Full resolution (TIFF) - On this page / på denna sida - VIII. Reigns of the Sons of Gustavus Vasa, 1560–1611 - A. Reign of Eric XIV, 1560–1568 - B. Reign of John III, 1568–1592
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130 A History of Sweden
mal deposition and deprived Eric of his freedom. He
died in prison nine years later. It is probable that John
had his brother poisoned, fearing that the prisoner
might be set free.
After several attempts to form marriage alliances at
foreign courts, Eric finally married Karin, or Cather-
ine, Mansdotter, a corporal’s daughter. It is said that
he met her first as a maid selling nuts in the market
place in Stockholm, and was charmed by her unusual
beauty. The lovely Karin was as good as she was beau-
tiful. With her, Eric’s troubled heart found rest. She
alone could calm his anger and turn away his evil
thoughts. During his imprisonment she took every
occasion to assure him of her love, and this, as he as-
serts in his writings, was the only comfort in his sor-
row. To the nobility, this marriage was an unheard-of
humiliation to Eric’s royal dignity, and it became a
prominent cause of his dethronement. After Eric’s
death, his widow received a feudal estate in Finland,
where she lived until her death, in 1612, universally
loved and respected for her nobility of character and
many benevolences.
B. REIGN OF JOHN III, 1568-1592
John’s Disposition and Extravagance. Like his broth-
er, John was suspicious and wasteful. It is true he did
not waste money and strength in dissipation. But every
once in a while he would take a fancy to building mag-
nificent palaces regardless of cost, "Building is our
delight," he wrote once to a builder. When he took a
notion to build, or some other enterprise tempted his
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