Sten Sture the Elder

Sten Sture the Elder (Sten Sture den äldre; 1440 – 14 December 1503) was a Swedish statesman and regent of Sweden from (1470–1497 and 1501–1503).

Background

In contemporary sources he is alternatively referred to as Sten Gustavsson or Herr Sten (Sir Sten); the practice of using noble family names as part of a personal name was not yet in use in Sweden at the time. He was born around 1440, the son of Gustav Anundsson of the Sture family and Birgitta Stensdotter Bielke, half-sister of the future Charles VIII. The Sture family was one of the high-ranking noble families of the time, though only distantly related to the royal house; his closest royal ancestor was King Sverker II of Sweden (both through family of Vinga and through family of Aspenäs). Sture's father, Gustav Anundsson, was Castellan of Kalmar Castle and a Privy Councillor, but died when the son was four. Birgitta Stensdotter remarried Gustav Karlsson of the Gumsehuvud family, and the son was most likely raised in their home, first at Kalmar Castle and later at Ekholmen Castle.

Sture

Sture was the name of two influential families in Sweden from the late 15th century to the early 16th century. One member of one of these families and two members of the other served as Regents of Sweden in the Kalmar Union between 1470 and 1520. The Sture Party were supported by the peasants and burgesses which often resulted in conflict with the church and the nobility in the Privy Council who more often supported the Union.

Viceroys

Sten Sture the younger's son Svante Stensson Sture was elevated in 1561 to comital rank, becoming 1st Count Sture of Bogesund and/or Stegeholm.

See also

External links

 "Sture". New International Encyclopedia. 1905. 

 Robert Nisbet Bain (1911). "Sture". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.).