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thereupon invaded Sweden and defeated Albert at Falköping
(1389), taking him and his son prisoners. The war, however,
still continued, and it was at this period that the Vitalien
Brotherhood (1392) came into existence, originally deriving their
name (‘victuallers’) from their duty of supplying Stockholm with
provisions during the war. The city was at that time occupied
by the German adherents of Albert, and these German ‘victuallers’
were in truth a band of lawless marauders and pirates. Peace
was at length declared in 1395, and King Albert set at liberty on
condition of his leaving the country. During the same year Erik
was elected king of Denmark, and in 1396 of Sweden also, so that
the three crowns were now united, and the three kingdoms ruled by
the same regent. The following year Erik was solemnly crowned
at Kalmar by a diet of the three nations. Lastly, in 1398,
Margaret gained possession of Stockholm , the last stronghold of the
German partisans of Albert. The union of the three kingdoms
thus effected by Margaret, who is sometimes called the ‘Northern
Semiramis’, lasted till the beginning of the 16th cent., when it
was dissolved by the secession of Sweden, but Norway and
Denmark remained united down to the year 1814.
The Union.
Though nominally united and bound to make common cause
against all enemies, the three kingdoms jealously maintained their
respective forms of government. Margaret ruled over the three
countries with wisdom and moderation, though harassed by many
difficulties, and on her death in 1412 King Erik assumed the reins
of government. Erik, whose queen was Philippa, daughter of
Henry IV. of England, was a weak, incompetent, and at the same
time a cruel prince. He wasted large sums of money in an
attempt to recover Slesvig from the Counts of Holstein, who held it
as a Danish fief, and who were supported by the Hanseatic League.
Meanwhile Bergen was twice plundered by the Germans (1428
and 1429), who now became masters of that city, and in Sweden
the people were most oppressively treated by Erik’s German and
Danish officials. In 1435, after a disastrous quarrel of
twenty-three years, Eric was at length compelled to confirm the privileges
of the Hanseatic League and to leave the Counts of Holstein in
undisturbed possession of Slesvig. Exasperated by Erik’s
maladministration, by the debasement of the coinage, and other
grievances, the Swedish peasantry, headed by Engelbrekt
Engel-brektsson, a wealthy proprietor of mines, rebelled in 1433 and
compelled Erik and his council to appoint Karl Knutsson regent
of the kingdom (1436), shortly after which Engelbrekt was
assassinated. In Norway also the oppressive sway of foreign officials
caused great discontent and gave rise to a rebellion in 1436. Erik
in despair retired to the island of Gotland, and in 1438 a number
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