In Defence of the Absent King. Baroness Ebba Stenbock and the Fight for King Sigismund, 1597–1599

Abstract

ABSTRACT The present article deals with the political agency of Baroness Ebba Stenbock, the widow of Klaus Fleming, in the power struggle of the 1590s, when Duke Charles and King Sigismund were struggling for the throne of the Swedish Realm. Widow of the most ardent supporter of King Sigismund, Baroness Ebba became famous for participating in the politics of the time and even in the defense of the Turku Castle against the troops of the Duke. After the Baroness had been imprisoned and taken to Stockholm, she nevertheless received and sent messages to help the cause of the King. This article analyses the role of an aristocratic widow who held no offices but who had important symbolic power after her husband, the Admiral and the Steward of Finland and Livonia. A careful analysis of scattered evidence sheds light on the agency of an aristocratic widow and her role in the turmoil of the late sixteenth century.