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120 A History of Sweden
again they had defied the king’s orders and killed his
bailiffs. They were especially angered at the king’s
orders forbidding them under a heavy fine to sell their
cattle at a higher price than he had fixed and forbid-
ding them under pain of death to sell their cattle
abroad. These prohibitions were the more exasperat-
ing to them as cattle were their chief articles of trade.
Nils Dacke, Leader of the Insurrection. In 1542 the
discontented Smalanders found a skillful leader in Nils
Dacke, who had, some time before, taken part in the
slaying of bailiffs, and had in consequence been com-
pelled to flee into the impenetrable forests on the
borders of the Danish provinces in Sweden. These for-
ests had been since early days resorts for thieves and
robbers from both kingdoms. It was such reckless fel-
lows he first gathered about him. Then he incited the
peasants against the king’s acts until a general upris-
ing resulted.
This "coarse brute and forest-brood," as the king
called Nils Dacke, inflicted severe losses on the king’s
forces. Especially threatening was the fact that the
Emperor Charles V entered into relations-wlt’h Dacke
for the purpose of restoring his brother-in-law, Chris-
tian II, to the Swedish throne. Matters became so des-
perate that Gustavus is said to have thought of aban-
doning everything and settling down in foreign lands.
Letters of Gustavus to the Peasantry. Gustavus suc-
ceeded with soothing letters to the peasantry in adja-
cent provinces to prevent the spread of the insurrec-
tion.
’The peasantry demands," he writes, "what is old
and time-honored, meaning thereby reduction of taxes
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