The Stockholm Bloodbath 1520: what happened and where to see the evidence today
Stockholm: bloody Stockholm — ghosts, horror & dark folklore
Duration: 2 hours
What was the Stockholm Bloodbath?
The Stockholm Bloodbath (November 1520) was a mass execution ordered by Danish King Christian II — approximately 80–100 Swedish nobles, clergy, and citizens were beheaded or hanged over two days in Stortorget, Gamla Stan. Christian II had invited them as guests to celebrate his coronation as Swedish king, then had them arrested and executed. The event triggered Gustav Eriksson Vasa's uprising and Swedish independence in 1521.
Stortorget, November 1520
If you stand in Stortorget — the small, beautiful, cobblestoned Great Square at the heart of Gamla Stan — you are standing in one of Scandinavia’s most significant sites of historical violence. The ochre-and-red facades are largely unchanged from the 16th century. The medieval well is still there. The pavement stones are descendants of the stones that were laid when the square was young.
On 8 and 9 November 1520, approximately 80–100 people were executed here. Their names are recorded on plaques on the north side of the square. Their deaths changed the political map of Scandinavia.
How it happened
The Kalmar Union and Swedish resistance
The Kalmar Union (1397–1523) nominally united Denmark, Norway, and Sweden under a single crown, but in practice Sweden was a semi-autonomous kingdom with its own nobility, church hierarchy, and sense of national identity that resisted Danish-dominated governance.
In the early 16th century, tension between the Swedish regent Sten Sture the Younger and the Danish king Christian II reached breaking point. Christian II invaded Sweden in 1520, and after the Battle of Bogesund (January 1520), Swedish resistance collapsed. Sten Sture the Younger died of wounds in January 1520. Stockholm held out until September 1520, when it surrendered.
The coronation and the trap
Christian II was crowned king of Sweden in Stockholm in November 1520. A three-day celebration followed, to which Swedish nobles, clergy, and leading citizens were invited. The feast was framed as a reconciliation — an opportunity for Christian to present himself as the legitimate king of a unified Scandinavian realm.
On the second day of the feast, Christian had the Swedish guests arrested. The charge: heresy. Archbishop Gustavo Trolle of Uppsala had personal grievances against the Swedish church hierarchy — specifically against the then-dead Sten Sture, who had ordered the demolition of Trolle’s castle — and he brought the charges that provided the legal pretext for the executions.
The executions
On 8 November 1520, the trials were conducted summarily. The verdict was heresy; the sentence was death. On 8 and 9 November, the executions took place in Stortorget.
Those executed included:
- Two bishops: Vincent of Skara and Mattias of Strängnäs
- Several prominent nobles, including Erik Vasa (father of the future King Gustav I)
- Burghers (leading citizens of Stockholm)
- Servants and associates of the accused
The method varied: nobles were beheaded; others were hanged. The bodies were displayed publicly for several days. At one point, the remains of Sten Sture the Younger (who had died months earlier) were exhumed and symbolically executed — Christian’s posthumous revenge on his primary opponent.
Contemporary estimates of the death toll range from 82 to 100 in Stortorget, with additional executions elsewhere in Sweden in the weeks that followed.
The consequences: Swedish independence
Erik Vasa’s son, Gustav Eriksson Vasa, was in Germany at the time of the Bloodbath. He returned to Sweden and in January 1521 arrived in the Dalarna region — the Swedish heartland, whose miners and farmers had strong reasons to oppose Danish taxation and rule. He recruited an army.
By June 1523, after two years of increasingly successful military campaigns, Stockholm fell to Swedish forces. Christian II was deposed as king of Sweden. On 6 June 1523, Gustav Vasa was elected King of Sweden by the Riksdag of the Estates.
6 June is now Sweden’s National Day — the anniversary of the founding of the independent Swedish kingdom that emerged directly from the Bloodbath’s consequences.
Gustav I ruled until 1560 and founded the Vasa dynasty, whose most famous legacy is the warship Vasa (1628) — preserved in the Vasa Museum on Djurgården. The monarchy he established governed Sweden until the present Bernadotte dynasty replaced it in 1818.
Where to see the evidence today
Stortorget
The square is essentially the same size and location as it was in 1520. The medieval well in the northeast corner of the square is contemporary with the Bloodbath. The plaques on the north side of the square (on the yellow building facades) name the victims.
Stand at the well and look south: you are looking across the space where the executions occurred. The Börshuset (now the Nobel Prize Museum) on the east side of the square is on the site of the original Stock Exchange building where the arrested guests were held.
Nobel Prize Museum
The Börshuset was built in 1778 on the footprint of an earlier building that dates to the Bloodbath period. The Nobel Prize Museum now occupies it. The museum’s basement has some material on the history of the building and the square. See the Nobel Prize Museum guide.
Stockholm’s Medieval Museum
The Medeltidsmuseet, below Norrbron bridge on the way to Gamla Stan from Norrmalm, has a dedicated section on medieval and early modern Stockholm that covers the Bloodbath in historical context. It also displays artefacts from a plague cemetery discovered during construction works — relevant context for the period. See the Medieval Museum guide.
The ghost tour
The most atmospheric way to engage with the Bloodbath history is via a ghost tour of Gamla Stan. The tours are historically grounded and deliver the Bloodbath story with appropriate drama at the exact location.
Book: Bloody Stockholm ghost and dark history tourChristian II: the historical record
Christian II is known in Swedish historical tradition as “Christian the Tyrant” (Kristian Tyrann). In Danish tradition, he is a more complex figure — a reformist king who tried to modernise Danish society and reduce noble power, but whose methods were brutal.
After the Swedish uprising, Christian II was also deposed in Denmark (1523), imprisoned for life (1532), and died in captivity in 1559. He never returned to power. The Bloodbath is the event for which he is primarily remembered in Scandinavian history.
The Bloodbath in Swedish culture
The 1520 Bloodbath is a foundational event in Swedish national consciousness — the trauma that created the modern Swedish state. References to it appear throughout Swedish literature, art, and popular culture. August Strindberg wrote about it. It features in school curricula. The annual commemoration on 6 June (National Day) has the Bloodbath as a historical backdrop.
For visitors, the Bloodbath provides context for why Gamla Stan’s Stortorget is more than a pretty medieval square — it is a charged historical site where something that genuinely mattered happened.
Frequently asked questions about the Stockholm Bloodbath
How many people were killed in the Stockholm Bloodbath?
Approximately 80–100 executed in Stortorget on 8–9 November 1520, including two bishops, several nobles, and leading citizens. Some sources give higher estimates.
Who ordered the Stockholm Bloodbath?
King Christian II of Denmark, based on heresy charges brought by Archbishop Gustavo Trolle of Uppsala.
What was the political consequence of the Stockholm Bloodbath?
It triggered Swedish independence. Gustav Vasa raised an army, defeated Christian II’s forces, and became King of Sweden in June 1523 — the founding of the modern Swedish kingdom.
Can you see the memorial today?
Yes — memorial plaques on the north side of Stortorget name the victims. The square’s footprint is unchanged from 1520.
Was the Stockholm Bloodbath part of a war?
It took place in the context of the contested Kalmar Union. Christian II had militarily conquered Sweden before the Bloodbath — it was a war crime within a political conflict.
Frequently asked questions about The Stockholm Bloodbath 1520
How many people were killed in the Stockholm Bloodbath?
Contemporary sources and modern historians estimate 80–100 executed in Stortorget on 8–9 November 1520. The dead included bishops, nobles, burghers (prominent citizens), and servants. Some sources give higher estimates; the core count of 80–100 is the scholarly consensus. The executions were preceded by a trial conducted by the Archbishop of Uppsala, Gustavo Trolle, who had political grievances against the Swedish church hierarchy.Who ordered the Stockholm Bloodbath?
King Christian II of Denmark (called 'Christian the Tyrant' in Swedish historical tradition). He had claimed the Swedish throne after a military campaign and held a three-day feast to celebrate his coronation as king of Sweden in October 1520. On the second day, he had the Swedish guests arrested on charges of heresy, brought by Archbishop Gustavo Trolle. The executions followed on 8–9 November.What was the political consequence of the Stockholm Bloodbath?
The Bloodbath triggered Swedish independence. Gustav Eriksson Vasa — whose father, Erik Vasa, was among the executed — escaped and raised an army from Dalarna county. By June 1523, Stockholm fell to the Swedish forces. Christian II was deposed as king of Sweden. Gustav Vasa became King Gustav I of Sweden on 6 June 1523 — a date still celebrated as Sweden's National Day.Can you see the memorial today?
Yes — memorial plaques on the north side of Stortorget name the victims of the Bloodbath. The square itself has barely changed in footprint since 1520. The building now housing the Nobel Prize Museum (Börshuset, east side of Stortorget) is on the site of the original Stock Exchange / bourse where participants in the feast were detained before execution.Was the Stockholm Bloodbath part of a war?
It took place in the context of the Kalmar Union — the political union of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden under Danish sovereignty — which was increasingly contested by Swedish nobles and the church in the early 16th century. Christian II's conquest of Sweden was preceded by a military campaign (the Battle of Bogesund in January 1520). The Bloodbath was therefore a war crime within an ongoing political conflict rather than a random atrocity.What happened to Archbishop Gustavo Trolle after the Bloodbath?
Gustavo Trolle was the Archbishop of Uppsala who initiated the heresy charges against the Swedish nobles, enabling the executions. After the Swedish uprising and independence, Trolle was deposed from his archbishopric and went into exile. He was never tried or convicted for his role in the Bloodbath. He died in 1535, still in exile.
Top experiences
Bookable activities with verified prices and instant confirmation on GetYourGuide.
