Anna Eriksdotter Bielke (1490 – 1525) was a Swedish

noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Gr ...

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

of the city and castle of

Kalmar Kalmar (, , ) is a city in the southeast of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 41,388 inhabitants in 2020 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of ...

during the Swedish rebellion against

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Biography

Anna was born to the noble councillor of state Erik Turesson (Bielke) and

Gunilla Johansdotter Bese Gunilla Johansdotter Bese, also called Gunhild (1475–1553) was a Finnish (Swedish) noble and fiefholder of Vyborg Castle from 1511 to 1513. Life Bese was the daughter of Johan Stensson Bese and Catherine Jonsdotter. She married riksråd Er ...

; among her siblings were

riksråd Riksrådet (in Norwegian and Swedish) or Rigsrådet (in Danish or English: the Council of the Realm and the Council of the State – sometimes translated as the "Privy Council") is the name of the councils of the Scandinavian countries that ...

and governor Axel Eriksson (Bielke),

Ture Eriksson (Bielke) and the infamous Barbro Eriksdotter (Bielke). In 1514 she married the noble and

Johan Månsson (Natt och Dag) (1470–1520), commander and

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of Kalmar 1510–1520. At the death of her spouse in the middle of the rebellion against Denmark in 1520, she took control of his fiefs and defended Kalmar against Denmark.Erik Turesson (Bielke), urn:sbl:18162, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (art av G. Carlsson.), hämtad 2014-07-14 This was a similar experience as that of her mother, who as a widow defended

Vyborg Castle Vyborg Castle (; ; ) is a fortress in Vyborg, Russia. It was built by the Swedes during the Middle Ages around which the town of Vyborg evolved. The castle became the stronghold of the Swedish realm in the Karelian region. Throughout the centuri ...

against the Russians. When her relative

Gustav Vasa Gustav Eriksson Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), also known as Gustav I, was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560. He was previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm (''Reichsverweser#Sweden, Riksföreståndare'') fr ...

was released from Danish captivity and returned to Sweden to take part in resistance against Danish rule, he turned to her first for assistance in the struggle. She received him kindly but did not think it possible to give him any help, as the fleet of

Søren Norby Søren Norby, self-styled as Severin Norbi (died 1530), was a Danish leading naval officer in the fleets of Danish kings Hans I and Christian II. He commandeered the greatest ship of the Danish fleet in naval wars against Sweden and Lübeck. Nor ...

was threatening the city, and the attitude in the city was pro-Danish. After Vasa's attempts to persuade the people to arm themselves against the Danish were met first by indifference and then by hostility he was forced to leave the city. Shortly thereafter, Anna was obliged to turn over the city to Denmark. The exact date of her surrender is not known, but it was between August and 6 September 1520. Anna later became engaged to Henrik von Melen, brother of

Berend von Melen A Dutch masculine given name and Low German surname that is a form of the Germanic Bernard (Bernhard). The name Bernhard means "Strong bear" or "Strong as a bear" (from Old German bero, "bear", and harti, "strong"). It is related to the Scandinavian ...

, the commander of Kalmar in 1523-24 and related to the king by marriage to his cousin

Margareta von Melen Margareta von Melen née Vasa (1489–1541) was a Swedish noble. She was second cousin of King Gustav Vasa and the maternal aunt of Queen Margaret Leijonhufvud . Life Margareta was the eldest daughter of the nobles Erik Karlsson ( Vasa) and Anna ...

. Suspected by King Gustav of a conspiracy, he was deprived of his governorship of a military expedition by Anna's brother Nils Eriksson on the order of the king. She discontinued her engagement on the request of King Gustav in 1524 or 1525.

In fiction

Anna Eriksdotter (Bielke) was portrayed in the

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

''Gustav Vasa'' by

Gustav III of Sweden Gustav III (29 March 1792), also called ''Gustavus III'', was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of King Adolf Frederick and Queen Louisa Ulrika of Sweden. Gustav was a vocal opponent of what he s ...

, which was performed by the

Royal Swedish Opera Royal Swedish Opera () is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the centre of Sweden's capital, Stockholm, in the borough of Norrmalm (borough), Norrmalm, on the eastern si ...

in 1786, with

Lovisa Augusti Lovisa Sofia Augusti (born Ester Salomon; 1751– 25 June 1790) was a Swedish opera singer (soprano). She was regarded as one of the most noted opera singers of the Royal Swedish Opera during the Gustavian era. She was appointed ''Hovsångare'' ...

playing Anna.

References

* Gustaf Elgenstierna (in Swedish): Den introducerade adelns ättartavlor (Tables of the introduced nobility) * Svensk uppslagsbok. Malmö 1939
Erik Turesson (Bielke), urn:sbl:18162, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (art av G. Carlsson.), hämtad 2014-07-14

Biography

In fiction

References

Further reading