moved through many intermediary traders.

---

3. Archaeological hints (and why they’re debated)

• Bronze artifacts in Scandinavia sometimes show stylistic parallels to Mediterranean designs (spirals, sun motifs), but these could also be due to shared Indo-European cultural themes or indirect trade.

• A few rock carvings in Sweden and Norway depict ships with profiles that some claim resemble Mediterranean galleys — but most Scandinavian archaeologists see them as native designs.

• Metal composition studies sometimes show copper in Nordic Bronze Age artifacts with isotopic signatures matching Iberian or even Cypriot sources — again, this shows trade links but not necessarily Phoenician sailors in Nordic waters.

---

4. The Carthaginian connection

• Later Phoenicians (especially Carthaginians) certainly reached the Atlantic coasts of Spain, Portugal, and possibly the British Isles.

• Ancient authors like Himilco (reported by later Roman sources) describe voyages far north, perhaps to Britain’s tin mines — but there’s no firm textual evidence of voyages beyond Britain.

• A few fringe writers link the Carthaginian voyages to mythical lands like Thule, which some place in Scandinavia, but this is highly speculative.

---

5. Mainstream conclusion

• Yes: Baltic amber and southern copper moved between Scandinavia and the Mediterranean during the Bronze Age.

• Yes: Phoenicians were capable of such voyages and had trade interests that could, in theory, lead them north.

• No: There’s no solid archaeological or textual proof they personally sailed into Scandinavian waters. The more plausible scenario is a trade relay system through continental and Atlantic intermediaries.

---

If you want, I can give you a map reconstruction of possible Bronze Age trade networks showing how amber could have moved from Jutland and southern Sweden all the way to Tyre and Sidon without a Phoenician ship ever touching the Skagerrak. That’s where most scholarly models land today.

Was the Phoenician hypothesis a scholarly consensus about 30 years ago?

No, it never was a true scholarly consensus. Even 30–40 years ago, mainstream archaeologists treated the idea that Phoenicians directly visited Scandinavia as speculative or fringe.

Here’s a brief context:

---

1. Early 20th-century interest

• Some scholars in the early 1900s were fascinated by possible Mediterranean influences on northern Europe.

• Researchers sometimes suggested “Phoenician voyages to Scandinavia” to explain certain Bronze Age artifacts or amber trade, but these were mostly hypotheses, not widely accepted conclusions.

2. Mid-to-late 20th century

• By the 1970s–1990s, Scandinavian archaeology had strong empirical bases from local material culture, rock art, burial practices, and isotope studies.

• The focus shifted to regional developments and long-distance trade networks, showing that Mediterranean goods reached the north via intermediaries (Germanic and Central European traders) rather than direct Phoenician contact.

• Textual sources on Phoenician voyages were treated cautiously because they were often much later and sometimes mythologized.

3. Current view

• The “Phoenicians in Scandinavia” idea is now considered highly unlikely, bordering on pseudohistory, though some popular books and fringe writers still promote it.

• Most archaeologists accept Phoenician amber trade via relay networks, not personal navigation into the Baltic.

---

So, 30 years ago, the hypothesis existed in publications, but it was never mainstream or consensus. It was more a curiosity at the edge of Bronze Age studies.

If you want, I can list some of the main scholars who argued for and against it in the 1970s–1990s to see exactly how it was debated. Do you want me to do that?

Yes, please.

While the idea that Phoenicians directly visited Scandinavia during the Bronze Age was never a scholarly consensus, it did gain some traction in certain circles during the 20th century. This hypothesis was largely based on interpretations of archaeological finds, such as Mediterranean-style artifacts and the presence of Baltic amber in Mediterranean graves. However, these theories were often speculative and lacked direct evidence.

By the late 20th century, with advancements in archaeological methods and a more nuanced understanding of trade networks, the mainstream scholarly community moved away from the notion of direct Phoenician contact with Scandinavia. Instead, researchers emphasized the role of intermediary trade routes and local developments in the Nordic Bronze Age.

Today, the idea of direct Phoenician voyages to Scandinavia is largely considered a fringe theory, with most scholars focusing on more substantiated models of trade and cultural exchange.

No lindorm in this one

 

No deer were harmed when generating this picture!

"Vilda Småland" is a Swedish nature documentary only available for viewers in Sweden at SVT Play. Småland is a region in southeastern Sweden. Over 100 years ago, a maverick ethnologists actually claimed that the dragon-like lindorm was a real cryptid living somewhere in the Smålandese forests but, alas, nobody took him seriously! The real wildlife in the region in question is featured in this production. 

I admit that I got a bit bored after a while, since most of the docu is about deer. But sure, they show three different species, so if Cervidae is your main interest in life and you live within the borders of our kingdom, I suppose you´ll get your treat. Other animals shown include white-tailed eagles (munching on a dead deer!), whooper swans, grebes, the capercaillie, foxes, badgers, boars and lynxes. Weirldy, the sound made by the lynx sound like dog barks?! 

While it´s kind of interesting to watch animals you *almost* see when out strolling, the deer aspect soon got to me. But then, I´m not a hungry lindorm, so there´s that, I suppose!

 

There are no Palestinians

 

The real flag of Småland...
but quite similar to the one seen in the TV series!
Credit: FlaggorOnline.se

“Det finns inga smålänningar” is a four-part Swedish TV series first aired in 1981 (and probably never aired since). It´s easily the most controversial production ever shown on SVT (Swedish public service television). A total of 164 complaints were registered with Radionämnden, the government agency tasked with overseeing public service TV and radio in Sweden. In the end, Radionämnden decided not to take any action. Critics in the media accused the series of being absurd, partisan, anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic, but many also called it “pretentious twaddle” and considered it an embarrassment for SVT. Absurd and confusing were other judgments. And yes, it´s about the Israel-Palestine conflict!

The series retells the conflict between Jews/Israelis and Arabs/Palestinians in allegoric form, placing it on an alternate timeline in which a broadly similar conflict takes place in Sweden. The point of the exercise is presumably to make it easier for the average Swedish TV viewer to identify with the Palestinians, since they are recast as Swedish-speaking peasants living in refugee camps, but if that was the intention, it probably failed. Instead, “Det finns inga smålänningar” gives a chaotic and surrealistic impression, and frequently comes across as a real turkey. Pro-Palestinian activists could probably decode the various esoteric references in the series, but I doubt anybody else came even close. I actually watched the first episode as a kid, didn´t get half of it, and never watched the rest – until now (it´s available on SVT Play, but can only be seen in Sweden). Interestingly, I remember it being even more surreal than it actually was!

The title “Det finns inga smålänningar” means ”There are no Smålanders”, Småland being a historical province of Sweden. It´s a reference to Golda Meir´s notorious statement “There are no Palestinians”. In the series, Småland symbolizes Palestine, the town of Jönköping being Jerusalem. That´s actually quite apt, since Jönköping is often jokingly called “Småland´s Jerusalem” due to its large evangelical Christian community. The area of Värend in Småland symbolizes Israel, and its inhabitants (known as “virdar”) are a stand-in for the Jews. Zionism is called “viridism” in the series, a wholly fictitious concept! The forces of Värend expel the other Smålanders (= the Palestinians) in a bloody war of conquest. Östergötland is Lebanon, Västergötland is Syria and Skåne (Scania) is Egypt. Öresund is the Suez Canal. Somewhat confusingly, the rest of Sweden symbolizes the real Sweden, while no equivalent of Jordan has been included. 

The PLO is called the Småland Liberation Organization (SBO) and its leader does look like a convincing cross between Arafat and Castro. The Smålandian militant Lisa Jonsson is clearly based on the PFLP terrorist Leila Khaled. Like her real counterpart, Lisa hijacks an airplane and blows it up. The Smålanders are depicted as simple rural folk who suffer in refugee camps without ever really “getting it”, expect for the younger generation who goes on to form the militant SBO. It struck me that this could be an allegory for young people during the 1970´s becoming leftist radicals, while their parents and grandparents are apolitical and aloof. 

Indeed, the entire series could be taken as a fantasy of a revolution in 1970´s Sweden, with the Smålander-Palestinians being "the working class" or "the common people", the treacherous Arab leaders really being the Social Democrats, and so on. At one point, the displaced Smålanders clearly symbolize 1970´s immigrants in Sweden looking for gainful employment, not Palestinians in the Middle East. Maybe it´s a double allegory? Even the use of folk music – which looks rural and traditional – is really a 1970´s Swedish leftist thing in context, since “progressive” music was sometimes “folksy”.

It was (of course) the series´ sympathetic portrayal of the Palestinians, including the PLO, that made it intensely controversial. Today, a pro-Israeli series would probably be seen as far worse, which may tell us how (purported) public opinion has shifted since 1981. But, as already indicated, “Det finns inga smålänningar” is so absurdistic that it´s difficult to believe that *it* moved the needle!  

On one point, I actually found the series quite funny: the reporter Valter Ersson is depicted as vain, careerist, uncomprehending towards the plight of the refugees, and even something of a fake. While this may be an unfair caricature of an actual foreign news correspondent, it does capture a certain breed of “intellectuals” almost to a tee. The series is also hilariously precocious: in one episode, one of Ersson´s colleagues says that anything pro-Småland (i.e. pro-Palestinian) will surely be reported to Radionämnden! Go figure.

I think it´s pretty obvious why I decided to watch “There are no Smålanders” now. Let´s face it, the fact that SVT could show an anti-Zionist/pro-hijacker propaganda production in 1981 and get away with it, probably does tell us something of our Woke predicament. But, to repeat myself again, “Det finns inga smålänningar” in itself is so peculiar that I suspect it had very little effect on public opinion either way. Even today, it comes across more like a monument to the stranger strands of the 1970´s left-intellectual mindset...

Styr druider och frimurare Älmhult?

Just när man trodde att man sett allt, eller åtminstone det mesta...

Styrs Piteå och Älmhult i själva verket av frimurare och, host host, "druider"?

Druider? I Norrbotten år 2020. *Efter* Kristus?

Åååååkej. ☮️

Styr druider och frimurare Älmhult?

Hemliga män styr hel stad

An anomalous war

Tomas Blom´s book ”Dackefejden -  det stora upproret” is a book about an intriguing episode in Swedish history, the so-called Dacke War in 1542-43, actually a peasant rebellion in Småland directed against the rule of King Gustav Vasa. While the rebellion was brutally suppressed, it´s nevertheless considered to be the most successful “pure” peasant uprising in Swedish history. Its leader, Nils Dacke, was vilified for centuries in Swedish establishment propaganda, but today the tables have pretty much turned, with Gustav Vasa being considered the bad guy instead.

Gustav Vasa was king of Sweden from 1523 to 1560, and had come to power already in 1521 after defeating the tyrannical Danish king Christian II, who also claimed the Swedish throne. At the time, Vasa was supported by armed peasants in various parts of the country, including Småland. After the successful war of liberation, Vasa soon encountered opposition from various groups in Swedish society, including sections of the peasantry, who felt betrayed by the new king. During most of the 15^th century, Sweden had been relatively decentralized. Peasants had organs of local self-government and frequently didn´t pay any taxes, various royal and noble factions often called upon armed peasant detachments to fight for their interests, and the Catholic bishops had their own castles and private armies. Gustav Vasa, by contrast, wanted to create a centralized state administration with the king (i.e. himself) firmly in command. This necessitated a sharp increase in the tax burden for the peasantry, but also less power for various local factions of the nobility or the clergy. The Protestant Reformation, which Gustav Vasa supported, gave the king an excellent opportunity to increase royal revenues by confiscating Church property. The king´s bailiffs were notoriously meticulous, often taking all valuable objects from the churches, including monstrances, statues of the saints or tapestry. This was not just a way of taxing the Church, but also an indirect taxation of the peasantry, since parish churches were built and financed by the local peasants. Of course, the removal of monstrances and other typically Catholic objects of worship could be given a Protestant theological spin.

Thus, Gustav Vasa was the creator of the “early modern state” in Sweden, or perhaps even the first truly centralized Swedish kingdom. As already noted, however, this course arouse considerable opposition – and the rebels often took to arms. While all revolts failed, the Dacke War nevertheless stands out on a number of points. First, it was a rebellion organized and led by the peasants themselves, not by nobles mobilizing peasant detachments. The main leader, Nils Dacke, must have been a man of considerable intelligence and charisma. Second, the rebellion initially succeeded in defeating the king´s mercenaries, forcing Gustav Vasa to sign a truce with Dacke. For a short while, Dacke and his men controlled Småland and parts of Östergötland as a de facto independent republic. One reason was that Småland had an effective military organization, originally created and led by the nobility, but now turned against the king by the peasant population.

Third, the rebellion was unabashedly Catholic. Other peasant or popular rebellions in Europe during the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Period were usually associated with “heretical” movements. A good example would be the German Peasants´ War, usually regarded as Protestant in inspiration. In Sweden, by contrast, Protestantism was connected to royal prerogatives and centralization, and the number of Anabaptist radicals roaming the Swedish hinterland must have been exactly zero. This created the somewhat anomalous situation that the Dacke War defended the Catholic Church against state encroachment, and the rebels were indeed supported by the local clergy. Fourth, the rebels had contacts with outside forces – German towns and princes – interested in overthrowing the Swedish monarch. In the end, nothing came out of it, but it sure is an interesting question what could have happened if Dacke had gotten military support from more powerful players…

The author of “Dackefejden” is a popular history writer rather than a “real” historian. This is usually no problem, since his book is (of course) based on works by historians. However, sometimes his interpretations of events are somewhat peculiar. Thus, he constantly refers to Gustav Vasa´s actions as “Machiavellian” and compares them to various pieces of advice given by Machiavelli to rulers. Yet, he admits that there is no evidence Vasa ever read “The Prince”! Something tells me Gustav Eriksson Vasa wasn´t the first ruler in world history that lied, dissimulated, broke his promises, manipulated public opinion by skilful propaganda, and so on. Indeed, I believe this happened long before Machiavelli. Where did Old Nicky get his ideas from, do you think? I also managed to find one factual error in the book. Yes, Blom has confused the Elevation with the Benediction. The monstrance is used during the latter.

Nils Dacke went into hiding after the final suppression of the revolt, and was eventually killed by royal troops while trying to escape. Gustav Vasa was for centuries revered as the father of the modern Swedish nation. Indeed, the date of his coronation (6^th June) is still celebrated as the national holiday of Sweden. However, in the long run Vasa´s reputation couldn´t survive the democratization of Sweden during the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. Autocratic monarchs are no longer in fashion. After 500 years, the Catholic peasant commander Nils Dacke has been rehabilitated by a society he would have considered just as strange as a Protestant early modern state…

Here be heathens

“Om Draken eller Lindormen: Mémoire till Kongl. Vetenskaps-Akademien” is an extremely entertaining work by Gunnar Olof Hyltén-Cavallius, unfortunately only available in somewhat archaic Swedish. The book was originally published in 1885. The author was relatively well known in his day. He served as a diplomat in Brazil, founded a museum, belonged to several learned societies and is one of the fathers of Swedish ethnology. Today, Hyltén-Cavallius is probably mostly remembered for his two-volume work “Wärend och wirdarne”, which details the local mythology and culture of Värend, a district of Småland in southeast Sweden. According to some speculations, Värend and its inhabitants, known as virdar, are mentioned in Roman and Byzantine chronicles. More clear is that Värend was also the birth place of Hyltén-Cavallius himself…

“Om Draken eller Lindormen” is also set in Värend, with some additional material from other parts of Sweden. The author sent it, unsolicited, to the Swedish Royal Academy of Science, but some believe that it may have destroyed his reputation. Be that as it may, the work is fascinating in its own right, and may be the first (and only?) example of Swedish crypto-zoology. Hyltén-Cavallius believed that ancient Norse myths about the dragon, sometimes called “lindorm” in Swedish, were based on a real animal. He hoped that the Royal Academy would offer a reward to anyone killing a dragon and bringing its body to competent scientists for investigation. He also hoped that the Academy would send a zoologist to Värend to interview eye-witnesses who claimed to have encountered a “lindorm”. The book contains sworn affidavits from people who claimed to have done just that!

The “lindorm” is described as an enormous snake-like creature, and some of its purported behavior is reminiscent of more regular serpents. It basks in the sun, nests underground, swims and is apparently never seen in winter. Sometimes, it's seen together with snakes (presumably vipers). Its color is said to be black with a white underbelly, reminiscent of some grass snakes. The “lindorm” is said to have an enormous head with rows of white teeth, a large forked tongue, and the ability to spew poison at a considerable distance. When doing this, the “lindorm” stands upright, a behavior also found in cobras. It also has an enormous mane or mane-like structure, and according to one eye-witness, something looking like mammal-like ears hanging down from its head. The “lindorm” is so poisonous that killing it can be dangerous, since its body odors can make a man sick for days. One eye-witness who claims to have killed a “dragon” and thrown its body onto an anthill, reports that all the ants were dead when he returned to the spot a few days later! Here, the Swedish dragon is strikingly similar to another mythological creature, the basilisk. Like the basilisk, the “lindorm” also has enormous eyes and an evil stare.

It's not always clear from the accounts when the “natural” ends and the “paranormal” begins. A person who tried to shoot the local dragon was paralyzed for the rest of his life in one leg, suggesting that the creature has abilities beyond the normal. Many witnesses report being inordinately scared when seeing the creature, or *not* being scared until afterwards, which may be normal reactions to a basiliskos in your backyard, but I suppose it could also indicate the “Oz effect”. The gaze of the creature could indicate a family relationship with the red eyes spouted by many paranormal entities. In local folklore, the “lindorm” was associated with mysterious luminescent phenomena in the skies, and was therefore believed to be able to fly (compare UFOs). Otherwise, what is most striking about the reports is that they mostly sound “physical”, and that some brave Virds even killed the boss snake, naturally after a prolonged fight!

The only modern commentary on Hyltén-Cavallius' book I've seen was written by a skeptic whose name escapes me at the present time, who claimed that many of the witnesses were stone drunk and reported seeing the “lindorm” during the silly season (i.e. August). Actually, only one account mentions the witness being heavily inebriated, and several specifically insist they were sober. The “orm” was seen during all months of the year, except the winter months. That being said, the accounts *are* difficult to take seriously, due to the paucity of any tangible corpus delicti. The author admits at one point that researchers went digging at a location where a dragon was supposedly buried by the heroic heathen who killed him, but found absolutely nothing. But why did Hyltén-Cavallius chose to believe these peculiar reports in the first place?

Apparently, Hyltén-Cavallius had a general tendency to interpret folklore in a literalistic fashion. Thus, he believed that the trolls were real people, related to the Sami (the “Natives” of Scandinavia), who were turned into slightly sinister fairy folk by the story-telling of later generations. The giants of Norse mythology were also real, perhaps the Goth ancestors of the Norsemen? The dragon was a real reptile, and our enthusiastic crypto-zoologist believed that such creatures were to be found all over Sweden. “Om Draken eller Lindormen” contains a report from Dalecarlia and mentions a case from Jämtland in the northern part of the country. I don't really know how the learned men of “Kongl. Vetenskaps-Akademin” reacted to this peculiar memorandum, and the intrepid researcher died only four years later. The dragon, as far as I know, haven't been heard from since.

The American publisher of this material should be thanked for reprinting this little gem of Swedish cultural history, and I note that the copy used for reprint purposes is stamped “Harvard College, 1895”, suggesting that somehow Gunnar Olof Hyltén-Cavallius' labors managed to reach that venerable institution, or at least its library.