ACTA UNIVERSITATIS UPSALIENSIS Studia Historica Upsaliensia 208 Utgivna av Historiska institutionen vid Uppsala universitet Genom Torkel Jansson, Jan Lindegren & Maria Ågren 1 2 Louise Berglund Guds stat och maktens villkor Politiska ideal i Vadstena kloster, ca 1370-1470 Summary: God’s State and the Conditions of Power Political Ideals in Vadstena Abbey, c. 1370-1470 UPPSALA 2003 3 Doktorsavhandling för filosofie doktorsexamen i historia framlagd vid Uppsala universitet 2003 ABSTRACT Berglund, Louise, 2003: Guds stat och maktens villkor. Politiska ideal i Vadstena kloster, ca 1370-1470. (God’s state and the Conditions of Power. Political ideals in Vadstena Abbey, c. 1370-1470.) Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. Studia Historica Upsaliensia 208. 220 pp. Uppsala. ISBN 91-554-5559-X Vadstena abbey was one of the most powerful religious institutions of Sweden in the Middle Ages. This thesis analyses two specific aspects of this position: the position of Vadstena abbey as an agent in the political space of the late Middle Ages, and the political ideals propagated by that institution. Sermons written for the feast days of Nordic saints constitute the central source material for this study. Sermons were the most efficient mass media of the medieval world and at an institution like Vadstena, preachers could hope to reach thousands of people from all social groups. Using the sermons I have analysed the political ideals propagated by the abbey. In the beginning of the period, the abbey taught an ideal close to that of Bernard of Clairvaux, an ideology of the supremacy of religious institutions over temporal ones, the priests as the lights of society and the unique authority of saint Birgitta. They berated the temporal powers for not following the dictates of the church and maintained that such behaviour would lead to ruin. Towards the middle of the 15th century a significant change occurred. The brothers began to teach that an evil king and tyrant was still legitimate, since his misrule was part of God’s plan. This change in the political ideals is related to a change in the position of the abbey in relation to temporal powers. After being relatively autonomous the abbey gradually became less so. This, I argue, is due to the strengthening of the institution of monarchy during a period otherwise seen as simply chaotic. Keywords: Medieval history, political history, church history, Vadstena abbey, sermons, preaching, Absolutist state, saints. Louise Berglund, Department of History, Uppsala University, S:t Larsgatan 2, SE-753 10 Uppsala, Sweden. © Louise Berglund 2003 ISSN 0081-6531 ISBN 91-554-5559-X Printed in Sweden by Elanders Gotab, Stockholm 2003 Distributor: Uppsala University Library, Box 510, SE-751 20 Uppsala, Sweden 4 INNEHÅLL Förord..............................................................................................................8 Kapitel 1. Helighet och politik ......................................................................10 Vadstena kloster och det politiska utrymmet ............................................10 Predikan och politisk makt...............................................................................11 Vadstena kloster och statsbildningen i Sverige.........................................15 Statsbildning och politisk formering ................................................................19 Stat och kyrka...................................................................................................22 Det medeltida politiska tänkandet .............................................................24 Andens tjänare som samhällets främste ...........................................................25 Statsskicket och auktoriteten ............................................................................27 Idealen..............................................................................................................30 Hierarkier och ordningar.................................................................................34 Frågan........................................................................................................38 Kapitel 2: Predikan som källa till historisk forskning...................................41 Predikan och historia.................................................................................41 Om konsten att komponera predikningar .........................................................46 Predikanten ......................................................................................................49 Åhörare och användare....................................................................................50 Urval..........................................................................................................52 Nordiska helgon: heligheten och politiken förankrade ....................................53 De nordiska helgonens biografier och användningar......................................55 Helgonen som saknas.......................................................................................58 Söndagar, helgdagar, särskilda publiker .........................................................59 Ytterligare begränsningar i urvalet och övrigt material .................................60 Den empiriska undersökningens disposition.............................................61 5 Kapitel 3: Auktoritetens byggstenar läggs på plats (1370-1390) ................. 63 Förutsättningarna för predikningarnas samhällsprogram......................... 63 Rikspatronsbegreppet: helgonens föränderliga roll.........................................64 Predikanter.......................................................................................................69 Predikosamlingar.............................................................................................71 Fokus på samtidens våldsamma konflikter............................................... 72 Predikan i vredens tid ......................................................................................73 Vadstena kloster i en orolig tid ........................................................................77 Ramarna för ett samhällsideal .................................................................. 79 Den gode prästen .............................................................................................79 En god och rättvis kung....................................................................................84 Den kristnes dygder..........................................................................................87 Ett nytt centrum i riket.............................................................................. 89 Sammanfattning ....................................................................................... 97 Kapitel 4: Handlingsutrymmet förtydligas (1391-1440).............................. 99 Birgitta och auktoritetens förutsättningar................................................. 99 Den ideala makten kring sekelskiftet 1400 ............................................ 106 Den trogne familjefadern ...............................................................................107 Ett troget sändebud ........................................................................................107 Lagarnas ursprung.........................................................................................110 Det starka klostret kring sekelskiftet ...................................................... 114 Politiskt tänkande i Vadstena ca 1416-1440 .......................................... 120 Konsten att regera väl....................................................................................120 Lagens centrala roll .......................................................................................124 Legitimitetens tecken ......................................................................................127 Prästerna och makten.....................................................................................128 Birgittapredikan och de politiska idealen ......................................................131 Det svårförsvarade handlingsutrymmet.................................................. 135 Vadstena och kyrkan under Erik av Pommern ...............................................140 Ett autonomt eller ett kringskuret kloster? ............................................. 149 Kris i kungamaktens utövning................................................................ 150 Kapitel 5: Återgång till vredens tid (1440-1470) ....................................... 154 Det nya lägets maktideal ........................................................................ 155 Det goda styret finns än..................................................................................155 Guds vilja genom tyranniet ............................................................................160 Den andliga auktoritetens underminering .............................................. 164 Vadstena och den världsliga makten..............................................................167 6 Den världsliga maktens ideologiska manifestation ........................................178 Klosteridealets nya utrymme...................................................................181 Andens människor som det godas värn ..........................................................184 Lydnaden........................................................................................................186 Det omgivande samhället ...............................................................................187