Biography
Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson was a mine owner and a nobleman from the historical Swedish province of Dalarna. Originally his family was of German origin having migrated to Sweden in the 1360s. The family coat of arms showed one of three half-lilies formed within a triangle.
Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson was dissatisfied by misdeeds of the Danish local bailiffs and heavy taxation. In 1426 he started a rebellion with the support of mine workers and peasants from his home area. Engelbrekt set against the king's bailiff in Västerås, Jösse Eriksson, who was blamed for the distress that mining men suffered under his rule. The rebellion grew into a massive force sweeping the country.
In 1435 Engelbrekt was appointed Rikshövitsman a military office at a Riksdag in Arboga that is often considered the first Riksdag in Sweden. However, he was not able to withstand the Swedish nobility, who wanted to exploit the rebellion. He was somewhat forced into the background. The Nobility and Clergy decided to support Karl Knutsson Bonde, who in 1436 was risen to the position of Rikshövitsman.
On 4 May 1436 Engelbrekt was assassinated at Engelbrektsholmen, an islet in Lake Hjälmaren by the aristocrat Måns Bengtsson, who lived in the nearby Göksholm Castle. Engelbrekt was buried in Örebro church. Måns Bengtsson was a Swedish knight and chief judge in traditional Swedish province of Närke. He was a member of the family Natt och Dag, a family from Östergötland which belongs to the Swedish noble class.
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